Running Goose

I came here yesterday with a few friends for their dine LA dinner. The ambiance was great, the servers were very polite, and the food was delicious. I ordered the eggplant empanadas as an appetizer which wasn’t too great but I tasted my friends salt cod churros and those were yummy! For the main course I had their short rib and it was tender and so tasty, definitely the highlight! To top it off, the crème brûlée dessert was great as well. Needless to say we all left very happy and full

Great. Nice spot, sweet patio — pretty pretty herb garden oasis in hollywood! Food was great. Elegant comfort.

Went for DineLA lunch after the place we had reservations for wasn’t offering their deal due to «brunch time»… Running Goose also does brunch but offered the DineLA lunch menu when we asked about it. I’m glad we ended up here.
It’s a find. Great indoor or outdoor seating. Everyone is so friendly… we felt very welcomed from the phone call to check on if we needed a reservation to our first greeting at the door. Service couldn’t have been nicer.
My friend had the eggplant empanada which looked delicious… and he enjoyed them very much. I had the soup of the day. Not my favorite. It was a vegetable mishmash and a little heavy on the oil. But the sangria ($ 6.25 each) was terrific and a VERY generous pour. You can get it by the pitcher but unless you’re going «all in», one will do ya!
For main courses we both had the burger and fries. Sounds boring, I know. But this burger and especially the bacon on top was delicious. And huge. Fries were quite good and even better when dipped in the red pepper emulsion that came with the empanadas (try it!).
Their menu looks tempting and I’m looking forward to coming back and trying the deviled eggs — been craving them lately for some reason. And bottomless mimosas for $ 15 during brunch.
So glad we found this place and highly recommend. Looking forward to coming back.

Review for DineLA, Winter 2016:
A friend and I went to dinner prior to a show at Pantages. Decided to go for the DineLA menu and here’s what I ordered: eggplant empanada, braised short rib, and chocolate espresso cake.
Both the empanada and short rib were excellent. The empanada was crispy, filled with eggplant, and very flavorful. The short rib was HUGE! It was the size of a brick, didn’t finish the whole thing despite giving a piece to my friend to try. It was VERY tender, had lots of kale on top, so the balance was good.
My friend and I were quite disappointed with our desserts; I ordered the chocolate espresso cake, my friend the horchata crème brulee. Here we had such hearty two courses, and the last course was kind of a bleh.
Perhaps the desserts were too savory; we both didn’t feel like we ended the dining experience right because our desserts were way too savory and «healthy» — it was like eating an afternoon snack more so than a nice, sweet dinner dessert. My espresso cake was more like a dried-​up brownie with crushed granola drizzled in not-​so-​sweet caramel.
Overall, a great DineLA experience. Staff was attentive, the restaurant itself has a beautiful outdoor seating area with a large fire pit in the center and quite a quaint, intimate space in the middle of Hollywood.

Great place with pretty good food for a descent price. The server was very knowledgeable and gave us great suggestions. My only criticism is that my food came out like warm. I went with a group of 7 for dine LA. I don’t know if it stared out warm but sat because other entrées weren’t ready or what. The duck confit was still good, but could have been better.

Fantastic Food! I went with a friend to try out their dinela Dinner for $ 39 and between us we shared pretty much all of their best dishes. YUM. Waiter and staff were all friendly. Superb service, food, ambiance, the whole package. Go now for dinela! such a great value (Those savory Churros tho!)

Food poisoning.
This place looks really nice. Big fireplace outdoors that’s really cute, nice ambience.
The food is far from great. We had the salt cod churros, smoked potato and pork belly. The smoked potato tasted pretty decent, except the white paste (sunflower aioli?) that came with it pretty much wiped out all the flavor. The pork belly was bland. The salt cod churros was actually good. Nice, crisp crunch with good flavor.
Except that it was the reason we got food poisoning. I know this because my girlfriend and I both had the churros. We had some of the potato along with it but she skipped the pork belly entirely. Leaving the churros as the culprit. We both hadn’t eaten for a while before we got here and we got sick simultaneously right after.
So for the reason of food poisoning and bland food, I can not recommend Running Goose.

