The Early Virb

Just one month after opening, Sher is ready to file her initial thinkage on the "hip Middle Eastern restaurant,"Cleo, in the Redbury Hotel. So far no real complains, "The menu is fresh and appealing, the flavors big and rustic. I love the artichoke leaves, charred at the edges from cooking in the wood-burning oven. Cauliflower florets come perfumed with vaudovan (a French curry powder) and dotted with cashew nuts... kebabs emerge from the kitchen fragrant and sizzling. The lamb sausage is terrific and beef tagine with prunes, almonds and sherry is melt-in-the-mouth tender...Cleo is turning out some great Middle Eastern food and offering something new and different on the Hollywood scene." [LAT]