Getty Center Restaurant

02/20/12

Great food with a view

by George Allen

I live in Vero Beach, Florida and was visiting my adult children in LA. We went to Batali's Monza restaurant, overrated, Keller's Bouchon in Beverly Hills, superb, and the new LA branch of Fig & Olive, which was pretty good, and a hot place now.

Now for the Getty Restaurant: This was the best, not just the view and the art and the enjoyment of getting there and walking around, but the food was sensational. They said they had a new chef, I think from the Philippines. My daughter had the salmon which was great, and I had a short rib dish with the most interesting tasty vegetables, a dab of seasoned mash potatoes, and most of all, the presentation and taste of the ribs, served like a filet mignon, and the best I ever had. Service was also good. The wine list was excellent.

12/21/11

Fabulous setting and delicious food!

by tbone17

Imagine the most breathtaking views, stunning art and delicious food in one place. That place is Getty Center Restaurant. As I sat at a lovely table, sipping a champagne cocktail and tasting foods that were thought provoking, made from local, sustainable ingredients, I realized that this was one of those experiences that should be shared by all!

12/16/11

Lovely spot for a special celebration

by sugarbug

My girlfriend was celebrating a big birthday and wanted to check out the PST exhibition at The Getty Center. So, we spent the day in the haze of the art and architecture which would have been enough, but I took it a step further and surprised her by making reservations for dinner at The Restaurant, and invited 6 of our closest friends to join us.

The woman who I made the reservation with on the phone was accommodating to my request that it was a surprise party, and that some of the guests would be arriving prior to the birthday girl. They set us up at a perfect table by the window so we could take in the spectacular view.

By the time she and I walked in - the party had started, and the wine expert had got the table all set up with a bottle of Duckhorn Sauv. Blanc from Napa (great wine list by the way!) and our server brought the table some freshly baked artisan breads to nibble on until we arrived.

We were seated immediately by a pleasant hostess and our server greeted us right away and acknowledged the special event.

In our group, we had a "foodie" a vegetarian, a "locavore", and a "meat n' potatoes guy" ... NOT an easy crowd to please by any means - but all of us were able to find something PERFECT on the menu! From the butternut squash risotto (vegetarian) to the local heirloom tomato and burrata salad (locavore) to the flat-iron steak and whipped potatoes (meat n' potatoes guy)

We loved it.... oh, and the chef even brought out a complimentary "amuse bouche" for us - which even impressed our "foodie".

Based on our great experience, I would definitely recommend celebrating a special occasion at the Restaurant at the Getty Center!

Interesting note: out of our group - my friend and I were the only ones who actually visited the museum that day, the rest of the group just came for dinner, which I was a little nervous about - asking them to make the trek up the hill just for dinner... but one of them jokingly said "oh, was there a museum there?" which was confirmation to me that it was worth the trip for such a special experience!

good to note: The Restaurant isn't open every night - so make a reservation so you don't show up in the evening to find it closed.

12/16/11

Another fine dining expirience at the Getty

by CA Cupcake

So my friend says let's go to the Getty... Well I'm not so into it but I say sure, as long as we can dine in the restaurant again. So we "visit the art" which is beautiful and inspiring of course, but I'm hungry so I say ok, we've visited the art, can we eat now?

We arrive at the host stand and are greeted by a friendly girl with a warm smile followed by a handsome gentleman (accent and all). We don't have reservations but it's a Wednesday in December and they sneak us in with no problem.

I start asking the server the tough questions like what's the newest item, what does he enjoy the most, what is the most frequently ordered item...you know the questions that show whether they can think on their feet and sound reasonably educated in dining. He does a great job making me even more hungry so we order.

I go for the newest chef creation, the Albacore Tataki with seared local sustainable tuna and a perfect balance of citrus and yuzu vinaigrette over mache greens, beech mushrooms and blood oranges with a yellow pepper coulis strategically placed in the corners...total yum! They didn't teach this in culinary school.

Then onto some Sea Scallops over Butternut Squash Risotto, I guess by now you can tell I'm a seafood lover. This was perfectly done too, "to the tooth" for you other foodies. The scallops we tender, no grit, nicely caramelized you know...the good stuff.

Once I'd had my way with that, I was off to dessert. Still feeling seasonal, I chose the Pumpkin Brulee and some espresso to keep me awake for the rest of the afternoon. Again, a fine representation of how things should be done right down to the crisp butter cookies along side the brulee.

The server did a good job handleing my testing of his knowlege and my friend's lack of interest in the food. My friend is all about the art, and stuck to more traditional menu choices. He liked what he had, but I say When in Rome... it takes all kinds I guess.

06/16/11

Absolutely horrible!!

by Missbunny

My mother was here from England and an uncle wanted to take her to the Getty for fine dining!!! We had been to dozens of restaurants in LA and SF but as my mother had never been to the Getty we went there. The restaurant is very nice and the views are beautiful. The service was good but the food was asbolutely disgusting. All 3 or us couldn't eat our food and we each ordered something different. My mother's pasta was swimming in thick pea like green soup/sauce, my uncles fish was dry and put on top of something unrecognizable and my turkey burger was absolutely tasteless. The petite fours we had with coffee were not petite fours. They were some kind of sweets but definitely not the aforementioned. I have read 4 and 5 star reviews for this restaurant and cannot believe it..This was an experience I will never repeat and the bill was very high. Sorry folks I do not recommend.