On fire
MXO Steakhouse, Venice listings, The Benjamin Hollywood, 424, Handshake Speakeasy, post-election RTO, best Negronis, MORE
RESTAURANTS • First Word
Mexican heat
The Skinny: For the last decade, Wes Avila (Guerrilla Tacos, Angry Egret Dinette, Ka’Teen) has been synonymous with some of Los Angeles’s best Mexican cooking. With his new restaurant MXO Steakhouse, which opened at the end of August, he’s doing something he’s never done — fine dining in the heart of West Hollywood.
The Vibe: Light wood, glass floors, and fire-as-decor telegraph the cavernous indoor/outdoor space as moody, masculine, and modern. Then again, it’s still Avila’s food — which has been heralded by everyone from James Beard to LA Taco — so it’s also bound to be a destination for solo dinners grabbing a drink and a snack at the bar, or couples out on a serious dinner date.
The Food: The foodways of Monterrey are a focus, and wood-fired meats are Avila’s medium. Start with the open-faced bone marrow torta topped with oaxaca cheese, and the grilled cabbage caesar salad, two inventive takes on standard steakhouse fare.
A spectacular plate of Colorado beef ribs doused in an ancho chili sauce served with fresh red onions and tortillas has been on my mind since our table ordered the last one available that night. Those ribs, along with the gleaming, blackened pork al pastor — accompanied by half moons of grilled pineapple and fuschia-colored hibiscus pickled onions — are among the best dishes I’ve eaten all year.
The Verdict: MXO is a narrowing of Avila’s focus and a sharpening of his technique, in a space destined to be deservingly packed every weekend with well-dressed WeHo club crowds. Going full fine-dining may have unlocked a new mode for this storied chef. –Caitlin White
→ MXO Steakhouse (West Hollywood) • 826 N La Cienega Blvd • Tues-Thurs 530-10p, Fri-Sat 530-11p • Reserve.
LA RESTAURANT LINKS: Tinned fish favorites Siesta opening Bar Siesta in Silver Lake with Spanish food and wine • Pizzeria Sei plans move to Palms next year • At Camélia, sake and wine, together at last • The definitive ranking of wine bar small plates.
GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Sponsor
Water & all that we love
Ryan and Arjan here, the co-founders of Jolie, a beauty wellness company focused on purifying the quality of one’s shower water for better skin and hair. We’re both fans and readers of FOUND, which is why we decided to sponsor this newsletter to reach like-minded folks like you.
As much as we love discussing water’s impact on skin and hair, we’re equally enamored by the connection of water to all else that we love in life — art, coffee, surfing, food, oysters, ceramics, and so much more. That’s why we created a fun video series, Water &, which looks at these topics through the lens of water. Some highlights:
We spent an early morning in Montauk with artist Joe Henry Baker who used the salty ocean water to paint with and wet his canvases, resulting in a crystallization in the painting as it dried.
We spent an evening with Esben Piper, the founder of the renowned Danish coffee company, La Cabra, at their Soho location in New York. Did you know that the parts per million of minerals in water (or the water’s “hardness”) made to brew La Cabra’s coffee is finely tuned to extract flavor while not making the coffee taste sour?
We joined designer Cynthia Rowley for a morning surf out east on Long Island, where the water is both a calming force for her and “balance” to her planned out, calendared work days.
We’ve always loved oysters, but we loved them even more once we started spending time with both the Billion Oyster Project and Montauk Pearl Oyster’s Mike Martinsen. Oysters clean the water by filtering water as they eat, removing ecosystem-destroying pollutants such as nitrogen. They also act as a natural storm barrier and help foster biodiversity. (The Billion Oyster Project, our non-profit of choice, is restoring the oyster reefs in New York’s harbors to clean the Hudson and East Rivers. Last we checked, 122 million oysters have been restored in New York’s harbor over the last 10 years.)
You can watch all of our Water & videos on our website here.
We worked with these partners because we think they are the best at what they do. If you are thinking about buying a Jolie, we encourage you to do so via the link below. We are picking five FOUND buyers to gift a year’s worth of La Cabra coffee to make at home.
The role of water is all around us. –Ryan Babenzien & Arjan Singh
→ Shop: The Jolie Filtered Showerhead (Jolie) • available in brushed gold, modern chrome, brushed steel, jet black, and vibrant red • $148.
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Three properties in Venice that have come to market in the past 30 days:
→ 926 Nowita Pl (Venice) • 3BR/2BA, 1368 SF • Ask: $2.75M • remodeled midcentury house with open floorplan • Days on market: 16 • Agents: Charles Sharp and Dennis Adelpour, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices.
→ 844 Palms Blvd (Venice) • 5BR/4BA, 2864 SF • Ask: $3.85M • modernist house with attached guest house and backyard firepit • Days on market: 8 • Agents: Todd Bachenheimer and Sherri Rogers, Compass.
→ 411 N Venice Blvd (Venice) • 3BR/2.1BA, 3687 SF • Ask: $3.99M • modernist house from noted architect two blocks from the beach • Days on market: 3 • Agents: Anthony Anderson and Danielle Revelins, Compass.
LA WORK & PLAY LINKS: LA neighborhoods ranked for walkability • Another major LA law firm downsizes its office • Housing nonprofits paying millions in mansion tax • Trendwatch: Ivy League degrees are a liability.
