Birdie G's

Since opening in 2019, the newest member of the Rustic Canyon restaurant family has become Santa Monica’s most destination-worthy restaurant. Named for head chef Jeremy Fox’s daughter and grandmother, Birdie G’s serves market-driven New American food with Jewish and Eastern European flourishes out of a large, industrial space at art gallery hotspot Bergamot Station. A matzo ball soup using carrot miso adds an umami twist on a Jewish classic, and there’s a must-order lamb “a la Saless,” which comes to the table on a thin bed of impossibly crispy rice flavored with dill and other Persian spices. We also enjoy their koji-marinated flatiron steak, pickle-marinated fried chicken and dishes that incorporate seasonal produce. Plus, the cocktails here are excellent, from the creamy, well-balanced Not Your Grandmother’s Grasshopper to seasonal creations like the Appletini (which features housemade walnut liqueur and spiced pear). For dessert, the chilled chocolate layer cake and rose petal pie are the crowd favorites, but the sleeper hit is the seasonal rice pudding.