L’Epicerie (Culver City, CA)
L’Epicerie
9900 Culver Blvd
Culver City, CA 90232
Dining date: 6/21/11
L’Epicerie opened in December, a French restaurant/marketplace in Culver City from Thierry Perez (Fraiche). There’s a little bit of everything on offer in the marketplace, from wine & cheese, to oils and vinegars, charcuterie, and pre-made meals. On the restaurant side, the food is rustic French.
Just three months ago, a chef change brought in Sébastien Archambault to redesign the menu. Archambault was previously cooking at RH at the Andaz where he garnered pretty strong reviews. I never made it out there, but an invitation to L’Epicerie would be the perfect opportunity to try some of his cuisine.
Egg Cocotte creamy mushrooms
Yummy. The mushrooms were tender and tasty, while the runny egg added a nice richness and creaminess to pair with the crusty, buttered bread.
Beef Tongue sauce diable
The tongue was really tender, with that distinctive ‘tongue’ flavor. A little bit of heat in the sauce made things a little more interesting, but the beef itself was delicious.
Chicken Wings Confit
Nothing too special about these wings, but they were good.
Braised Beef Cheek risotto arborio, red wine sauce, arugula, parmesan cheese
I had to order this given the description. Braised beef cheeks over risotto? Sold. The beef was extremely tender, rich and flavorful. I liked the risotto as well, though I found the parmesan to be a little strong. Still, very comfortable flavors that mixed well.
Niman Ranch Pork Chop green peas, heirloom potatoes, garlic confit
The pork was tender and moist, though not overly so. It was cooked a nice medium, but just wasn’t quite as memorable as our other entrees.
Perigord Cassoulet garlic sausage, pork belly, duck confit, white beans
I liked the crispy duck, as well as the rich creaminess of the white beans. The pork belly was deliciously tender as well. A really savory, hearty dish.
Crêpe Suzette citrus caramel, vanilla ice cream, Grand Marnier sauce
Finally, we split one dessert. I was glad this was rather light (given all the food prior), with a bright citrus flavor from orange rind and the Grand Marnier.
This meal exceeded expectations. The marketplace is rather unassuming, but the food coming out of the kitchen was actually very good. For the most part, the menu stays within a comfort zone of French classics and does them well. I found it to be very comforting and sort of homey, and quite tasty.
Note: This was a sponsored meal.
Yum. All of it. Looks like the real deal.
It is!
Hi, Darin! so glad you ordered the tongue — tongue on tongue, it was damn good, no? I also loved the egg cocette; I live for mushrooms likely as much as the chef. I’m looking forward to a morning latte and breakfast here soon.
It was very good, thanks for the recommendation!
braised beef cheek with risotto and arugula? all my favorite ingredients..
Seriously, right??
For those who are too far to bike, don’t be put off there is parking inside the building (huge secret) and next door at the post office . . .we like to pop in for wine, cheese and bread to go & are usually tempted to stay for a salad or the brown sugar crepes which are yummy
Thanks for the comment, Sage. I actually didn’t realize there was a garage for parking until I went into the restaurant…street parking was fairly ample as well.