Attagirl is a clubby Mediterranean spot done well - Review - Los Angeles - The Infatuation
"A clubby Mediterranean spot with fancy dips and bumping house music? No one said LA needed another one of those. However, this Hermosa Beach restaurant from the Ryla and Fishing with Dynamite people pulls off the genre better than anyone else, and provides a buzzy night out option near the Hermosa Pier that doesn’t involve shooters at Baja Sharkeez. photo credit: Jessie Clapp photo credit: Jessie Clapp photo credit: Jessie Clapp photo credit: Jessie Clapp photo credit: Jessie Clapp Pause Unmute Take a look around the dining room at Attagirl, and you’ll clock the clichés: wicker basket lamps, Whitney Houston remixes, and ladies with fresh blowouts drinking goblet-sized spritzes. Where this place stands out, however, is the food, which is sometimes Italian, other times Middle Eastern, but very solid across the board. Attagirl seems like the kind of place where loading up on mezze would be the move, but unless you’re with a large group, limit yourself to just a few small plates (the spicy whipped feta with the rosemary focaccia is our favorite). That’s because the pastas and skewers are the highlights. The spiced lamb radiatore tastes like the love child of a rich bolognese and fresh-baked lahmajune, and you’ll be happy with any of the char-kissed skewers, perfumed by a smoldering white oak grill. Nothing about Attagirl is particularly groundbreaking, but it doesn’t need to be. Sweet cocktails, plus smoky kebabs, plus Whitney Houston is a dependable formula for an entertaining dinner with your most social friends. And that’s when Attagirl works best. Food Rundown Cocktails Attagirl’s cocktails translates “coastal Mediterranean” into refined versions of fruity cocktails you’d find at an all-inclusive. Aside from the vesper with clarified pineapple that was so sweet it had us rubbing our temples the next morning, we’re fans of the creativity and tropical flair in the drinks here. photo credit: Jessie Clapp Spicy Whipped Feta We wouldn’t describe this dip as whipped, but it does deliver on spicy thanks to sizzling calabrian chiles that balance the briny cheese. You get to choose between house-baked pita or rosemary focaccia with each dip—get the focaccia. It smells amazing, shines like a freshly waxed car, and crackles loudly when you tear into it. photo credit: Jessie Clapp Spiced Lamb Bolognese Radiatore The smell of this saucy bolognese took us back to our favorite Glendale bakeries from our lahmajune guide. The minced meat is melted down with tart tomato and warm spices, and the frilly pasta shape picks up as much of the sweet-scented ragu as possible. photo credit: Jessie Clapp Spinach Pie Attagirl’s flaky spinach pie is listed under “for the table” for a reason: it’s layered with heathly amounts of phyllo, spinach, and feta. We love the way the cheesy greens spill out of the pastry, but the salty lemon béchamel poured on top is unnecessary. photo credit: Jessie Clapp Beef Tenderloin Skewer A beef skewer that puts the tender in tenderloin. There's a whiff of rosemary in the marinade and the meat is salted just right. Though we'd prefer a platter of just kebabs to share, each individual skewer is treated like a entree, with a choice of dipping sauce and a pile of cold, lemon-drenched quinoa salad. We could do without the one-note quinoa, but the spicy zhoug sauce is lovely. photo credit: Jessie Clapp Mushroom Skewer These giant hen-of-the-woods mushrooms are like tender sponges for the grill’s wood smoke. Add a side of the punchy tarragon mustard to take it to the next level. photo credit: Jessie Clapp Crispy Fried Wild Sea Bream This craggy swimmer looks dense, right? Wrong. The chickpea batter collapses when you cut, revealing soft, flaky fish. The semi-sweet lemon curd beneath seems odd at first, but it works. photo credit: Jessie Clapp Chocolate Tart If you threw a black forest cake into a blender and poured it into a pie mold, it’d taste like this fudgy dessert. The bitter chocolate has a zing from sour morello cherry compote, and the marzipan-y pistachio ice cream moistens the dense tart. photo credit: Jessie Clapp" - Sylvio Martins
