On February 15, owners Robert and Danny Kronfli, and Executive Chef/Owner Lior Hillel debut the third and newest outpost of the Venetian tavern concept, Bacari GDL, joining Bacaro LA near DTLA and Bacari PDR in Playa Del Rey. Located at The Americana at Brand, Caruso’s premier shopping, dining, and lifestyle destination in Glendale, the Italian-inspired restaurant focuses on fire-roasted dishes made in the new wood stone oven, and incorporates Mediterranean influences from Executive Chef Hillel’s Israeli heritage.
“With the third iteration of Bacari, we want to continue to expand our reach throughout greater Los Angeles, and since we’d already ventured west with Bacari PDR, moving north seemed like the next logical step,” says Robert Kronfli, age 29.
“Inspired by our travels to Italy, our overarching goal is to offer guests hospitable service and respite from everyday life by providing comforting food, well-executed drinks, and a warm atmosphere,” adds Danny Kronfli, age 33.
Executive Chef Hillel’s extensive menu features a new collection of Bacari’s “cicchetti,” or Italian small plates, including Oxtail with doah spice, toasted buckwheat, and shaved radish salad; Banana Prawns with pipel chuma, farro, and parsley salad; and Braised Fennel with poached cranberry, toasted pine nuts, and whipped goat cheese.
While the menu is almost entirely different from its sister restaurants, Bacari GDL keeps favorites such as the open-faced Bacari Burger and the Mac & Cheese. Unique to this location is a large wood stone oven, which is used to cook hand-crafted pastas and pizzas, including Foie Gras Cresto de Gallo Pasta with shaved terrine, onion jam, housemade ricotta, and chervil, and Bacon and Double Cream Brie Pizza with organic tomato sauce and fresh jalapeño.
“At Bacari GDL, we are fortunate to have a massive 10-foot wood stone oven, which takes up about one-fourth of our kitchen,” says Executive Chef Hillel, age 36. “It was such a great find that it inspired us, and we actually built our menu around the oven, so the majority of our hot items are fire-roasted alongside our pizzas.”
Additionally, the Glendale restaurant offers a full bar and straightforward craft cocktails, alongside a curated selection of beer and wine, including a Brown Butter Sour with house-infused brown butter whiskey, dry curacao, egg white, simple, and lemon; and the Holy Mole with añejo tequila, agave, lime essence, mole bitters, lime twist, and cherry. Bacari GDL will also offer the “GDL Special,” a take on their 90-minute open bar, which includes house red and white wine, champagne, sangria, and a select beer for $25 per person. For $30 per person, guests can now add well cocktails to the deal.
The 68-seat restaurant retains Bacari’s warm, neighborhood wine bar feel, with chalkboard walls and signature wine bottle-lined ceilings, though enhanced to reflect the upscale atmosphere of The Americana at Brand. The garage door-style façade creates an indoor/outdoor feel, revealing the front patio and opening up the space. Robert Kronfli was integrally involved in the construction, crafting components by hand, including the wooden bathroom doors, a cork board bearing the restaurant’s logo, and a wall lined with wine crates.
The restaurant opens for dinner service at 5pm on Wednesday, February 15, with lunch service launching Monday, February 20 at 11am, and eventually brunch and happy hour.
Caruso continues to energize Glendale with new-curated dining options. On South Brand Boulevard, four exciting new eateries and restaurants emerged this fall across the street from The Americana at Brand including Shake Shack, Greenleaf Gourmet Chopshop, Philz, Mainland Poke and the forthcoming Egglsut. This collection of eateries, along with Bacari GDL, further transforms this walkable street into a burgeoning dining, shopping, and entertainment destination.
News and information presented in this release has not been corroborated by WTWH Media LLC.
