Buddakan

You may remember Buddakan from the Sex and the City movie, this is where they celebrated Carrie and Big's engagement. Remember this long table where Samantha gives an applaud worthy toast?
Everything about Buddakan is fantastic, it's a chic spot to have cocktails or enjoy a wonderful dinner. It's located near Chelsea Market on 9th Ave. and 16th St. in a black painted brick building. Walking through the space you realize how large the restaurant really is and every area has a slightly different interior design. The cocktail/lounge area is basically all black with accents of turquoise pillows and white ceramic vases on the black tables in the middle of the room. Downstairs is the famous long table meant to be shared or for big parties. There is another room that has turquoise booth style seating among black walls and tables. All the way in the back of the restaurant is another room where diners enter via curvy shaped cut outs (see the photo above) with red booths and vases.

With a restaurant as chic as Buddakan you'd expect the cocktails to be fabulous, which they were (definitely recommend Charm), but to my surprise the food was just as amazing! I looked at the menu before arriving at the restaurant and didn't see anything that stood out but I basically just listened to my friend Julie of Juls and the City and took her recommendations. We ordered a lot of dishes to share including Edamame Dumplings served in a shallot broth; Chilled Udon Noodles served with a small scoop of sorbet with lime segments sprinkled within and a creamy peanut sauce; Charred Asparagus with a light black bean foam and Asian Green Stir Fry accompanied by pine nuts and garlic chips. My favorite dish was definitely he Edamame Dumplings, they were absolutely devine!

Asia de Cuba

I had no idea what to expect when Rolland Berry and I drove up to the Mondrian Hotel on Sunset Blvd. but was pleasantly surprised as we sipped wine among the white and orange interior of the bar in the lobby, ADCB, before being escorted to our table at Asia de Cuba. Seating at the table amongst giant terracotta pots it's hard not to feel a little bit like Alice inside her world of Wonderland. The outdoor, courtyard-like seating is the quintessential night out in LA.
I loved the innovative Asian and Cuban fusion cusine paired with the unmatched Philippe Starck design. I was totally impressed with the menu, and how could you not be with dishes like bamboo steamed asian and caribbean vegetables, plantain fried rice with avocado salad, Lemongrass Skewered Chicken (coconut thai chili marinade, grilled pinapple and lychee) and the Calamari Salad 'Asia De Cuba' (crispy calamari with chayote, hearts of palm, banana, cashews, chicory and radicchio-sesame orange dressing).
Reservations can be made at Open Table.

Babalu

Babalu is a fantastic restaurant located on Montana Avenue in Santa Monica, California serving up American, Asian and Caribbean dishes that are sure to please anyone's palate. My friends and I all ordered salads but so many other dishes on the menu looked amazing. If nothing else, this restaurant is a great place for a casual dinner out with friends.
1002 Montana Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90403

Gramercy Park Hotel

Having been to the Gramercy Park Hotel for drinks at the Rose Bar I knew I had to go back just to spend more time in luxury boutique hotel. I knew my parents would love the chic sophistication of the GPH's decor, designed by Ian Schrager, so I took them to Wakiya.
Located to the left of the lobby, opposite Rose Bar, Wakiya is amazingly sleek and serves a modern Chinese cuisine by Japanese celebrity Chef Yuji Wakiya. Our fabulous waiter recommended that we order our dinner according to traditional Chinese tradition, from cold to hot. From the menu, I recommend the Vegetable Dumpling, XO Omelet Fried Rice, and Field Green Salad. There are pictures of these and other things we ordered below.


Recommended cocktails at Rose Bar: the Long Berry and the Rose & Lychee Martini
Reservations for Wakiya can be made via Open Table