"Orla contains multitudes. This beachside Middle Eastern spot inside the Regent Santa Monica hotel is, well, a hotel restaurant, smack-dab in the middle of the lobby. It's also a flashy dinner destination with caviar flatbreads and 24k gold baklava sundaes, and a pleasant, not-too-loud place to snack on mezze near the ocean. That last element is the main reason we'd send you here, however, as the best items at Orla tend to be simpler, more traditional dishes like greek salad capped with a block of squeaky feta and glammed-up hummus with pomegranate seeds and crushed pistachios. The grilled entrees are great to split with a group, including lamb chops you swirl into herby fava bean dip and a crispy branzino with a slick of chimichurri. Given that you’re at a five-star hotel, Orla can get pricey, so it’s best to maximize your meal by requesting an oceanview table on the outdoor patio. It’s far better than eating roast chickens in the quiet, glaringly bright hotel lobby with close-ups of the elevators. Food Rundown photo credit: Andrew Bui The Greek If you need a reminder of what high-quality olive oil and feta taste like, there’s plenty of that in this classic salad. It’s a refreshing course that, despite the feta, isn't too salty (don’t worry, there’s plenty of salt elsewhere in this meal). photo credit: Sylvio Martins Whipped Chickpea Hummus Isn’t all hummus whipped? And isn’t hummus, by definition, made with chickpeas? Maybe we’re getting into the weeds, but we still love this fancy bowl of hummus. The nutty tahini shines through, and there’s a lot of decorative toppings that are delicious and beautiful: pomegranate seeds, pistachio crumble, and roasted cauliflower bobbing in a small pool of olive oil. photo credit: Andrew Bui Macaroni Béchamel Sadly, this macaroni bake was dryer than the crusty stuff served in our high school cafeteria. The truffle cream sauce on the bottom is delicious (and truffle-pungent) but felt like a waste next to the bland noodles. photo credit: Sylvio Martins Chargilled Whole Branzino Orla knows its way around a grill, as demonstrated with this nice piece of fish. The branzino is flaky and buttery with skin that gets crispy and bubbly from the fire. We also appreciate the light seasoning, which means you can appreciate the fish and chimichurri brushed on top. photo credit: Sylvio Martins Black Harissa-Grilled Lamb Chops We didn’t detect any harissa (or harissa-related heat) in this dish, but we did detect some perfectly cooked chops. They’re nicely charred all over and a juicy medium-rare in the middle. An order comes with three (small-ish) chops for $67, so this is definitely a splurge. photo credit: Andrew Bui Labneh Passionfruit Cheesecake This fluffy cheesecake lacked the yogurt-y labneh tang we’d hoped for, but there’s plenty of tang in the passionfruit coulis it comes with. This is a nice dessert that’s even better with hot tea." - Sylvio Martins
