Barton G. The Restaurant Menu

Barton G. The Restaurant Restaurant Review:

About the restaurant: Though the location is not too far from Hollywood, the show that’s staged in this restaurant was not created in the City of Angels but in Miami, where restaurateur Barton G. Weiss is based. Upon entering the place, if you’re not aware of what’s going on (but now you will know after reading these lines), you’ll no doubt wonder about the mini-wheelbarrows, big 1950s toasters, enlarged fish hooks, three-foot forks and birds on the tables. And you’d probably also be concerned that the insane ballet is being used as a distraction to cover up subpar food. You would be right about the dance, but wrong about the quality of the cuisine.

Food & Drinks: Start the production with a Buddhalicious cocktail featuring pear-infused vodka, lychee and cranberry juice with a nitrogenized (and therefore fuming) pear vodka popsicle. Continue with the sesame-crusted crispy crab-stuffed jumbo Gulf shrimp served over a smoking brew, to be dipped in a Cajun rémoulade and homemade hot pepper sauce. Empty the wheelbarrow filled with locally farmed organically grown lettuce and greens with a mini shovel and pitchfork and add more dressing if necessary from a watering can. Lobster pop tarts jumping out of their toaster are a must-have, but don’t get hooked by the grilled salmon, as its saffron citrus glaze is not a complementary catch. If you think the displays so far have been over-the-top, wait until the arrival of the charbroiled Angus filet mignon with slow-braised oxtail, roasted bone marrow, truffled duck fat fries, baby carrots and asparagus with a black pepper bordelaise. Rest assured that the fork on the dish is well-attached to the butcher board and will not fall on your head. Even the breads are a surprise. For a grand finale, try the Wild Bird, which has laid giant Valrhona bittersweet Guanaja and white Ivoire chocolate eggs filled with chocolate decadence, whipped coconut panna cotta, passion fruit gel, brown sugar streusel and Valrhona chocolate ganache. Order Marie Antoinette's Head, a full-size “wig” made of pink cotton candy and accompanied by mini strawberry shortcakes, strictly for the spectacle. The short wine list offers labels mainly from California and France. As for the space, there are many decorative elements that make it quite elegant: ivory tiles of soft natural wool, a floor-to-ceiling fresh-orchid wall, a 15-foot pink onyx bar, reclaimed oak barrels, contemporary chandeliers and cascading drapes.