The Stinking RoseThe Stinking Rose is definitely not for the faint of heart, especially since their motto is “We Season our Garlic With Food”.However if you can’t get enough of this pungent herb, then this is the place for you. The décor at the stinking Rose is reminiscent of old world charm.Cozy booths, dim lighting and a theatrical theme of garlic inspired adornments, including vampire paraphernalia such as garlic braids, and bulbs can be found throughout.
The menu is a California-Italian fusion and the dishes we selected reflected that.The vegetarian lasagna was served up just right.Flavorful, chock-full of perfectly cooked veggies and loaded with gooey cheese.The one thing we did notice was that it was noticeably light on the garlic, which wasn’t a bad thing, as we already had our fill of focaccia bread with a pesto-like garlic spread, as well as an appetizer ofBagna Calda.This starter consisted of garlic cloves, oven-roasted in extra virgin olive oil with a hint of anchovy, served in an iron skillet and meant to be spread on the house-baked bread.The filet mignon was tender and juicy and meshed perfectly with the garlicky Yukon Gold mashed potatoes and the cream spinach.Each mouthful was juicer than the last, which we attributed to it being cooked in its own natural pan juices. The sea bass, a recommendation from our very helpful server, was sautéed and served with cherry tomatoes and calamata olives, adding a delicious Mediterranean flair.
We indulged in the mango mojito as well as a traditional mojito and found them both to be refreshing and not too sugary.Our after dinner mints were a necessity after this visit to “Garllywood”.If garlic isn’t your thing, rest assured that you can still enjoy a fantastic meal here as they have varying degrees of garlic from heavy fare for the aficionados, mild for the novices and garlic-free for the vampires amongst us.
The Stinking Rose Beverly Hills55 N La Cienega BlvdBeverly Hills, CA 90211(310) 652-7673
http://thestinkingrose.com/
