Desert Rose

All of a sudden, I became a regular at Desert Rose; I rather think City Rose is more applicable since it is located in the middle of the City of Los Angeles. I go there with friends, family and colleagues.

I got to know this place from buying a Groupon. I had hesitated to go because I read about parking was a problem, but I had to use my groupon before it expired. Finally I went there with my mom and my out-of-town cousin for lunch on a Friday. I had no problem to find a street-parking space. The oustside and inside dining areas were equally nice and impressive. Outside area was covered by so many canopy umbrellas, I was so eager to sit there; but my mom insisted to sit inside.
I ordered a Grilled Chicken with Pesto Panini. Panini was toasted and spreaded with pesto, warm grilled chicken and sliced tomato inside. I enjoyed my sandwish. My mom's Lamb Chop came with rice and hummus, lamb chops were grilled to medium well but still very tender and jucy; rice was too soft. My cousin's Ahi-Tuna Salad came with plenty garishes, tuna also grilled to the right setting.  Both of my guests liked their entrees. We shared a Warm Chocolate Lava Cake to finish our meal. Chocolate syrup was melted inside with warm chocolate cake outside; perfectly to go with blueberries and ice-cream.

They offer special lunch for $10, with sandwich or salad to choose from, plus a beverage. There won't be any better deal elsewhere. My two colleagues and I chosed the same sandwich, BBQ Chicken Ciabatta, it included mixed green salad with house dressing, and no problem to substitute french fries with sweet-potato fries. A small amount of BBQ sauce was spreaded on the bread with a piece of melted cheese, grilled chicken was juicy and bread was soft. Perfect sandwich!! We shared a piece of Cheesecake to finish our lunch. I used a Yelp check-in coupon to get 15% off, we paid only $14 each for a delightful lunch. It was a very relaxing lunch at the outside area in a mid-summer afternoon.

I came back again on a Thursday night for dinner with my college friend, who can resist a 25% discount just being their Facebook fan? We were sitting in the outside area, now all the canopy umbrellas were gone and some heater lamps were up.
We had an order of Hummus and Pita for appetizer, hummus was not too sour and its texture was just right but pita bread was not warm enough. My entree was Beef Kabob, it came with some crispy pita, rice, garlic sauce and tabouli. Four beef kabobs were grilled to medium, they're flavorful but not too strong. I ate one garlic clove mistakenly thought it was a small onion. My friend's entree was Vegetable Kabob. Finally Warm Lava Cake with Ice-cream shined again.

Servers are warm and attentive. Decor and ambiance are one of a kind. Watch for Facebook or Yelp discount before you go.

Los Feliz
1700 Hillhurst Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 666-1166

www.desertroserestaurant.com

0-5 Star Rating:
Food: ****
Service: ****
Ambiance: ****
Location: ***
Parking: ** (valet parking / street parking)
Bang for the Bucks: ****

Average Price/Person (Lunch): $15 - $25
Average Price/Person (Dinner): $25 - $35
Reservation: No
Types: Mediterranean, California