Went tonight myself for dinner. One thing I love about Gjusta is you never know when one of their salads will be completely mind blowing. Had an incredible carrot, avocado, and sprouts salad tonight that was just perfect in every way, along with a near-perfect meatball sandwich. Night is definitely the time to go.
Breakfast Sandwich
Italian Sandwich - I think it’s one of the best in the city.
Turkey Butcher Sandwich - Pure Turkey, fresh roasted Turkey in-house and sliced to order (ridiculous).
Smoked Fish Plate (Small) - Choose 3. So many good choices, but any of their Lox / Gravlax, Salmon Belly, Hamachi are good choices.
Pita Sandwich - So balanced, crunchy, bright, vegetal and savory.
Something from their daily rotating Market Salad deli case.
(and many other things)
And yes for Dinner you can order stuff from their Lunch menu.
When the fried chicken is on the dinner menu it’s one of the best in the damn city. The sand dabs and the tomato confit with burrata are great.
I only go to gjusta during the day if I’m forced to, dinner is gjust better.
I haven’t tried a lot of the other stuff b/c I can’t tear myself from the italian sandwich! And after ordering a sandwich and a drink (love the ginger lemonade), I’m totally cleaned out of $, so I can’t get much else.
I had some lox once. It was really lovely, but maybe I’m just not a lox person (or maybe I’m a quantity vs. quality guy when it comes to that) b/c I don’t feel a strong urge to order it again (or order it from anywhere else, for that matter). I mainly think of lox (and bagels) as a vehicle for cream cheese, so perhaps this is my problem.
I agree w/ @frommtron that I miss the bite from prepared horseradish, so I don’t get the prime rib anymore (although the meat itself is obviously excellent). Pretty sure I must’ve tried the porchetta melt b/c I love pork, but I don’t know if anything compares to sandwich I had from the Porchetta Truck which was, like, truly transcendent.
Partner had whatever steak they had as a dinner special once. Steak was excellent; skip the fries (which I think came w/ the dish). The fries were the only truly subpar thing I’ve ever had there. Well, that and a croissant. I’m generally not a sweets fan, so I’ve never had the carrot cake.
The salads are “technically” excellent, but they can be very… woodsy. I sometimes feel like a cow grazing through the fields when I’m eating a veggies there. And while I enjoy salads, I also don’t know if I’ve ever had an AMAZING salad anywhere, truth be told. But, no doubt, you will have championship-level natural regularity if you have some veggies there the evening b/f.
Make sure you look at the handwritten board behind the cashier to see the dinner specials b/c I didn’t know they had dinner specials for quite a few mos…
My routine order at Gjusta, for a heavy late breakfast for 2 (usually w/ leftovers):
PFR Butcher, extra horseradish
Oil-cured sardines (or salt-cured anchovies or pickled herring), 1/3 lb. (I appreciate how they drain the olive oil before weighing the sardines, honest goodness)
Salmon belly, 1/3 lb.
Smoked salmon, 1/3 lb.
Cold-smoked kanpachi, 1/3 lb.
Country Sourdough loaf, for me to toast at home
“O.G.,” Lemon Poppyseed Buttermilk Old-Fashioned Cake, and Passionfruit Cake donuts from Blue Star.
Iced coffee from Balconi or simply grab some from Blue Star.
“Come on Baby, take a chance with us, and
Meet me at the back of the, Blue Bus”
Your first and third Hammer photos were painted at the same hospital, and show the changes in his perception of surroundings. If you’re driving around for Van Gogh, the Norton Simon has my favorite of his–a portrait of his mother.
The Hammer has really wonderful public programming, and the Tuck Room Tavern on Westwood and Wilshire in the iPic complex has a really solid menu. Sherry Yard is a key investor, and can be seen working the room. The desserts are no joke.
Just a heads up for you carrot cake fans, they’ve changed the recipe. No longer nuts on the outside and they put candied tangerine(?) on top. It also tastes like there’s more zest in the frosting. I didn’t like it quite as much as before but citrus fans may be pleased.
Update for cake fans - Gjusta now has a Meyer lemon layer cake and it’s delicious. (Note that’s half a slice pictured. I cut it in half before remembering to take a photo.). Super tart lemon curd, cream cheese icing, and moist, not too sweet cake layers. We were trying to decide if there’s something like Graham flour in the cake. If you like Gjusta’s carrot cake, I highly recommend the Meyer lemon.