Smoke.Oil.Salt

Gem on melrose!!!
Food: excellent. Try to whole fish for a real Spanish experience
Atmosphere: nice décor. Music choice could be better (was punk all night)
Service: excellent
Wine: excellent and the waitress knew what to recommend

Enjoyed the food, service and drinks.
Recommended :)

I had such a great time in this beautiful spanish style environment.
Steven the owner picked the right wine for us as if he was able to read our mind.
Super delicious.

This place was excellent! The tapas were delicious! The scallops oh the scallops! Ah-​amazing! The service was excellent! The owner is so nice! Make sure you say hi to Oni who is the GM, he’s awesome! Coming back for sure!

I found this place on OpenTable and booked it as a reunion dinner for my friend’s visit to LA — 6 of us on a Thursday night.
First of all I loved, the décor and interior — very NYC, under a tattoo shop, brick walls, cosy and wooden furniture.
Our server wasn’t the most helpful or friendly which was a shame as we had never dined here before.
We all ordered wine and the wine was great!!! The food was good, nothing wow or special but not disappointing either. We enjoyed it all and sat talking and catching up. That is until the valet guy came in and gave everyone their keys and said he was going home, this was at 11pm. Then the owner/​manager came out and said cars would need to be moved, so basically we had to leave, great, especially after a $ 140 bill.
I won’t be coming back in a hurry!

Review ⁵³⁄₃₆₆
I came out here w/​some friends on our monthly self designed LA food tour. Smoke.Oil.Salt is a small cozy restaurant in the Hollywood area. It’s tapas style, which means little plates… which means family style :) We didn’t make a reservation, but instead of sending us out the door, the hostess was able to work around the night’s reservations and get us seated. We just had an hour to finish our meal and leave… although I will admit, we ended up taking an hour and a half, and they never rushed us along :)
We ordered the following dishes:
Patatas Bravas — which were really fried potatoes with fried egg. This was pretty good, but at the end of that day, it’s fried starch, and honestly, i’d rather fill up on other food.
Colifor con ajos– we really enjoyed this. any veggie that’s been carmelized is great!
Paella– if I remember correctly, this was a squid ink paella.
Pulpo — probably one of the better dishes. The octopus was nice and tender. And honestly, anything w/​chorizo is great! :)
I would probably come back.

We tried SOS on a Thursday. Had no problem getting a reservation via OpenTable. The restaurant wasn’t very busy when we walked in. Generally not a good sign. Service was prompt and friendly although they kept trying to upsell us to a more expensive wine the entire night which got annoying fast.
Food here is Spanish tapas style which in theory is great, but prices at SOS are not tapas plate prices. Everything was extremely overpriced — a la entrée style pricing. The food was pretty meh. Nothing stood out to me. Everything tasted like sausage. No discernible flavors popped out. Nothing was gross but nothing was good. For that price, I would take my money elsewhere. Lots of good restaurants in the area.

Trendy but pricy Spanish tapas place.
Pan con tomato: the tomatoes were fresh and oily and the bread was perfectly crispy.
Croquetas de bacalao: this was my least favorite item we ordered — it was a little too salty and fishy.
Patatas bravas: super crispy potatoes covered in what tasted like a basic hot sauce. There was barely any ham or chorizo in the dish, but instead just a bunch of large potato chunks. Wasn’t overly impressed with this dish.
Albondigas al horno: super delicious, extremely rich meatballs. They were tender, juicy, and flavorful and covered in an equally delicious sauce.
Tortilla espanola: this was definitely a stand out dish. The oxtail on top was cooked perfectly and overall this dish tasted very light and healthy yet full of flavor.
Amanida de bruselas: this was my favorite item by far! This salad had an amazing dressing on it. It was a perfect mix of sweet and salty. Definitely order this item!
Overall I enjoyed my meal here. However, the portions are very small and definitely overpriced for what you are getting but I suppose that is to be expected from a tapas place like this. The service was fantastic and the each dish seemed to arrive just as we were finishing up the previous one which was really great. The restaurant was small and intimate — make a reservation on open table! They have valet parking but there is free street parking a couple streets behind the restaurant.

Great service Great food Owners very personable, really cares about his operation and clients,
Cant go wrong with S.O.S

One of the best dining experiences ever. The food was on point, the service phenom, and the music was sooo choice. It felt like a laid back tapas bar in spain. This great hidden gem blew my party away. We loved it and we are telling all of our friends. Staff made us feel at home

I love eating here. We always try something new on the menu. We spoke to the owner and he told us they are always adding new dishes to the menu. Last time we at here I ordered smoked cauliflower, octopus, and salmon. Omg it was so good! Like nothing I’ve eaten before. It gets busy at night on the weekends, valet is in front (a big plus), and the wait is never long.

