Cut, Beverly Hills

I have been M.I.A. lately, as my life has drastically changed. Part of my disappearance is that I was recently kicked to the curb, and then I moved to Westwood. But here I am, still firmly rooted on the Westside, and excited to try new spots in my Northwest corner of the Westside.

Before all of that went down, however, I spent my 30th birthday at one of the best steak spots in Los Angeles, Wolfgang Puck's "Cut," at the 4 Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills. It was an amazing dining experience, and a perfect way to start off a new decade of FabulouSlappy!

The restaurant is very different from your run-of-the-mill steak place. Unlike its competitors, Mastro's, or maybe Michael Mena's StripSteak, it is not a warm space with dark woods and deep leathers. In place of deep bold colors, the space is brightly lit with luminous windows and contemporary black furniture. It almost feels like a fun, modern cafeteria. Giant posters with close up photos of celebrity faces staring off into space (I was accompanied by George Clooney's 40x50 face) don the space.

We started with a bottle of one of my all time favorite vinos, Plumpjack's 2005 Oakville Cab. I have a couple bottles of this at home that I have been saving for a special occasion and was thrilled to see it on the menu. What better time? You only turn 30 once. PlumpJack is a small boutique vineyard in Napa, owned by the PlumpJack group, Gavin Newsome's umbrella company of sixteen enterprises. Their two wine labels, PlumpJacke and Cade have consistently been very good producers of Cabs. I love this cab because it encompasses all the things I love about cabs, big, bold, full of berries with a nice chocolatey finish.

As for the food, we had two starters, the tuna tartare, who the waiter insisted was the best tartare I would ever have. That's a big expectation to fill! The second starter, was a bit more daring, it was a bone-marrow flan. The tartare was just aight. It was served with a thin layer of avocado, scallions and ginger. It was good, the tuna was obviously very fresh, but was a bit heavy on the sauce. I thought the flavor was a little overwhelming and it would have been better if they let the natural flavor of the fish, avacado and ginger speak for themselves.

As for the bone marrow flan, I have to say, I had my reserations about trying this dish, as it just sounded......... weird. But honestly, it was one of the most amazing dishes I ever tried. Two bones were hollowed and cleaned out, and the marrow was transformed into a gelatinous filling. It was served with a small spoon and slices of home made toast. We were instructed to spread the marrow on the toast. It was fantastic. It tasted creamy, meaty and savory.

After our yummy appetizers, I had the Wagyu Kobe steak, and J had the rib eye. We also split the soft polenta with parmesan. The steak was very very very soft. It almost melted on my tongue, which to be frank, I was not in throes of ecstasy over. I must not be a steak connosieur because I tend to like my steak a little more chewy, and the texture of the Wagyu was just... too much. I felt as if I had a mouthful of butter, and to be frank, that kind of grosses me out. J's rib eye, on the other hand, was phenomenal. The polenta is also a must-have. It is fantastic, creamy, cheesy and ooey and goey. I could have had mouthfuls of it.

We finished our meal with their Valrhona Chocolate Soufflé, served with a Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Glace. Do I need to say more?



Cut at the Beverly Wilshire
A Four Seasons Hotel
9500 Wilshire Blvd.,
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
310-276-8500