Baby Bistro (Los Angeles, CA)
Baby Bistro Restaurant
1027 Alpine St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
213-266-8784
www.babybistrola.com
Tue 02/10/2026, 08:15p-10:15p
I first encountered Miles Thompson back in 2012, when he was running a rather fetching dinner series by the name of The Vagrancy Project. He was able to parlay said project into a head chef gig at Allumette in Echo Park, and later found himself running Michael McCarty's namesake restaurant in Santa Monica. Indeed, it was at Michael's where I last checked in with Thompson, who managed to earn "Rising Star Chef of the Year" semifinalist (2017) and nominee (2018) honors from James Beard for his work at the pioneering Westside eatery.
After that, I lost track of the Chef's whereabouts, but it turns out that he left Michael's in November 2018. He then traveled to Europe at the end of that year to stage at Kobe Desramaults' Chambre Séparée in Gent and James Lowe's Lyle's in London. Upon returning to Southern California, he secured employment at Makani in Venice. However, his tenure there only lasted a couple weeks in June 2019, as apparently his food was too provocative for the Rose Avenue crowd. From there, Thompson started up a "roving neighborhood restaurant" by the name of July, which held its first dinner that August, but only lasted about three months. In October, he joined Konbi as a line cook and thrived in the role, triumphantly pushing through all the uncertainties of COVID-19.
He stayed for two-and-a-half years before decamping in late March 2022 with the goal of opening his own restaurant. In May, he formally incorporated his business as Edith Weiss LLC, and in June, signed a lease on a property at the edge of Chinatown, on its border with Echo Park. The Chef didn't go it alone, though, and partnered up with Andy Schwartz (Camo&Co Selections, Lolo Wine Bar), a wine whiz whom he'd met during the pandemic. The two quickly got to work on their venture, and during this period, Thompson also private cheffed, cooked at various events around LA, and got married.
Following, he was part of the opening team at Stir Crazy, which launched in May 2023. Meanwhile, Baby Bistro made its pop-up debut on June 1st that year, running through September 1st inside The Barber Shop Club at Hotel Normandie. It proved successful, and returned sporadically through much of 2024, making appearances at the likes of Dudley Market, Stir Crazy, Bucatini, Snail Bar (in Oakland), and Psychic Wines. The permanent incarnation of Baby Bistro finally grand-opened on May 8th last year and has already garnered quite a bit of acclaim, having been named one of "America's Best Restaurants" by the New York Times and achieving a #51 ranking on the LA Times' "101 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles" list.
Baby Bistro is situated inside Alpine Courtyard, a collection of former Victor Heights residential buildings redeveloped by a team led by local architect Jingbo Lou, who was also the force behind the revitalization of Hotel Normandie. Other tenants in the complex include Heavy Water Coffee Shop, Perilla LA, Bakers Bench (founder Jennifer Yee was actually the one who convinced Thompson to open up here), Cassell's Hamburgers, and a lone non-F&B enterprise in the form of The Estate Tattoo. The specific structure ("Building B") that houses the restaurant ostensibly dates to the 1890s and was relocated to its present location in the 1920s. Grayson Revoir handled the renovation and furnishing of the dining room, which boasts a sort of woodsy warmth. Inside, there's room for about three dozen...
...While the covered patio can accommodate another 10 or so guests. There are also a few seats reserved for walk-ins out front by the entrance.
As we can see above, Baby Bistro's pointedly seasonal menu is refreshingly compact, and the right play here is clearly to run the gamut and order one of everything. Libation-wise, there's a concise, "natural"-leaning wine list curated by Schwartz, while corkage is $40 a bottle, with no limit. Click for larger versions.
Onion Bread, Brebis [$8.00]
Housemade onion bread arrived toasty and crisp, but with an unexpectedly tender crumb. It was topped with a sheep's milk spread incorporating a chèvre-esque Brebis along with a smidge of Tomme-like Mariana (both from Blakesville Creamery out of Port Washington, WI), as well as some lima bean for texture. Further accoutrements were sprouting cauliflower and what I believe was a French curry vinaigrette. Overall, the idea was to showcase a marriage of warm spices and pickle-y acidity, moderated by the creaminess of the cheese, with the bread's Allium-y notes peeking through just enough.
