LA Downtown Decadence at WP24-- Wolfgang Puck's newish spot on the 24th floor of the Ritz Carlton tower
With a best friend from the East coast in town and staying Downtown, I seized the moment to check out Wolfgang Puck's WP24 -- I knew it had ridiculous views of all of LA and the food was supposed to be superb, so last night I went to see what the fuss was about. Downtown LA has had an incredible revitalization in the last few years with new restaurants and bars popping up every month and the area surrounding the Staples Center in particular has been transformed with the addition of the new JW Marriott and Ritz Carlton towers, Rosa Mexicano, Katsuya, amongst other restaurants and bars.
WP24 is rather sensational visually-- the dining room is tucked back behind closed doors at the far end of the gigantic (and mostly empty, but it was a Tuesday night....) bar. The doors opened onto a cozy, yet sleek and dramatic dining space with walls of windows framing the twinkling lights of Hollywood below, echoed by the modern chandeliers that look like black ceramic cylinders allowing star like light to glow within.
What I didn't realize, was that the menu is a 3 or 4 course prix fix menu..... alas. We selected the $80/person 3 course which was way more of a splurge than we were going for on a Tuesday, but we went with it. Happily the food and the service were absolutely worth the hefty price tag. Two different complimentary amuse bouches (small edible gifts from the chef to get you going!) were brought and were sinful-- shrimp toasts as I've never had and dainty "seafood curry" served empanada style. Everything we ordered was absolutely delicious- from the seafood dumplings, pork buns, steamed snapper, filet of beef and sticky toffee cake. Honestly dinner was one delight after the next! And the wines were good too-- the Inception Chardonnay and the Malbec were what we tried.
Dinner at WP24 is certainly something not to miss- maybe save it for a special occasion or head there for dinner after an event at the Staples Center which is just below...
Be sure to make a reservation as the restaurant was really busy last night-- on a chilly Tuesday. One other major note--- they actually give you a lot of food unlike some other fancy pants restaurants that give you tiny portions at each course, the servings here are generous so never would you need to order the 4 course menu! Trust us on this one- we have massive appetites! If you don't have time for dinner, the bar is sleek with the same fabulous views and as I mentioned before, is very roomy with lots of seating. Definitely my new go to spot for Staples Center or Nokia pre-show/pre-game cocktails from here on out!
