Rustic Canyon Wine Bar

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LAFoodChick

Joined 5 years ago

best doughnuts ever!. The doughnuts were so good and I would love some more of that strawberry rhubarb pie. Our waiter Gabe was the perfect amount of attentive and so charming. We had such a lovely time. Can't wait to go back!

Doesn't Recommend

DavidJacobs90210

Joined 5 years ago

Yuck! I would of rather gone to TGI Friday's..... Rustic Cyn used to be one of my fav spots, NOT ANY MORE!

I went last night with a friend (Her 1st time) to Rustic.

After waiting 30 minutes, although we had a reservation, we finally got a seat in the corner near the restroom (Bad start to a horrible evening)

We ordered a couple appetizers, as well as a bottle of wine.

The wine selection is great there, with reasonable prices.

The Mussels were allright (kind of bland) and the Raviolo was horrific! I could of got a better Raviolo at Olive garden, or better yet the ready made kind from the supermarket. It was drenched in Oil/butter and was so overcooked that the ingredients were busting out of the shell.

She ordered the Halibut that she liked, but my fav the Burger was inedible... I have ordered that same burger the past 3 times I was there, so I was shocked.

I asked to speak to the manager, and they informed me that he was gone for the evening (Friday night @ 10PM, no manager???) and the hostess came to address my problem.

After speaking to her, it came to my attention that the chef had recently been replaced, and that "they are working out the kinks"

Atleast they comped the burger (That I didnt even eat)......

It seems like another one of those spots that did great in its first year, and forget about all of the important things once they are booked everynight.

Spend your $65 elsewhere!

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Coucou2008

Joined 5 years ago

Another Dinning place!. I had dinner in this restaurant with some friends for the first time last Friday, and the food was descent; however the acoustics in the room were terrible. We could not speak without shouting. We changed our seating arrangement; women in our party were on one side of the table and men were on the side. Some people could not participate in the conversation because it was just ridiculous to shout. The restaurant needs to do something about it.

As for the food, my dish (Ratatouille) had some fresh, but crunchy vegetables- not enough salt, and I also heard some of my friends complaining about the lack of salt in their soups. The cheese plate was descent- nothing to write home about.

As for the wine, we had 3 bottles of wine; one them was terrible and I wish I can't remember the name of it - just to write it off my list, but the other 2 were average.

As far as I'm concern, I'll go back only if I'm dragged in there or someone else pick this place and I have no choice but to go. But, I'll definitely warn them about the acoustics in this place.

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brooklynjesse

Joined 5 years ago

Best lunch in Santa Monica. My friends and I just had the best lunch here. We shared an incredible chopped salad, farro with carrots and peas and a great BLT with avocado on wonderful whole grain bread and to top it off we indulged in these melt in your mouth little cinamon covered doughnuts. Really, really, a GOOD lunch. Had to share what a great lunch spot this is.

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sn726

Joined 7 years ago

Love this place!. I've been going to Rustic Canyon for months. This is a wonderful place, friendly, casual and fun with very fresh seasonal food. AND THEY PUT UP SOUND PANELS SO THE NOISE IS NO PROBLEM AT ALL ANYMORE!!! Most important: The new chef (Evan Funke) is brilliant! This month duck confit and amazing pastas. Mussels and steak are always wonderful. And don't miss the desserts. The pastry chef, Zoe Nathan, has been lauded all over town. LA Times said she was one of the culinary treasures of 2008. Bottom line: Go. A good time will be had by all. Oh, and did I mention the desserts?!

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marpop

Joined 6 years ago

There are better options out there..... It's a good concept - using seasonal veggies etc. - but their execution is lacking. We went once and we were not overly impressed. We tried to go a second time, but they were 'too busy' to give us a table and we were in a rush to see a movie, so we opted for Subway (and glad we saved our money). It's the kind of restaurant that could be a whole lot better, and a tad more affordable. I would tell you more about our meal, but I can hardly remember what we ate (a sign it was not very memorable). Bottom line - when you're going to spend about a hundred dollars on dinner for two, it should be better...

Doesn't Recommend

yatoh

Joined 6 years ago

Horrible Food - Microwaved Food. I wish there were a negative rating option, as this place doesn't even deserve 1 star. I got a Chicken Paella dish and the chicken tasted like it was microwaved! It was dry and tough. Service was OK. This place is over-rated

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labuzzblog

Joined 6 years ago

Thanks for a great evening. We went out to Rustic Canyon for the first time tonight for our anniversary. It was wonderful. Great menu. Fair prices. Excellent service. Our recommendation is to go early if you can- we had a 6pm seating. The place was still quiet and we had most of the service staff to ourselves. We started with the squash soup, excellent flavor, but server a bit too hot. Once it cooled we loved it. We tried the champagne cocktails, but found them a bit too tall- served in highball glasses, we'd prefered to have them in flutes with just a hint of flavor. All the dishes were great. We had a wonderful bottle of wine at $55 (Ridge 40th Anniversary Zinfandel) that was excellent. We shared 5 courses with wine, cocktails & tea and the bill was around $200 with tip. Seemed like a very reasonalbe prices for a memorable night out.

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foodielaguy112233

Joined 6 years ago

Great Veggie PotPie. I loved the great atmosphere. Good food, too. I had the hamburger (tasty) and my friend had the veggie potpie which was the best potpie I've ever had. Good service and parking was no problem at all.

Doesn't Recommend

englishmenwino

Joined 6 years ago

Horrible food and over priced wine lsit. We came here this past friday with a group of friends for the first time.We are surprised to see such an attitude at this place which barely opened few months ago.The food is nothing to rave about and neither is the wine list which way sooooooooo over priced.Charging $16 bucks for a glass of prisoner,please get your prices right.If i have to pay that kind of price i rather get a nice glass of cabernet at hotel bel air for that price which is a better atmosphere,more sophisticated than this joint.We all were dissapointed with the food and the service and above all the gouching of wine prices.They will not be here for long with that kind of attitude and prices.I go to providence once a week and that is what i call a restaurant which does everything right from food to wine.please send your owner over there to learn more on food and wine.Can't believe we spent $450 for six people for that lousy food and bad wine.