Arnie Morton's Steakhouse * * * * * $$$$$

Who? Themos, Dora
Where? Downtown
How much? $88
Zagat: 26, $59

This is the real deal. Instead of going to an opera, theater or another show, you can choose Morton's for an full experience and not just a place to fill your appetite. The food is superb and the freshness of every single item is unparalleled. The steaks and the side portions are huge and enough to fill any stomach. The introductory bread is huge and fresh-baked. We got a perfect tomato salad with a blue cheese toping straight from paradise. The meat was cooked just right while maintaining all the juices: tasty surface, meaty core. They offer only on fridays and saturdays prime rib of top-notch quality. They also have a signature rib-eye steak chicago style, aka with a bone that gives it an extra boost in taste. They have a range of souffles that are baked fresh and it takes about 30 minutes to do so, so you have to order them in advance along with the entrees if you want to have them after the main meal. The chocolate one was perfection with a mousse, foamy-like filling along with fresh whip cream. Maybe the best dessert I had in LA.


But the service is also to die for. When you order, the server brings a rolling table with two floors, where all the items they serve lie uncooked. So you can see the size and shape of the different meat cuts and decide for yourself which one looks better. Of course, the presentation also includes some of the seafood dishes, and that includes a (live!) lobster with its clamps tied together for security. The lobster is alive and it moves around while the server explains the details!