Beets, Sunflower Seeds [$18.00]
Regular readers will know that I'm not a fan of beetroot, but I'm happy to report that this was one of the best beet dishes I've ever had. Intriguingly, the root vegetable was nixtamalized, then marinated in beet leaf pesto, while accompaniments included a golden sesame cremeaux and a pseudo-sikil pak, a salsa of guajillo chile, ajo chile, and sunflower seeds. The nixtamalization process really changed the beet's texture for the better, and seemingly tempered its sweetness to boot. That being said, the hero here was clearly that Yucatán-inspired condiment, which proffered a combination of heat and nuttiness that served as the perfect foil. What I found particularly beguiling here was this "grain-y" sort of spicing that somehow recalled the Taco Bell beef burritos of my early 1990s childhood--an awfully specific food memory, I know.
Tonight's twentieth anniversary wine was the 2006 Ridge Monte Bello, an all-out California classic that's perhaps most known for being part of the famed 1976 Judgment of Paris tasting. Hailing from the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA, this was a blend of 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot, and 2% Cabernet Franc, bottled in May 2008.
Dungeness Crab, Peas [$30.00]
Thompson's crab salad brought together three disparate variations of sweetness--saline Dungeness, vegetal English peas and shoots, and fruity dehydrated banana powder--all punctuated by a sprinkling of poppy seeds and what seemed like zippy pricks of citrus. It was an unconventional mélange to be sure, but one that melded surprising seamlessly, with a delicacy to it.
Octopus, Wasabi Leaf [$32.00]
Next up was a seemingly Catalan-ish preparation of octopus a la plancha, served with some suitably hearty potatoes and a sprinkle of paprika. As good as all that was, the crux here was the use of hazelnut aioli and pickled wasabi leaf salsa, which contributed this creamy-acidic heat that worked perfectly with the smoke-savor-salinity of the octo.
Pork, Apple [$42.00]
A loin chop from Peads & Barnetts was brined and marinated with honey and parsley, then grilled over Japanese charcoal, resultingly it a firm, hefty, gratifying, yet springy presentation of pork imbued with tinges of smoke and herb. The cuts were taken up a notch by a sauce of anchovy and roasted pork fat over red wine vinegar, while pickled celery root and yam leaves offered up a touch of brightness. However, what struck me the most was that stinging nettle apple purée, with its almost candied (I kept thinking of Jolly Ranchers) sweetness that worked out much better than I thought it would.
House Bread [$8.00]
I now had the chance to try the bread from my first course alone and unadorned. Developed by Chef Thompson and made in-house daily, it was described by my server as a mash-up of white bread and focaccia (but with smaller bubbles and more density than the latter), with caramelized onion and nigella seeds folded in. Again, the tenderness of the crumb was key, as was the back-and-forth between the onion's sweetness and the spiciness of nigella. It's not a bread that screams for attention, but manages to convey a particular appeal nonetheless.
Sprouting Broccoli Salad [$20.00]
The sprouting broccoli turned out to be a surprise standout. I loved how its inherent bittersweetness meshed with the bevy of deeply savory, nutty (from perilla seeds I assume), piquant, and pungent flavors in the dish. I was actually reminded of Thai cuisine while eating this, and later discovered that the sensation was due to the presence of kaffir lime leaf. Neat.
To accompany dessert, I was provided a complimentary pour of the Podere Casaccia Vermouth '19 [$13], which proved to be a fitting digestif. Hailing from Tuscany, this smelled of medicinal herbs and citrus layered over a distinctly fruity, "grapey" base. Taking a sip, I found the fortified wine uncommonly silken, with supple dark red fruits commingled with a plethora of bitter, zingy, herbaceous notes.
Pine Nut, Rhubarb [$8.00]
Dessert comprised a properly crumbly cookie that combined the sweet-nuttiness of piñón with an amalgam of herby (fennel fronds, and a thyme-infused white wine vinegar was also mentioned), tart (there was definitely candied rhubarb), and astringent nuances. It all made for a savory-sweet sort of ending that was on the cleverer side.
It'd been far too long since I was last able to experience Thompson's food, so it was a great feeling to get back in the mix at Baby Bistro. I especially enjoyed seeing how the Chef's cuisine has progressed over the years, and I think he's in a good place now, putting up food that balances his creativity with a certain Cal-cuisine comfort. Meanwhile, the front-of-the-house, largely coordinated by my server River, was on point as well, and overall, I had a delightful time here. I can understand why this place has gotten so popular, and hope it sticks around for a while so I can witness how Thompson's cooking continues to evolve.
1027 Alpine St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
213-266-8784
www.babybistrola.com
Tue 02/10/2026, 08:15p-10:15p
I first encountered Miles Thompson back in 2012, when he was running a rather fetching dinner series by the name of The Vagrancy Project. He was able to parlay said project into a head chef gig at Allumette in Echo Park, and later found himself running Michael McCarty's namesake restaurant in Santa Monica. Indeed, it was at Michael's where I last checked in with Thompson, who managed to earn "Rising Star Chef of the Year" semifinalist (2017) and nominee (2018) honors from James Beard for his work at the pioneering Westside eatery.