WORK • Thursday Routine
One hundred percent
BEN HUNDREDS • president, The Hundreds • managing partner, The Benjamin Hollywood
Neighborhood you work in: Fairfax/Melrose & Vernon
Neighborhood you live in: Franklin Village
It’s Thursday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
I start my Thursday with an early morning hike on Bronson Canyon, then head out to my warehouse/office in Vernon for The Hundreds, my streetwear brand. I check in with my design team, my vice president, and my partner Bobby Hundreds. We’re releasing our new Fall ‘24 collection in the coming weeks, so we’re all prepping for that.
What’s on the agenda for today?
I’ll spend a few hours at The Hundreds office and then head to The Benjamin Hollywood, my new restaurant on Melrose and Formosa. I have a meeting with my chef and partner, Kate Burr, to go over new dishes and address any issues with the kitchen. I’ll spend the rest of the afternoon working with my other partner, Jared Meisler, on everything restaurant-related, from making sure we ordered the right hand soap and napkins, to what events we have coming up on our patio, to going over budgets and P&Ls. Then, I’ll head home, get ready, and head back to The Benjamin for service.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Most of my time is spent at my restaurant these days, but this weekend I’m planning to have dinner at Saffy's, one of my favorite restaurants. I love sitting at the bar with a bottle of wine and ordering all the kebabs. I’m sure I’ll head to Courage Bagels for the best bagels in the world one morning. And I’ll do my best to get to Dunsmoor at some point for a bite. It’s turned into one of my favorite places to eat in all of LA. I dream about the cornbread more than I probably should.
How about a little leisure or culture?
I love hitting the Hollywood Farmers’ Market every Sunday morning. We’re so lucky to have access to some of the best produce in the world right here in our backyard. I’ll also go on a hike with my kids up Bronson Canyon. Lastly, I’ll head out to some of my favorite galleries in town. A few always worth checking out are Sebastian Gladstone, One Trick Pony, Moran Moran, and Zwirner, all in the Western Ave. area of LA.
Any weekend getaways?
My favorite weekend getaway is the Ojai Valley Inn. The property there is picturesque, and the hospitality is the best you’ll find anywhere. It’s also a short walk into town, where you can find great restaurants and coffee shops.
What was your last great vacation?
Mexico City! I went for my bday this year. CDMX is really special. You can feel the love in the air. So many great restaurants to dine at like Em, Máximo, and Contramar. So many great coffee shops, bakeries, and taco stands to snack at, like Panaderia Rosetta, Expendio de Maiz, and Odette. So many great cocktail bars to drink at, like Handshake Speakeasy or 686. So many great museums and art galleries, like Olivia Foundation and Casa Estudio Luis Barragan.
What store or service do you always recommend?
I love checking out the 424 store on Melrose Place. It’s my favorite shop in LA right now.
GETAWAYS LINKS: Semi-private carrier Aero launches direct flights from LA to Napa • Little Dom’s team opens Bar Lou in Montecito • Amex rolling out digital waitlists for Centurion Lounges • Updating the classic Caribbean vacation for this winter.
WORK • RTO
Balancing act
Election week is a weird time to introduce jarring changes to workplace policies (unless the change is “take the rest of the month off”) but we live in weird times. In a Thursday memo congratulating his staff on its recent journalism, Washington Post CEO Will Lewis also took the opportunity to call the whole team back to the office five days a week. “We are really good when we are working together in person,” he explained.
Whether the RTO shift was a newsroom decision, an extension of sister company Amazon’s recent push, or a way to indirectly trim the ranks, Lewis’s note ultimately concludes that if you can do three days — the Post’s current mandate — you can do five. The logic is there! Still, the policy goes into effect in February for managers and June for the rest of the staff, an acknowledgement that maybe this will require some reorganization of lives. Lewis writes:
We know for some people this shift from three to five days in the office will be welcomed and a straightforward transition. For others, we know it will be an adjustment – you may need to adapt routines and rediscover old ways of managing work-life balance. This is why we are giving more than six months for many of our colleagues to work it through.
Ah yes, rediscover old ways of managing work-life balance, a phrase doing a lot of work.
On the other end of this spectrum, the FT takes a look at policies in effect at companies like Spotify and Airbnb that allow employees to post up anywhere in the world. Those reportedly morale-boosting, attrition-reducing arrangements aren’t always WFH, but they share a flexible-work ethos that the Bezos-owned Post and Amazon have set aside as Covid-era novelty.
There was a time when it seemed like all of this would settle into a sort of new hybrid normal. But maybe there won’t be a middle, just companies that are flexible — or not. –Josh Albertson
CULTURE & LEISURE • Class in Session
Quinta Brunson & the Writers of Abbott Elementary • Vulture Festival • NYA East (Hollywood) • Sat @ 3p • GA, $40 per
Sabrina Carpenter • Kia Forum (Inglewood) • Sun @ 7p • section 106, $614 per
Lakers vs. Jazz • Crypto.com Arena (Downtown) • Tues @ 7:30p • section 112, $366 per
ASK FOUND
Today, three FOUND subscriber PROMPTS for which we are seeking intel:
Best high end vintage jewelry? I love Jack Weir. Who else is out there?
Where should we host our office holiday dinner this year?
Any new and interesting ticketed NYE dinners this year?
Got answers or more questions? Hit reply or email found@itsfoundla.com.
GOODS & SERVICES • The Nines
Negronis
The Nines are FOUND's distilled lists of LA’s best. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@itsfoundla.com.
Capri Club (Eagle Rock), neighborhood bar, retro pink ambiance, frozen Negronis