Chef Patron Josiah Citrin and his world celebrated restaurant Mélisse have remained the cornerstone of fine dining in Southern California for over 15 years. Never comfortable to rest on laurels or awards Chef Citrin and his team are always pushing, always innovating their cuisine and searching for a new way of elevating flavours, textures and presentation.

Once seated in the romantically lit dining room by the friendly, attentive staff the bustling world of Metropolitan Los Angeles fades into the background and a feast of the senses begins. Grounded in the great French traditions and technique (Chef Citrin studied in the kitchens of Paris for years before returning to his native California) Mélisse is fundamentally a West Coast restaurant utilising predominately local produce on its ever changing seasonably driven menu.

While flawless classical technique is on display with the elegant table side carving of Côte de boeuf or rotisserie chicken, stuffed with truffles, it is the balance of flavours between the “classic” west and the eastern influences of the Pacific Rim that keeps the food fresh and delightful creating a true contemporary Californian cuisine.

There are choices of tasting menus, ones where the Patron has some pick of the dishes or you can submit yourself to the kitchen and have the Chef craft a unique, mind-blowing, 16 course, sensory experience.

A playful and precise wine program is structured by the irreverently talented Brian Kalliel with a lean towards the old world Burgundy, Rhône, and Northern Italy, with fun surprises along the way.

In a city whimsically obsessed with the newest trend, Chef Citrin has forged a true gastronomic temple steadfastly committed to the deceptively simple dining fundamentals of seasonal products coaxed into full expression with as little interference and pretense as possible. All of which place Mélisse on a “must reservation” to any southern Californian visitor or resident.

Written by John