Bar Centro offers imaginative drinks such as margaritas with salt air, paired with raw bar selections.
The Locale: 465 South La Cienega Boulevard
Agency: David&Goliath
Clients: Kia, Bacardi, Universal Studios
Mealtime: D&G employees can’t get enough of the salads and sandwiches at Second City Bistro in El Segundo and the impressive build-your-own-burger at The Counter. But when it comes to celebrating, this creative group pulls out all the stops. In 2009, D&G rented out all of The Bazaar by José Andrés to celebrate the agency’s 10th birthday—complete with stilt walkers and flamenco dancers.
The Venue: Renowned Spanish chef Andrés teamed with the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills to create an eclectic restaurant: four dining concepts in an open 11,500-square-foot space. Bar Centro offers imaginative drinks such as margaritas with salt air, paired with raw bar selections. Rojo y Blanca is a tapas restaurant split in two—Rojo, a traditional Spanish matador- inspired space, and Blanca, its light, contemporary counterpart. The menu is a modern exercise in classic Spanish tapas—Iberian hams and Manchego cheeses in the company of Japanese grilled-eel tacos. If it’s dessert and coffee you’re after, Patisserie, with its Marie Antoinette-inspired décor, won’t disappoint.
Surprises: There are plenty. You may encounter a tarot-card reader doling out fortunes or a caricaturist sketching wildly. The food follows suit. As Andrés says, The Bazaar is more than a restaurant, “it’s a playground.”