Stefan's on Montana

I went to two Top Chef restaurants in two days. Monday was Fabio Viviani's Osteria Firenze in North Hollywood for lunch and Tuesday night was Stefan Richter's Stefan's on Montana in Santa Monica. Both great, and both I would go back to. Stefan's On Montana was a cozy, smaller place that had wooden tables and chairs and had a more rustic feel. You seat yourself - which we didn't know because there was no sign to say either way, but once the waitress came out and told us to sit anywhere which was only a minute or two compared to the 5-10 minutes it took us to sit down when we tried to go to Stefan's for the first time for lunch last weekend. They didn't seem busy but we tried to grab some lunch last weekend to no good luck. It was noon on the dot and they weren't serving lunch till 1pm - and paying $15 for an omelet was just not appealing to me that particular day so we opted to wait till we could go for dinner - a much better choice. My husband and I shared some dishes like some yummy olives to start and then moved onto the creamy tomato soup which comes with a cute little grilled cheese, to-die-for asparagus, parsnip risotto and sp?tzle - a egg noodle dish. We ended our meal with a trio of mousse - coffee, vanilla and dark chocolate. Everything was great, and not too pricey for a restaurant on Montana. Next time we go, we're definitely going to try out their fondues and bring our own wine - since they don't serve alcohol. more

We went on a Tuesday and the place was dead. One other diner finishing up his meal as we arrived. No one was there to greet us, but with no one in the restaurant it wasn't that big a deal. more

I am a Huge, loyal Top Chef fan, so I was so excited to have dinner at Stefans. When my friend & I got here on a saturday night at 8pm or so, it was dead, we were the only ones in the restaurant, which I guess was a sign. So we sit down & there is an interesting menu, not too many items that sparked my interest. We order a drink.....no alcohol?!?!?! No wonder we were the only ones in there, at that point we were pretty turned off by the whole experience. So we ordered some fondue, which was very good. Then went to get a drink somewhere else. I guess, I didn't give it enough of a chance to serve it justice. But the restaurant is decorated well. more

Just went for breakfast. If you love eggs benedict then this place should be your shrine. The hollandaise sauce is homemade - three different kinds. I ate the Chipotle Benedict with german sausage inside -- my mouth is watering just thinking about it. The lunch and dinner menus look terrific - can't wait to go back and try the fondues (special fondue menu). Stefan's will be a regular go-to spot for me and my lady...The room is hip and casual. No reservations needed. BYOB. And yes, you will see Stefan making the rounds, greeting everyone like family! He is the real deal and on top of his game - bigtime. Pros: food, service, location, Stefan Cons: not a single one more