Bob Schriner

The opening of the Hollywood W has been a long time in the making. I’ve stayed at Ws in other cities and had good and bad experiences. I must admit I was anticipating Delphine to be needlessly over the top, after all, this is Hollywood. When I walked through the hotel lobby and into the restaurant I was pleasantly surprised to see that a lot of work went into making a comfortable space. There were high rolling ceilings to accommodate for the rise of all the voices on a busy night. The manager stopped by to welcome us, as he did to most guests. He recommended the foie gras, which took little arm bending to get me to nod in agreement. The terrine arrived with greens, caramelized onions and toast for keeping them all together. The onions sadly did more to take away from the dish than anything. Thankfully, the very spreadable foie gras was good enough to stand alone and be very enjoyable. Our waitress insisted that at least one of us try the Caesar salad, she had me at bacon. This delightful salad sang aloud with its crisp bacon, herbed croutons, zesty home-made dressing and a generous helping freshly grated parmesan cheese. I don’t know how I’ll be able to take Hollywood from Highland to Western with getting another one. In the time that I slowly indulged in the Caesar, the fritto misto arrived; a nice assortment of battered shrimp, squid, mussels and clams was certainly welcome to the table. The special on this night, a Tuesday, was braised beef with carrots. The beef was actually a hanger steak that was so tender I swear I could have cut it with a dirty look. Thankfully, I had a fork, which allowed me to slide the carrots through the rich red wine sauce. The carrots were cooked, but still firm. I’ve always heard the hanger steak to be considered a less desired cut. This particular entrée was wholesome and delicious. All in all, Delphine pulls all the stops to make high a humble brasserie that is both inviting and inspired. I think my next stop there will be for their Sunday brunch. One word of warning, parking at the W is not cheap. So if you plan on being there for a while, prepare to pay around what you might have paid to just take a cab.

6250 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 323.798.1355