Father's Office: 2.0...a most blessed day for Culver City

3229 Helms Ave
Culver City, CA 90232
(310)815-9820
Mon-Thu 5PM-1AM
Fri-Sat 12PM-2AM
Sun 12PM-12AM

I like to think I was on a sabbatical from writing on here until Sang Yoon was able to have everything aligned right to open the new location of Father's Office, which subsequently has been one of the most delayed AND most anticipated openings that we've been witness to in a long time in LA. Last night they opened and I was there on hand to witness the gloriousness of it all.

As many of you know, the one thing that the original suffers from is lack of space. Space for more tables, space at the bar, space to crawl passed someone without committing some sort of party foul.

The new location has a bar that is at least 3-4 times as big as the original with 72 taps on hand to satiate your thirst for fine beers. This alone helped with 1) getting your order in cause it was a ton easier to get the bartenders attention and 2) increased your odds of actually getting a spot at the bar (love the seats).

The new hit at the bar is the massive patio area with track heating. These seats I see as being THE coveted spots to grab. People were mixing it up and so light hearted even while eagerly waiting on these seats to open up. The gatekeeper (running the door) was telling me that people were sitting on the patio since the place opened at like 6:30...he told me this at like 8 o'clock. Indeed the mood of many of the people was that they would be there for a few hours more in fact.

While this does increase the chances of getting a seat right away, it by no means guarantees it. The first Father's Office suffered terribly in this aspect. While this does make things way more comfortable, it by no means solves the seat stalker syndrome that has always plagued them and is singularly the only thing wrong with this one. That being said, we waited for only 10 minutes to grab a seat once we were in.

The real question then boils down to what has made this restaurant and the one before it, a place that people will gladly wait in line for (which there was last night)? The killer Office burger that annihilates the senses. Rest assured that it is still gorgeous and complex in all it's magnificence like the original location's. I took a buddy of mine there last night and I told him he had to at least order the classic Office Burger with sweet potato fries and whatever beer he wanted. He got it and remarked "I don't like onions or bleu cheese and am just okay with arugula but I LOVE THIS BURGER! I don't get it". I do. Sang Yoon is a genius.

I can't say enough good things about this place but that I'm sure it will only continue to wow the crowds like he's been doing over in Santa Monica for quite some time now. Big plus is the abundant free parking! Sang, you know how to pick'em!

Free Refills: Of course not, it's a bar.
Average price: $26 for the Office Burger , sweet potato fries and beer combination but I know you'll want to stay and spend more!

Luna Park...still going strong but with a patio to boot

672 S La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323)934-2110
Lunch Mon-Fri 11:30AM-5:30PM
Brunch Weekends 11:30-3PM
Dinner Mon-Thur 5:30PM-10:30PM
Fri-Sat 5:30PM-11:30PM
Sunday 5:30PM-10PM

I'm sure many of you have either heard or gone to Luna Park by now, so why not do things a little differently. Why not just tell it to you like a friend while you're hanging out with me at my place.

"What you've never been there? Oh it's great. Great food and AMAZING desserts!


When you walk in it's pretty dark and the tables are pretty close but the bar area lights up the way to the kitchen that you can see immediately see on your left. You're best to make a reservation for dinner but lunch is pretty walk-in friendly. Street parking and valet are both available so be rich or be cheap haha.

Last time Celeste and I went we scored a booth that has the privacy curtains. As many times as we've gone here we've never been able to as they've always been taken already. I liked it...especially for taking pictures since the place, though it is a big room, is rather on the darker side. The restaurant's menu is super international with a mix of all cuisines making appearances on their menu. Last time I snagged the teriyaki glazed yellowtail which came with caramelized Japanese mushrooms and wasabi mashed potatoes. All was ridiculously good and I dug how big the flavor was in the mushrooms. The tuna itself was good sized slab of fish with shards of sweetness and was done all the way through with dabs of char.

Celeste got the Nicoise Salad...again. She loves the thing, and no matter how many times we go there, she struggles to convince herself to get something else. Between the freshness of the vegetables, the seared tuna and the way the flavors lightly play off each other, she swears by it as one of her favorite salads in the city.

The desserts there are some of the best in the city and you'll probably come across their do it yourself s'mores with their house made graham crackers. What the heck is graham anyways? It's pretty cool though...it comes out with little fondues of charred mini-marshmallows and chocolate with a little cart of the crackers. Last time we ordered up their Pink Lady apple tarte tatin that came with a side of caramel gelato. It was like an elegant apple pie and the caramel gelato was a welcome difference than just typical vanilla ice cream. It makes sense that it works together since a lot of apple pies have caramel on or in them. Pretty rocking tarte all around.

