Day 36: Fig

Autumn offered to turn me on to happy hour at Fig so I would have material for my blog.  Twist my arm.  The stars aligned as I happened to be free from 5:00 to 7:00.  Fig is a lovely bar/restaurant inside the Fairmont hotel on Wilshire and Ocean (Fig's entrance is on 2nd Street) that opened about a year ago. I love the comfort factor - instead of a formal restaurant, the management has gone with a casual place that's part wine bar, part California bistro. The chef is Ray Garcia, whose focus here is fresh, local ingredients.


The happy hour deal starts at 5:00.  The technique is to order up a storm before 6:00 and everything is half price. Drinks, and anything on the menu. We sat at a tall communal bar table.  We didn't want to sit at the bar, because as Autumn pointed out there is a big cheese platter selection (you can order a set flight of cheeses or create your own flight) but if you sit too close it starts to get a little smelly.  After you've ordered before the stroke of 6:00 you are free to linger and enjoy your spread. Kalli and Rose joined us and continued ordering where Autumn and I left off.  We had a drink, some cheese, bread, olives, which snowballed into croquettes, potato dumplings, a beet salad, a charcuterie plate, and a few mozzarella balls.  We got caught up, laughed about the smelly cheese, and getting caught on camera speeding tickets (the ultimate L.A. nightmare!) We toasted Rose on the eve of her birthday.  Mark has a deadline to meet, so I had to leave at 7:15 to go home and help him with the boys.  Also, this semi-lactose-intolerant gal had overdosed on cheese, and it was time to go home and have some peppermint tea and detox.  Nikita showed up just in time to take over where I left off.  Great company, amazing eats, damn good wine.  I was sorry to leave.