We’ve been to Smoke.Oil.Salt about 6 times over the past 1.5 yr. Our first 2 – 3 visits were amazing (five stars). More recently the food and service have decreased slightly. Our last visit was just a 3 star experience.
Over time it seems the menu has become slightly abbreviated and less complex. On our first visit to the restaurant, they offered a sea urchin flan — totally unique, delicious, and satisfying. By comparison last night we were served cod croquettes (3 small ones for $ 13) — a Spanish staple, but not particularly well executed and overpriced. The best dish last night was perhaps the least Spanish, the citrus cured yellowtail.
Smoke.Oil.Salt is definitely worth trying if you haven’t been, but it isn’t at the top of our LA favorites any longer. We’ll prob go back, but it’ll probably be a little while.

This tiny joint would be right at home in SoHo or Chelsea; it has that kind of East Coast vibe that I confess, I like. Tables are close, conversations are loud, and there’s plenty of Spanish wine to go around.
Make reservations cuz if you try to wait it out, you’ll grow frustrated. The place was busy all night. And as such, ran out of items later which is why it was good we got our table at 8P ordered absolutely everything we could for the group. I wouldn’t go here with a group bigger than 4; as it was, it was a crunch and they couldn’t fit all we ordered on the table.
And order we did: crostini con anchoa, the iberico ham charcuterie, morcilla (my fave), pulpo, a Cuban rice dish. .. the list goes on and on. And we enjoyed everything.
Yes, it’s pricey and yes, it’s crowded, and it’s kinda of far from us, so unless we’re yenning for blood sausage or some strong Spanish wine, we likely won’t frequent but it’s a good place nonetheless.

I came for my birthday, Monday, Nov. 16^th.
We had reservations for 7:30. The hostess was not so friendly and tried seating us right next to the service stand when there was a table by the window open. ?? So I asked if we could sit there. Were we not good enough looking for that table?
The bus boy poured water for four people even though we were two … I was like, okay?
But, surprise! In walked our friends who just returned from their Spain honeymoon.
And so, *they* did the ordering.

Did NOT get cheeses because been doing cheese all week. …And cheese brought back from Spain! So our company got our table many fabulous things, three or four orders at a time. Mainly small plates.
Excellent. Loved everything. I even loved the BLOOD sausage. I usually let my brain get in the way, but not this time. It was RICH and decadent.
Wine– wonderful
Service– good but with some wrong turns (an order went to a different table) but when it finally came, was comped. And so was an extra desert she thought we’d like. Thank you for that. My pick– the chocolate mouse– VERY delish. They stuck a candle in it for me. So, three desserts for a table of four and was that more than enough. I left stuffed, wine buzzed, and very happy with S.O.S.
The next day I got a call from S.O.S. to see if everything was satisfactory. Yes! Why, yes, it was, thank you!
I recommend you give it a shot! Great for a special occasion.

**Smoke.Oil.Salt has a new chef as of a month ago and has just begun its weekend brunch. As a result take earlier reviews with a grain of salt as restaurant seems to have a new direction**
Came here for brunch on Sunday for a «just-cause“occasion. Having spent a recent summer in Spain, I’m always eager to try local Spanish cuisine to satisfy some of my nostalgia, too. Smoke.Oil.Salt is a fantastic location, albeit hidden and nondescript from the outside. Inside though you get a quaint, hip atmosphere that you just want to enjoy yourself in for hours.
Neither of the two of us were too famished, so we didn’t go overboard on ordering food (everything is served more or less as tapas and tapas-​sized). We did however get a pitcher of the house’s white sangria which was incredibly refreshing and a nice change from the overly-​sweet red sangrias you tend to get at cheaper establishments. For future reference, the Spanish-​heavy wine list looked fantastic.
Between the two of us we shared:
–Kale and brussels sprouts salad
–Frittata
–Morcilla crostini
–Gypsy’s arm cake
The food is really quite special. It’s light but immensely flavorful. While the dishes themselves aren’t inherently Spanish, many of the flavors and ingredients are and they’re tastefully integrated. For example, the pimenton vinaigrette for the salad was fantastic with the medjool dates.
The frittata was served as two wedges and was the lightest egg dish I’ve ever had. The salsa could of had more flavor and spice, but then that’d be more Mexican anyways.
My favorite was the morcilla (blood sausage) crostini, which was topped with an egg and tomatoes.
The cake was just alright but that’s only because I expected something a little sweeter. The angel food cake was light and the filling was more like whipped cream than a dulche de leche filling.
–
As tends to be the case with LA Spanish/​tapas places, the dishes are pricey for the quantity of food you get, but the flavors make up for it. Service was very nice and I hope I see the place get busier as I really want it to be successful. I look forward to returning to try the dinner/​tapa menu!

