The Village, A Sharp Gastropub Grows in Studio City

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While it's not Ellen DeGeneres' vegan concept, as of tomorrow it is The Village, a new Ventura Boulevard gastropub from Frank Leon, the guy behind Bokado, La Loggia, and Next Door Tapas Bar. Leon reconfigured Bokado into a hip 2,400 square foot tavern with industrial embellishments, Edison bulbs, and refurbished wood and metal chairs/tables. Out on the retractable roof-covered patio there's a pizza oven which fires pizza combos like zucchini flower (burrata, zucchini blossoms, tomato), jamon iberico (jamon iberico, fontina, Taleggio, figs, walnuts), and goat cheese and bacon (leeks, scallions, garlic). Pizzas are priced $12 to $16.

Aside from pizza, a section of the menu is dedicated to mozzarella preps, meanwhile the bulk of the list is composed of small plates priced from $3 to $16. Think Tuscan kale salad; mussels with coconut milk, fennel, Thai chiles, and cilantro; and Jidori chicken wings with garlic, thyme, sherry, and miso. Cocktails and beer are listed on chalkboards throughout the venue, all specialty drinks were named after American authors known for their boozy habits. The Rum Diary is made with rum, Applejack, maple syrup, lemon, orange, and peppermint; meanwhile Churchill is composed of Armagnac, orange brandy, egg white, raw agave, and nutmeg. The Village serves Sunday to Wednesday from 5 p.m. to midnight and Thursday to Saturday from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. Brunch to following in a few weeks.
·Frank Leon Morphs Bokado into The Village Gastropub [~ELA~]