Pacific Dining Car Looks to the Future
By Michael Hepworth
The venerable Pacific Dining Car steak house has been around since 1921 in Los Angeles and has a storied history of visits by the real power players in Los Angeles. Politicians, lawyers, business leader and celebrities still come on a regular basis for the privacy and ambiance, and it has also been the scene for many movies including Training Day and more recently, Street Kings more.
I was also able to glean some celebrity names of people who come fairly regularly when they are in town, and as expected they are some big ones like Johnny Depp, Jack Black, Mayor Antonio Villaragosa and many more.
Much of the staff have been there for at least twenty years and it is also open 24 hours a day, serving a power breakfast that is popular with brokers, film crews, early morning risers and late night partygoers, although you will probably be looking at least $30 for a decent breakfast. This is because the food is sourced from the best vendors possible and a full meal consisting of at least four courses with drinks for two people, will set you back around $300, although the portions as you would expect are generous.
However saying that, you can start with the famous crab cakes made entirely of Blue crab meat that was so good that it didn’t feel like crab at all. The Heirloom Tomato Salad with blue cheese and aged balsamic vinegar was also serious business and was close to being a main course just by itself.
The 18oz. Rib Eye Steak was pretty impressive as well and was served with the house relish, creamed corn and creamed radishes. As succulent as you could wish for, although the veal dish my companion tried was a little too swamped and submerged with a lot of extra stuff such as onions.
Wines selected for the main courses were the Decoy Cabernet with the steak and a Green Valley Pinot Noir with the veal.
The challenge now for the restaurant is now to attract younger patrons who will fill the shoes of regulars who are dying off or have retired to the Desert, hence the idea being muted around to bring in some kind of music on the weekends. In my mind that would break the old world silent vibe that is a delight to an old fashioned diner like myself. If you like crowded and noisy restaurants then this is not the place for you.
Cocktails here are always doubles, and wines are served by the glass in an 8oz glass if you prefer it that way. It is also one of the few restaurants in Los Angeles to have a full time sommelier/maitre d', and Ehsan Mackani has that job and he is strictly a classic red wine man and actually frowned when I selected a sauvignon blanc to go with the appetizers. He knows his wine, will answer all or any questions you may have and is not afraid to share his opinion and steer you in the right direction.
1310 W.6th St, Los Angeles
310-483-6000
www.pacificdiningcar.com
The venerable Pacific Dining Car steak house has been around since 1921 in Los Angeles and has a storied history of visits by the real power players in Los Angeles. Politicians, lawyers, business leader and celebrities still come on a regular basis for the privacy and ambiance, and it has also been the scene for many movies including Training Day and more recently, Street Kings more.
I was also able to glean some celebrity names of people who come fairly regularly when they are in town, and as expected they are some big ones like Johnny Depp, Jack Black, Mayor Antonio Villaragosa and many more.
Much of the staff have been there for at least twenty years and it is also open 24 hours a day, serving a power breakfast that is popular with brokers, film crews, early morning risers and late night partygoers, although you will probably be looking at least $30 for a decent breakfast. This is because the food is sourced from the best vendors possible and a full meal consisting of at least four courses with drinks for two people, will set you back around $300, although the portions as you would expect are generous.
However saying that, you can start with the famous crab cakes made entirely of Blue crab meat that was so good that it didn’t feel like crab at all. The Heirloom Tomato Salad with blue cheese and aged balsamic vinegar was also serious business and was close to being a main course just by itself.
The 18oz. Rib Eye Steak was pretty impressive as well and was served with the house relish, creamed corn and creamed radishes. As succulent as you could wish for, although the veal dish my companion tried was a little too swamped and submerged with a lot of extra stuff such as onions.
Wines selected for the main courses were the Decoy Cabernet with the steak and a Green Valley Pinot Noir with the veal.
The challenge now for the restaurant is now to attract younger patrons who will fill the shoes of regulars who are dying off or have retired to the Desert, hence the idea being muted around to bring in some kind of music on the weekends. In my mind that would break the old world silent vibe that is a delight to an old fashioned diner like myself. If you like crowded and noisy restaurants then this is not the place for you.
Cocktails here are always doubles, and wines are served by the glass in an 8oz glass if you prefer it that way. It is also one of the few restaurants in Los Angeles to have a full time sommelier/maitre d', and Ehsan Mackani has that job and he is strictly a classic red wine man and actually frowned when I selected a sauvignon blanc to go with the appetizers. He knows his wine, will answer all or any questions you may have and is not afraid to share his opinion and steer you in the right direction.
1310 W.6th St, Los Angeles
310-483-6000
www.pacificdiningcar.com
