Although it’s roughly an hour’s drive from the city’s treasure trove of global dining options, boutique wine bar Cork Dork offers a sophisticated food-and-wine dining experience with L.A.-centric international flair.
While Cork Dork’s decor fits the classic modern wine country chic mold, the constantly changing menu promises adventure and a few surprises only Daniel Amirian, chef and co-owner, can deliver. He applies his unusual background to his original creations and classics (being raised Kosher by a Persian Jewish father and Jewish mother from Cajun country; opening a fast-casual pizza restaurant when barely out of his teens) in deliciously unpredictable ways. It also doesn’t hurt he apprenticed with some of L.A. County’s top chefs (Daniel Rossi at Sunset Restaurant in Malibu, Celestino Drago and Evan Gattanda of Drago, and Massimiliano Blasone and Salvatore Sodano at Nikita Malibu) to refine his techniques and integrate a wide variety of international flavors into his repertoire.
While Cork Dork’s menu isn’t Kosher, the mix of menu staples and seasonal specials are testament to how Amirian’s strengths as a chef were solidified by working with limited ingredients (i.e. no pork) and making up for it with a wider selection of spice and seasonings (through the Cajun side of his family). This manifests in appetizers, salads and mains that are perfect foils for an eclectic 40-plus wine list with selections from France, Italy, California and even Lebanon.
© Elyse Glickman
This adds up to a lot of deliciousness. Burrata salad updated with seasonal squash and a Savage Grace Chilled Red, Smoked Beet Tartare paired with Schemata Paso Red Blend (an exclusive wine label to Cork Dork) followed by an Ora King Salmon and Prime Hanger Steak matched with Reynolds Family Cabernet, respectively. Finish that off with his Chocolate & Peanut Butter Custard partnered with Dash Late Harvest Zinfandel that’s so good even non-peanut butter fans will find hard to put down.
Amirian’s seasonal selections can be enjoyed as a full-on tasting menu or ordered separately, or mixed and matched based on which dishes grab you. And as Amirian and his kitchen team are in regular contact with nearby farmers in Ventura, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles counties, there’s your excuse to come back to see what they’ll come up with next.
1125 Lindero Canyon Road
Westlake Village, CA
tel 818 532 7284
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