potatomato.blog: Chameau (Fairfax District)

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Jan 12

Chameau (Fairfax District)

Food 10: W. Hollywood

French Moroccan restaurant Chameau has been on top of my 'always wanted to try but never made it' list.

The lights, the colors, the textures! Gorgeous modern
interpretation of Traditional Moroccan decor~ We're too in awe by the interior, it was hard to concerntrate on the menu...^^;;

Cinnamony Sangria and very soft and incredible Seseme bread, the olives are good too. However, we waited and waited forever for the bread. The waiter came by once to tell us they had to re-bake the bread as the previous batch was burnt. The bread eventually came after we reminded them twice (came with the appertizer). This slowness was alarming and will prove to persist thru-out the night.

Duck Bastilla with Sweet Almonds, cinnamon and cilantro $10. Smokey grounded duck with this complex blend of sweet and salty flavors and crunchy and crispy texture, I love it! This is just too good~

After that incredible appertizer, we must have waited for almost 20-30 minutes for our entrees. -__-;;;

Grilled Lamb chops with smoked eggplant puree and red pepper jus $24 Joan ordered this medium rare, but when they came it's well done. By then we waited too long for the food to complain. We mentioned it when the waiter came by to ask, he quickly dash to the kitchen to bring out 2 newly grilled lamb chops. This time the timing is perfect. Very good~

I got the couscous entree: Lamb Shank Tagine with a Honeyed Quince and Vegetable Couscous $24. This is cooked in traditional couscousiere. The lamb shank is very tender, moist and spiced. The couscous are moist as well, very lovely to eat (feels so pillowy~). There're so many different types of colorful veggie. This entire plate is so tasty~

Mint Tea and Raspberry Cream Bastilla. Easily one of the most delicious dessert ever! *_* It's similar to the duck Bastilla texture wise: lots of pine nuts, sweet glazed almond, cinnamon, sugar, fruits inbetween the crispy pastries. The cream at the center is so airy and light, very fresh tasting. Even though our stomachs were bursting we just have to finish this.

Even though there are many tables came after us, we were the only table left by the end. Perhaps due to under staff (the entire place only has 1 waiter and 1 bus boy. The hostess wasn't present when we arrived), our dishes took way longer than normal. On the same night, there were overbaked burnt bread and overcooked lamb...is something wrong with the timer... (or understaff in kitchen as well so the lack of attention...?)

But the food and interior are absolutely amazing, it is too bad that the service was a little slow. The menu has many interesting dishes, we would definitely go back!

Chameau
339 N Fairfax Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 951-0039

Freda | January 12, 2007 01:58 AM

Comments:

Hey I was going to change to Firefox but somehow when editing a new entry, those convenient buttons of "b, i, u, url" don't appear at all...so strange! So I am still using IE, and the new fonts appear bigger than the entry title. ^^;;;

seat | January 18, 2007 05:13 PM

Thanks for your suggestion Jo, I increase the font size a bit, hope it's easier on the eye now (I changed font type recently without realizing the same size would appear smaller than my preivous font).

Good comments from everyone, the waiters at Chameau were attentive and friendly to us too. I can totally tell that night we went (on Thursday) was an unusually busy night where most of the patrons came at the same 8:00 spot as we did. The way they compensate our lamb chop was so quick~ unforgettable.

Freda | January 18, 2007 10:09 AM

Hi Jo. I'm glad you find our blog wonderful. What browser do you use? We use firefox and the fonts aren't too small for us. Usually your browser should allow you to increase font size as well. The narrower margin is actually for easier reading...hmm...^^;; Perhaps you have a higher screen resolution than ours (which is 1920 x 1200)? this is how our blog appear on our screen. The pictures are thumbnails so you can click onto to see larger version. I've seen my blog on different computers (both PC and Mac) and they seems to look fine. Hmmm...

Joan | January 18, 2007 04:34 AM

The food looks delicious.

Eileen | January 16, 2007 11:23 AM

Great pictures! I just want to add that I have always had good service at Chameau.

During one meal, they forgot our appetizer, and not only did the chef come out and apologize to us, but they comped our whole meal.

I was pretty wowed by that, as it was more than I expected.

I also love the crazy decor and the food has always been good.

KT | January 14, 2007 02:28 PM

Wow all the pictures have that fluorescent glow! Must be fun to eat in a place like that.

Probably someone else had to wait another 30 mins because the waiter gave you that plate of medium lamb chops? ^^;;

seat | January 13, 2007 11:34 PM

Were you there on a Tuesday or Wednesday night? Typically, only one waiter, Ronnie or Ivan, while on weekends they both work as does Kelly, the co-owner. I have never had service problems, and as you say, the food is wonderful, and the decor is so today. Too bad the place is not any busier as the place really warrants it.
Glad you had the b'stilla dish. It is fabulous.

carter | January 13, 2007 03:33 AM

Wow!!! The restaurant is really too beautiful!!! I like its web site too! People might have to feed themselves a little before going though ^^;?

RP | January 13, 2007 02:34 AM

Hi ladies I think your blog is wonderful, but it's a little too NARROW to read. The fonts are too small, and the pictures are too small because there is too much space to the left and the right on the page of the entry. Maybe I should go get a pair of prescription glasses instead of voicing my complaints about this otherwise wonderful blog?