Mini Foodventure #15: O-Bar (West Hollywood)

Every other time I'm in or passing by the WeHo area w/o other dining plans, O-Bar's on my mind, and usually I cave and visit, tonight being no exception.

O-Bar is a Thomas Schoos creation that just recently celebrated their 3rd anniversary. Their drinks are always yummy (and a potent bang for the buck), food are consistently good (and I definitely go ga-ga over their seasonally-rotating desserts - thanks to their in-house pastry chef Lyn Meadows), and they have 6-8pm happy hour with half-priced drinks - every single day! (not to mention some of the best tasting mojitos around - runner-up only to the ones I mix myself ;) - and the varieties include Scarface, with champagne & S Guaro, a premium blend with 10 Cane Rum, Eden with apples & bananas, and the straight-up "missionary style".)

Not wanting to risk DUIing since I'm driving myself home - I opted out of their famous & strong mojitos (comes in a shaker - 2-3 drinks worth) and went for my other favorites . . . the first being Apple-Ginger Martini ~ a fairly stiff apple pie in a glass!

And at the bartend's suggestion - a Washington Apple (a mix of bourbon, Apple Pucker & cranberry juice) ~ I can taste the apple & bourbon, but it lacks that one level extra (mintiness in mojitos, the gingery-bite in the above martini) -- not bad though, and I did ask for something lightweight.

And of course, I had to get something for my sweet tooth. While the Thomas "O" Cookie (think BJ's Pizookie, but only 100 times better!) is a good ole' reliable, I don't have that big an appetite & wanted to check out one of the rotational items, so I opted for a Gingersnap Cheesecake (with pear sorbet, apple & pecan pieces & pomegranate syrup).

Very light and airy for a Western-style cheesecake - though not a whole lot of spice action (save for the crust made from gingersnap cookies -- which is something I do for my cheesecakes as well.) But overall, this dessert pairs extremely well with the apple-ginger martini - glad I ordered both at the same time.

I can't wait till I can do a full-meal visit of this place -- for researching for this blog, of course ^_-

O-Bar
8279 Santa Monica Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA
323-822-3300
www.obarrestaurant.com