Girls night is the best kind of night and when you’ve got an incredible hotspot to catch up and toast to life’s awesome moments…it makes it even more special. La Bohème in West Hollywood is that spot where intimate gatherings create one of a kind memories. The team and our EIC – Erika De La Cruz – just visited this hidden gem in Weho (for a momentous event, more on that later) and we were so impressed with the whole vibe at La Bohème. The restaurant has a full indoor outdoor feel with twinkling lights all over, fire pits in every corner, and a dining room fit for French aristocracy. After reading our little review on this place, we can only hope you are ready to make a reservation to visit on e of LA’s best restaurants. Here is everything we sipped on and snacked on at La Bohème in West Hollywood.
The Vibe
La Bohème is located at 8400 Santa Monica Blvd, on the corner of Orlando Ave and Santa Monica Blvd. As you approach the restaurant, it almost feels like you’re entering a French château. The outdoor section is enclosed with lush greenery, white tents and lights. The inside of the restaurant is draped in romantic red and baroque decor with chandeliers overhead and a grand piano at the center of the dining room. Very romantic if you ask us! In fact, this was the intent behind Kozo Hasegawa, CEO of Global Dining Inc., and owner of La Bohème. The restaurant was meant to create an enchanting atmosphere with colorful, velvet couches, antique oil paintings, and magical string lights.
We came to have a team night out and also celebrate The LA Girl’s COO who is a bride-to-be! Take note babes – this place is so cool to have an impromptu bridal shower, but the restaurant also holds one of a kind special events here too. For example, right now on Saturday nights at 7:00 PM and 9:00 PM they host a Burlesque show. It’s an event unlike any other with dinner, drinks, and entertainment. Fridays nights here are “Jazz Fridays” with the sounds of real jazz featuring the incredible vocals of Devyn Kelly (the same Jazz band that performs at Delilah and Bar Lis) every Friday starting at 8:00 PM. If you’re looking to meet some incredible people come to their Community Night on Monday’s from 5:00 PM to closing. FYI: the 2nd round of Happy Hour drinks are on the house. Check out more of their offerings on their IG too. Ok now let’s get to the drinks and food!
The Drinks
To get things started, we had our wonderful waiter Patrick ( please ask for hm when you go, he’s so knowledgeable about the whole menu) bring out some bubbles for the bride. We had glasses of Bailly Lapierre’s Sparkling Rose Brut and Nicolas Feuilatte’s Champagne. Both hailing from France. You can order these by the glass or get a bottle for the table. Their crafts cocktails are insanely good too. If you’re a margarita girlie – we suggest the “Smoky Sips.” It’s a mezcal made drink with house-made pomegranate molasses, agave nectar, fresh lime juice, pomegranate seeds, and lava salt. If you’re a martini girlie, try the “Gooseberry,” that has vodka, st.germain liqueur, house-made blackberry puree, fresh lemon juice, simple syrup. They also have great Espresso Martini’s, Old Fashioned’s and Moscow Mules. But trust us, no matter which cocktail you choose, it will pair perfectly with their delicious menu.
The Menu
To get things started we ordered a variety of apps that cater to all palates. For our veggie girlies – the Vegan Ricotta Stuffed Squash Blossoms were amazing. They’re also vegan too with cashew ricotta, pumpkin seed, sun-dried tomato, marinara, and yuzu pepper aioli. If you love your poke, try the Tuna Tartare, which comes with avocado, cucumber, cilantro spicy soy sesame vinaigrette and served with a sliced baguette. Obvi nothing beats a Charcuterie & Cheese Board that holds up as a centerpiece of your celebration. La Bohème has an exceptional one with house-made jam, sesame crostini, truffle pecorino, Humboldt fog, Mimolette, prosciutto di Parma and bresaola.
Our mains were just as delicious. The team all ordered something different which was perfect to taste test a little this and that. We had real meals like their signature LB Bistro Burger with truffle fries, a Classic Roasted Half Chicken with dijon sauce, a Belgian Endive Pear Salad with gorgonzola blue, frisee, arugula, candied pecans, and apple cider vinaigrette, Pan Roasted Salmon with sunchoke purée, grilled broccolini and chimichurri, the Grilled Angus Filet Mignon with potato gratin ( we ordered more of these because they were so delicious!), and their current special the Kona Kampachi with Spinach, which is a decadent white fish. Everything was so tasty and filled our tummies to the brim. We were almost going to say collectively as team – “NO DESERT, THANK YOU!” – but good ol’ Patrick insisted we had to try some before we leave because we’d be missing out.
Let’s just say if you decide to order any desert – order the “Baked Alaska.” The staff will come by and whip it up tableside with a flambe service. So yes, it’s a desert and a show! It’s really yummy too. There is warm chocolate on the outside and cool vanilla ice cream on the inside. An explosion of flavors with this one. But wait, there’s more. We had the ultra rich but not overly sweet Flourless Belgian Chocolate Cake, the Strawberry Shortcake Trifle ( our fave!), which was a refreshing creamy desert, and the Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding. BTW, we’ve never had bread pudding like this. It had vanilla ice cream, salted caramel drizzle, and the taste of it was so good, we could have saved it for breakfast the next morning.
Just so ya know, aside from a wonderful dinner service, La Bohème also offers a Prix Fix Brunch that includes bottomless mimosas and menu items like Eggs Benedict and Brioche French Toast. This is definitely a place we can see ourselves coming back to time and time again. The staff is generous, the food hits, and the drinks are awesome. We can’t recommend this place enough for your next girls night gathering, date night, or maybe even a solo dining experience. Trust us, you’ll walk out feeling like you discovered one of Weho’s best kept secrets too.
And if you need coffee after a night of crazy fun, check our go-to spot.
