01/20/09

Great Food, Great Service, Great Atmosphere

by Lirod88

Jiraffe is a great place to go for several occasions. I have had the most amazing food there and have enjoyed different, yet all pleasurable dining experiences. The ambiance is relaxed and not at all suffocating like other fine dining places. The service is friendly, and very attentive. Overall, however, what wins you over is the food. Generous portions and fresh seasonal products offered in various creative dishes makes you want to go back again and again. Monday Bistro menus are based on Farmers Market finds and are new each week- a steal at a prix fixe price of $38!!

• Pros: Close to the Promenade
• Cons: Parking

05/12/08

Great Steak, Fantastic Lemon Souffle

by cydeALL

For Mother's Day, I took mine to JiRaffe Restaurant in Santa Monica. We sat by the window overlooking Santa Monica Blvd early enough to catch the sunset. The corn puree I had as my appetizer was delicious and creamy, yet light. My mother engaged in the special poached asparagus salad: enormous, fresh--not at all bitter--asparagus served with pumpernickel toast. She then had the almond crusted trout, a beautiful and generous portion of fish served with greens and a caper sauce. I went for the steak, charred to perfection. Our server was sweet and unobtrusive, following through to dessert. She recommended their lemon souffle that was worth the ten minute wait, simply fantastic!

I look forward to visiting JiRaffe soon simply for their ambiance. A great date spot.

• Pros: Great food, ambience
• Cons: slight wait, but worth it

02/17/08

ONE OF THE WORST PLACES TO DINE PERIOD.

by noelcore

We came into tonight with a party of 6 and waited about 5 minutes to sit down, which isn't bad. However, It was a good 15 minutes before anyone even approached our table to offer water, let alone say hello. Our waiter, Greg, was absent minded and may have had his hands full with a fairly empty restaurant. We ordered a $100 bottle of wine and waited another 10 minutes before we even got it. Keep in mind, we were ready to order as soon as we had gotten there. The food was copacetic and I would rate it a solid 6.5 - 7 out of 10. But the service was just awful. Our server, Greg didn't even check on our first course. On top of his atrocious service, he left halfway through the meal without telling us and we got a last minute replacement server who wasn't that much better than her space cadet counterpart.

We were ready to order another bottle of wine, dessert, and some after-dinner ports (which would have helped their lacking check average) but waited another 15 minutes to take an order. I usually as a standard leave a 20% tip as I have waited tables before (even with bad service), but I left a 10% tip for a lackluster dining experience. I don't think I ever left a tip that poor.

If I could leave a half star for this place, I would. Save your money and most importantly your time by checking out Whist, Rustic Canyon, or Penthouse at the Huntley Hotel. They all have a better wine list and servers who actually care about you having a decent time, not about what audition they have next.

• Pros: Seared Foie Gras
• Cons: Service was just terrible

09/12/07

gone down the hill

by financemba

This restaurant used to be good years ago,not anymore.I have been here recently few times with my clients and i have to say it has been a bad experience each time.The wine list here is the worst in los angeles,please get some wines.It's not only boring but oper priced.The service is lacking with people who work here but who dont care.There used to be a black waiter who always waited on us and was extremely funny and good.On recent visits we have been served by clueless waiters and waitress.Anyway i wont be back anymore till they get everything straight with food,service and wine list.

• Pros: nothing i can think of.
• Cons: service,wine list and food

09/07/07

Worst experience ever in a restaurant

by frenchadam

We went to jiraffe last weekend with our good friends.On arrival we were treated pretty bad that we almost left.We had an 8pm reservation for a party of five and we arrived on time.The hostess did not have the table ready for thirty minutes and top of that she was arguing with us.On being seated this fat waitress waited on us and who was not very pleasant to deal with.We were shocked at those prices a restaurant like this can treat customers pretty bad.Sad they still exist and sad that we had bad food.I have never been in my life humiliated with this kind of attitude.I will not recommend jiraffe to anyone,neither will my friends.

• Pros: none
• Cons: fat waitress,food,hostess,drinks.

