From the driving, to the parking, to the not knowing where to drive or park, dinner in L.A. is harder than it should be. That’s why we created Dinner Plan — your itinerary to a damn good time.
From the underground casinos of the Prohibition to the hazy nightclubs of Philip Marlowe’s hey to the go-go and glam rock days of The Roxy and London Fog, the Sunset Strip was the backbone of L.A. nightlife for nearly a century.
Today, it typifies what most foreign tourists idealize about Los Angeles and most New Yorkers dread in it: see-and-be-seen eateries, cheesy clubs and bumper-to-bumper traffic.
But Estrella, a new restaurant at the intersection of Holloway — complete with raftered wood ceilings, lush greenery throughout and a a quail confit in bone marrow — is fixing to change that.
To get there, avoid hopping on Sunset. Take back roads to get to Holloway, either by Uber, Lyft or your own whip. The parking deck is on Palm, off Sunset.
Dinner: Estrella
8800 Sunset Blvd
Typically you don’t tout the fried chicken on a high-end establishment’s menu. But Estrella Chef Dakota Weiss (Sweetfin Poké) cures her bird for 24 hours, then confits it for another eight hours before tempura-frying it with rice flour, soda water and vodka, and then finishes it off with honey. The result is perfectly cooked meat — succulent, tender, sweet and savory — with a complementary crunch. Order at least one for the table.
The bone marrow with confit quail is another must get. Pull the meat from these little guys, mix it with the bone marrow and squash spaetzle, and then spread it on the thick-cut toast. Also solid: egg-sized mussels that come in a red ale broth with hominy and harissa for added kick. And of course, the bacon-wrapped, poached-egg-stuffed Rolling Stone immortalized by Eater.
Ask the hostess for the banquette at the top corner of the patio so you can people watch the folks sitting inside, where the sandy wood, lush greenery and glass pendants evoke a Laurel Canyon bungalow. Like we said, the ladies will like this spot. Once you get a bite of the food, you will too.
After Dinner: The Eveleigh
8752 Sunset
Post-meal, walk about a block east to The Eveleigh, the Strip’s other solid restaurant/bar. You’re just hitting the bar tonight. Mixologist Garrett Mikell just released a new menu of boozy concoctions that includes The Dark Arts: blended scotch, nacino, black lime and yuzu bitters. The Opium is a solid closer, with rye, amaro, vermouth and rhubarb bitters.
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