Asia de Cuba - Los Angeles

The Scene
The restaurant at the hip Mondrian hotel is a white-on-white fantasia packed with expense accounters, hotel guests and pretty people on dates. Stylized clocks line the stark walls, while hundreds of tiny lights create a warm, romantic glow. The patio, with its surreal giant clay pots, ficus trees and panoramic views, is one of the loveliest dining spaces in town. Attractive servers are pleasant and unobtrusive.

The Food
Unique Caribbean/Asian recipes, served family-style, are sophisticated, inventive and flavorful. Juicy crab croquettas are a lighter spin on crab cakes. Vietnamese-inspired lettuce-wrapped duck ropa vieja are moist, rich and fun to eat. Asian pesto grilled shrimp with wok-charred coconut-pineapple relish is so delicious, the shrimp become an afterthought. Pan-seared ahi is more robust than most, with its mashed potato accompaniment studded with crunchy wasabi peas. Desserts are elaborate architectural concoctions that don't sacrifice flavor for height: The Bay of Pigs banana split is especially scrumptious.