Animal Restaurant

Amazing food! Excellent flavor combinations. We had multiple dishes that part of the experience is mixing everything on the plate together to get all the flavors together. That was fun. Great service. Semi-casual ambiance. Highly recommend!

14 years and a pandemic later, this iconic restaurant is still serving flavorful dishes, such as the chicken liver toast (now spread-it-yourself), the tomato-tonnato, the 3S anchovies (Salty & So Satisfying), the fried sweetbreads, and the light and instagrammable strawberry tres leches. Small but relevant selection of wines and sake, along with some interesting cocktails. Setting is elegantly simple. Super friendly staff. Well, an institution which deserves to remain one.

The food here is beyond amazing, one of the best if not the best meal I have ever had (the pig ears changed my life). Same for the service…the exact right balance of attentive but not hovering, and they brought free wine and a free dessert for my friend’s birthday. HOWEVER. I have to take 2 stars off because the bill sprung a 20% “service charge” that was explicitly not a gratuity on us without warning. With how much we had spent and how deserving the server was of a real tip, that turned the night into an expensive one indeed. Just be transparent with your pricing, don’t ambush your diners. We will very sadly not be back until and unless they get rid of this BS fee.

A delicious, meat-centric, casual dinner in the middle of the Fairfax District by the owners of Jon and Vinny’s and Petit Trois. Animal has been on my list for quite some time and due to it being closed from Covid for quite a while I had not had the chance to try it until it’s reopening this May. Last night I finally got to give it a try and I was very happy that I did so. As I mentioned before it’s in the Fairfax District so it’s a very busy part of LA filled with tourists and out of towners, and parking can be a hassle because it’s not possible to park in the neighborhood without a pass, so street parking or valet will be your only options. Our server James did a terrific job and made the meal a better experience.

It’s tapas style dining so they suggest each person order 3 to 4 items. We were a table of two and chose six total, plus a dessert, and it was the perfect amount for us. We started with the Hamachi Tostada which was light, filled with flavor, and the only seafood option on the menu. Next came the Chicken Liver Toast which was very good and definitely the smallest dish that we ordered. I prefer pâté myself and this was a more tame version of that. Next came the Lettuce, Beets, Avocado Salad and it was probably my second favorite dish of the night. The creamy sumac dressing with it was heavenly. Next was the Roasted Bone Marrow with chimichurri and it too was very tasty. I prefer my bone marrow crispier as this one was a little more jiggly and fatty but the flavor was still wonderful. Bone marrow is something I order as often as possible so it’s a dish I eat quite often. Following that came my favorite dish of the night: the Crispy Pig Ear. My palate did not even know what I was eating and I was pleasantly surprised with every bite. It was the highlight of the night. Finally we chose the Bone Burger which was a gooey, more of a patty melt type of burger with a copious amount of cheese and sauce. For dessert we chose the Tres Leches Cake with strawberry and I think it’s honestly the best Tres Leches I’ve ever had in my life and growing up in San Diego I’ve had quite a few so that’s saying something.

Overall a terrific meal with a very creative and delicious menu. This would not be for the vegan or vegetarian diner, or a business meal, but honestly it’s perfect for anything else and if it weren’t for the location I would go all the time. I definitely plan to be back in the future.

It is hard to leave a 2 star review because I will say some of our dishes were very delicious! But… some were so not delicious, the duck (our most expensive dish) tasted like salty mush. We told our waiter and he told us that’s how it was supposed to be. Th waiter was not good, he forgot many items and was very pompous. They also added on a 18% fee for service charge, that is too much! I will not be returning! It is also hard to park and very loud inside.

• A note on grades, a rate outwards from three stars. *

We had dinner for three late on a Sunday in October, 2022.
Service was great at accommodating one of our party's gluten allergy, composing a shared offer, and recommending pairings. Although we were among the last to leave, we never felt rushed.
The food was good; worth a visit.

The chicken liver toast is worth the hype. The brioche toast is 10/10. Will only eat pate on brioche toast now.

Also had the crispy pig ear, bone marrow chimichurri, grilled shrimp, and bone burger. Flavors were excellent (loved the bone marrow) - burger and shrimp were good but nothing notable.

Overall the food is excellent (great flavors and unique styles). The atmosphere is not my favorite (feels like a lunchtime sandwich shop) and very loud.

It was honestly just ok. The service was good and the food came out at a reasonable time but the salt was a hit or miss. Some dishes too salty and some not enough.

Chicken pate needed more salt.

The chicken wings were good but very small and too salty.

The burger was like a patty melt. It was not worth it. Save the calories and dollars.

The toastada was TOO limey and needed more salt. The lime overpowered the delicate hamachi.

The ricotta gnudi was my fav.

Overall would not return.

Great lil’ hipster restaurant. Honest take: they could simplify the ingredients count in some dishes. The bone marrow dish had too much going on. No need for balsamic glaze, especially co side ring the dish was served with a chimichirri. Bone marrow is decadent by itself. You could not taste the marrow because it was overwhelmed by everything else. The bone burger is A+. It’s brilliantly served with rye bread and cooked to perfection. On the menu, everything sounds amazing however you expect the dish to be very rich, however it was very balanced and perfectly executed. Carrot dish was fantastic- lots of wonderful spices. Great wine selection too. Overall, a great dining experience, super friendly staff.

food was so, so good. really cool and interesting flavors! i was especially enamored with the carpaccio and the yams with zatar. and the staff was so accommodating of my food intolerances, which made me feel very cared for. i can’t wait to return with more friends one day!