J Nichols Kitchen — Restaurant in Los Angeles

When we moved back to California years ago our first apartment was in the Marina Del Rey area. It was great, a nearby walk-able Starbucks, a Gelson's and J. Nichols restaurant. That was 20 some years ago. We had a chance to revisit the area last week, and to head back to Nichols for dinner. We were happily blown away with the food and the remodel there.

Nichols had been a go to for both breakfast and lunch years ago. It has since remodeled, looking to upscale with lots of dark woods and cutting down on counter seating. We found the look classy, a bit darker than my taste but not off-putting. We use to like the counter for breakfast, so there's that.

The food was great. I had the Reuben sandwich, with french fry's. The sandwich was well made, a little burnt cheese escaping and adding a classy touch. Lots of meat, bread with crunch and a lovely toast. The fry's were great as well, hot, crispy and well salted. It is served with a side of very thinly sliced dill pickle on the side, a delightful tangy treat.

Nancy had the grilled cheese sandwich with tomato slices and a bowl of tomato soup. This is not a light sandwich. Thick and cheesy good, thick tomato slices and a hardy soup. She raved about the sandwich, I think the soup was not a highlight. Well, everyone needs some room for improvement, right?

We both had a craft beer and their selection was good. The menu is fairly broad, with great choices. I really was tempted by the meatloaf with mashed potatoes, I remembered it from the old days.

I have to say, our trip there was well worth the...

We are bummed that though the decor is very nice now, some of our favorite dishes didn't survive the remodel or have just been removed! The Southwestern Huevos from before the remodel was unbelievably delicious. I still get cravings for it, but it was replaced by a bland and unappetizing huevos on a dry over- toasted tortilla pad that is inedible. The new sauce just doesn't work for me - it's meh and, and the contrast is really disappointing. The old version was worth pretty much even a really long wait for breakfast, because it was unusual. You couldn't just go elsewhere when you had the hankering for that saffron rice and feta, black beans and plantain. Now, if it's busy here, I find myself off to Dinah's. Sigh. Then we started coming for the key lime pie -- it was to die for! So good, we would cut out early from dinners elsewhere to come here for the pie. And now we find out that that's gone too. Noooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!! J. Nichols Kitchen, please contact me if you bring back either dish and we will be back in a heartbeat, but at this point there's nothing all that noteworthy for us anymore. Upscale pub food is done better over at Waterloo, and is more reasonable with better selection. So sad. We really tried to love it but there's just no there there. Our friends in the area agree and also have stopped going. Please bring those dishes back and we will...

I went there with a friend for the first time because we were in the area and the reviews looked decent. I thought the restaurant was really nice. They had both indoor and outdoor seating (outdoor was pretty COVID friendly). The hostess was nice and our server was fantastic, super friendly.

We ordered the Avocado Toast (Small Bites menu), Havana Chicken, Steak Frites and a hot matcha latte.

-The hot matcha latte was a mess. Disappointingly, no latte art but not a big deal. The matcha was gritty and tasted weak. That's really all I need to say about it. -The Avocado Toast was one of the best (if not the best) I've ever had. Absolutely delicious, loved the orange white balsamic reduction. -Havana Chicken was surprisingly good and really moist for white meat. It tasted like it had been brined-- juicy with just the right amount of salt. I did not expect to like it that much. -Steak Frites was a disappointment. Too dry and chewy. The grilled onions on the top looked so awful. I'll share a photo but it honestly looked like a bunch of earth worms sitting on top of my meat. Tell me I'm wrong.

The overall presentation of the food was pretty amateur. Nothing looked all that appetizing, so the plating could definitely use some refinement. If I'm in the area again, I would return and try a couple new things along with the amazing Avocado...