Smoke, Oil, Salt occupies the space of venerable, honored Angeli Caffe by Evan Kleiman starting 1984 when Los Angeles was still flush from the go-​go experimental «fusion» & regional cuisine movement that started in the mid 1970’s. We now take «fusion cuisine» for granted, and we somewhat expect it.
SOS is not just Spanish food, but specializes in the region of Catalunya which is a nation unto itself w/​its own Latin based language, history, culture, traditions, dance («The Sardana is the Barcelona Catalan dance that symbolizes Catalan unity and pride.»)
I love the seaside village of Sitges & staying at Hotel Romantic where late breakfast is served in an outdoor patio under the shade of a huge tree, & the Cau Ferrat Museum, that was the home & study of artist & writer Santiago Rusiñol, one of the most important figures of the Modernisme movement along w/​Gaudi & Montaner.
Group of us Unilocalers came to SOS for the Sunday Paella Night dinner. Apparently, the original Paella started in Valencia, another region south of Catalunya, & it seems that every area of Spain now has its own version. Since we were curious about the cuisine of Catalunya, we ordered the Sea Food Paella & the Meat Paella so that we could make a comparison as to technique, style, flavours, textures, bouquet, etc. We asked if it were possible for the two paellas to not be served all at once, and to have the Seafood Paella first. The amiable waiter concurred with our request.
We ordered Papas Bravas, & a seasonal Cherry Gazpacho. Papas Bravas are fried chunks of potato w/​a roasted pepper sauce & possibly crumbles of well cooked blood sausage. There is a strong oily, earthy meatiness which is relieved by the blander starch of the potato. It’s hearty, rustic & be better eaten when the weather is cold to provide fuel to warm the chilled body.
The Cherry Gazpacho is salty, agrodolce at the same time. The flavor is mostly of pureed tomatoes w/​thickened texture & smokier herbs. It’s not the light, vegetal, bell pepper added fresh tomato gazpacho flavoured with spring & summer time herbs such as tarragon that would imply a mild summer evening.
Seafood paella came, but so did the meat paella at the same time as we had requested them not to do. Now as we were eating the seafood paella, the meat paella would turn stone cold & dry out. Service at SOS seems friendly, but execution of service is very loosey goosey. One waiter talked incessantly to a few tables, but would ignore the rest. Other servers would appear w/​nary a glance at our table to see that all was all right. Then the kitchen doesn’t seem to have enough control to honor a simple request of having the two paellas not be served simultaneously.
The shrimp & the large prawns in the seafood paella were good. In fact the large prawn was perfectly cooked so that when I tore off the head, the sea infused Umami juiciness could be sucked w/​gusto. However, the tinta de calamar/​squid ink was so oppressive that it tasted extremely fishy & funky. Also the salt content in this arros negro was hyper excessive which made this paella extremely hard to eat.
This was the worst tasting paella that I have ever had in my life. I have had Paella a la Valenciana in Valencia, Espana, & I had an exemplary Paella de Pollo in the home of Miguel Duran, an LAUSD art instructor in the 1980’s. SOS’s Seafood Paella may be Catalana in style, but I feel it was very poorly executed when it comes to the right proportions of salt & flavourings. The rice itself was al dente and not the fluffy rice we Americans may expect, but that was not an issue for me.
The Meat Paella was made from rabbit which was moist, meaty, soft w/​small bones that looked like part of the spine; pork was solid, moist, firm. There were artichoke hearts, & Fava beans seemed dried & then reconstituted & not fresh which has an extra sweet, bean Umami flavor. This meat paella was thankfully not hyper salted. The rice was herbed more judiciously although having the two paellas come simultaneously, the meat paella was eaten about 25 minutes after it came to the table which dried out the rice, & we couldn’t sample it when it was still fresh from the kitchen.
Dessert was two cubes of chocolate ganache infused w/​smokier, ‘warm’ spices accompanied by vanilla ice cream, crumbles, & coffee looking «soil». This may have been the best dish I had at SOS.
For me, SOS lacks control of the kitchen which means that food that reaches the table is not always sent at the appropriate time, nor in the sequence that showcases their dishes more positively as well as not monitoring the consistency of flavours which is so important in creating a food that is not out of the range of edibility. Rarely do I give a one star rating, but w/​all the faux pas listed above, my honesty must prevail.

