26 Jun Revisiting Girasol: Same Fresh Food and Now Cocktails Too!

Girasol, meaning “sunflower” in Spanish, opened in Studio City one year ago. Chef/owner CJ Jacobson has blended his influences, which include Axe, Wolfgang Puck Catering, Campanile and The Yard, as well as time on Top Chef, and most impressively, his time at Noma in Copenhagen, the world’s best restaurant. I enjoyed the food the first time I went and 6 months later, felt the same. The food is fresh and seasonal, with ingredients foraged and sourced from local farmers. And the presentation of the food is so bright, cheerful and inviting. Hamachi with Sea Beans, White Fir and Wild Sorrel Broth Market Peaches and Burrata with Crispy Lentils, Shiso, Basil, Forrest Floor Vinaigrette Murray Farms Cherries with Frozen Herbs, Greek Yogurt, Chamomile Froth Octopus Salad with Long Roasted Eggplant, Little Gem, Rosemary Ash Oil, Sweet & Sour Chili, Toasted Lovage Pan Roasted Asparagus with Brown Butter, Oyster Mushroom, Black Garlic, Rhubarb Grilled House Ground Meatballs with Spring Garlic, Lemon Thyme, Sun Gold Tomato Sauce One big change since I last dined that there is now a cocktail program, created by Brian Butler. Like the food, the drinks incorporate unique ingredients echoing what the kitchen presents – fresh, local, seasonal, organic. The cocktails are light in style but each has lovely, distinct aromas. Honey-Fennel Sparkling Sour (Hangar One Vodka, Lemon Honey Syrup, Fennel Bitters, Prosecco) Sorrel Pine Gimlet (St. George Terroir Gin Fresh Lime, Sorrel Pine Syrup) Ginger-Grapefruit Fix (Plata Tequila, Mezcal Ginger Cordial, Lime, Grapefruit) Blackberry Kumquat Daisy (Slow Hand White Whiskey Blackberry, Lemon, Kumquat Carpano Antica, Peychaud’s Bitters) Sadly the wine list is still not impressive. Lacking direction, the wines don’t have a focus and some of the brands are recognizable larger brands that can be found in grocery stores.  What would be perfect for Girasol is to have a wine list that has a theme – boutique producers from California or from around the world, sustainable producers, or unique, indigenous varietals. Any of these themes would fit with the overall theme of the restaurant and I hope that one day the wine list will work in conjunction with the décor, the food and the cocktails which are working in harmony. Girasol 11334 Moorpark Street Studio City, CA 91602