Hollywood: Public Kitchen & Bar at the Roosevelt Hotel

I was invited to the new Public Kitchen and Bar at the Roosevelt for dinner last week. We started with some cocktails at the bar.

It’s rare to find a cocktail in Hollywood for under $10. All the cocktails at Public are $9. And these weren’t your average booze + mixer cocktails but thoughtful classics and specialty cocktails. I particularly liked the Kentucky Brunch (r1 rye, apricot marmalade, lemon, egg white) and the Spiced Cucumber Collins (Hendrick’s gin, lime, shoshito pepper, cucumber, mint).

I also tasted the Equation (r1 rye, Aperol, Grand Marnier, grapefruit juice), Alexandra (Milagro silver tequila, Aperol, St. Germain, lemon syrup, passionfruit, yuzu, mint) and Pineapple Express (Sailor Jerry Spiced rum, lime, agave, pineapple, basil and ginger beer). I liked the last two.

For dinner, we started with some appetizers; Parker House Rolls (the chef’s mom’s recipe), house pickled veggies, burrata (love!), chicken liver terrine, potato tart, chicharrones and potato & three cheese fritters  (like Porto’s potato balls but fluffier– dare I say better?).

The dark inky purple stuff on top of the chicken liver terrine is actually a red wine jelly. It was great with the chicken liver. I did also enjoy the piquancy of the kumquat marmalade with the smooth liver.

Actually, why don’t we make it a meal of appetizers? How fun would that be to share all the appetizers? How about cured and smoked stealhead salmon with fingerling potato salad, diver scallops, crab cake, gnudi, Neapolitan meatballs and crispy oxtail galette with poached farm egg.

I loved all the seafood though the crab cake was the oddest thing to me. Unlike a traditional crab cake, this was more like a crepe.

Gnudi is like gnocchi but perhaps a little denser. I loved the chanterelles. I remember when I learned what sugo was- sauce- it was dining at Babbo in New York. Basically anytime I see sugo, I’m transported back to New York and that fantastic meal. I’m glad these meatballs would be something an Italian grandma would be proud of. Our last appetizer was the crispy oxtail galette.

I dipped into the classic cocktails and tried the Bistro Sidecar. I loved the candied lemon garnish. The Basil Hayden was the perfect bourbon to use for this cocktail.

Oh wait, I lied. We had more. Bring on the entrees! Pictured above is the market fish which happened to be swordfish that day. Loved the caper berries.

As a special treat, the chef sent us out a foie gras sausage. It was a special that evening. Sausage = win. Foie gras sausage = double win.

Is it possible to eat so much and still want dessert? Of course! We had to finish off our night with a few wonderful desserts. My favorite was the passionfruit and lime trifle as well as the chocolate and butterscotch pudding. The berliner was filled with lemon as the seasonal marmalade.

Public Kitchen and Bar is a great addition to the Roosevelt and you can’t go wrong with $9 cocktails and a variety of appetizers. I’d go back to try the pork schnitzel and the cote d’boeuf for 2 with marrow bones since I did enjoy the entrees.

Public Kitchen & Bar at the Roosevelt Hotel

7000 Hollywood Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90028 

323-466-7000