Hollywood: Delphine

The W Hotel is one of my favorite hotel chains and I was very excited about the W opening in Hollywood, directly across from the Pantages Theatre. The IDG (Innovative Dining Group) has three ventures there; Delphine, a restaurant with a French-Mediterranean menu, The Living Room (lobby lounge) and  Station (terrace). The restaurant Delphine was the perfect place to start off our night last week.

We got there to enjoy the last remaining half hour of happy hour. Luckily for us, happy hour is enjoyed throughout the restaurant. The East coast oysters ($1 each) were smaller and more buttery tasting. I can’t pick a favorite though as the West coast ones ($2 each) were plump and brine-y delicious.

We were tempted by the $1/ each peel and eat shrimp but decided the ceviche was the way to go when dressed in theatre clothes. It was only $3 and more than enough for seafood lovers.

We were invited to stay for dinner. Delphine’s Executive Chef Sascha Lyon recently changed the  brasserie style menu to a more sophisticated menu to take advantage of the seasons. The two-page menu offers a raw bar along with the Chef’s specials as well the restaurant’s favorites. We decided to try the new crudos. The yellowtail featured cilantro chili oil and kaffir lime salt. Our favorite, the tuna was flavored with blood orange and basil salt.

 

We shared a Delphine Salad (escarole, red onions, walnuts, grano padano, lemon truffle vinaigrette). The salad is topped with a generous amount of cheese which only enhanced the savory dressing.

One of the specials of the week was the pan-roasted halibut with peewee potatoes and bacon clam chowder. I loved that the clams were still in the shell. Very artful plating. I had the Trout Meunier which was topped with tons of sauteed shrimp and diced potatoes.

We chose the Brussel sprout “leaves” from the specials side and the mac & cheese from the regular menu. The Brussel sprouts are trimmed at the bottom to release the tightly furled leaves and then cooked simply with garlic, shallot and lemon. It’s a great side dish with our fish. We couldn’t leave without trying the mac & cheese which Delphine makes with cured ham, sweet onions and Gruyere. It’s very modern and could be eaten as a meal, with some drinks of course. I liked the Manhattan.

 

While Delphine makes a great dining option pre-theatre, I would return to check out more of the menu. Chef Lyon’s background is quite intriguing. In New York, he was part of the opening staff for Daniel Boulud’s Daniel restaurant and opening team for Balthazar. He was most recently at Pastis and opened his own eponymous restaurant SASCHA before moving back to L.A.

 

 

Delphine at the W Hotel

6250 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90028

323-798-1355