Providence – 3 Stars – Los Angeles

As part of an ongoing effort to finally try all of the local fine dining establishments that have been on my radar for some time, I recently dined at Providence, which won its 3rd star last year. The seafood-focused restaurant outside of Hollywood was beautifully designed inside, with a perfectly Los Angeles wait staff (friendly, attentive, chatty, but also casual, in all the right ways).

I didn't grab pictures of a handful of courses, but pictured above are:

* Caviar and bluefin tuna with flowers in a wafer – maybe the best bite across the entire meal and an incredible way to start off. Light, flavorful, crunch from the "boat" holding it, pops of flavor from the caviar, tuna flavor all throughout. 10/10

* Uni and sesame tartlet – I never would have thought to pair uni with sesame, but it worked surprisingly well here. Not much else to say, a great one-bite. 8/10

* House smoked salmon, a wafer, craim fraiche, flowers, chives – like a wonderful lox bagel, also a one biter and served alongside the previous two. 9/10

* a5 wagyu tartare in between two wafers with a healthy heaping of truffle – honestly, a miss. The wagyu served as tartare doesn't really allow it to shine, as I think wagyu is best served with at least some sear to let the fat shine through. The truffle also overpowers it. 6.5/10

* A thin slice of grilled cheese with truffle – what's not to like? straight forward, two bites, pretty solid. 8/10

* Caviar, giant clam, silken tofu, and a broth made from country ham – absolutely fantastic. The ham broth was light and punchy and completely complimented the caviar and clam. The tofu is mostly here to provide some body and was completely overpowered by the other flavors, but served its purpose. 9/10

* One-bite lobster roll with truffle – again, could really only taste the truffle and would have preferred more of the lobster. 7/10

* Snapper, picked pearl onions, peas, artichoke broth – fabulously well balanced. The pickled pearl onions add just the right amount of acidity to a course that was surprisingly flavorful. The snapper's skin was shatteringly crisp and the flesh just perfectly a touch past pink. 9/10

* This encrusted salmon course replaces the monkfish on the Chef's Tasting menu and I've gotta say it's a disappointment. The course itself was fine, and it's loaded up with ramps and a ramp sauce which is so lovely this time of year, but with the salmon amuse bouche, this felt a little too familiar, and the monkfish would have been a great course. 6/10

* Duck with golden beets and kumquat – Huge disclaimer here that I really just do not appreciate sweet duck courses, I near-universally prefer savory duck preparations and this didn't change that opinion. Duck has been on every tasting menu I've been to in the last year and this was probably the best *cooked* piece of duck, with yet-again shatteringly crisp skin and pure perfection throughout the meat, but it was overpowered by the sweetness of the sauce and accompanying bites. 4/10

* Wagyu with celery root fondant, stuffed morels – Again, perfectly cooked, but a bit "fine"-ish. Maybe it's the expectation, but I want to be blown away by wagyu. The sauce was lovely, but this didn't really do much for me beyond being a piece of wagyu. 7/10

* The last photos are 3 of the 4 petit fours, which included a blueberry tartlet, a chocolate macaron, and a little caramel bite. Not pictured here was the passionfruit bonbon. All were outstanding, 10/10

Not pictured above were a few courses throughout the night: The sashimi course was difficult to photograph but a complete knockout, the caramelle with crab was quite good, but I would have liked more shellfish across the entire meal; the lightly fried abalone and asparagus was a fucking masterpiece; the sourdough and butter were probably the best bread I've had (everyone is now doing milkbread, which is fine, I like the sourdough heft); and the desserts of red fruits was a bit boring, and the chocolate course was a bit too balanced and not sweet enough.

I left, however, feeling like I don't need to come back for quite some time. Maybe it's the nature of a seafood focused menu, maybe it's the spattering of misses throughout the meal, but the meal was missing a "holy shit what was that???" moment. Maybe my expectations of a 3-starred restaurant are unfair, but I'm increasingly coming away from starred experiences feeling like 1 stars are taking bigger swings and 3 stars feel more comfortable.

Over the last month I've been to a spattering of starred restaurants and would put them in the order of: Ki, Jeune et Jolie, Providence, Kato, Kaneyoshi, Seline. Next up – Lilo, Addison, Corridor 109, Somni.