The Sycamore Kitchen — Restaurant in Los Angeles

We're just back from a holiday spent in Los Angeles visiting friends. We had some great food, but the dish that I am still fantasizing about was actually a humble brunch pastry. Sycamore Kitchen comes from the chefs behind the well regarded Hatfield's. It opens nice and early (perfect for a baby on East Coast time!) and offers an array of pastries and brunch dishes.

The pastry that stole my heart was a salted caramel pecan babka roll. I would normally not order a sticky bun, but the salted caramel, the flavor combination du jour was too compelling to pass up. I LOVED this roll. Seriously, I might have to cheat on my beloved chocolate banana pancake to take up with this ooey gooey salty goodness. It is simply the perfect combination of salty and sweet. So good in fact that we returned the next day so I could eat it again, and the second time I didn't even share.

If sweets aren't your thing, everything else at Sycamore Kitchen is ridiculously good, too. I'm not exaggerating when I say that every bite of everything I had was utterly scrumptious. The croque madame combined ham, cheese, béchamel and an egg on wonderful grilled country bread to great effect, and the eggs benedict was taken up a notch with the addition of honey-sherry glazed pancetta and fried rosemary.

On our return visit, I tried the scrambled egg and chorizo sandwich with melted Swiss cheese, roasted onion, on griddled pan de mie. To be honest, I thought this would pale in comparison to the previous day's dishes, but I didn't want to order the exact same thing. Well color me surprised, it might have been even better than the other two dishes. Or maybe they were all equally delicious. Tough to say when my brain is melting from overwhelming pleasure.

Our friend ordered the granola both days, so it must be good, but I could not possibly resist the siren call of less healthy fare. Probably that is why he has Hollywood good looks and we look like regular people, but it's totally worth it.

Shoot, now I'm sad that I won't get to eat this food again any time soon. I'm usually somewhat ambivalent about brunch food, but this was the business. Can someone in Atlanta pretty please begin making a salted caramel pecan babka roll? Add to that a pleasant outdoor eating area, low humidity 70-something weather, Stumptown coffee and dog friendly dining, and I...

I think restaurants across the city are all making the same mistake. They are faced with 2 choices: create a meal that has a large portion for a high price, or create a meal that has a medicare portion for a high price. And most restaurants, including Sycamore Kitchen, are choosing the latter.

I think back to Greenblatts Deli and paying $18 for turkey and Swiss on a roll. I didn't mind, because just like delis in NY, the sandwich was huge.

If you look at the sandwich in my photo, I want you to ask yourself: would I or anyone else, ever wake up hungry one day with the image of this sandwich in their minds and say "hmmm I'm hungry I think I'll head down to Sycamore Kitchen and get that $17.80 Turkey sandwich again" The answer is no. No one would. Bare plate with a wilted pickle too. And I tipped even tho it's a counter order.

Restaurants are so out of touch with the people. The way I see it, Sycamore Kitchen, is you have two choices. You can make the price of this sandwich $11 and I'll come back. Or you can keep the price at $16 plus tax and put twice the amount of meat or give me a side of potato salad or cold slaw. I don't like the feeling of going someplace hungry and feeling like I've been ripped off just because you have to call yourself the Sycamore Kitchen. The bottom line... and this is objective and not subjective... is that the sandwich is flat out not worth $17.80. The experience is not worth $17.80. Ordering it myself and it not coming with a napkin so I have to get up and walk into the corner and get myself a napkin is also not worth $17.80.

The photo of the sandwich speaks for itself. I do not need to say anything else even though I elaborated to try to give you some advice. I'm not going to be back but if you want to try to retain an audience do one or the other. Make it less expensive, or make it better. It's a very simple...

Excellent food and service and lovely patio! For a Sunday around noon, there are many brunch options in the area. I chose this one because its food looked yummy and the outdoor patio looked lovely. For a January day, it was HOT so the shade was very welcome.

Line was maybe 8-10 people long but moved quickly. It's soooo temping to fawn over the desserts as you are waiting in line. We had the Yucatan bowl (no chicken, and over-hard egg...i never even knew what that was until I saw someone post a photo of it on the Yelp page!), the pancakes, side of eggs and side of potatoes. Their potatoes are my favorite! I like the chopped up tiny onions and bell pepper pieces. The bring the food as it's ready, which I prefer because the food doesn't come out cold. Pancakes came out first and were so fluffy and a great texture. The Yucatan bowl had beans, that white crumbly cheese, roasted tomato, and my egg fried on the tortilla. This bowl is a must!

I would love to come back for a pastry and tea or try one of their salads. They all look so fresh and yummy.

Ambiance is lovely with various, well-kept potted plants scattered about and lots of interesting choices of where to sit. There may also be various bird and puppy sightings, so keep your eyes peeled!

Parking garage is a bit south on La Brea with an entrance in the back. Don't forget to validate, otherwise it's $5 an hour...