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seed bistro: vegan fine dining in LA!
14October 27th, 2011LA restaurants, seed bistrostop what you’re doing, check your calender, and schedule some time quality to eat at seed bistro. the west LA restaurant is brought to us by the folks who opened seed kitchen in venice—vegan chef eric lechasseur and his wife, macrobiotic counselor sanae suzuki. unlike the casual beach cafe though, seed bistro is a classy joint; and at barely two months old, it’s already arguably the city’s best vegan restaurant.
seed bistro is the first restaurant in LA proper to serve a varied menu of exceptional vegan organic food along with alcohol in an elegant atmosphere. with its moody lights and sleek ambiance, it reminds me of my favorite fancy vegan restaurants in NYC (think candle 79, blossom, or franchia). food wise, there’s something for everyone on the dinner menu—from “meat” and potatoes, to salads and sushi, to raw items and a four or six course tasting menu prepared by chef eric for $45 and $60 respectively. the restaurant is also open for lunch during the week, and serves casual fare such as burgers, bento boxes, and salads.
we hit up seed bistro recently for the six course tasting menu, and it was a meal i’ll remember forever. we opted to sit in the bar area, which has limited seating, and watched eric prepare everything while he chatted with us the whole time. so what did we eat? tons! check it out:
course one was a trio of light dishes including a sushi roll, a coconut “shooter”, and a paella ball. i started with the roll and worked my way left across the plate. the raw sushi was outstanding—shreds of jicama acting as rice mixed with avocado and carrot, with paper-thin sheets of curled cucumber holding it all together. the shooter was equally as impressive: a raw blend of coconut turmeric soup, avocado, squash, and kelp noodles…a smaller version of a raw entree available on seed’s menu. i finished the plate off with two bites of paella ball, a delicious fried mound of rice with a mild and creamy romesco sauce.
course two was a small plate from seed bistro’s a la carte menu: roasted beets with avocado and grapefruit. this dish embodied seed’s style: “back to basics” cuisine made with top notch ingredients and prepared extremely well. the flavors really popped, and my husband and i both agreed that we hadn’t had a salad this good in ages.
course three was a contender for my favorite of the night (though i can say that about two other courses as well!). thick meaty trumpet mushrooms were perched atop fluffy fork mashed potatoes, topped with field greens and garnished with grain mustard. un-fuckin-believable. the mushrooms were fat and juicy, and the potatoes were rich and perfectly seasoned. this course was epic—i couldn’t believe i was only half way through…
course four was exquisite—a dish like nothing i’ve ever eaten. fresh and colorful heirloom tomatoes from the local farmers market, grilled figs, and quinoa breaded cheese chunks all drizzled in balsamic reduction and basil oil. OH MY GOD. the breaded cheese was ridiculous, i could have eaten six courses of just that!
for course five we were given the choice of seitan or risotto, and since there were two of us, we decided to make the most of it and get one of each! my husband went with the seitan, gravy, and asparagus. i stole an ample portion of his course, and i can safely say that seed’s seitan rules—so succulent and smothered in delicious peppercorn gravy. when i told the chef how much i was diggin’ it, he laughed and said that most of seed’s menu is by default gluten-free, yet the most popular item is the seitan (which is comprised almost entirely of gluten).
i mean, just look at those gorgeous chunks of wheat meat! next time i go to seed, i’ll be sure to order an entree of this stuff, served in a full size with gravy and fork mashed potatoes.
for my course five, i was served the squash risotto, another extraordinary dish. it was a huge and satisfying creamy serving of rice topped with bits of fried sage and cubes of squash. this didn’t feel like part of a tasting menu at all, it was huge enough to be dinner all on its own.
in between courses, chef eric brought us out a special dish to try: seed’s edamame with saffron wine bouillon. this was a vegan take on oyster soup, with the edamame as shell vegetables (rather than shellfish!) in a thick and savory sea-flavored broth. i loved it.
course six was the dessert course, and we left it up to chef eric to choose something excellent for both of us. my husband was served the lemon meringue, which came on an almond meal crust with blueberries and cashew cream. i tried it and was amazed.
it’s hard to believe, but my dessert was even better: chocolate mousse served with pistachio cookies! i almost died. although i was stuffed beyond belief when it arrived, i ate this baby in about two seconds flat.
to accompany our beautiful dinner, we had a bottle of westbrook petite sirah, as recommended by chef eric. there are lots of alcoholic beverages to choose from at seed—beer, sake, and a full wine cabinet that’s on display in the restaurant. our selection was wonderful, and i’m looking forward to returning for more drinks!
overall, our experience at seed bistro was amazing. we ate tons of incredible food prepared by the chef right in front of us, in a comfortable upscale environment with a bottle of nice wine. i don’t usually get over to the west side, but i think seed bistro is going to change all that. you guys gotta check this place out, seriously, there’s nowhere like it in LA.
seed bistro
Tags: fancy, tasting menu, west side
11917 wilshire blvd
west los angeles 90025
310 477-7070
11:30 am to 2:00 pm monday thru friday
5:30 pm to 10:00 pm monday thru saturday
sunday closed
13 responses to “seed bistro: vegan fine dining in LA!”
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Thanks for this insight. You are my eyes, ears and tastebuds in LA. We are considering a brief vacation at the end of the year and this would be on our list.
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OMG! This looks amazing. I am going to try Seed this weekend for dinner (will go a la carte).
This place is EXACTLY what LA needs, and Chef Eric is amazing.
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Fat Fudge October 27th, 2011 at 10:17
Chef Eric will be participating in Healthy Taste of LA November 6th in Redondo Beach:
http://www.healthytasteofla.com/
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Oscar Aguirre October 27th, 2011 at 12:00
Having the six-course meal this weekend! Excited that someone is finally offering Madeline Bistro a challenge! 🙂
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Jackie October 27th, 2011 at 14:31
This DOES look amazing. However, i think i’d leave there STARVING and have to eat again somewhere else if I could only have those microscopic portions!
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yum! i loved seed in venice. will definitely want to try this out.
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Lauren October 27th, 2011 at 19:07
I did the tasting menu a few weeks ago. It was decadent. But I have to say: the seitan peppersteak? Award-winning. Absolutely unbelievable. Every vegan in the WORLD should go to Seed just to taste that. WOW. I was so impressed!
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voodoo October 27th, 2011 at 19:16
Seed Bistro is AMAZING. I am really glad that Quarrygirl has posted on it finally.
I’ve been three times and the Seitan peppersteak is truly incredible. The sushi menu, deserts and quality of the food is out of this world.
Completely different type of “fine dining” than Madeleine Bistro, relying on whole ingredients and subtle flavorings.
PLEASE GO THERE – you can eat relatively inexpensively and won’t be sorry.
LOVE LOVE LOVE SEED BISTRO
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Gregalor October 27th, 2011 at 22:42
Got some birthdays coming up soon, so this may be a good option.
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in2insight October 28th, 2011 at 07:47
I am happy to read that other had a good experience at Seed Bistro.
We found the food to be good, nothing to rave about, and a few items, the mashed potatoes and millett, to be very dry.
Service was friendly up to a point, and when we provided the requested feedback, the server and chef’s wife glared at us.
With so many awesome places to get Vegan in LA, this one will be off our vacation rotation for sure.
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