Amazing restaurant, amazing ambience, and delicious food. Doesn’t hurt that the staff are so kind and anticipate all their guests needs. The tostadas are light and great share items, the empanadas are also very tasty. We also had the ribs, and man, they blew me away. I’m a huge red meat guy and they hit the nail on the head with this dish.
And last but certainly not least, the doughnuts are a must have! Bravo to this fine establishment in Hollywood!

We arrived to discover the restaurant thought we’d booked for a table of 6. TopTable had sent me a reservation receipt for 2, so something went wrong either at TopTable or at the restaurant.
We sat down to look over the menu and found the drinks menu expensive $ ¹¹⁄₃₈ for the cheapest red wine. Our server was able to offer us an off-​menu happy hour wine by the glass, which was a nice Bordeaux for $ 8.
The ambience was nice and relaxes, the music was good and the staff were clearly making a real effort.
We started with the Salt Cod Churros having seen other reviewers enthuse about them. I found them to be a little bland, but fine.
For an entrée I went for «Flat Iron Steak — cactus relish, sesame, yuka, black garlic, demi.» The waiter said I wouldn’t need fries as it comes on a bed of potato and most people don’t get through that. I discovered why! It was a burnt potato pancake with little flavour beyond charcoal. The cactus relish, sesame & yuka sauce on the steak wasn’t great either. A muddle of flavours yet somehow still bland.
I really liked the idea of this restaurant, but for me the food didn’t live up to the promise. At these prices it should have been better.

Excellent meal and really warm, casual yet professional service.
We had one of each of the tostadas from the small plates menu to start– the radish, the arugula and the carrot were our faves but all of them were tasty. There’s a wonderful rosemary crema on the radish tostada and I wish I could drink it, it’s that good.
We split the duck confit entrée with some nice charred bread on the side and left feeling so satisfied with the meal. It was rich, lots of delicious levels of flavor, and really tasty.
The backyard was inviting and warm, even on the slightly chilly damp night. There’s plenty of heaters, patio covers and even a blazing fire pit which made it all cozy and fun.
Oh, and– if you’re a sangria fan, I had a glass of their red sangria and it was chock full of tasty fruit. Well worth the $ 6 price– it felt like a steal.

Run to the Goose because the food is worth it and I’m not sure how long it will survive. Business will likely suffer with rainy El Nino weather because most of the seating is outdoors next to their vegetable garden. Running Goose adds to a nice patch of restaurants (also check-​out Birch and Cleo, but unfortunately Littlefork is already gone) in an area previous known for gyros and pizza by the slice. These new places have greatly improved theater dining for both the Pantages and Arclight.
Although chef Antonio Luna continually shifts the dishes available on the menu, the best dish of the night was the smoky duck confit. The version we had succeeded with acidity from the grilled cherry tomatoes, richness from the poached egg, and smooth texture from the tender gnocchi made with masa and ricotta. The elements were tied together with a light weight but fully flavored broth. The dish was both elegant and homey.
The pork belly cazuela was another homey dish, but not as elegant with flabby pork skin lovingly swimming in the bowl. It was like a tomato stew with hominy which made it very similar to pozole. Although there were Latin themes running throughout dinner, this was the most Mexican dish with queso fresco, white onion, and fresh grilled tortilla.
A very Latin dish was the lamb empanada. I would have preferred more texture in the filling and a deeper «mole» flavor. Although the $ 7 price seemed low, the two small empanadas were small amount of food.
The salt cod churros had wonderfully crisp ridges created by the piping nozzle. Even though salt cod is likely to be salty, too much salt was added on top. Like any good churro, it must be unhealthy and needed plenty of squeezed lemon to balance the fattiness.
Most of the servings were small except for one — the smoked beef ribs. It was a lot of food with four meaty bones. Like the duck, the meat was smoked (I think with hickory). The sauce underneath the rack was deep and savory. The meat was on the tepid side. Topped with onions and radish condiments, it was similar in style to the pork leg a few doors away at Birch, but could have used a flat bread accompaniment like tortilla, pita, naan, etc.
Although the food might seem slightly gastropub-​like, the lack of spirits meant there were no cocktails. Drinks included a short list of wines and beers. The inflated price of the wines by the glass makes getting a bottle a more economical choice than most places.

