The Hollywood Reporter - 21.08.2019

Dining

Style

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 48 AUGUST 21, 2019

ADLER: GREGG DEGUIRE/GETTY IMAGES. NIC’S: DANIELLE ADAMS. BACKYARD: ACUNA HANSEN.

Photographed by Victoria Wall Harris

Formosa Cafe

THR reviews the reopened chinoiserie legend that offers

some Taiwanese-cuisine hits and great drinks By Gary Baum

R

esurrecting a classic restaurant is

tricky business. Too much fealty to the

past may result in tone-deaf earnest-

ness; too much irreverence risks alienating

nostalgists. West Hollywood’s now-80-year-

old Formosa Cafe, born as an arch confection,

had been betrayed by a previous renovation

and management cycle. Now the preserva-

tion-minded hospitality group led by Bobby

Green (Idle Hour, the upcoming Tail o’ the

Pup relaunch) has completed a commendable

two-year, $2.4 million recovery. While some

of Green’s non-historic projects, like Sassafras

Saloon on Vine, require a tolerance for twee,

at the Formosa a nuanced sense of vintage and

contemporary kitsch reigns.

The rehabilitation

doesn’t just hit the

right chinoiserie plea-

sure points. This early

exemplar of thematic

dining — which lured

Ava Gardner, Humphrey

Bogart, Lana Tu r n e r and

James Dean — attempts

to atone for having long

peddled an oblivious

Oriental minstrelsy of

Dragon Ladies and Fu

Manchu beards. For its far more multicultural

2019 demo, there’s a new headshot gallery

(curated by Oscar-nominated filmmaker

Arthur Dong) of Golden Age Chinese-

American entertainers, a rejoinder to the

extant rows of white stars’ mugs that have

long resided there. The soundtrack features

selections like a Mandarin cover of the Beatles’

“Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da.”

David Kuo of Santa Monica’s Little Fatty

has been brought in to rethink the Formosa’s

Chinese American food through a modern

Taiwanese lens. It’s astute; the place’s name,

after all, references the island state, not the

mainland. Kuo has created a trio of not-to-be-

missed hits: the walnut shrimp (addictively

crunchy amid shaved radishes; $20), the

braised pork belly (dissolve-on-the-tongue

delicate; $20) and the orange chicken (a house

sauce conjures a deep, rich burnt citrus flavor;

$15). Then there’s the rest of the menu — a

precipitous drop-off, from the mediocre veg-

etarian egg rolls (all credit due, they’re piping

hot) to the forgettable XO fried rice.

It’s stolid fare best utilized as stomach-

lining for the top-notch tiki drinks, including

confident renditions of a Singapore Sling and

a Mai Tai. So what if, say, the scallion pan-

cakes are nothing but grease traps with little

discernible sense of the minced onions? The

cooking is arguably as good as it needs to be

when the goal is to sate yourself on the intense

glamour of the atmosphere. At times, the

customers are so inspired, they dress for the

occasion in qipao. An enjoyable night dining

out isn’t only about the food.

The Bottom Line This classic has been satisfy-

ingly restored.

Formosa

Cafe was

photographed

Aug. 14.

Chez Jay, the legendary Santa Monica hangout that turns 60 this year, has

opened a back patio with a new menu that moves the bill of fare beyond sand

dabs almondine to kimchi guacamole and truffle fries. Presidential candidate

Bernie Sanders recently dined in the main restaurant. ... The late, longtime West

L.A. site of Junior’s Deli, briefly Lenny’s, soon will be taken over by acclaimed

genre practitioner Wise Sons of San Francisco. Just in time for Google to move in

down the street. ... Now that its DTLA factory is running, Ta r t i n e is on the expan-

sion march. Its next outpost will be in the Hollywood Media District.

Hollywood and Dine ...

This review is based on multiple visits. Reservations are

made under another name. Meals are covered by THR.

Nic Adler’s

New Resto: Don’t

Say ‘Vegan’

EATER’S DIGEST

TABLE READ

Nic Adler, son of music

producer Lou and the culinary

director of Goldenvoice (the

company behind Coachella),

knows there are

plenty of omni-

vores who think

of vegan food as

inedible. So at

his new Beverly

Boulevard res-

taurant, Nic’s, he’s banished the

word — along with any hippie-

dippie aesthetics. This despite,

or perhaps because, he’s

practiced veganism for nearly

a quarter-century. Though

Adler also has launched a

mini-chain of local burger joints

called Monty’s with Impossible

patties, the latest of which is

opening in Echo Park, Nic’s is

not about ersatz dishes meant

to approximate the pleasures of

meat. “There are no air quotes

here, no tricks,” he says, “I

wanted great service and beau-

tiful stemware.” He brought in

chef Steven Fretz, who made

his name at the late, acclaimed

Church Key, to reimagine

classic L.A. dishes through “a

plant-based” lens, from the

Chinese chicken salad at Chin

Chin to the agnolotti at Spago.

The resulting menu features

chilled soba noodles, summer

corn agnolotti and chickpea

tagine. “It’s an idea of growing

up here,” Adler says, “from the

’70s to the ’90s.” — G.B.

Avocado crispy rice with

ponzu, citrus and cilantro for $14.

Formosa Cafe

7156 Santa

Monica Blvd.,

West Hollywood.

323-850-1009.

Full bar, daily,

4 p.m. to 2 a.m.

BEST TABLE

The chinoiserie

booths with views

to the newly

installed vintage

Red Line trolley.

HOT DISH

PORK BELLY

Adler