LAReview
photo credit: Jakob Layman
Mes Amis
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Included In
Angelenos often find themselves in Hollywood with time to kill before doing something else. Maybe that’s seeing a show at The Bowl, making an obligatory appearance at a friend’s problematic improv show, or simply waiting for traffic to die down before driving home. It’s an infamously exhausting area, which is why knowing spots where you can break away from the madness and recharge is key. Mes Amis is one of those places.
This fancy French brasserie, located on the ground floor of the Thompson Hollywood hotel isn’t necessarily a restaurant you need to stake an entire evening around, but with an elegant dining room, good food, and plenty of seats at the bar for a quick cocktail, it’s the ideal supplement to a night filled with other plans.
Mes Amis comes from the chef that opened Bon Temps, a boundary-pushing French restaurant in the Arts District that closed during the pandemic. While that spot was known for intricately plated canapés and a stark, industrial space, Mes Amis is much more classically French and classically Hollywood—the latter of which ties the whole experience together.
photo credit: Jakob Layman
Soaking in glamorous, Old Hollywood energy while eating a medium-rare NY strip never gets old. And Mes Amis goes all in on that notion. The cavernous dining room is filled with large, gold-framed mirrors, portraits of young Brigitte Bardot, and a dark marble bar no doubt already a favorite hangout for several famous ghosts. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think you were in a century-old city landmark—not a lobby space that was built in 2021. Most restaurants in this part of town like to lure in visitors by pretending they're located somewhere else: Tulum, Cabo, etc. Mes Amis, on the other hand, gives off a vintage Hollywood charm that feels fresh, original, and totally at home. And most importantly, it's all buoyed by the solid food coming out of the kitchen.
Mes Amis’ menu has its fair share of traditional French dishes, such as steak frites, roasted half chicken, and smoked duck breast with swiss chard. But there’s also some unexpected stuff, too—like the pastry-crusted lamb wellington for two or the double-decker chicken liver mousse napoleon. The strongest dishes tend to be the ones that are more unexpected and less traditional (also great: anything that has a pasty element to it), but we appreciate that all the food at Mes Amis is not so overly rich and decadent that you’re rendered immobile afterward. You could easily swing by with a date for some steak tartare and truffle risotto before seeing a musical at The Pantages or cruise to the bar post-show for a raclette-topped “French Onion” burger and martini—with plenty of energy left over to catch a set at Hotel Cafe. And then maybe a drink somewhere else after that. This is Hollywood, after all.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Jakob Layman
Table Bread
photo credit: Jakob Layman
Steak Tartare
photo credit: Jakob Layman
Chicken Liver Mousse Napoleon
photo credit: Jakob Layman
French Onion Burger
photo credit: Jakob Layman
Lamb Wellington
photo credit: Jakob Layman
St. Honoré
photo credit: Jakob Layman
Chocolate Soufflé
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