What can I say? It was just the right thing. After an afternoon at the theater I was hungry and didn’t want to stop into some greasy Hollywood dive. As I walked down Cahuenga I spotted this little place with the most alluring name. The Sign said Running Goose and the words on the fence said they had an organic garden. That’s for me!
I chose to sit on the patio next to the roaring fire. It was about 53 degrees outside which is very cold for this Angeleno. The fire made all the difference although I must say I would have liked to have switched seats with my co-​diner at one point and warmed the other half of me.
For starters we had the Carrot Tostada and the Farm Vegetable plate. The Carrot Tostada was small but rich. It was so tasty I could have ordered 10 of them. The farm vegetable was good but I’m not sure whether it was baby asparagus or french green beans. It had a bit of a bite to it but not too much.
I ordered the Salmon Belly Sandwich which was described as chicano rub, sunflower aioli, kale kimchi, tomatillos, jalapeño, brioche. It was all of those things and more. The salmon was tender and delicious.
My co-​diner ordered the Lamb — braised, chicano mole, chocolate, whiskey, cauliflower «cous cous», roasted peppers. I had a taste and was delighted to see that you could taste the mole but it was not overpowering or sweet.
I can’t say anything about parking as I had parked earlier. A quiet place with excellent service. Definitely a place to come back to next time I’m in the neighborhood.

If you trying to find an amazing place to eat stop your search right here, because you have just found the perfect place!
First, the ambiance is lovely. It has a few tables inside, but a lovely outdoor area with a fire bit, strings of lights, lovely décor, and lots of heat lamps. Considering the fact that Hollywood Blvd can be known for it’s seedy atmosphere, this place is a fantastic escape that is just down the street.
The staff was fun, friendly (even despite working on NYE!), and very helpful with suggestions for newbies that have never dined at the Running Goose before. Our food came out quickly and we were one of the first ones to be seated. If you are planning to eat on a busy day of the week or a holiday, I highly suggest making a reservation. This place is great and I can only image how packed they could get!
I tried the Salt Cod Churros, Arugala Tostada, Duck Confit, Horchata Crème Brûlée, Doughnuts, and their winter vegetable which I believe was some sort of japanese bean (reminded me of a skinny string bean). Everything was absolutely delicious and I recommend trying it all (especially the Duck Confit!!). I consider myself a very picky eater, but somehow with the combination of flavors and ingredients that they use for their entrees I was sold. My friends also ordered the Gringo Burger and Flat Iron Streak, which were also thoroughly enjoyed.
Great place. I’ll definitely be coming back!

Was walking in Hollywood on Hollywood Bl. And it was lunch time, so I looked at reviews of this place and said I have to try it.
It’s a nice little spot with a nice arrangement of indoor and outdoor seating.
When I walked in I was greeted by one of the nicest men. He told me to take a seat anywhere and bright me a menu. I had an idea of what I wanted before I got here because of all the reviews on Unilocal.But there were other items that caught my eye as well. However I decided to go with what I was coming there for.
The salty cod churros and the beef ribs.
The salty cod churros were ok and had a fish taste but I was expecting more of a fish texture. It was mostly batter and it was dusted with lemon pepper seasoning I wasn’t a fan of that either. But the churros were fried perfect and had a nice crunch. The idea is there it might just have to be tweaked a little to get a better product.
Then the beef ribs came out and it was a nice size, the presentation was not great there was radishes and greens on top of the ribs. The ribs should be the star and should be presented as the star of the dish. When I cut the ribs there wasn’t much meat on the bones and it could have used more cooking time there was meat was not falling off the bone. I did taste some smoke though.
Maybe I ordered the wrong thing there or went on a bad day but the food wasn’t so bad it just has potential to be a lot better.

