Bottega Louie: Around The Clock

So this is pretty embarrassing to admit, but I ate at Bottega Louie not once, not twice, but three times this past weekend. I started out on Friday night dining on their dinner menu with Bourbon, Chris, and Natalie. I made my way over there on Saturday morning so Bourbon and I could try the muffin flight (and a few other items). Oh and then, because we just hadn’t gotten enough, Bourbon and I went there for Saturday lunch. Ahhhh. I guess there’s never too much of a good thing?

Bottega Louie is definitely my downtown “go-to” place. I’ve done Mother’s birthday brunch, girls’ night out with Miss Ashley, or just a stop in for a delicious French macaron. This place has something for everyone.

The 10,000 square-foot restaurant is what I like to call loft-style: the entire place (bar, café, market, kitchen, dining area) is open air and visible. The bar itself is fairly small with two bartenders and 4-5 stools, but the customers are allowed to drink their cocktails at the dozens of café seats. The bartenders produce quality drinks – they actually make one of my favorite Manhattans (probably because it’s on the tad bit sweeter side and served with those fancy amarena cherries). The market area serves breakfast pastries, dainty desserts, fancy lunch sandwiches, and delicious La Mill coffee. There’s also a giant counter with pre-made food that you can have packed up to go (like thai beef salad or lasagna, yummmmm).

The dining room is giant, but it is somehow always packed, especially on weekend nights, and, unfortunately, they do not take reservations. The servers are friendly and they all work as a team to get your food out in a timely manner. I would say my only minor complaint is that sometimes the food comes out too quick, where you feel rushed. But Chris remedied this by only ordering a few dishes at a time, so we had a long, leisurely dinner. Oh, and another wonderful perk, the restaurant offers complimentary premium still or sparkling water! I swear, sometimes bottled water costs just as much as a cocktail. Sheesh.

Here are some of my top food picks for Bottega:

Clockwise from left: bran muffin, chocolate croissant, poppyseed mini muffin, apple cinnamon mini muffin, blueberry mini muffin, and roasted tomato and burrata pastry

Breakfast: The roasted tomato and burrata pastry. The pastry is small, so you’ll probably need more than one or at least something else to fill you up. But the pastry has a wonderful chewiness to it and the burrata makes it so creamy and fancy.

Salad: Modena. lettuce, candied walnuts, goat cheese, herbs, and creamy balsamic. Sounds simple, right? But it’s just done so well. Plus I noticed that practically every other table ordered one too. There’s just something addictive about their dressing…

Pizza: Bianco. This is the restaurant’s white pizza with ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan, garlic, and arugula. It’s delicious-ness. The pizzas are fairly large. You could comfortably split one with another person, maybe throw in a side salad, and be full for dinner.

Side: Portobello Fries. Thick cut pieces of Portobello mushrooms fried and served with a sinful aioli. Yum. It’s a generous portion served in a fun cone cup. Good for group sharing.

Dessert: The soufflé. Keep in mind it takes 25 minutes to cook, so order it early if you’re in a rush. The chocolate soufflé is at the right point of richness, served with a creamy vanilla bean sauce. It hits the sweet tooth in just the right spot!

So go enjoy a meal or muffin or macaron or cocktail or whatever at Bottega Louie – they have so much to offer. Or, at least, go check out the place. It’s seriously one of the most beautiful restaurants in LA.

Bottega Louie
700 S Grand (7th and Grand in Downtown)
Los Angeles, CA 90017

-Bleu