Oste — Restaurant in Los Angeles

Let the lack of pictures be a testament to how amazing the food was!!! I forgot I had a phone to take pictures!

Also this is a long review!

Our evening took a turn in the best possible direction! We originally meant to have a sunset dinner in Santa Monica, but the food gods had other plans for us! We picked the place based on the rating but more importantly the number of reviews to support this rating! After scrolling through yelp for places to eat the boyfriend and I decided on Italian. Oste!

Ok I do recommend you make a reservation, as we were walk ins so we had to wait a few minutes to get a table! The bartender was great, very helpful, the cocktails were amazing! I had the amaretto Sour and he had The Oste Hemingway which was also delicious! I had both lol! While we waited the hostess encouraged we order an appetizer at the bar, so of course we did! My name is Claudia and I rarely find my name anywhere so of course I ordered the menu item named Claudia! It was the muscles in a Shallots, bacon, white wine, garlic, parsley sauce, LET ME TELL YOU, it was a foodgasm in my mouth! The first taste of the melt in your mouth muscle, with the flavorful sauce, ugh incredible!!! I genuinely mean incredible!! My boyfriend is French and grew up eating muscles so when I say even he was impressed, it says a lot! At this point we have been moved from the bar to a table, and the manager Alessandro (lovely guy) came over to check on our table and immediately suggested we get an order of their house made bread to enjoy with the muscles, and he was NOT wrong! I could drink that sauce as is! Alessandro was extremely attentive, not just at our table but in general, he was constantly on the move, and helping wherever he saw help was needed! He came over to see if we had ordered our entrees, and when we hadn't he took our order, as first time diners I asked him what he would suggest and so I got the PAPPARDELLE ALLA VACCINARA! It was so delicious, the oxtails were extremely tender and delicious, the pasta was perfect, the portion was enough for more than one meal! My boyfriend got the CHICKEN MILANESE, and while the Milanese was so tender you could cut it with your fork, the roasted potatoes, with the garlic sauce that comes on the plate were something I could eat as a meal all on its own! Even the salad was delicious, simple but so full of flavor! Again Alessandro came by again and we complimented him on the food, the restaurant, the atmosphere, the whole experience and we weren't even done yet! We were visiting LA for both of our birthdays, so of course our romantic evening had to end with dessert! My boyfriend got the pistachio, and chocolate gelato! I ordered the tiramisu! The gelato, was just the right amount, but that pistachio gelato, ugh insane! You could taste the fresh pistachios in every single bite! The chocolate gelato was good, but I personally am not a chocolate fan, so I'll be honest when I say it was too much chocolate for me, but my boyfriend loved it! Now the tiramisu, I've had plenty of tiramisu's and the thing that bothers me the most is when it's just a run of the mill tiramisu no flavor no love nothing, BUT NOT HERE, NOT THEIRS, this was mouthwatering, you could taste the alcohol (not over powering but you could taste it!), it was moist (I know I know some of y'all don't like that word, take a bite of their tiramisu you'll be fine! lol), and the perfectly cut strawberries on top not only added a pop of color, but also a nice balance to the richness of the tiramisu itself! There are very few places, that I have stumbled upon that get everything right, the customer service was excellent, the food was memorable, the price was absolutely right, and the atmosphere was lovely! If you're ever in the LA area, don't pass up on this experience!! But also most importantly don't pass up on those muscles because Claudia for the win!

Also if you get there before I get back try the pizza it looked amazing! We WILL be back, hopefully sooner rather...