08/18/07

Arrogant Staff and Disappointing

by kam909

We made reservations at JiRaffe two weeks in advance. We arrived at the restaurant for our 7:45 reservation and were told that our table was not ready. At 8:15, we still were not seated. There is not a bar area, so we had to sit on a little couch in the lobby. They never apologized for running so late, quite the contrary, were quite arrogant. They seated people who arrived after us before they seated us. We spoke with the manager and he curtly told us that our table isn't ready. Again, no apology. When we were finally seated, over 40 minutes late, our waiter was an arrogant and dismissive as well. We were so irritated at that point that we left. My husband and I didn't want to give them a dime. They did not treat us like welcome guests in their restaurant, they acted as though we were lucky to be there. It was clear that upper management does not value the customer and it has trickled down to every person that we interacted with that night. There are plenty of great restaurants in Santa Monica, do yourself a favor and choose one that will be happy that you are there!

• Pros: Nice lighting
• Cons: Horrible, arrogant service, boring wine list

06/19/07

A memorable meal!

by lstuartbos

Other than one significant flaw, our recent experience at Jiraffe was outstanding! Our daughter picked Jiraffe for a belated Mother's Day celebration, and overall we had a delightful time and outstanding dinner.

The four of us (my bride of 35 years, our grown son and daughter, and I) elected to share two appetizers for the table. The blackened sea scallops with wine reduction were exquisite! Absolutely fresh, cooked just to opacity, melt-in-your-mouth tender with the bearest hint of crustiness for mouth feel; they were among the best we've ever eaten. The second appetizer: a panfried fois gras in a wine stock reducton was again a wonderfully fresh 4 ounce portion of liver cooked just until barely solidifed; a near triumph marred by overzealous season that nearly overwhelmed the flavor of the meat.

The entrees were enormously successful. My son had the Pork Chops, while the rest of us all ordered the Rack-of-Spring Lamb (rare for me, medium rare for my bridge, and medium for my daughter). All arrived cooked to perfection, tender, perfectly sauced and beaufifully flavored. The Yellowfin Potato samosas accompanying the lamb were equally delighful: two spears of creamy buttery potato puree in thin crisp pastry wraps. The remaining vegatable accompaniments were indifferently prepared, and frankly insipid: gray mounds with the flavor cooked away; redeemed only by having absorbed some of the delectable pan jus.

The deserts, as befits a restaurant aspiring to contemporary French cuisine, were exquisite! We ordered the Meyer lemon souffle and the Chocolate Truffle cake. Both were intensely flavored but not overly sweet, rich but not heavy. Both were completely sensational.

Finally, service throughout our meal was attentive but unobtrusive. Everything happened as it should, without fuss or fanfare, just quest excellence.

02/03/07

gone downhill,bland over-priced

by chancethegardner

it's been at least 6 years since i've had a good meal at jiraffe. the rabbit appetizer served on polenta was overdone, rather flavorless and lacked any bed of polenta. the lamb chops- recomended by the waiter (over the pork chop)- were undercooked for medium rare, somewhat cold, under-seasoned, and surrounded by what looked and tasted like the same reduction my rabbit was served with. the accompanying vegetables were unmemorable and did not help redeem this bummer of a dish.

service is ok, not great. atmosphere is pleasant. wine list is simple and not inspired. i wont be returning.

• Cons: a lot.

01/18/07

Tables on top of each other, average food.

by kevinmichael35

Went there for my 3 year wedding anniversary and the food was very average. I will say that I do eat out frequently and I have become a little critical but I am only giving my honest opinion. The tables were also very close to each other. I am a taller guy and the people behind me became my good friends because our chairs kept bumping into each others.I also felt the service was average. The waiter actually sneezed on me which was disgusting. They also took my silverware away before my meal arrived and when they brought out the main entree they forgot to bring me my silverware. I must have waited 20 minutes before I could get silverware. Finally the people next to me gave me theres since they had just sat down.

01/16/07

Room for Improvement

by xteen

I went for the Monday night bistro special. $35 for three courses - no question a great deal. Though the experience was very positive, it was not perfect. There was A LOT of lag time between the courses and between the dessert course and when we finally got our bill. Considering we ordered off a pre fixe menu, I was surprised that it took them over a half an hour to bring us our entree after we had finished the appetizer. Also, the entree (we both got the short rib over Chinese vegetables) was over salted and the sauce was too heavy. Beyond that, though, the atmosphere was pleasant and the food was overall quite good. I would probably go back for the bistro special since it's such a good deal that it makes up for the experience not being perfect.

• Pros: Monday night bistro special, atmosphere
• Cons: Service