DTLA: Cocktails at Coco Laurent

In the heart of Downtown is Coco Laurent. Serving up a menu of French classics and solid craft cocktails, Coco Laurent is an ideal restaurant and bar to duck into before a 7th Street bar crawl. Just within a few steps are Casey’s, Seven, Salvage Bar, Bottega Louie, Mas Malo, Seven Grand and Mo-chica.

Krishna Vulta formerly of Picca and Providence mans the bar at Coco Laurent. Here’s an interesting piece of trivia; Krishna’s cousin is the new Miss America, Nina Davuluri. Good looks run in this family. #hotbartender alert

 

It was a super hot day so it was nice to start with something fizzy. I’m obsessed with Combier Pamplemousse right now and can’t get enough of the pink grapefruit liqueur. The La Vie En Rose was a great cocktail to start with. Krishna makes his own cassis pearls or roe as he calls it for a colorful garnish. I thought rum was an interesting base for this sparkling cocktail since usually we see a clear spirit as a base. It was great because it was sweet without being overly so.

La Vie En Rose – Mount Gay rum, Combier Pamplemousse, Prosecco, cassis roe

 

One of the starters we had was the beef carpaccio. There’s something about thinly shaved raw meat that is always so good. You can taste the quality of the meat with minimal seasoning. Coco Laurent tops theirs with pine nuts and parsley.

 

I always enjoy a good stirred cocktail and Dangerous Liaisons fits the bill. The smooth armagnac and Benedictine is perked up with a little fino sherry for a nice bite.

Dangerous Liaisons – Armagnac, Benedictine, fino sherry, Gran Classico bitters

 

If want a heavier appetizers, Coco Laurent has New Zealand lamb chops. I thought these were interesting with the golden raisin gastrique.

 

I just had another salad with these interesting stems so I recognized this as kale. We had a theory these were baby kale and we were right. This is baby purple kale from Kenter Farms in Ventura County. This kale has a tarter flavor and texture closer to spinach than rougher “regular” kale.

Krishna asked what was next and I replied the LA Woman. He told us how he came up with it after hearing aloe gets really foamy. He thought he could recreate a foamy egg white drink with just aloe alone. It does impart a really silky mouthfeel but it doesn’t replicate an egg white drink. No matter because the drink is pretty delicious on its own.

LA Woman – Rittenhouse rye, lemon, orgeat, hibiscus tea, aloe

 

Nothing makes me more happy than a big bowl of seafood. Coco Laurent had a stunning bouillabaisse which looks so arty. I almost thought the soup would spill out. Filled with prawns, mussels, calamari and a scallop, the bouillabaisse was extremely rich. Gotta love that butter in French cooking. Fortunately the tomato helps cut the richness a bit.

 

For the last cocktail, we tasted the Insane Bolt. I was partially attracted because of the name but I also can’t pass up any over proof cocktails. The high proof Smith & Cross rum is a great match for this neo-tiki drink.

Insane Bolt – Smith & Cross rum, maraschino, orgeat, bitters

So who’s up for a 7th Street bar crawl in Downtown?

 

Coco Laurent

707 S Grand Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90017  —  (213) 623-0008

© The Minty  2013