Last Tuesday was a sad, rainy, dreary day in So Cal. After Con, Prop, and Civ Pro the gang and I decided we needed to go out to eat to lift our moods. We decided to go to Father’s Office.
escaping from Westwood
Father’s Office is a restaurant in Santa Monica that I have heard buzz about since I landed in LA 6 months ago. Allegedly the burgers are better than In & Out and the sweet potato fries are out of this world. Not too far from UCLA, it is located on Montana in the small commercial area teaming with adorable shops and a William Sonoma (a personal favorite).
my beer, which I forgot the name of
The restaurant is basically a bar with tables, no waiters and waitresses. You place your order at the bar and take a number and sit. While this description might sound a little trashy the interior was nicely decorated. Small, but not a hole in the wall. The bar is small though. We were there on a Tuesday at 7 when it was raining and we had to wait about 5 mins for a table. I can hardly imagine what it is like at peek time. You would have to be a shark to snag a table.
There was an extensive beer menu with many imports and microbrews. The bartenders were really knowledgeable about the beers and the flavor pairings. I had a Belgium beer, which I can’t remember the name of, but I can tell you it was light and had notes of citrus.
The menu is pretty small, probably because everyone is ordering the burger. Three of us had the burger and Eric had the beef kabob thing. The burger itself was $12, which I don’t think is too bad for a big gourmet burger. I will say that it was an extra $2.50 for fries and $6.50 for sweet potato fries which was disappointing. I ended up getting regular fries because I didn’t want to pony up the extra $4 for sweet potato fries. The fries came with this amazing aioli sauce which was so much better than ketchup.
looks good... but I want a burger!
Now for the burger. It was possibly the best burger I have ever eaten. It is a good size dried aged beef with caramelized onion, applewood bacon compote, gruyere, matag blue cheese and arugula. Normally i do not like burgers. In fact, I rarely eat them. Generally I only eat in and out but I can tell you, this was HANDS DOWN the best burger I have ever had. The toppings compliment the beef so well it is unbelievable. I can never argue with two types of cheese. The arugula was perfectly warmed as were the onions. The toppings balance so well, you don’t notice one as dominant. This burger was like a perfect harmony and melody. Absolutely going back to Father’s Office.
fin
Once I’m done with the pasta, I put a small dollop of olive oil in the pot and cook minced garlic and onion until cooked though. Then I add as tablespoon of tomato paste and a small amount of water. Normally I use red wine instead of water to loosen up the tomato past, but I didn’t have any on hand last week. The red wine gives a sauce a better depth of flavor. This is when I add salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and cherry tomatoes.
When the sauce has cooked for a few minutes, I add in a green. You can use basil or arugula but I choose chopped spinach.
I keep the sauce over heat until the spinach has started to wilt. Then I take off the heat and add the pasta and combine.
And then the final essential element of a good breakfast, a large non fat latte from Coffee Bean (or as Carolyn calls it, “the coffee beanery”).
Left Coast Contessa 