Celadon

07/14/2008 Posted by LosAngelophle

I went to Celadon around 11:00pm on a Saturday night with my girlfriend for drinks and was pretty disappointed with the service, overall. There were, at most, 5 other people in the bar but it took forever to get a drink because the bartender was too busy flirting with a girl at the end of the bar to be bothered to take our order. When the time came to pay for our tab it took another 15 minutes to pry him away from her again before we could get out of the place. I might go back again to try the food but there are other places in town that provide far better service if you're looking to have a drink.

Pros: Great ambience

Cons: Lousy service

06/04/2008 Posted by ShaneeSez

It's a wonderful restaurant, the staff is friendly. I have never had a bad mean or service. Everything we ordered was delicious. A must try is the hummus, it's different, but delicious. The Apple Doughnut were not my favorite desert, but that's just a taste thing. My friend ordered a second helping. Just give it a try and try the Orange Margarita. On this last trip we had a meal of Tapas. DEELISH!!!!

Pros: Food, Drinks, Service, Ambiance, Desert

Cons: I don't live next door!

04/21/2008 Posted by boogyloo

We felt as though we were lucky enough to be judges for an "Iron Chef" episode during which everything prepared was absolutely amazing. The tapas-style dishes feature combinations as unique as Chef Danny Elmaleh's heritage. What is produced is consistent perfection. We have been fortunate enough to order from various seasonal menus, and, while the ingredients change, our satisfaction does not. Tip: Do not leave without trying the scallops!

03/11/2008 Posted by kimtest72

The food here is awesome! Every dish that was brought our looked beautiful and tasted great. Try the tuna tartar lolipops and for sure ask for one of the fresh squeezed juice cocktails. Perfect for a girls night or date.

01/19/2008 Posted by Century07

After reading many great reviews of Celadon, my boyfriend and I decided to try it out last night. We found it a bit suspicious that the restaurant was not crowded on a Friday night but we sat down anyway. We ordered miso soup to start and five other dishes and we waited... and waited... 40 minutes later, our food had still not arrived (not even the miso!) and our waiter was nowhere to be found... finally we motioned him over and asked him to check on our food... he came back and said that there was a back-up in the kitchen (although everyone around us, seated after us, had already received their food)... we asked to speak to the manager. 10 minutes later the manager showed up and assured us that this "never happens"... we waited for him to offer us another round of drinks or dessert on the house and nothing! after his multiple assurances that the kitchen is not usually this slow, he just walked away! When the food finally arrived, it was mediocre (I've had better walnut shrimp at Wokcano on 3rd) and quite overpriced ($9 for miso soup?). Needless to say, we will not be returning to Celadon and I'll be surprised if its still open in 6 months.

12/23/2007 Posted by kalnow

I'm a regular LA foodie (not in any way affiliated with the restaurant) and I have to say that Celadon is one of the "hidden gems" of this city. I have always found the place to have friendly and pleasant service and absolutely exceptional small plate cuisine. The cocktails, although priced in a more high-end range ($10-12) are very delicious and feature unusual ingredients such as prickly pear, ginger, and elderflower. The small plates are some of the most creative dishes you will find in the city--highlights being the Middle-East inspired hamachi spoons, the leeked potato with snapper, and the tuna tartar lollipops (a spicy tempura-battered refreshing ahi concoction). On my multiple visits to Celadon, I have had no less than 14 of the dishes, and while some are of course better than others, they are all across the board above average because the chef is creative and bold in mixing styles of cuisine with fantastic results.

Pros: exceptionally creative dishes, delicious cocktails

Cons: parking can be challenging...use the valet

11/02/2007 Posted by jplanse

I am not much on words, my wife and several friends have been to Celadon several times in the past month and a half. I must say that despite the couple of reviews that are here that someone keeps knocking the place, I, my wife nor my friends have seen any problems. We love the restaurant, we adore the food, but with the staff that is here, this is why we keep going back. Maybe Brian took heed to what was said and decided to turn things around or it was just someone that had a bad experience one night. I have to say we didn't see this problem. We even made the reservation for my wife's birthday and she got a call from someone at the restaurant wishing her a "Happy Birthday" and they made it extra special for her that night. We are fans of the restaurant and will keep going back time and again. I hope this one stays in business!

