Petrossian

Caviar, truffles and foie gras. These three items are supposed to be the most luxurious, decadent foods to savor in the world. I think I heard this on the Food Network at some point. At any rate, I've always been fascinated at the thought of eating these foods and get super giddy whenever I come across it in menus. Damn, that's some awesome subliminal messaging that was conveyed in whatever show I heard about these three items on.

After reading about Petrossian at Kungfoodpanda's blog, I was looking for an opportunity to give the restaurant a try. There is another location next to the lobby at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, but I've never gone - the prices always looked ridiculous. But DineLA is a great time to try restaurants and I jumped on the opportunity. A reservation was made, but it turns out that we really didn't need it - the restaurant had enough tables available throughout the night, though there was not much seating space. About 1/3 of the restaurant is a botique selling caviar, foie gras and chocolates. Chocolates flown in from Paris, mind you!

foie gras ravioli, concorde grapes, walnuts, wild mushroom, noble XO vinegar

egg royale, scrambled egg, vodka whipped cream, caviar

squid ink fettucine, wild Californian sea urchin, curry, salmon roe

prime flatiron steak, foie gras, leeks, mushroom duxelles, truffle, beef jus

foie gras ice cream, raspberry jam, brioche, honey, sea salt

vanilla panna cotta, espresso pearls, cardamom shortbread cookie

Boyfriend had everything that contained foie gras in it - the ravioli, the steak and the ice cream. I went a bit more diverse with my meal, but passed up an additional menu offering of steak tartare with foie gras in favor of the fettucine. Which is delicious, but I really really wished I was able to try the tartare as well. And look - the espresso pearls are made to look like caviar and are even served in a caviar container! Ahh, molecular gastronomy magic. Service was attentive and friendly, and the atmosphere was regal but not stuffy.

After dinner we wandered to the front of the restaurant and feasted our eyes on all the chocolates. I mean, chocolates shaped like mushrooms and potatoes? SOLD. Vanessa,are you reading this - so many foods that look like other foods! Although a bit pricey at $2.50 per piece, we selected seven and I am eating them now as I type this. Heaven. The guy in front (I wish I knew his name!) was able to name off all the chocolates for us, gave us a piece to sample (the one that looked like a potato, since it looked so intriguing) and even popped in an extra piece for free at the end since we had only chosen seven and the box fit eight.

I'm actually debating going back on Friday for dinner again so I can try the steak tartare. That and the steak are both on the DineLA menu only, though the chef is contemplating putting it on the regular menu permanently since people like them so much.

Petrossian Paris Restaurant & Botique
321 N Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90048