I’m swaying between 3 and 4 stars. I’ve been here twice (once for food) and have had a decent time. The first time was just for drinks, service was great but it was a little empty. Second time I came alone for dinner and service was not as good but I guess they were a little busy.
The radish Tostada was delicious! However I do not recommend the flank steak. The dish was just all over the place with slimey cactus pieces and giant uncut parsley, plus the grilled mash was extremely starchy and gummy like it had been very, very overworked.
I will definitely be back to try their other dishes, the plates are super creative and I’m very willing to give it a shot. Just never the flank steak!

HOLY COW! This place will blow your taste buds!!! I found this place out of starvation after being in traffic in Hollywood and decided to try it out. The gates of heaven is what this place should be named. It’s incredible! The service is top notch. She knew exactly how to describe each dish to allow me to make my final decisions from the delicious menu. I wanted the full experience, since it was my day off in a month and it was time for me! Everything I chose was perfect. The ambience was so comforting to the crazy busy streets just right outside. The fire place is a beautiful added touch. It’s classy yet casual to be comfortable and relaxed. Listed below were my selections:
My appetizer was 2 tostadas: one with radishes, rosemary crema, lime, and olive oil. The other was an avocado cilantro cream, sweet onion, crema, arugula, and queso seco.
Dinner was the El Gringo burger: 9 oz med rare party with pickled red onions, tomato, arugula, topped with a white cheddar fondu, bacon, and an aioli on a brioche bun.
Dessert: a horchata crème brûlée topped with blue berries and crispy red Rice Krispies with a cup of black full roasted coffee.
HAVE EXACTLY THAT! I am pretty sure I indulged in my wks worth of calories and you know what, I DONT CARE! I would do it all again tomorrow! Please check this place out! You won’t regret it!

This place has the potential of growing but it will take sometime. The cute outdoor patio is definitely something to check out but by all means it’s not a beautiful patio!
Food here was good, but not off the charts phenomenal!
Salt cod churros– I wanted this to be delicious and good, but it sort of disappointed me. The churros were a little bready and didn’t have too much of the savory factor to it. I wanted more «umph» from this dish. It was just a bready stick that had some savoriness to it.
corn toastada– I do give them an extra thumbs up on these toastadas. They are light and full of flavor. With a creamy sauce to complement the corn bites, definitely made this one of the highlights of the night. Mind you they come small.
salmon belly burger– It sounded interesting and it was recommended from our server. A little too salty for my palate. It has a the right combo, but the salt was a little overpowering.
roasted smoked potatoes– These were good, but how many potatoes can you eat? I wished the servings were a little bit smaller. Nicely done on the smokiness.
duck confit– I was a little surprised the way the duck was prepared, but honestly this blew my mind. The garlicky tomato «soup-​like» base was beyond delicious. All I wanted to do was keep slurping up the remainder of the soup. The duck??? I found some duck pieces, but there were scarce…
Overall, the food here is decent, but not amazing. There is definitely room for improvement but I still enjoyed my time here at Running Goose!