Great meal, great service, but no Paella during the week…
Everything I had here was superb, especially the Fried Potatoes w/​Serrano Ham, Chorizo and fried eggs! How did they get the potatoes that crunchy? Smoked Octopus w/​potato vinaigrette was delicious, skirt steak was a bit too rare for my taste and lacked flavor, and last, this short ribs fried rice dish that came in a stone hot pot was the best ending of our meal.
I am definitely going back on the weekend to try their paella.

Immediately one of my favorites.
Lively but not too noisy, the place is split front to back with a bar/​grill to one side, offering a nice setting for dinner.
Service is swift, friendly and polite, not too familiar and very welcoming.
As nice as the people and setting may be, its the food that made this high rotation for me. The tomato toast makes any future bruschetta for me, meaningless. The crispy potatoes with sliced chorizo, soft fried egg all mixed in a hot skillet… seared pork tenderloin and apple with beet salad…
I loved it all.
A nice beer menu, dominated as one would expect in Spanish beers — the Estrella Damm was a great way to wash it down. The only part I didnt fully enjoy was the Spanish wines, which I am not a fan of to begin with and found less than well bodied… so I will stick to the ice cold, delicious Estrella next time.
Great meal. Gracias.

I’ve been looking forward to trying this place out since it opened… finally got the chance during my month-​long birthday celebration. Three girls ordering/​eating as much as we could, aka food coma:
1) pa amb tomaca i llangonisses caseres $ 12
Catalan tomato toast with house-​made sausages
2) carxofes $ 13
Caramelized Globe artichokes and collard kohlrabi with garlic and chili
3) truita de alberginia $ 12
Roasted eggplant omelet with Meyer lemon aioli
4) bonito $ 19
Albacore tuna la flama, olives and tomato confit purée
5) clotxines del pilar $ 16
Valencian-​style mussels with chorizo and vermouth sauce
6) polp a la brasa $ 18
Smoked octopus with garden herb salad and potato vinaigrette
7) canelons de rosa $ 16
Rosa’s Valencian duck confit canelons with béchamel, idiazbal cheese and truffle oil essence
All of these shareable small plates were comprised of interesting ingredients, looked great and tasted delicious. The food more than exceeded my expectations.
Wine:
2013 Alvaro Palacios Priorat Camins del Priorat from Catalunya, Spain $ 36 (bottle)
2012 Espelt Old Vines Garnacha $ 9 (glass) — for my friend who wanted the «sweetest» wine there (sheesh…)
Desserts:
1) Flan de coco $ 9
Coco flan with coco granita and vanilla whip
2) Crema catalana $ 9
Catalan custard with passionfruit ice cream
3) xuxo de xocolata $ 9
House-​made cinnamon doughnuts with Valhrona chocolate dipping sauce
First, this is a cramped space. You will be elbow to elbow with other Angelenos. You will hear bits and pieces of their conversations and they will hear yours. Service was fine. Sommelier was a stand-​out, patient with my friend who didn’t like the strong Spanish red that we ordered, and offering her a sweeter alternative. We did have one problem. There was a chip in the glass cup for the cinnamon donuts’ chocolate dipping sauce. Now, management said we chipped it, we didn’t. How do I know? I know because I always take a picture BEFORE we eat anything. You can see the chip in my picture… Plus, I don’t see how a soft donut would chip GLASS… so one star off…
Will I return, yes…

I took my wife to smoke.oil.salt for dinner and we were not disappointed. It is a cozy environment, seats tightly packed together to try to maximize the space. Dim lighting and light background music created a great atmosphere. Good for a Friday night. Since we have never been to this restaurant before we relied heavily on our server Andre. He was an amazing server, extremely friendly, and gave us great recommendations for food and wine.
We ended up eating the smoked octopus, braves trencades (serrano ham, chorizo, fried egg, potatoes), iberico ham, the duck, and the cauliflower and broccoli dish. Each just as amazing as the rest. All of the dishes were served on small plates so it was easy to share and taste a lot of different dishes. The smoked octopus was cooked perfectly and was very flavorful. The duck was also one of my favorites. Delicious dish after delicious dish. Great job on creating such a wonderful eating experience.
There was only part of our eating experience that wasn’t as good as the main food and that was the deserts. This is the only time in the meal that we went against the recommendations of Andre. Sorry Andre, we should have listened to you. We ordered the doughnuts and rice pudding. They weren’t bad, however when you compare these deserts with how great the rest of the food was, they were a notch below the rest. Our server recommended the Catalan custard, mandarin compote, and smokey ice cream. Next time we will try his recommendation instead.
Overall great restaurant and we will be returning for future dining.