Showing posts with label Venice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Venice. Show all posts

1/08/2009

AK Restaurant + Bar in Venice, aok in my book


The food was excellent which is what often happens when and an award winning chef uses fresh, organic ingredients. The presentation like the decor was modern elegance without any pomp. We shared a couple of Swedish dishes and a few sides for the table, sharing our food family style, fun!


There were the Swedish meatballs, whipped potatoes and lingonberry preserves.


Aquavit cured salmon gravlax, crisp salmon skin, espresso honey mustard- my photography does not do the presentation justice here.


The sides were so good; I could have made a meal of them. Green beans, toasted pine nuts, shallots, black olive salt.


Amazing crispy Vidalia onions with warm Roquefort cream on the side.


And the spaetzle.. yum!

On the far right of the cheese plate are the oven roasted grapes, a great touch! The upside down cheesecake was a great way to end the meal.

Here's the thing: food and presentation together were better than the service and noise level. The server was kind, she just didn't know the menu all that well. She probably was new, like the restaurant. Oh, the noise! Conversation was difficult in the main dining room. Next time I'll try the room upstairs, the hostess said it was quieter up there.

And one more thing: there's this bench on the back wall in the main dining room. People who are seated there (like I was) sit a few inches higher than all of the chairs in the dining room making the people not sitting on the bench look, well.. kinda small. It was an odd, annoying detail, incongruent with the rest of the place.

AK Restaurant + Bar
1633 Abbot Kinney Blvd
Venice, CA 90291
(310) 392-6644

Ak on Urbanspoon

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9/15/2008

Abbot Kinney Festival 9/28


It seems like there's always a party in Venice. Only this time it's so big that they are closing Abbot Kinney Blvd. to traffic and making way for stages with live music, good eats, and a beer garden. Check out the music line up here. Better yet, they're going green and aiming for being a zero waste event. The green area will have healthy eating, eco-art workshops and green info. Parking at Westminster School.

September 28, 2008
10:00 am - 6:30 pm
www.abbotkinney.org