After that, I lost track of the Chef's whereabouts, but it turns out that he left Michael's in November 2018. He then traveled to Europe at the end of that year to stage at Kobe Desramaults' Chambre Séparée in Gent and James Lowe's Lyle's in London. Upon returning to Southern California, he secured employment at Makani in Venice. However, his tenure there only lasted a couple weeks in June 2019, as apparently his food was too provocative for the Rose Avenue crowd. From there, Thompson started up a "roving neighborhood restaurant" by the name of July, which held its first dinner that August, but only lasted about three months. In October, he joined Konbi as a line cook and thrived in the role, triumphantly pushing through all the uncertainties of COVID-19.
He stayed for two-and-a-half years before decamping in late March 2022 with the goal of opening his own restaurant. In May, he formally incorporated his business as Edith Weiss LLC, and in June, signed a lease on a property at the edge of Chinatown, on its border with Echo Park. The Chef didn't go it alone, though, and partnered up with Andy Schwartz (Camo&Co Selections, Lolo Wine Bar), a wine whiz whom he'd met during the pandemic. The two quickly got to work on their venture, and during this period, Thompson also private cheffed, cooked at various events around LA, and got married.
Following, he was part of the opening team at Stir Crazy, which launched in May 2023. Meanwhile, Baby Bistro made its pop-up debut on June 1st that year, running through September 1st inside The Barber Shop Club at Hotel Normandie. It proved successful, and returned sporadically through much of 2024, making appearances at the likes of Dudley Market, Stir Crazy, Bucatini, Snail Bar (in Oakland), and Psychic Wines. The permanent incarnation of Baby Bistro finally grand-opened on May 8th last year and has already garnered quite a bit of acclaim, having been named one of "America's Best Restaurants" by the New York Times and achieving a #51 ranking on the LA Times' "101 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles" list.
Baby Bistro is situated inside Alpine Courtyard, a collection of former Victor Heights residential buildings redeveloped by a team led by local architect Jingbo Lou, who was also the force behind the revitalization of Hotel Normandie. Other tenants in the complex include Heavy Water Coffee Shop, Perilla LA, Bakers Bench (founder Jennifer Yee was actually the one who convinced Thompson to open up here), Cassell's Hamburgers, and a lone non-F&B enterprise in the form of The Estate Tattoo. The specific structure ("Building B") that houses the restaurant ostensibly dates to the 1890s and was relocated to its present location in the 1920s. Grayson Revoir handled the renovation and furnishing of the dining room, which boasts a sort of woodsy warmth. Inside, there's room for about three dozen...
...While the covered patio can accommodate another 10 or so guests. There are also a few seats reserved for walk-ins out front by the entrance.
As we can see above, Baby Bistro's pointedly seasonal menu is refreshingly compact, and the right play here is clearly to run the gamut and order one of everything. Libation-wise, there's a concise, "natural"-leaning wine list curated by Schwartz, while corkage is $40 a bottle, with no limit. Click for larger versions.
Onion Bread, Brebis [$8.00]
Housemade onion bread arrived toasty and crisp, but with an unexpectedly tender crumb. It was topped with a sheep's milk spread incorporating a chèvre-esque Brebis along with a smidge of Tomme-like Mariana (both from Blakesville Creamery out of Port Washington, WI), as well as some lima bean for texture. Further accoutrements were sprouting cauliflower and what I believe was a French curry vinaigrette. Overall, the idea was to showcase a marriage of warm spices and pickle-y acidity, moderated by the creaminess of the cheese, with the bread's Allium-y notes peeking through just enough.
Beets, Sunflower Seeds [$18.00]
Regular readers will know that I'm not a fan of beetroot, but I'm happy to report that this was one of the best beet dishes I've ever had. Intriguingly, the root vegetable was nixtamalized, then marinated in beet leaf pesto, while accompaniments included a golden sesame cremeaux and a pseudo-sikil pak, a salsa of guajillo chile, ajo chile, and sunflower seeds. The nixtamalization process really changed the beet's texture for the better, and seemingly tempered its sweetness to boot. That being said, the hero here was clearly that Yucatán-inspired condiment, which proffered a combination of heat and nuttiness that served as the perfect foil. What I found particularly beguiling here was this "grain-y" sort of spicing that somehow recalled the Taco Bell beef burritos of my early 1990s childhood--an awfully specific food memory, I know.