Pros: Awesome food, Attentive Staff, Beautiful Atmosphere

Cons: Get there while you can

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

10/27/2007 Posted by paigematch

We just checked to see if the management gave as rude a retort to verbal987 as he posted to makosmommy on 10/5. The owners must have come to their sences, as it has been removed. We realize the customer is not always right, but for a manager to have posted, what he did, is unbelievable. We definately believe the revue from 8/27--Rico Suave saying, "its only $4.00". It's just more proof of the lack of respect and service,that is now standard at Celadon. All of the fellow customersthat we have spoken to agree-"We are just numbers to the management, and though that may be true, WE DO PAY HIS SALARY!' Maybe the staff feels that way to, as the hostess staff, has had a complete turnover. We debated putting our feelings on the web, but if it was our business, we would want to know, so to the owners "do something." Their has never been a question about Chef Dannys food-the best in this city! As to the comment about Michael-I'll say no more than unbelievable!

5 out of 5 people found this review helpful

10/27/2007 Posted by shouer

I must say, I went with a group of friends last night for dinner, and had the best time of my life. Friday night was crazy, all of the tables were full, even the room on the side was full, and people were being sent to the bar to wait for a table. The music is upbeat, the lighting was a bit bright but the manager, Brian, took care of the problem promptly. The food, there are just not enough words to describe or should I say the right words to describe it. Danny is truly an artist like none other. Brian was right when he told us the textures and flavors that Danny the chef put together were carefully thought over and prepared with passion. Our server, bus boy, food runners were all so friendly and helpful, this is the first restaurant I have been in that a busboy can do a great job recommending something on the menu much less describing the item as well!! Our food came out like clockwork and the items we ordered were paired together perfectly. As I see in other reviews the “Lollipops” are great, but there is a new item that beats them all, the Truffled Tuna Tartar with Quail Eggs, I am a fan of Hummus, but this chef has an ingredient in there that will knock your socks off. Brian made a bet with us that he would buy our dinner if there was something we didn’t like; needless to say my friend has a large charge on her credit card. The drinks that were on the specialty drink menu are amazing as well, if you like pumpkin pie, then you need to get in and try Li’s, Bar Manager, Pumpkin Pie Martini, just like pumpkin pie. I have to agree with the last review here, all of you can have the other restaurants, my friends and I will keep this one for ourselves. Kudos to Brian, Danny and Li, you guys are doing a great job, people in Los Angeles don’t know what they are missing out on. FYI...My friend witnessed Michael the old manager yelling at the waitstaff in front of the guests, she wouldn't go back, she saw the review that he was gone, she's a regular again.

Pros: Atmosphere, service, food

Cons: Everyone is gonna find this place

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful

10/25/2007 Posted by luciasm

OMG, could I have found the most delicious, most fun, best dining spot in LA?! You can have your Koi and Katsuya's because Celadon is all mine! Where do I begin? The Lollipops are such a tasty mixture of textures and flavors, the Hummus Parfait is hummus on steroids-the freshest, most original presentation and combination of flavors, yes, in the hummus. And then there was the drinks, wow, good thing I got to be the passenger because I was rocked after 2 signature cocktails: the Bloody Pear Margarita quenched my parched throat and then the Fire on Third blew me away, to actually be able to drink thai chilli is ingenious. I had a little bit of room left for the desserts, who am I kidding? I ALWAYS have room for dessert and the Celadon desserts reminded me why...fresh apple doughnuts, we're talking rings of fresh apple lightly breaded and fried in donut batter with caramel and creme anglaise on the side, AMAZING and then the Roast Mission FIgs with Vanilla gelato, hmm, those were both fruit so that doesn't count as dessert ;) I have to go back to try the chocolate stuff and all the other goodies...this place is worth a try and we had no problems with service, charming and available. Also note that this is a great place for large parties and they told me you can work with the bartender to make up your own signature cocktail! how cool is that!

Pros: Cocktails & Food

Cons: NONE

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful