Sona Restaurant

I used to dine here regularly when I was living in L. A eight years ago. Sad to see that it’s closed. I remember it was the first time I had Japanese Kobe beef. I think it was about three ounces and the best piece of red meat I’ve ever had. Unfortunately, I was pretty stuffed by the time it arrived so I don’t think I finished it!

We did the tasting menu and it was absolutely incredible. I wish I could describe in detail everything we had but we were there quite a while back. What I do remember was that every course was perfect and exciting. Atmosphere was warm and service was well above average.
Sona is one of our most memorable (mostly due to flavor) tasting experiences and I am anxiously awaiting the reopening of Sona this year!

WHAT A MEAL, $ 1500 dinner for 2! Call me broke… =)
We came here for a birthday dinner, and based on a craving for White Truffle menu, SONA was our spot of choice…
Sona was awarded its first Michelin Star and a Grand Award from Wine Spectator. O: The Oprah Magazine listed it as one of the «places to dine before you die,» and Angeleno magazine gave it an unprecedented 5 stars.
We had 2 chef tasting menu with wines pairing and added kobe beef from Japan (sup $ 60) we had a divine dining experienced. I recalled not being all over the kobe because it was like eating butter. and the fact that we were filled up from eating. There were so many wine glasses on our table.
Before ending our night, I had made a request to SONA to sell me a TRUFFLE NUGGET to go. LOL… It was the oddest requested they ever had and came out Chef David Myers with a BOX. He had included 2 eggs and risotto for us, teaching us how to prepare and make use of this GOLDEN nugget! The experienced cost me $ 500. What A LIFE!

In one word: Perfection!
Sona is, hands down, one of the BEST restaurants I’ve been to. The tasting menu was a foodie’s paradise (sort of like a gangsta’s paradise, but much more delish) and the service… omg, the service… never have I been to a place which such flawless waitstaff.

Sona is closing in May and will reopen in 2011 at a different location (like Hatfield’s). I have noticed a lot of mediocre to negative reviews on Sona recently, which I think may be attributed to how chef David Myers is expanding restaurants quite rapidly (Comme Ca, Pizzeria Ortica and another Comme Ca in Vegas). That definitely becomes a challenge since you can only been in one place at a time.
Sona (near the Beverly Center) is a very small restaurant. It is nice on the inside with two dining rooms (a loud main room while the back room is quiet and more intimate).
I went twice recently and had the Maine lobster risotto both times to start. I could really just order this as a main course (and should have on my second visit so I could have tried a different starter). The dish’s flavors (parmesan and lime leaf) were simple but distinct. You get that Parmesan taste up front and then a nice and fragrant herb taste as a follow up. Though the portion was small, they do not skimp on the lobster, which was succulent and sweet. I’ve always liked lobster, but I never truly appreciated the extra cost until coming here. The only negative: my rice should have had more of a bite. I think most places overcook the rice because most people prefer softer rice.
I had two different entrees. While the Maine lobster risotto’s flavor was simple and distinct, the entrees’ flavors were more contrasting (still good but maybe a tad over complicated).
The lamb chops were very tender with a good flavor (mild and not too gamey). The lamb chops were paired with a creamy purée and some vibrant beets. There was also some goat cheese tortellini (just okay) as well as two different sauces (a sweeter red wine-​like sauce and also a pesto).
I also had the roasted beef tenderloin, which was very tender and perfectly cooked. The beef (like the lamb) also had a mild flavor; the beef went well with the two seasonings/​sauces on the plate. There was a salt-​like garnish that had some heat to it as well as a sweet and bitter purée. I am not sure what it was (maybe kumquats). The beef was garnished with carrots, some very good wild mushrooms, fresh herbs, a layered potato gratin without the cheese (bland), and braised beef short rib (which was pretty good).
Their desserts were really good on my last two visits. On my first visit, the chocolate beignets had a rich, molten chocolate center and were garnished with bacon, coffee foam and a very nice and refreshing burnt milk ice cream. The praline mousse had a noticeable hazelnut taste and was paired with some really good ice cream and perfectly bruleed bananas.
On my most recent visit, we tried the 3-​course dessert tasting menu. The dessert-​tasting menu also came with two palate cleansers, which I actually got confused with the real tasting courses. That is a testament to how good the palate cleansers were as well as a statement on how very small the dessert tasting courses were. If you are looking for value, go for the a la carte desserts.
The tasting courses were fun:
(Frozen coconut served with minced pineapple and cucumber sorbet) The coconut was incredibly mild. I know a lot of people who do not like the taste of coconut. This would be for them. The pineapple was good and the cucumber sorbet was very refreshing.
(Crispy wafer filled with Meyer lemon cream and sushi rice ice cream) The crispy sugar wafer was nice. The lemon cream was tart but nicely offset by some fruit. The sushi rice ice cream was good. I definitely tasted the rice.
(Olive oil parfait topped with strawberry compote) This was probably the best dessert we had. Three layers – a bottom soft pastry-​like sheet topped with a cold cream concoction (tasted like ice cream mixed with cheesecake) and then finished off with a very good and sweet strawberry compote. Very unique tasting. Also light and refreshing.
(Raspberry frozen smoothie with shiso ice cream) The smoothie is about what you would expect, but the ice cream had a nice herb fragrance to it. It was garnished with a thin, crispy sugar wafer and sweet cookie crumbs that balanced the tart smoothie.
(Chocolate beignets) See above.
Service on my first visit was friendly but slow. Service on my second visit (when it was busier) was friendly and very good (attentive and professional but not stuffy).
Sona is expensive, but when the dishes hit right, it is a good spot for a special occasion. The quality of ingredients is good, the execution is usually on and the desserts show real creativity. I was wanting more out of the main courses; hopefully, there will be improvement when the new Sona opens in 2011. The closest LA restaurant I feel to Sona is Providence and Providence seems to be getting better marks from Unilocalers. Now that Sona is closing, I will have to give Providence another try.
Valet parking or parking on the street by meter (though hard to find).
Celebrity Sighting: Patton Oswalt.

My ex-​bf took me here last November for my birthday. We had the 9 course spontanée, which is a French version of an omakase. Décor and ambience was everything you could ask for: warm and elegant. The staff catered to your every need, and Chef David Myers even came out to personally greet/​welcome you. EVERYTHING was delicious; however, there were a few things that stood out :).
+ Amuse bouche: pumpkin crème brûlée topped with edible flowers and rice crackers. Buttery, but not in a bad way. Light crisp on top… like the way a brulee should be. Extra texture added by the rice crackers.
+ Black pea bread. Yes, look for a black-​speckled round bun from the bread basket. You can’t miss it.
+ Roasted duck with celery and chantrelle mushrooms. The duck was marinated in some kind of soy sauce. The taste was very subtle. I definitely saw a lot of French/​Japanese influence in this dish. The duck paired well with the celery foam.
+ Yuzu yogurt (this was just a palate refresher). It was almost foam-​like. So heavenly!
+ Olive oil ice cream. Very light. Not as heavy as most ice creams, which is especially important as this is probably the 8^th course into the menu. I don’t remember too much of the flavor as it was a couple of months ago, but it was VEERRy delicious.
Athough the price is a little steep ~180/​person with tax/​tip, the 9-​course spontanee was WORTH it. Try it for the experience of trying great and innovative cuisine. THIS is what people talk about when they experience food orgasms.

Sona came so highly recommended, I wanted to like it. I really did. My date and I chose the six course Valentine’s prix fixe with the wine pairings sans optional foie gras or truffle.
First, the good:
+ staff: attentive, kind, pleasant — from the hostess to servers, bus people, and sommelier, the service was impeccable.
+ interior: intimate setting, slightly above casual but not stuffy formal with high ceilings so it didn’t feel claustrophobic. They scented the room with rose (I believe) — I said it smelt like orchids, my date said it reminded him of his dentist’s office. haha
+ wine: I absolutely adore the sommelier and every wine went perfectly with the food — even the Riesling-​Chardonnay mix. Sadly, I do not remember a single name of the wines I had.
The bad:
The food. I hate saying this, but the entire menu was underwhelming, too busy, and the sauces and flavors overpowered almost every single ingredient. Thank goodness we did not opt-​in for the foie gras and truffle.
+ amuse bouche: tofu, thin strips of konbu, with a yuzu sauce, topped with edamame. It reminded me of chilled chawanmushi. One word: SALTY. The yuzu was just way too dominant which should not be a problem (I love yuzu) but in this case it was.
+ maguro sashimi with hama hama oyster, thin strips of daikon and nori. The oyster was smelly and the maguro was sad. I normally do not need soy sauce with sashimi. This was one time I wished I had some.
+ Tasmanian trout with carrot purée and ginger something, topped with ikura and thin strips of nori. The texture was awful and the presentation was extremely unfortunate. It was a huge orange blob and again, salty.
+ kasuzuke duck with Maine lobster and something gnocchi. It was just… salty. The duck didn’t even have a hint of kasuzuke and if there was lobster in there, I did not taste it.
+ dual Kobe beef, one short rib (it was like a kakuni) and other seared, with green curry potato pavé and chanterelle mushrooms — the best dish of the course, yet aside from the beautifully finished seared meat square, it was not memorable.
The ugly:
+ sesame something with something else sesame over violet ice cream. The color was grey-​ish and resembled hospital mystery meat… or left over cafeteria food.
+ deconstructed red velvet cake (beet sponge with… stuff.)
The presentation of the deconstructed red velvet was unappetizing and I actually asked for an alternate dessert, which they kindly accommodated. I believe my replacement was a chocolate sponge with some ice cream. I don’t even remember if it was good or bad. The highlight of the dinner was definitely the cheese plate with house crostinis (not included in the tasting.) We were also served a sweets ensemble at the very end of the meal with a macaron and teeny bits of chocolate and who knows what else.
Sona’s Valentine menu was a little above average at best. However, I am not writing it off just yet and look forward to trying a second or third time, since I want to like Sona. I really do.

I’ve had the privilege and pleasure to dine at Sona on four different occasions within the last year. Each visit there was an out-​of-​the-​world experience, epic to say the very least.
One of the major contributors is the duration of the dinner itself. While most meals usually run for an hour to two, a meal at Sona easily will double the amount. It’s largely due to the pacing and the sheer number of dishes they present. I’ve tried the 3-​course dessert tasting, 6 and 9-​course dinner tasting menus, yet in the end, they all average upwards of three hours.
Next is the space. The dining room is housed in a muted palette of whites and concrete grays, and the main vocal point is a seasonal flora arrangement in the center of the room sitting on top of rough marble. It feels almost somber if not for the warm glow cast from tiny tea lights found on each table.
Admittedly, I thought the dining room was rather unemotional at first during my initial visit. That is, until I was presented with the amuse bouche. I believe the reason for the immaculate interior space is to allow the food shine, rather than compete with it. The space is like the pristine walls found in art galleries – when the plates are laid out, the food itself becomes the décor, a progression of edible sculptures that effortlessly draw you in with their form.
I’ve been to many restaurants with beautiful, yet mediocre food, but Sona is not one of them. Not only is their food aesthetically arresting, the play of flavors and textures are innovative and has the uncanny ability to transport you to a different place. It’s difficult to describe the experience, as it’s not the comfort food sort that reminds you of your childhood memories, rather, it’s more about exploring new territories in flavor profiles, yet a sense of familiarity remains.
I’ve thought about explaining every single dish I’ve had at Sona since they’re all memorable. But in an attempt to avoid being long-​winded (which I’m failing already), I’ll restrain myself to my absolute favorite dishes:
1. Hamachi with burrata, cantaloup gazpacho and basil oil. Normally, I dislike raw fish with a passion, but this changed my view. The buttery hamachi was a dream when paired with the creamy cheese. And the slightly sweet melon soup, like a complementary color, took it to the next level by providing contrast and freshness.
2. Torchon of foie gras with black pepper candy, blood orange and arugula. Black pepper brittle was torched on top of chilled foie gras medallions so the melted sugar becomes the sauce. The bitter arugula and blood orange slices kept the dish from being one noted.
3. Salmon with strawberry jam and candied clementine peel. A perfectly seared fillet of fatty salmon was tempered by stewed strawberries and slightly astringent citrus peel. Wonderful.
4. Red wine cranberry bread and Earl Grey tea roll. The names say it all. Notice how the butter have a sprinkling fleur de sel and freshly cracked pepper – it’s all in the details.
5. Shaved foie gras with buckwheat noodles and shiso. A masterpiece by Chef Kuni-​san (Chef de Cuisine), the normally heavy foie is perfectly balanced by a fresh shiso salad and buckwheat noodles seasoned traditionally with sweet mirin and soy.
6. Lobster risotto with kaffir lime leaf. A decadent risotto made with mascarpone cheese and topped with lobster.
7. Deconstructed Cosmopolitan. An exercise in molecular gastronomy, an orb of tart cranberry juice floats in a pool of rhubarb juice with vodka jello, and cilantro oil. When you pierce the orb, the different components mix together to form a delicious «Cosmo.»
8. Carrots x 3 (I forgot the actual name). A dessert made entirely out of root vegetables – a moist carrot baked pudding with carrot sorbet and fried carrot chip with a beet and tapioca compote. If moms all over the world can make this, every kid would have a balanced diet!
9. Ivoire chocolate pudding with coffee gelee, bacon powder and foie gras ice cream. Everything I ever wanted in a dish together. What’s not to love?
10. Manjari chocolate crème with tobacco ice cream and Hoji cha gel. Another experience. For those who are curious, no, the ice cream did not taste like cigarettes. Instead, it had a subtle herbal taste and a stinging sensation when eaten. The tea gel was a good match for the milky mousse.
11. Stewed Bing cherries, shiso ice cream, Indonesian Pepper Espuma, raspberry tuile, buckwheat ice cream and shiso glass. Spicy, sweet, and fresh.
12. Penicillin. Ok, this is actually a cocktail, but a must-​try for ginger lovers.
This month marks Sona’s 7^th year anniversary, marked by magnificent cuisine and gracious service – a definite full package. Under the guidance of Chef David Myers, Kuni-​san, and Ramon, I wish them many more years of excellence.

My birthday dinner here was lovely! The amuse and appetizer courses were my favorites by far. I believe one was a delicate cube of tofu and the other was sashimi. Both were intense flavorgasms. By the time the entrée courses came out, I was pretty full. I felt bad for not finishing the plates because later David Myers came around to greet the tables and asked me if there was anything he could do to accommodate my palate better. I would definitely come back.
Wish I had saved room to try the Kobe beef instead of the cheese course, because none of the cheese were quite to my liking. Way too pungent and gnarly. It was as if I got socked in the sinus passages~

I would’ve given this place 4 stars but the service was just soooo non-​existence. They were very under staffed, and dinner took about 4 hours!
We waited forever to even be acknowledged by our waiter when we got seated (at least a 20 minutes wait), then another 10 minutes to get our food order after he took 10 minutes to bring our wine,
so 40 minutes passed and still no bread. Then finally …
parmesean breadsticks (yum), pipin hot red wine rolls (with cranberries) and black tea rolls. They were all so good I filled myself up with too much carbs.
Amuse bouche: some kind of kabocha crème brule — interesting for something like a dessert to be an amuse bouche but I enjoyed it very much.
There were so many great purees and sauces which I don’t remember what exactly they were…
1^st course: bluefin tuna sashimi carpaccio with special purée sauces, and red beets (perfect) and japanese eggplant (sweet and perfect)
2^nd course: black cod (melt in your mouth) goodness with shishito peppers and an interesting vegetable I never had in my life
Supplement: seared foie gras with some fruits I couldn’t figure out what kind of fruit but I’ve had it before with a macha mochi. they claim to have the best foie gras and it was pretty delicious, loved the mochi.
3^rd course: poussin (baby chicken) dish — this was good but I prefer not having chicken as one of my courses in a tasting menu
4^th course: beef and braised short ribs with some kind of interesting pasta bits and vinegared rakyo in a green purée. delicious!
5^th course: passion fruit sorbet, lemon grass ice cream, sesame seed sponge cake with mustard seed and passion fruit seeds — interesting dessert dish
6^th course: some kind of ice cream I never heard of, liquid chocolate in a chocolate shell
and finally Mignardises which is an assortment of sweets. That fennel jelly was my least favorite.
The dishes had a lot of Japanese influences with the chef de cuisine being Japanese. I have a sweet tooth so I didn’t mind have 2 of the 6 courses being desserts but some of the others felt the menu was missing another savory course.
We were very disappointed with the service. I asked the waiter if they were understaffed and he acknowledged they were because people took off work for weddings or parties and such. I was thinking well why don’t they have backups? For a Michellin 1 star restaurant I would expect a little bit more organization and much better service.
Would I come back??? hhmm. I’m not sure just because the last two times I’ve been here the service has been awful. The first time (so I’ve been to Sona 3 times) I don’t recall it being so bad. I will give a plus since the chef/​owner David Meyers came by every table asking how we enjoyed our food and thanking us for coming. So that was a nice gesture. But unfortunately bad service does dampen the overall dining experience no matter how good the food was.

I came here last night for the Endless Summer Dinner which comprised of a 5 course meal prepared by Chef David Meyers and guest chefs Luke Magnan and Noriyuki Sugie.
The food was amazing and the service was very attentive. My favorite course had to be the first dish, sashimi of salmon with feta, soy, ginger and arugula. It was delicious! The halibut in the 3^rd course was a bit dry for me and slightly overcooked, but the pork belly made up for it since it just melted in my mouth. The sweetbreads in the 4^th course tasted a bit «burnt» to me. The dessert was definitely interesting in a great way and certainly peaked my interest in all the different flavors. I thought that the flavors in all the dishes were complex and thoughtful.
I loved how chef David Meyers and Chef Luke Magnan made their rounds to each table. It made the dining experience that much more memorable.
I’m giving it 4 stars because of the dry halibut and slightly burnt-​tasting sweetbreads. I’ll definitely be back for their regular tasting menu and see if we can bump it up to 5 stars, which I’m sure I will.

Wait a minute… who’s birthday was it… oh right not mine. I got confused for a second with all those sugary flavors still lingering in my mouth!
This past Thursday I had the chance to try an extremely inventive, (on and off menu) birthday dessert tasting at Sona. Talk about knowing how to celebrate with style!
Now… I could easily ramble on and on about how amazing this marathon of sweets was, and how beyond words many of the wild flavor combination’s tasted. However 4 hours and 9 courses later, I’ll let the pictures describe the deliciously decadent, delectably divine glory David Meyers and Chef Ramon bestowed upon our taste buds.
Pre~Dessert Drink
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Dessert 1
Tomato confit, and fennel with lime sorbet.
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Dessert 2
Watermelon, Greek Yogurt, Raspberry Sorbet with herb glass (traces of Absinth, rosemary & mint.)
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Dessert 3
Lotus root, Warmed Banana sponge cake, and Vanilla Curry ice cream.
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Dessert 4 ~My personal favorite of the night~
Stewed bing cherries, shiso ice cream, Indonesian pepper sspuma, raspberry tuile, buckwheat ice cream and shiso glass.
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Dessert 5
Black sesame sponge brownie~cake with mustard seed, sesame brittle, candied ginger, with lemongrass ice cream and passion fruit ice cream.
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Dessert 6
Fried key lime custard, meringue crème, english peas, and popcorn ice cream.
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Dessert 7 ~Second Favorite of the night~
Liquid caramelized white chocolate with apricot preserves and peach paper, as well as cocoa nibs and tobacco ice cream on the left.
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Dessert 8
Whiskey Cinnamon Madeleines.
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Dessert 9
Mini oreo, cherry/​raspberry, blood orange + apple pâté de fruits, fleur de sel caramel and white chocolate with raspberry crème.
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View of the restaurant and bar.

Everyone knows that these things are made for each other — Socks and Sneakers, Bert and Ernie, Rum and Coke, Washers and Dryers, Cream Cheese Frosting and Red Velvet Cake, and Beer and Football.
Things like tobacco and ice cream or banana sponge cake and vanilla curry ice cream doesn’t seem like a natural fit. In fact, it sounded like things that would make me gag if I ate it in the same bite. But Pastry Chef Ramon has shown me the light.
To me, these ingredients sounded like something that doesn’t belong together, instead it was perfection at first bite. In fact, through each of the 9 courses of sweet beautiful, eatable art, I have discovered something special in the most usual, creative, unexpected pairings.
You never really know what works well together until you give it a chance.
If I didn’t give the tomato confit, and fennel with lime sorbet or fried key lime custard, meringue crème, English peas and popcorn ice cream a chance, I would have missed out on something amazing.
Chef Ramon, thank you for the 9 course dessert tasting. My favorite was the liquid caramelized white chocolate with apricot preserves, peach paper, coco nibs and tobacco ice cream. I also loved the stewed bing cherries, shiso ice cream, Indonesian pepper sspuma, raspberry tuile, buckwheat ice cream and shiso glass. I also loved the… Actually, I loved it all!!!

I went to Sona for a special occasion back in Febuary. I was really excited about going because of all the great reviews and because Chef Meyer has such a huge following. The food was good don’t get me wrong, but for the price and the hype I thought it should have been better, just thought it was a little bland and the menu wasn’t as creative as I thought it would have been.
I would recommend going because it is def a place to try, but honestly don’t expect to be wowed!

Chef Meyer put art on the plates, thus the décor in muted colors to showcase his gastronomic global cuisine. The 9-​course menu ($ 145,+$ 115 premium wine pairing) is sensational, without kowing what he’ll put on the plates, but with high recommendation from my lovely girlfriend who been there for the 6-​course w/​wine ($ 95,+$ 89 w/​wire pairing), though she commented 9 courses will be better. I had no doubt. The chef impressed us with 2 different 9-​course presentation. Therefore, we are in it for the eye-​candy 18 courses from 2 of us. Though I didn’t want to take a bite out of my GF’s dishes, they were small. I can tell each one is well presented with intensity.
There were a lot of flavors to deal with, I did find some familiar tastes from my other homeland– Thailand, like the Thai papaya salad on top of fish tartar wrapped with thin daikon slice. It’s a refined combination of Japanese and SEA flavor. And the soup– lobster chunks on top of pea soup with tinge of green curry flavor.
The service is also impeccable, suited waitstaff explain every dish, and serve both of us at the same moment. The tour to the kitchen further show Chef Meyers calculated timing for each plate to land on our table while hot still hot, cold is cold.
A plus, Chef Meyers is amicable and friendly. Pastry is from Boule!
This meal is the highlight of my trip to LA!

Only one word…
Fan-​fucking-​tastic

Came here for dessert and drinks only– so no review of the food.
Dessert was excellent and very creative. It literally challenges your thoughts of what dessert is. Chef Ramon is definitely an artist that mixes palettes of flavors, textures, and color.
Check out some of these descriptions.
— «Red bell pepper confit with Greek yogurt sorbet and kaffir lime»
— «Blood orange gelee with black sesame cake, orange confit and jasmine rice ice cream»
— «Apple lasagna with almond soufflé, cucumber-​crème fraîche gelee, apple twist and black lime ice cream.»
Now, if that doesn’t blast your mind, I’m not sure what will!
Additionally, tremendous props for a well stocked Scotch bar! You know they definitely know what they’re doing by the selection, the care they put into the ice, and the choice of glassware.

After watching After Hours with Daniel Boulud I had to check out Sona. David Myers definitely pushes the envelope when it comes to his dishes; he has a lot of Asian fusion and somewhat bizarre dishes. From daikon wrapped hamachi to my dessert which had squid ink ice cream (I wouldn’t recommend. You could smell it after they even took the plate away.)
I was taken here for my birthday and did the 6 course tasting menu and wine pairing. The sommelier noticed our interest in wine and kept pouring us extra glasses from the Pride 05′ Cabernet to the 06′ Littorai, Anderson valley Pinot. Their wine selection was very good. (I was drunk by the third course.) Oops!
When walking into the restaurant it was louder than I thought it would, you definitely knew it was a Saturday night. The staff was very polite and on point it felt like every server and sommelier said «Happy Birthday» to me. he he! Even David Myers came to our table to say «Hi.» All in all the food was good but NOT outstanding, I feel Providence has better dishes but Sona has a better wine selection.
I had a good birthday… Happy Birthday Day to Me! :P LOL LOL.

My generous friends took me here for my birthday… and it was fantastic!
My friend had told the hostess that it was my birthday and when they brought us our menus, mine had ‘Happy Birthday Jina’ written on top of the menu (see pic). How cute is that? Talk about making one feel special.
We decided to not go for the tasting menu and ordered a la carte. We had the following:
Appetizers
Organic Heirloom Tomato and Shaved Vegetable Salad
6-​cheese plate
**the cheese plate was one of the best I’ve had in a long time. The accompaniments for each cheese were so well paired… I’m drooling right now just thinking about it…
Entrees
Roasted Alaskan Halibut, Wild Mushroom, English Pea Purée, Asparagus
Salt Crusted Elysian Field Lamb, Herbed Burrata Ravioli, Wild Argula, Tomato Confit
Roasted Beef Au Poivre and Braised Shortrib, Fingerling Potato, Crème Fraiche
**The entrees were pretty good… the lamb wasn’t very gamey… and the roasted beef could’ve used a bit more salt…
Desserts
Chocolate Beignets, Roasted Apricot, Thyme Ice Cream
Poached Fig Tart, Saffron Cream, Black Pepper Ice Cream
Yuzu Mousse, Honey Spiced Grapefruit, Cilantro, Edamame Ice Cream
**Truly one of the highlights of the meal, especially the ice creams. Yum yum yum!
They also served us a couple of other items, specifically chosen by the chef to enhance the meal… several types of bread (black pepper, tomato, wheat –all delish!!), a shrimp tempura appetizer, and a dessert platter filled with delicious macaroons, and a lemonish type of drink to clean the palate.
The things I look for at any type of restaurant are great service and great food. I must say that Sona met both. The service was impeccable. The hostess was super friendly, as was the servers (all of them, not just ours), and the sommelier. The chef David Myers even came out to say hello to us and check up on our meal!
True, one might say the place is pretentious, as when they brought out one piece of a shrimp tempura appetizer cloistered in a small square bowl which was placed on a bigger rectangular bowl, and after consuming that small piece, the dishware was removed, but I thought it added to the overall presentation. You can tell that everything that happens here is a part of the orchestrations to create a specific dining EXPERIENCE.
We also had one bottle of red wine, recommended by the very knowledgeable sommelier. The wine was served chilled, which surprised all of us… but obviously the sommelier knew what he was doing, as the coldness enhanced the flavor of the wine.
It is pricey (about $ 400 for our meal) but I think it’s well worth it. Looking forward to coming back again!

