Drago
2628 Wilshire Blvd (between 26th and Princeton; in Santa Monica)

It was Memorial Day Saturday and knowing the DUI checkpoints (I miss NYC since you don’t need a car…LA is just built for DUI…), I chose to take a cab despite having a rental car. I chose Drago in Santa Monica as I had a wonderful meal there the previous year when I visited the area.

The restaurant was very busy (totally different from the mid-week experience I had last time) and the atmosphere was one of near chaos – but somewhat controlled. Drago is a typical high-class Italian restaurant tempered by the relaxed atmosphere of Southern California. So it’s not stiff at all. Celestino Drago could open this place in Manhattan and do quite well...

It took awhile, but I enjoyed my bottle of lagrein with the starter of salumi misti (mixed cured meats). Not bad, but the cuts of meat were quite poor – and the "fried bread" tasted old… Not a good start. Plus, my favourite wild boar chops were gone from the menu.

But it all caught up with my expectations when my favourite risotto nero showed up. I love ink, as readers know, but they do a spectacular huge portion here with assorted seafood. I would have loved more squid and cuttlefish, but prawns and scallops were nice indeed with the flavourful risotto.

I bypassed the dessert and enjoyed some grappa before finding a taxi (not that easy in Southern California…) to go back. Mmm, this worked out well. Drago is an excellent place, but it is a little chaotic. Something like that would never stand in Manhattan, but for SoCal, it’s not bad.

Food: B
Atmosphere: B-
For Lone Diners: B-