Tonight's twentieth anniversary wine was the 2006 Ridge Monte Bello, an all-out California classic that's perhaps most known for being part of the famed 1976 Judgment of Paris tasting. Hailing from the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA, this was a blend of 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 10% Petit Verdot, and 2% Cabernet Franc, bottled in May 2008.
- Initial Impressions – The nose demonstrated rich, concentrated fruit--think prunes--commixed with perfume and sous-bois. On the palate, I got a nice bit of tannic grip, while flavors highlighted dark, jammy fruit tinted with spice, all leading to a rather juicy finish.
- Mid-Meal – Pre-octopus, aromas transformed considerably, offering warm baking spices, earth, and chocolate. In the mouth, I found well-resolved tannins, zippy purple fruits, bouquet garni, mint, and a subtle astringency.
- End of the Night – Right before dessert, those aforementioned earthy aromas were joined by considerable amounts of lush fruit, while palate-wise, the wine was noticeably softer, and now showed off this smoky element that I didn't mind at all.
Dungeness Crab, Peas [$30.00]
Thompson's crab salad brought together three disparate variations of sweetness--saline Dungeness, vegetal English peas and shoots, and fruity dehydrated banana powder--all punctuated by a sprinkling of poppy seeds and what seemed like zippy pricks of citrus. It was an unconventional mélange to be sure, but one that melded surprising seamlessly, with a delicacy to it.
Octopus, Wasabi Leaf [$32.00]
Next up was a seemingly Catalan-ish preparation of octopus a la plancha, served with some suitably hearty potatoes and a sprinkle of paprika. As good as all that was, the crux here was the use of hazelnut aioli and pickled wasabi leaf salsa, which contributed this creamy-acidic heat that worked perfectly with the smoke-savor-salinity of the octo.
Pork, Apple [$42.00]
A loin chop from Peads & Barnetts was brined and marinated with honey and parsley, then grilled over Japanese charcoal, resultingly it a firm, hefty, gratifying, yet springy presentation of pork imbued with tinges of smoke and herb. The cuts were taken up a notch by a sauce of anchovy and roasted pork fat over red wine vinegar, while pickled celery root and yam leaves offered up a touch of brightness. However, what struck me the most was that stinging nettle apple purée, with its almost candied (I kept thinking of Jolly Ranchers) sweetness that worked out much better than I thought it would.
House Bread [$8.00]
I now had the chance to try the bread from my first course alone and unadorned. Developed by Chef Thompson and made in-house daily, it was described by my server as a mash-up of white bread and focaccia (but with smaller bubbles and more density than the latter), with caramelized onion and nigella seeds folded in. Again, the tenderness of the crumb was key, as was the back-and-forth between the onion's sweetness and the spiciness of nigella. It's not a bread that screams for attention, but manages to convey a particular appeal nonetheless.
Sprouting Broccoli Salad [$20.00]
The sprouting broccoli turned out to be a surprise standout. I loved how its inherent bittersweetness meshed with the bevy of deeply savory, nutty (from perilla seeds I assume), piquant, and pungent flavors in the dish. I was actually reminded of Thai cuisine while eating this, and later discovered that the sensation was due to the presence of kaffir lime leaf. Neat.
To accompany dessert, I was provided a complimentary pour of the Podere Casaccia Vermouth '19 [$13], which proved to be a fitting digestif. Hailing from Tuscany, this smelled of medicinal herbs and citrus layered over a distinctly fruity, "grapey" base. Taking a sip, I found the fortified wine uncommonly silken, with supple dark red fruits commingled with a plethora of bitter, zingy, herbaceous notes.
Pine Nut, Rhubarb [$8.00]
Dessert comprised a properly crumbly cookie that combined the sweet-nuttiness of piñón with an amalgam of herby (fennel fronds, and a thyme-infused white wine vinegar was also mentioned), tart (there was definitely candied rhubarb), and astringent nuances. It all made for a savory-sweet sort of ending that was on the cleverer side.
It'd been far too long since I was last able to experience Thompson's food, so it was a great feeling to get back in the mix at Baby Bistro. I especially enjoyed seeing how the Chef's cuisine has progressed over the years, and I think he's in a good place now, putting up food that balances his creativity with a certain Cal-cuisine comfort. Meanwhile, the front-of-the-house, largely coordinated by my server River, was on point as well, and overall, I had a delightful time here. I can understand why this place has gotten so popular, and hope it sticks around for a while so I can witness how Thompson's cooking continues to evolve.
posted by kevinEats at
8:15 PM
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