I could die today and be perfectly content thanks to Sona…
No, really.
Last night was hands down the most lavishly decadent experience I’ve EVER had… and it began like an ordinary evening with out of town guests. We figured… we’ll go to this wine tasting, have an appetizer or two… no biggy.
Oh YES, biggy! We should’ve known it would be anything BUT ordinary on account that my honey’s Aunt and Uncle flew all the way in from Texas JUST to go to a wine tasting…
So our evening commenced in the bar at Sona: a beautifully, simplistic, and cleanly designed space… as is the restaurant itself. Think white, a little greenery, glass, candles, and magnificent bottles of every spirit you could drum up. Very classy. I had a Blood Orange Martini… fresh squeezed blood orange juice and a mandarin vodka… delightful! Something I’d like to try in the morning with a good filet and some eggs! The juice was just enough of perfection that it cut the natural bite of the vodka. Amazing. And my honey, well he had a Jack on the Rocks… and the rocks here are worth mentioning. Sona makes their own ice because every drink deserves its own cube. Some are worthy of crushed, others of cubes, some of slivers. The rocks in the Jack had the clarity of a cut diamond and managed to hold their shape INTO dinner.
And speaking of dinner… here goes. 5 of us, 5 orders of the 9 course tasting menu at $ 169 a piece, 10 orders of rare Black Truffles at about $ 25 a SERVING (excellent on the duck and beef), 5 bottles on wine… FIVE bottles of wine! And not just ANY wine… we started out with a 1990 Cristal! And let me just put this into reference for ya… if you bought a bottle of that WHOLESALE, it would set you back around $ 500. So you do the math on the mark up at a restaurant! lol Along with the Cristal we had a white Burgundy (basically made from a Chardonnay varietal but in France…), a 1990 (red) Burgundy, a Richebourg Grand Cru and a Rieussec Sauternes (dessert wine)…all pulled from a wine list about the size of a Bible! I can only imagine that our tab easily pushed the $ 4000 mark! EASILY.
We had three appetizers compliments of the chef PRIOR to our meal: an ahi atop crispy onions, a white fish with fresh fig atop a creamy cheese and served with a baked pistachio, and a spring roll. AMAZING. Not nearly as amazing as the 9 courses however… our group had three women and two gentlemen and like patrons have mentioned in past reviews, each course is gender specific. The ladies had one set of food while the guys had another… so in a sense we had 18 different courses! And in these courses, delectable meat: duck, beef, venison, lobster, squab, hamachi, halibut and more.
My favorite pairing… well, I have 2: the duck coupled with the Richebourg and the beef (a few… as if possible… grades higher than Kobe and served rare) with the Burgundy. My honey’s uncle walked me through the various ways to «taste» a wine with food… and after eating the duck, I took a sip, inhaled some air into my mouth… and swallowed. KILL ME NOW!!! I really believe I left this planet and was somewhere much higher and that very moment! It was… it was… there’s just no words to describe.
The desserts were indescribable as well. In fact, by the time that course rolled around we were so stuffed we had to get them to go. so what happens? A few men come out and hand us each a blue box from Boule (their sister restaurant across the street) FILLED with confections! Cookies, cakes… pastries. Sumptuous.
The service was outstanding… in fact, we had about 5 or so people including the head chef, surrounding our table at meal’s end. I felt like a rockstar! lol I mean, everyone in the place was probably wondering who the hell we were in garnering such attention.
I can’t think of a better place to celebrate and write about for my 600^th Unilocal review. Thank you Sona for a truly indelible dining experience… Thank you to my honey’s aunt and uncle for treating us to an opportunity we most certainly would never have had… and Thank you for providing me with the most breathtaking morsels I’ve ever known.
Now if you’ll excuse me… I’m going to go lock myself in my bedroom with my ambrosial Boule box of sweets.
Please, do not disturb.