1.5 Stars For The Yard's Simple and Direct Eats

SIV is careful with her stars this week handing out just 1 ½ for Santa Monica’s The Yard. She describes the gastropub as an "everyday hangout...the prices are moderate and the menu flexible." She continues on to say that "...from the outside, the place doesn't look promising...the Yard has been around only since 2008 but looks much older." But, it's "something of a find. The food is good, the place is low-key and comfortable, and waiters fuss over customers in a nice way." In the kitchen one will find Chris “CJ” Jacobson, Top Chef season three alum, preparing "simple and direct" fare, "you don't need anybody to tell you that his produce mostly comes from the farmers market. You can taste the freshness and the spunk." In particular SIV enjoys the crispy duck confit, as well as the fried pigs’ ears, “cut like thick fries, crunchy and curiously sticky at the same time.” While “The Yard may not be a destination restaurant...it's just the kind of place most neighborhoods need- friendly and unpretentious, with honest cooking and fair prices.” [LAT]

The Elsewhere: The Find visits Jeff’s Gourmet Sausage Factory, Diana Takes a Bite at Umami Burger, Deep End Dining loves A-Frame, Gourmet Pigs samples sugarFISH, The Minty dines at Drago Centro, and Eating LA hits Lazy Ox.