A couple of things that they now have since I last went there is an outside patio which is perfect now that summer nights are cooling down again. Also they've added a starving artist prix fixe menu on Monday nights that's $18 and is an incredible deal for what you get. Luna Park is one of those places that has lots of hustle and bustle but doesn't lose a grip on how to maintain. Every time we've gone we always feel like yeah...that was worth it entirely."

Free Drink Refills: Yes
Entree Price Range: $13 to $20 roughly

Father's Office...that burger is definitely one for the books

1018 Montana Ave.
Santa Monica, CA 90403
(310)393-2337
Mon-Wed 5PM-1PM (Kitchen 5PM-10PM)
Thurs 5PM-1PM (Kitchen 5PM-11PM)
Fri 4PM-2AM (Kitchen 4PM-11PM)
Sat 12PM-2AM (Kitchen 12PM-11PM)
Sun 12PM-12AM (Kitchen 12PM-10PM)

I had a good talk with a friend of mine who I meet with once a week at 5:45 in the morning to talk about everything. It's seriously one of the more productive times in the week that I have, as my life is filled to the brim each and every day. I rarely have a free moment and getting me to go to something often requires booking me in advance like you were booking Osteria Mozza..."Yeah I can fit you in...how's two weeks from tomorrow sound?". The topic turned to Father's Office and how European pubs don't have the stigma that American ones do. In America we have this automatic view of people going to go get wasted and pick up on people. This is only the case some of the time. In Europe you have pubs where people go to meet friends and hang out, and sure you have some beer and often food, but it's typically more than that. It's more a place to hang with like-minded people and grab a bite to eat. Father's Office has been trying to change the way we think about American pubs and take away that stigma that we have about them.

Seeing as this is still a pub you'll have to be over 21 to get in, but once you're in you're treated to one of the warmest gastropubs with some of the best burgers in America. The place has become quite the "after work" spot for unwinding. The crowd is typically a mixed bunch with some there to check out sports on the tele, some there with friends, and some just popping in for a quick bite and to shoot the breeze with the young as well as the old.

The food is some of the best you'll ever have in a pub in California and maybe even in America. There's a limited number of tables and the bar is not the biggest but it's worth the wait if you ever have to. To order just go up to the bar and yell it out. The bar keeps there are super sweet and quite the characters sometimes.

Last time through here we started off with one of their specials which was an heirloom tomato salad which have become pretty trendy lately (we had a stellar one at Sona the other night). Chunks of big red, green, and orange tomatoes were topped with basil cucumber vinaigrette and sheep's milk ricotta, and garnished with fresh herbs, cucumber slices and halved grape tomatoes. It's a great appetizer (especially if you've ordered a wine), but I'd advise sharing since that was a generous serving of creamy and almost sweet variety ricotta.

Next we of course grabbed their Father's Office burger with a basket of sweet potato frites "a la cart" (notice the cute shopping cart). The fries were just just barely soft which was wonderful. So many fries in and of themselves can be tiring on the palate and it was nice to have a side of tartar sauce to relieve you in between bites.

And here it is folks. A burger which few can truly compare to. A huge medium rare piece of dry aged beef that sits upon a fluffy French bun, topped with caramelized onions, applewood bacon compote, gruyere, maytag blue cheese and arugula.

Upon further inspection you'll notice that this may induce sleepiness or possibly hunger pangs. The meat is just together enough that it starts to fall apart in your mouth, the gruyere and maytag add complex salty flavors and the caramelized onions balance it all out with the arugula giving small hints of spice to it here and there. This burger kicks some major butt and though it may not be for everyone (I mean heck we all love an In-N-Out burger sometimes) you would be doing yourself a disservice by not having one at least once to know how burgers are being transformed from your family reunion bbq to a gourmet art form. Wash this bad boy down with a Red Seal Beer (as recommended by the barkeep) or their Cider on tap, which Celeste very much enjoyed, and you have yourself a formidable meal that can satiate many an appetite.

There is little not to like about Father's Office. Located in a great part of town that has plenty of street parking and a great mix of people this place has an incredible thing going for it. How could they be even better you ask? By opening a second location in Culver City on Helms. This my friends is how one truly spreads the love around.

Free Drink Refills: No
Entree Price Range: $5 to $12