Animal Restaurant

This place lived up to the hype! The server suggested five plates for two people but I think it was too much, we couldn't finish our last dish. Surprisingly the vegetable dishes were the star of our meal, we loved the gem lettuce salad and the roasted yams. Everything was amazing, though.

Animal is amazing, simply amazing. I have been at least 10 times and I don't even within 500 miles of it. I truly have no idea when I read bad reviews, I love the bold flavors and rustic, comfortable approach to the dishes. They are rich and awesome. This is a special occasion restaurant and I'm totally in love. It's wonderful, go hungry!

The food was great but unfortunately can't say the same about the whole experience. At the beginning of ordering we made sure to tell the waiter I cannot have any beef. He suggested a few non-beef dishes like the smoked turkey leg which was great. We ended up ordering two pork dishes, one seafood and the turkey leg. After ordering he repeatedly told us four dishes were too little and we should order more. He didn't read the orders back to us but we didn't think that was an issue. When he served the first dish he said this is the tendon chips. We thought that was one of the pork dishes we ordered because we weren't sure what that dish was based on the name. After four dishes were served we realized the seafood tostadas never came and we were served two other pork dishes. When the bill came we saw that the first dish was actually beef tendon. It was quite upsetting because we had specifically told the waiter we cannot eat beef and had he repeated our orders back to us we could've easily avoided that mistake. I would give a much lower rating because of the service but I do own up to the part where I should've asked to confirm our order and also asked him what was the pork dish we ordered so we wouldn't mistaken the tendon chips as something we ordered.

The most recent rating I see here is someone who informed the waiter they could not have beef. If you can’t eat any certain type of meat, I do not recommend this place. As a meat lover, I recommend it highly. Pretty wide variety of different types of offal as well as more traditional, yet unique, meals from animals. Drinks were expensive as well as the food, but worth it. 4-5 plates (which are fairly small) will cover two people, but pretty hard to decide with over 20 things on the menu that all seem interesting.

The menu is hit or miss based on your personal taste, and it definitely gets you out of your comfort zone. I loved 3 items out of 4 we ordered. Presentation of food is good, taste is amazing. The service was really good too. A little pricey for very small portions. It gets a little too loud and crowded. Overall it was a good experience for me.

When going into Animal, you need an open mind. The restaurant serves family style in "rounds." Your table will order a few dishes, and they'll bring them out one by one as they're ready, and you all sample it. The dishes themselves are just big enough to sample, none of them will be filling, so you kind of keep ordering.

The stuff on the menu is not your traditional food. For example, Crispy pig head, beef heart, pig ear, veal brains, and chicken liver are just some of the normal dishes there. The only one I couldn't stomach was the brain, I'm not into mushy texture. The rest were decent.

Service was great and attentive as you would expect from a pricier venue. To give you an estimate I paid roughly $80 which included 2 beers. We ordered quite a few dishes on the menu and split it between 4. It's not a cheap meal, but it's definitely worth trying once.

Pros:
Obviously you've got to love meat: they'll likely have things you've never tried.
It's a fancy place, so the food and service are great.

Cons:
The music level was my biggest dislike; it was loud and the speakers weren't clean sounding. I struggled to have conversations with my friends.
Ambiance is a bit lacking.

After dinner, once outside, we collectively agreed the music and atmosphere could improve especially when you're expecting high standards. But I understand this was one night. It could very well change. The food is different and great, and that's why you go, but it's not my vibe.

4 Solid Stars for diversified menu, excellent cookery, and delightful flavours.
The food was cooked to perfection, duck moist and skin crispy. High quality ingredients, beautiful choices of ingredients for every dish.
Chef Brad understands flavour and texture and creates this unforgettable experience for you.
With reservation, we were seated immediately.
They recommend you order 5-6 courses for two ppl. Your bill will add up really fast! Specially if you order one drink per person.
We got 5 courses plus Tres Leches for dessert which was the perfect ending to the meal, Absolutely delicious and fresh, Caramel sauce was dreamy!

Restaurant is tightly packed wt tables, you could bump into chairs behind you, but we're from NY and OK wt it as long as food blows us away which it did @ Animal.
Only criticism the food portions are very very small. As usual wt hipster, plate-sharing, tapas style restaurants, we left wanting more food.
Service was great as well.

I cannot think of anywhere in Los Angeles to go for a special celebration dinner. The ambience, the extraordinary foo, exceptional wine list and attentive service all makes for a really exquisite dining experience. Providence is flawless in how you are greeted and treated from the moment you walk into the restaurant. Prepare to be transported for an evening. Worth every penny!

One of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had. My friend and I were visiting LA and we’re told to walk down Fairfax Avenue to find a good place to eat. We stumbled upon Animals and were far from disappointed. The place was packed and we didn’t have a reservation but the staff immediately sat us at the bar, and we were eventually moved to a table once one opened up. At the bar we were greeted by the GM, Harmony. Harmony was wonderful and gave us some great recommendations; she clearly knew every dish by heart and was able to make recommendations based on our palate. The plates are tapas-style and we’re served in courses. Some of our favorites were the Boniayo Yams, the Quail Fry, the Tandoori Octopus, and the Chicken Liver Toast although everything was delicious. The Tres Leches was also divine and we were even given a Cheesecake Pudding on the house. Harmony even made some recommendations for other restaurants to visit while in LA. Overall we were very pleased and will certainly be returning.