Yay another tapas place to discover and right by my place. Let’s say I was pretty excited to try this place out. It’s in a pretty busy area of Hollywood, with lots of restaurants and bars so street parking will be pretty hard to find. There is valet ($ 10). The place itself is real cute, romantic and relaxed. As you walk in the door there is a small dining area inside but the outside area is the main part of the restaurant. There is a small fire pit to keep you warm and some heaters on top as well. The lights that were hung across the outside was real pretty as it got darker. They are also popular for their small garden where they grow all the herbs to use for the food. Love that! Tapas style so you know the drill, few small plates to try a little here and there.
_​Corn Tostada ($ 3) Burnt corn aioli, lime, basil, parsley. The tostada is pretty and small. But man was it good! A bit pricey for a small tostada but it’s LA. Good amount of nicely grilled corn. The burnt corn aioli was something real different to me and it was amazing. You get sweetness but a bit of that charred/​grilled taste. Not bitter at all. I wish more basil was added because you can really taste the freshness of that along with the corn. The shell was a bit crunchy but could have been more crisp. I highly recommend this if you are a fan of corn!
_​Salt Cod Churros ($ 11) Saffron aioli, lemon, cool nori. This was interesting and something you don’t get anywhere. So it was a must, especially since It was pretty popular on Unilocal.I’m so glad I tried this! The churro was nicely crunchy, the texture you get from Disneyland churros. You get a nice saltiness from the cod, but not overbearing or fishy. A bit of sweetness that somehow balances the churro. When you dip it in the sauce which is a bit thick and almost custard like you get the taste of fish and chips or fish tacos. But the churro was so great on it’s own the sauce was not really needed it. But a small dip did not hurt.
_​Octopus ($ 15) Squid ink, quinoa, yogurt, pickled red onion, green olive. This was my least favorite. And one of the worst octopus dishes I’ve had. I realize from my own experience that most American restaurants don’t ever cook the octopus right, where as Italian restaurants, seem to always nail on how to make it real tender. Here at Running Goose they overcooked the hell out of the octopus. It was so dry and tough/​rubbery in texture that the taste was real bland. The quinoa had a weird after taste that seemed somewhat fishy. The best part of this dish was the small amount of yogurt that was added in.
_​Smoked Beef Ribs ($ 24) Worcestershire, rub, onions, horseradish. This was pretty good. Huge in portion, my friend and I shared this for an entrée. The beef came right off the bone. It was so tender and seasoned well. I wish it had some sort of side that came with it to balance the richness from the sauce. Although the dish was great in general the sauce was a bit too sweet.
_​Horchata Crème Brulee ($ 8) Blueberry, almonds, red rice crispies. This was a fail. First off I don’t think they should call this a crème brûlée but more of Horchate parfait. The texture instead of being custard, like traditional brulee it was a bit watery on the bottom and tofu like. They put so much toppings on top it became messy and all the flavors were all over the place. The rice krispies just added texture but nothing to help the dish, the blueberries and almonds were good but got a bit lost. The horchata flavor was good and was a small hint of it. This tasted more like a breakfast instead of dessert.
Overall great experience. Like most places, some dishes can be a hit or miss as everyone have different taste. Our waitress was helpful and nice. I would come back here again.

