Luau

Food was not bad, pricey but not bad. I liked my husband’s seafood dish more than my duck dish. Considering how completely empty the place was the service was slow. I was expecting more, especially with all the history the place is supposed to be reviving. I would not go back.

The only good/​exciting thing about this place is the Polynessian mod décor and the blowfish chandelier… awww the blowfish chandelier, two stars for that, i think it was the only thing that distracted me away from the tasteless/​insipid foods.

So a co-​worker and I wanted to get a couple of drinks after work. Our office is up the street on Bedford. We walked over and into the front door. Asked if we could sit at the bar for drinks (it was fairly early, I’d say around 5:30 or 6:00). No one was sitting there and the seating area inside looked empty. The hostess informed us that it is only a serving bar (I think that’s what she said). My co-​worker and I looked at eachother like, «are you serious?» We walked right out.
The place just recently opened. I think they’ll lose a lot of potential business this way. How can you put a bar right in your front door that has stools to sit on but not have it available for people who just want a couple of drinks? No, we’re not going back. Yes, based on that. We ended up going back to where we usually go… a couple of doors down from the office — Crustacean. Where we can order drinks AND food from the bar.

I was so uninspired by this place that I wasn’t even compelled to write anything about it.
I prefer to write reviews about places I think are either exceptional, horrific or exceptionally horrific. Any place that falls in between is well, boring, and mediocrity being the life pulse of this country is wholly expected from the masses and needs little explanation.
The décor was fashionably nuanced with just a sliver of Polynesian flare. If it weren’t for the school of lacquered blow fish dangling in both rooms, you would be hard pressed to imagine yourself in a Polynesian restaurant. My husband, another couple and myself were expecting to be greeted with a little more vintage Beverly Hills, Polynesian kitsch ala the original Luau of the 1960s. The Mai Tais were fabulous, but the bar was so tiny and uninviting, we all made a collective groan when we saw it. One could not possibly go there to merely swill a couple of rum-​based libations while having a meatball or two at the bar. The diminutive bar area was too close to the front door, there were few chairs and only 10 people could reasonably loiter in the bar area. The bar itself is poorly shaped, cramped and barren of all things Polynesian. As a former patron on Trader Vic’s in its 80s heyday, Sugar Shack on Pico and Tiki Ti in Silverlake, I expected to be transported somewhere other than a men’s furnishings dressing room at Neiman Marcus.
We all commented that there was no music playing whatsoever. The worst part of all was there was only one lone male/​female bathroom on the main floor. I went upstairs and found separate bathrooms for both men and women, but again, only one personal stall for each. An absolutely cruel and ludicrous plan for a large restaurant where people are drinking a lot of liquids.
The servers were nice, helpful and chipper. The food was decent but nothing you would crave and need to return for. The menu was tiny and the portions VERY small. As we continued to complain that the place would greatly benefit from some vibey Polynesian tunes, a Pink Floyd song filled the dining room. It was about as tasteful as drinking a glass of orange juice after brushing your teeth. Don’t get me wrong, I love Pink Floyd, but a little less Don Henley and a little more Do Ho would have been the perfect slice of pineapple* perched upon the rim of my $ 14 Luau Mai Tai.
I give this place a wobbly six months before their doors close.
*And no, they don’t even put a slice of pineapple on the Mai Tais, so don’t get excited.

my special lady-​friend and i just ate there last night. apps included the curried vegetable lettuce cups and the unagi on fried risotto cakes… brilliant, is all i can say about that. for the main course she had the ono and i got the chillean sea bass that came highly recommended. sweet lord, was that ever good. like buttah, i say. cocktail were stiff, dessert was excellent and the service was great. whatever the other reviewers had been privy to has obviously been ironed out. this place was great… can’t wait to go back.

I was nervous about this place because of the previous reviews, but I think they’ve finally got their act together.
The server was great and very attentive. Everything we ate was absolutely delicious. The unagi on risotto appetizer is one of the tastiest things I’ve ever eaten. The sea bass was amazing.
But yes, it is QUITE expensive. A good place for a special evening. Or if you’re rich. Then you should go.

Bottom line is this is a new place and they are still working out the kinks. They get two stars because everything that did manage to find its way from the kitchen to our table (whether we ordered it or not) tasted amazing.
Yes, the service was really, really poor and the lobster was really hard to eat in the dark but they were really nice about it and paid for our desserts.
It was a Wed night and they were completely full and overwhelmed. I think everyone’s still trying to find their stride.
I would definitely go back for the food, but not for another couple of months until they work out their service issues.
Oh, and the blowfish lights are really cool!