From the first Sushi Roku in Los Angeles in 1997 to the more recent BOA steakhouse opening in Abu Dhabi, Lee Maen (left) and Philip Cummins – founders of Innovative Dining Group in Los Angeles – have enjoyed a front row seat at the transformation of casual fine dining and the emergence of LA as a foodie’s paradise.
For almost two decades, the restaurateurs have been refining classic dishes with inventive twists in a collection of restaurants that spans LA, Las Vegas and Scottsdale. How about Katana restaurant’s tuna carpaccio with Parmesan cheese, truffle soy sauce, arugula and avocado? Or a BOA best-seller – goat’s cheese baklava, anyone?
The pair is adamant that simple, unintimidating ingredients hold mass appeal to the eclectic mix of Los Angelenos that come through their doors. Alongside the quirky creations, IDG refectories boast all the classics, such as the made-at-the-table Caesar salad, but all dishes are infused with a generous portion of showmanship and gusto courtesy of teams of plucky service staff, many of whom are aspiring actors and actresses.
The vast metropolis has its critics, with restaurants known as a refuge for out of work actors, but this duo has worked to the city’s strengths in adapting Tinseltown’s most charismatic and exuberant service staff, in order to create coveted experiences. Now the limelight is on their first international eatery in Abu Dhabi, which came about after a UAE sheikh visited BOA in LA – so the story goes.
The two men still enjoy some anonymity in the star-studded city, darting from RivaBella to Katana, to BOA, Soleto and to the numerous other brands they operate. But the ingredients are all there for the dynamic duo to continue serving slices of LA’s modern casual dining culture into new destinations - and now they’ve brought their blend of fine food and casual service to the Middle East.
How do you describe BOA?
Lee – BOA is one of the busiest and most popular restaurants in LA. It’s packed seven nights a week with a who’s-who of celebrities, from local rock stars to Middle Eastern royalty. Of course we also have our locals, regulars and secretaries, but we treat everyone the same way. That’s why people keep coming back. It’s a modern design, far from the old-school steakhouses we grew up with; the kind of the stodgy places that your grandparents would go to, with out-dated service and design. We did our own *Wallpaper magazine-esque design.
Philip – There are definitely some very modern twists. One of our top dishes is goat’s cheese baklava. You would never find anything like that at Morton’s or Ruth’s Chris or any other traditional steakhouse. We have a lot of fun, new stuff, but still in the iconic vain of being a steakhouse.
How do you describe the style of the restaurant?
Lee – We call it modern fine dining. Fine dining back in the day was white tablecloths and tuxedos for a three-hour meal. We still have upscale quality, but we’re modern in the sense of being for today’s day and age. It’s fun. I don’t love this word, but it’s “dinertainment”. Yes, you’re going out to eat, but it’s also an experience, and even an escape. The recipe for success is all the elements together.
How does your service concept differ?
Philip - The world is getting more casual. People want to interact with one another and too often we’re not really doing that. We have our servers size up a table as they walk over. Personalised service would be different for two suited businessmen or four young people out having a good time, where it might be a case of” “you guys look like you need to start with some martinis, am I correct?” It’s important to create the right rapport.
Lee – It’s a very sexy and luxurious restaurant that’s a lot of fun, with energy. We also curate the dining room if we think certain groups of people might want to interact with each other. So it always ends up feeling like a party, every single night. It’s Hollywood, so it doesn’t matter what’s going on in the world. It’s show time and, for two hours, you’re going to have fun.
How will the concept translate in the Middle East?
Philip – Around 18 or 19 countries are going to be represented on our staff in the new Abu Dhabi restaurant (above). In LA, the majority of the staff want to be actors, actresses or models, so there’s already that personality. We’ll work on it and bring that out wherever we go.
What’s your take on the food scene in LA overall?
Lee – It’s on fire! Even New Yorkers, who are very snobby about food, will admit that California has the best produce in the country. We have so many great farmers’ markets where our chefs visit during the day, pick out items and serve them that night. That’s pretty rare. Another thing about LA for the international traveller to note is that outside of Japan, we’re the sushi capital of the world. There are so many quality sushi bars in town, and we do it the best.
How did LA become a foodie destination?
Philip – The Food Channel definitely had something to do with it. LA lost a lot of its great chefs up to Napa Valley, San Francisco and Las Vegas, around 15 years ago. Now Silicon Valley has taken over and brought an influx of young people.
Lee – A lot of magazines are saying that LA is the new cultural centre of the country. It used to be New York, but now LA has a better art scene, diverse neighbourhoods and cutting edge entrepreneurialism. We also have the tech boom, with Silicon Valley up north spreading to Silicon Beach, which includes Venice Beach and Santa Monica. Google, Snapchat, Tinder; they’re all based here.
LA doesn’t have a real nucleus – do these trends ring true across the whole metropolis?
Lee – There are definitely different regions. The Westside and the beach regions have a lot of differences within themselves. Then you have West Hollywood, which is the middle of everything, and then there’s Downtown — each area has its own scene. They’re each a little bit different, but they all have some crossover, from super cool to super corporate.
Philip – It’s becoming a lot more like New York City, with each zone being its own area, but people want to travel to see what’s going on. We never used to go Downtown, but now it has the coolest art scene in the country and some of the coolest restaurants. You might be scared, and be careful driving in and out, but it’s a good time down there.