Rustic Canyon

Used to be great. The new chef has changed the menu, and now to be honest it's overpriced and really quite crap. Which is a shame, as we used to be fairly regular visitors for a while.

The food was decent and, I'll admit, nicely presented. However I was a little surprised that the food was mediocre because it was so expensive. I'd say only go if you're super rich and have money to blow.

They recently got a full bar, so I decided to give Rustic Canyon a shot.

PROS:

-As everyone else says, the secret menu cheeseburger. 8 real oz of tender, juicy beef with cheese, cucumbers (odd), carmelized onions on a brioche bun. With a nice side of deep fried really fucking good french fries. $18. But is it one of the top burgers in LA? Nah. It's just very good. But most nice restaurants have a burger that's comparable.

CONS:

-Service was not what one would help for such a pricy place. The brunette lady was a little short and argumentative. And when she dropped off the check she kind of rolled her eyes and didn't say thank you. She also didn't know the ingredients of a martini.

-Cocktails use obscure liquors... where's my Grey Goose? But whatever, they're still cocktails. If you don't want weird (licorice) tasting vodka avoid the Tru and go for the Polish one.

-I also tried the ham soup, which at $17 was nearly the price of the burger. Well, it came with a couple slivers of ham, some lentils, and some brown rice. Pretty small portion, it was fine and all, but what the hell justifies $17? Was this the kobe beef of ham? I sure hope so, but I didn't taste it.

In the end, I had a good meal, and I'm sure the chicken and filet are also good, so I would come back. Just not at the top of my list.