Il Grano has a weird Jeckyll & Hyde reputation among online food reviewers – some love it, some have less than pleasant experiences. The chef puts an emphasis on market cuisine and shops daily at the LA fish market. The latter was the key draw.

Stopped by Il Grano last Thurs for lunch, asked them to let the chef feed us, put an emphasis on fish, but that was our mistake.

The crudo was nothing to rave about on this day – the fish were slightly dry, the toro was nothing like Urasawa the previous night, and while the octopus was ok, it wasn’t remarkable.

2nd dish was a scallop and it, too, was ok, but nothing special. It lacked that plump sweetness the best specimens have.

3rd dish was pasta w/ porcini mushrooms. The pasta was *delicious* – excellent. It had the perfect bite and a great flavor. The sauce was nice & earthy and they didn’t drown the pasta in it. At this point, we realized we should’ve put the emphasis on pasta instead of fish.

Final dish was Tuna Au Poivre. Tuna was the special but this made me mad; perhaps i’m being petulant, but if someone asks the chef to cook for them w/ an emphasis on fish, don’t serve this common and plain dish. The tuna was of a better quality than the crudo, this dish was better than the same one i had @ Chez Panisse a few months ago, but i felt cheated.

Before i could ask for another pasta dish, they brought dessert.

I’d go back again for a plate of crudo, 2-3 pasta dishes, and maybe a cooked fish dish if the fish of the day were interesting.

- chuck