Granted, some of my enthusiasm for our glowing Oste evening was because this was our first "post" pandemic, indoors-full-seating-not-like-you're-doing-something-wrong restaurant experience. But that takes nothing away from the refreshingly superb dining experience offered. Oste, a new Italian word for me (pronounced, aw-stay), means, host. An Osteria is a "public place, with a modest tone, with a glass of wine or even with restaurant service." "Restaurant service" to say the least! Apparently, the owners' goal was to create a regular, comfortable family dining experience. I can say, compared with some pretentious nouvelle-cuisine experiences, Oste's dishes are wonderfully comfortable, familiar tastes while at the same time being an elevated, different take on familiar Italian fare. The atmosphere is warm and friendly and each dish becomes something to celebrate and share with your tablemates. Often, these days, restaurants are super-noisy places where you have to shout to have conversation (and your ears are ringing when you leave). At Oste, you're only occasionally shouting because you're enjoying the newest dish that just arrived at the table. Even though the Covid-delayed opening was just months ago, the service staff is delightfully senior and professional. No minimum-wage pouting teens here. The staffs' explanations (you may need help with the largely Italian-language menu) and recommendations (one of the co-owners is their expert sommelier) are absolutely to be relied upon. Like the name suggests, I recommend putting yourself in your "host's" hands. Some specifics: Appetizers--The Polpettine meatballs are something you'll first declare that all your co-diners must taste and then, Gollum-style, you'll want to snatch them back and keep the "precious" bowl all to yourself. The Suppli Al Tartufo are tasty, crispy, fried balls of risotto served with a delightful hummus-like truffle aioli. The Burrata (soft cheese) E San Danielle combined a soft, creamy cheese with luscious prosciutto and memorable, toasted pistachios. Simple but endearing. We only got to the Pinsa course (too full to continue on the Primi and Secondi courses--so we have much more to explore--if we can give up our already-favorites). Pinsa is a version of pizza that uses a type of healthier, more digestible dough that yields a delectably-thin, crispy crust. We tried three pinsas--the Carbonara (guanciale/bacon), Patate (roasted potatoes/rosemary) and the Oste (pecorino/red onions). Just wonderful!

As you can see, if you made it this far, Oste is high on expert turns on familiar, satisfying Italian taste adventures--and low on pretense. What a great, new Los Angeles...

We found Oste through Google and decided to give it a try. At first appearance the reviews were great and the venue looked elegant. Good lighting, seating and decor. We ordered the homemade bread with Evoo, Fiori do Zucca, barrata Al pappa al pomodoro, Pappardelle alla vaccinara, then for dessert the Tiramisu and Peaches and Chardonnay sorbet. Our drinks were orange spritz and guava spritz.

Food Review: The bread was gritty, touch and chewy. It was pizza crust and not the best kind. You want this to transport you back to Naples, instead it took me to a subpar restaurant in LA. We left it after having 1 or 2 pieces each. (2/10)

The squash blossoms were stuffeed with ricotta and Basil. A beautiful combination. However, these were bland and tasteless. They were served with a basic marinara sauce which was average. (3/10)

The barrata was tough. Barrata is suppose to be fresh and cream-like once you cut into the skin and it should put a smile on my face. I felt as if I was eating a cheap buffalo mozzarella which most definitely did not have the same effect as Barrata should. It was served with a delicious, flavourful and light sugo tomato which was perfectly seasoned and fresh. (5/10)

The oxtail fell apart in my mouth and was delicious in its ragu. The pasta was cooked past al dente which is a shame because it has the potential to be so much better. (6/10)

The tiramisu was delicious! Creamy, moist, sweet with that beautiful coffee ribboning through. The lady fingers were soggy and there wasn’t a great cohesiveness. It was served with strawberries on top which a great tiramisu does not need at all. Such a shame if it weren’t for those. (5/10)

The peach Chardonnay sorbet was gritty. It’s a pallet cleanser and should be smooth. The taste was not bad but I can’t say it’s something I recommend at all. (3/10)

The orange spritz was ok, it was simply fizzy orange juice and no taste of any Prosecco. The guava spritz needs to be taken off the menu. It had 0 impact and in my opinion a waste of money. (2/10)

Service Review: The service was impeccable. We had 3 people serving us who were all super friendly, patient and attentive. As soon as a glass was empty, they were there refilling.

Overall: Apart from the service and ambiance, after tasting the food, I left the restaurant feeling very underwhelmed, disappointed, and that I wasted money on inauthentic Italian food. Maybe I chose the wrong things on the menu but I definitely won’t be coming back or recommending the restaurant...