From the moment you walk in, you’ll notice that the place is frickin gorgeous. It’s casual, but beautifully decorated and perfect for either a date or a group hangout. They have a garden too where they supposedly grow some of their own produce, which is awesome. I’m so impressed with the looks of the place that I’d probably come back for brunch just on that premise alone. I really like the staff here as they’re all friendly and got us everything we needed without a hitch. Impeccable, for both décor and service.
For drinks, I had the Schloss Lieser Riesling and it was really good. Also tried the White Sangria didn’t care for it, but their drink menu overall is above average for sure.
The feast featured hits and misses. I’ll quickly go through each dish, but first, I’d like to say that I thought all of the food was presented nicely and that the portions are huge for supposedly being «tapas».
Salt Cod Churros: It seems like the most popular item on their menu and I thought it was somewhat underwhelming with the added hype. The churros were fried very well and were fluffy inside with a good amount of cod. The issue was that I thought that flavor-​wise it was lacking, and I hoped that the saffron aioli (the dream aioli) would make this amazing. Sad to say, the saffron aioli tasted almost like a flavorless goo when I tried it on its own and it added almost nothing to the dish. 3.5÷5.
Tostadas: The Arugula Tostada was alright. I wish I had gone with the Tomato option instead, but hindsight is ²⁰⁄₂₀. The avocado with the cream was nice, but the major component here was the cheese. The Corn Tostada was much more tasty and interesting. I thought the corn aioli was good and the lime added a nice contrast that the Arugula Tostada lacked.
Smoked Potato: These potatoes were solid. The sunflower aioli was really light in flavor, and mildly complemented the perfectly cooked bite-​sized potatoes. ⁴⁄₅.
Zucchini: The zucchini had good texture, but the overwhelming presence of the blue cheese kept me from digging in more. Wouldn’t get this again, ³⁄₅.
Duck Confit: Hmmm, I’ve never had duck confit that came in a broth before. Kinda wish there was a heads up on that, but no big deal since it didn’t taste bad at all. The poach on that egg was flawless, the broth was good, and the gnocchi was okay (got a bit mushy in the broth). 3.75÷5.
Salmon Belly Sandwich: I ordered this because of a review here that had some highly exaggerated praise for it, but honestly, there was no aspect of this that I enjoyed. The salmon belly was so dry that I have a hard time believing that it was actually salmon belly. I didn’t care for the rub on the salmon either. The rub, paired with the kale kimchi was just too intense for me. Kinda felt like this sandwich had flying dragon kicked me in the mouth with all of its intense flavors. Didn’t care for the taste of either of them, even though I like spicy food. ¹⁄₅.
Lamb: This dish was alright, there’s a good amount going on in here. The cauliflower in this was okay, but kinda preferred a carb here… like a creamy polenta or something. The chunks of braised lamb were either tasty and fatty, or otherwise tough and dry. The mole itself wasn’t bad, but the fact that we left half the amount of lamb in the dish is quite disappointing. ³⁄₅.
Last but certainly not least…
Smoked Beef Ribs: These were pretty great as they were tender and fell off the bone easily with just a tiny bit of fork and knife action. Some people might like their ribs cooked to the point where everything just melts off and all the meat is shredded or braised to a pulp. Looks great on TV I guess, but I personally like it when my ribs have a bit of structure and bite to it. These fit me well. The pickled onions on top were nice too. I prefer Phil’s any day, but they did a good job here. ⁴⁄₅.
Too full to get dessert, but I’m still eager to try the Doughnuts and the Horchata Crème Brulee.
So I guess I was ultimately disappointed because of all the glowing reviews. Like I said before, I’d come back one more time for brunch because of the awesome staff and impressive décor. The food itself left a good amount to be desired, and considering the price ($ 150ish with tax and tip and then another $ 10 for parking), I’ve definitely had much better at that price point. Felt like a total ass writing this review when I really wanted to like it a lot. Also having such an unpopular opinion compared to everyone else that reviewed didn’t help, but it is what it is. Hopefully brunch will leave a better impression, see ya then!

Did not know what we were in for when we decided to grab a bite before heading to the Arclight dome for a movie. Wow. I’m so glad we decided to eat here!
Running Goose is the new tenant of the old German sausage restaurant. It looks, on the outside, the same way it did when it was the sausage restaurant, but when you walk in you are truly treated to an ambiance so visually stunning and so wonderfully personal that your dining experience whisks you away from the heart of Hollywood into a quiet respite away from the quick club scene. Such a welcome environment to be on a nice wood deck amongst herb gardens and outdoor fire fixtures.
Now to the food. EVERYTHING is from farm to table. They grow their own herbs and source all their ingredients locally. I am so amazed at how simple each dish was… yet the simplicity had a complexity that made you think «how did they make zucchini ribbons taste so damn good?»
We ordered the Zucchini in a crema with toasted sunflower seeds and a house blue cheese crumbles. Everything was wonderfully paired together as if nature said, «if you eat it this way, you win!» We also ordered two different kinds of tostadas: arugula and the radish with rosemary crema. To die for!
Finally we finished with a delicious burger that rivaled any of the hipster burgers out there.
Cannot wait to be back!!!