LouLou Santa Monica — Restaurant in Santa Monica

Came for outdoor ambience. As a food critic, had to try the food. Yes, chef, it was French fabulous. So why not a 5 ⭐? Be patient and read thoroughly. Let's start with the crunchy part. If you are one who wants crunchy in their beet salad, say those packaged oyster crackers that may come with the over 45$ oysters, well, bring your own. There are No crackers. No, no crackers. Remember that. The management said they could add crostini bits and charge for that...well damn, how do you charge extra for crunchy beet salad at 18+$ already? Moving on, I saw pizza on the menu, and if done correctly, the 'crust'-tini' might just be solved, yes The Loulou shrooms pizza for 22$ was it. If you like it on the crust crispy side, don't ask. .. please, don't ask, move on. The sauce, as most French foods master, was decadent (remember to take your cholesterol meds). My friend used the crust edges for her crunchy at no cost. You are welcome 🤗. Adult drinks? 🍸 Nevermind the fancy stuff🥛, we were just here for the view🌅 (of, people, cars, and roof top AC units)🛴🚦🛵🚲🚙🚐🏢. Who can mess up vodka? And, you know, there is french style vodka...🤤the bar was backed up, so within 20 minutes we received vodka, soda waters with 2limes, 1 lemon and plenty of ice...I was thirsty🥵, so we cheered and drank only to realize that there was plenty of water and ice, but did the vodka evaporate? 🫗 Vodka, splash of ice, and soda water, easy? I hesitated, but told our server who immediately went to her management. After a few apologies and my ever kind way of saying less ice, 🤷 maybe? I received a new cocktail, with a word of advice from the elegantly accented manager, 'just Keep the drink away from the sun 🌞so the ice melts slower'...ah, ah, of course, sure, maybe underneath my seat, on the floor, where I have created a shaded area with..well you know, my seat. 🫠 Daniela our server was the only 5 ⭐ (someone hire-save her from here). I sip my beverages, not this time. The ice was melting. 💪 2.5 ✨...

Aesthetic and service (had Nick as our server) was AMAZING, but food was very mediocre.

Grilled Octopus (with Romesco Sauce, Avocado) - Really like the octopus here. It was perfectly cooked and not rubbery or anything like that. That Romesco Sauce on the side paired perfectly with the octopus. Totally recommend this dish!

Mediterranean Hummus (with Crudite) - Hummus was absolutely delicious! Smooth and creamy and actually went really well with so many other items we ordered. It was a good volume of the hummus so there was plenty left over even after the veggies were eaten.

Grilled Asparagus Side - They accidentally brought someone else's order to our table here, but this asp was Lovely! I don't usually like asparagus, but this was an exception. Great with that hummus!

Cauliflower Steak - the cauliflower was still hard on the inside and not like a steak; More like a head of roasted cauliflower. Ended up eating just a quarter and taking the rest home to cook it more. This was the disappointment I would say.

Poulet Aux Morilles - Chicken entree Not a bad dish but nothing fancy about this one. Husband had ordered this and if I'm not mistaken it was a little salty? Or a little dry? I'm not sure which but there was some issue here which made the dish a little lacking in something special.

Lamb Chops - Friend ordered this and he seemed to really like it. I didn't try but the presentation was beautiful and he finished the entire plate so I take it as a good sign.

Endive Salad - Another one ordered by our friend. Love the amount of vegetables in here but not a fan of how oily it was. I didn't want to try too much of it just because of the oil in there.

We noticed they had a chocolate fountain while we were leaving and the server. Nick was generous enough to give us some fruit and a bunch of that chocolate on a plate. Really rich chocolate and a good end to the meal.

Shout out to the server again for just giving us a fun time with conversation...

My friend and I came here Saturday for lunch! We did not have reservations but we were seated promptly, but told we had a 90 minute time limit. Most all seating is outside. The décor, relaxing, summer vibe with lots of natural woods and textures, is very pretty. Dining is at tables or at couches outside, protected by woven reed canvases above. If your group is there for drinks, the couches are fine, but for eating, ask for a table. There is a large bar as one enters which is great if one just wants a drink and snack.

Our server, Escoban was great, along with the runners who brought our food and asked us if we needed anything else! Service with a smile! We shared the LouLou pizza, $22 (mozzarella, mascarpone, gorgonzola, mushrooms and prosciutto) and a salad Nicoise $18( vegetarian). One can add a tuna, salmon, chicken, or steak for an added cost. Honestly, I have always had a Nicoise Salad with tuna and not had to add it for an extra $8. However the food was delicious. The cocktails looked refreshing and delicious, but we opted for just water. The shared cost for the above was reasonable because we ordered just food and had water! The cocktails are expensive.

The ambience here is relaxing but the DJ music is LOUD. The Congo drummer was a fun added kick to the fun vibe here, but I couldn't have a conversation unless I yelled. I can see this place being fun for groups later in the evening. Santa Monica has the perfect weather for an outdoor patio seating restaurant. Loulou is located on the 3rd/ rooftop of the Santa Monica Place.

The restrooms are gender neutral. The lighting in the bathroom areas are not well lit, and very dark. The floors of my restroom was wet and so was the toilet seat! It was hard to reapply lipstick at the shared sink area outside the restrooms.

I am not sure I will come back, but I can see how it could be a fun party...