Papilles

“Under the radar”, “hidden gem”, “underrated”… Papilles is certainly not the pretentious and overpriced French restaurant you typically find in the United States. After parking your car on a strip mall tucked away on near the 101, you’ll feel like you’re stepping into a bistro in the 14th or 15th arrondissement of Paris. There are stacks of European biodynamic wines against the main wall: you won’t find a wine list at Papilles, all you need to do is go grab your favorite bottle. And in the open kitchen, the charming and uncomplicated chef makes charming and uncomplicated dishes: foie gras luculus, oxtail salad perfectly balanced with raw green apples, provencal tian, frog legs, lamb shoulder with eggplant and lemony yogurt… One of the three people you’ll see moving around swiftly behind the five-seat chef’s counter is Claudio Dell’Anno, who used to own a Michelin-starred restaurant in Knokke, Belgium. Oh, and if you need yet another reason to love Papilles, they’re doing free corkage on the first bottle on Mondays!