Welcome To Scarpetta LA, The Next Hottest Seat In Town

Grid View

Lo and behold, the day has arrived. Today, NYC man about town, chef Scott Conant, bestows upon Angelenos his interpretation of rustic Italian at Scarpetta within the Montage hotel in Beverly Hills. Dinner commences tonight, lunch takes effect early next month, here now the very first look inside. It's hard to believe that this grand space once housed the Montage's contemporary American eatery, parq, parq what? Exactly. Well, nobody will forget the name now, so on that note, let's get to the good stuff. Scarpetta LA bears semblance to both the NYC and Toronto branches (there's a Scarpetta in Miami too), basically like a hybrid of the two, more majestic than NYC (check out the vaulted ceiling), yet not at sleek as Toronto. The color scheme remains the same, warm shades of brown, cream, and white, those circular booths make an appearance in Toronto, as do the glass orb lighting fixtures. The space feel elegant yet understated, a fitting addition to the Montage and an appropriate new neighbor to nearby Bouchon and Spago.

And while Scarpetta is sure to be the new power spot, the ultimate table to score isn't really a table at all, rather a counter. For anyone planning to hit Scarpetta, do not miss the restaurant's EPIC kitchen, marble countertops and all, feels much more like a massive home kitchen than anything found in a restaurant. While there's a glassed-in chef's table in the way back, the best seat, well, six seats, in the house exist at the back corner of that kitchen where guests can sit at the counter and watch the show heat up.

So, dining options range from the ground floor main dining room to the kitchen, there's also a second floor dining situation with two private rooms, in addition to an outdoor patio, but that probably won't be open for another week or so. Let's not forget the lounge and bar as well, which you pass to the left on your way into the main dining space.

On to food and drink. Expect refined, rustic Italian fare (yes, both refined and rustic) influenced by California's bountiful farmers markets. While the tried and true make an appearance (don't miss Scott's signature velvety polenta with truffled wild mushrooms and his bright spaghetti with tomato and basil), other standouts include a salad of mixed greens served atop black truffle puree with a foie gras foam, steak simply sliced with slivers of Parmesan and delicate shaves of fresh black truffle, and braised short rib gnocchi with chestnuts. Eater was graciously invited in this past weekend for a 16-course kitchen stadium feast and let's just say we're still full.

And as if we even need to tell you, there's more than enough vino here to go around. The Montage's sommelier Mark Hefter organized an international wine list with about 700 or so bottles, that list bible will be quite the doozy.

The story continues. Up next, Scarpetta Vegas.
·Scott Conant "Pursues Goodness" Bringing Scarpetta to LA [~ELA~]
·Scott Conant Opening Scarpetta at The Montage This Fall! [~ELA~]
·Scarpetta LA Menu