Howdy Taix
Last Friday I finally made it to one of a few old school east side dining establishments that, up until now, had remained a myth to me.
Taix (pronounced Tex) is a French "country cuisine" joint that has been in existence since 1927. Currently it resides at 1911 Sunset Blvd. in Echo Park. Its first location was in the Champ d'Or hotel in downtown Los Angeles. Both the restaurant and hotel were owned by Marius Taix, a member of the Taix family who immigrated from southwestern France to LA in 1870. The current location of the venue was opened in 1962 just a few years before the original location was replaced by a parking lot.
In my many years of living in the Silver Lake area, I had driven passed the place many times usually witnessing an elderly couple or two entering the establishment but rarely knew anyone my age who had ventured inside. In the last few years, Taix has begun to put on concerts of local music and therefore began to draw the younger crowd back into its doors. Regardless, I still didn't know many people who had actually eaten there.
So on Friday, John, Kelly, Jenny and I made reservations for 8 and proceeded to Taix, the mysterious French bistro. Jenny and I arrived early and saddled up to the bar in the first of a catacomb of rooms that make up the restaurant. I ordered the Taix house ale(not sure what constituted "house" but it was good none the less) and Jenny ordered a glass of wine from what is an extensive wine list (which I had previously found out is known to be well stocked and well priced. A quote from the owner claims that he only adds 5 bucks to the retail price of the vino so that patrons may find a bottle of wine with dinner a bit easier to stomach price-wise.).
John and Kelly showed up. Kelly was bleary eyed from staying up feeding their 3week old kitty that they had found underneath their house and John was equally if not more zombified from completing a recent architecture school assignment. We were seated in another room at a large booth table laden in floral patterns conducive to the aforementioned elderly set.
Our waitress was insanely pleasant and helpful. Not the type of personality you're used to in LA much less attitude drenched Echo Park. She suggested a bottle of wine that ended up being very good (and that I promptly forgot the name of), and we ordered an appetizer of muscles. The muscles were small but the broth was quite tasty.
For Entree’s I ordered Poulet Roti Fermiere, the house chicken dish. Jenny ordered the Entrecote (NY steak). John and Kelly ordered the short ribs. The dinners came with soup and salad. The choice of soup was vegetable or clam chowder. We ordered one of both. The soup was delivered in a big terrine that was divided amongst us which remained true to the old days of "family style" dining when the restaurant had large tables where the food was served in portions to feed the table.
The clam chowder was awesome, creamy and rich. It even managed to perk up Johns' eyes for a few minutes. We were all practically full by the time we finished out soup and salad.
The entrees were delivered in large portions. None of us actually finished what was on our plates although we certainly tried.
The chicken was flavorful and served with mashed potatoes and vegetables. The steak was good as well. Nothing extraordinary, but solid. For a good sticks to your ribs old school meal with a French flair, this place is pretty good. Definitely comforting in the colder months and refreshing when compared to the typical LA food scene.
Complimentary sherbet was served for dessert.
Although the prices straddle the $20 range, that includes all courses so it really isn't a bad deal.
A couple of bands where scheduled to play starting at 10:30. We were all too mellowed by the food to be able to stay for the bands so we left pleased and yawning.
This place is still owned by the same family and I hope It remains in the Silver Lake area for years to come.
Taix (pronounced Tex) is a French "country cuisine" joint that has been in existence since 1927. Currently it resides at 1911 Sunset Blvd. in Echo Park. Its first location was in the Champ d'Or hotel in downtown Los Angeles. Both the restaurant and hotel were owned by Marius Taix, a member of the Taix family who immigrated from southwestern France to LA in 1870. The current location of the venue was opened in 1962 just a few years before the original location was replaced by a parking lot.
In my many years of living in the Silver Lake area, I had driven passed the place many times usually witnessing an elderly couple or two entering the establishment but rarely knew anyone my age who had ventured inside. In the last few years, Taix has begun to put on concerts of local music and therefore began to draw the younger crowd back into its doors. Regardless, I still didn't know many people who had actually eaten there.
So on Friday, John, Kelly, Jenny and I made reservations for 8 and proceeded to Taix, the mysterious French bistro. Jenny and I arrived early and saddled up to the bar in the first of a catacomb of rooms that make up the restaurant. I ordered the Taix house ale(not sure what constituted "house" but it was good none the less) and Jenny ordered a glass of wine from what is an extensive wine list (which I had previously found out is known to be well stocked and well priced. A quote from the owner claims that he only adds 5 bucks to the retail price of the vino so that patrons may find a bottle of wine with dinner a bit easier to stomach price-wise.).
John and Kelly showed up. Kelly was bleary eyed from staying up feeding their 3week old kitty that they had found underneath their house and John was equally if not more zombified from completing a recent architecture school assignment. We were seated in another room at a large booth table laden in floral patterns conducive to the aforementioned elderly set.
Our waitress was insanely pleasant and helpful. Not the type of personality you're used to in LA much less attitude drenched Echo Park. She suggested a bottle of wine that ended up being very good (and that I promptly forgot the name of), and we ordered an appetizer of muscles. The muscles were small but the broth was quite tasty.
For Entree’s I ordered Poulet Roti Fermiere, the house chicken dish. Jenny ordered the Entrecote (NY steak). John and Kelly ordered the short ribs. The dinners came with soup and salad. The choice of soup was vegetable or clam chowder. We ordered one of both. The soup was delivered in a big terrine that was divided amongst us which remained true to the old days of "family style" dining when the restaurant had large tables where the food was served in portions to feed the table.
The clam chowder was awesome, creamy and rich. It even managed to perk up Johns' eyes for a few minutes. We were all practically full by the time we finished out soup and salad.
The entrees were delivered in large portions. None of us actually finished what was on our plates although we certainly tried.
The chicken was flavorful and served with mashed potatoes and vegetables. The steak was good as well. Nothing extraordinary, but solid. For a good sticks to your ribs old school meal with a French flair, this place is pretty good. Definitely comforting in the colder months and refreshing when compared to the typical LA food scene.
Complimentary sherbet was served for dessert.
Although the prices straddle the $20 range, that includes all courses so it really isn't a bad deal.
A couple of bands where scheduled to play starting at 10:30. We were all too mellowed by the food to be able to stay for the bands so we left pleased and yawning.
This place is still owned by the same family and I hope It remains in the Silver Lake area for years to come.
posted by lakeside at 8:47 AM
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