Hayden at the Platform in Culver City is your new favorite restaurant for rosé and oysters
Name: The restaurant shares its name, Hayden, with the Hayden Tract, the nearby Culver City neighborhood that architect Eric Owen Moss started to revitalize in 1986. This part of town is also where chef Jordan Kahn opened his new fine-dining restaurant, Vespertine, as well as his more casual restaurant, Destroyer, with a menu full of things in bowls. Hayden was opened by chef-partner Ari Kolender and Anthony Cailan (brother of Eggslut chef-owner Alvin Cailan).
Where you are: Unless you’re a famous actor or a social media “influencer” with a 500K+ following on Instagram, chances are you’re not going to feel cool enough to hang out at the Platform in Culver City. The Runyon Group bought the space in 2010 (once a used car dealership) and turned it into a sleek, glass-filled development filled with boutiques and restaurants, including the Cannibal restaurant, the Van Leeuwen ice cream shop and the ultra trendy Reformation clothing store. There’s also an outlet of Soul Cycle. The people sitting at the tables flanking the businesses are beautiful, iPhones out, their dogs too cute. But the next time you need an afternoon of rosé and oysters, you should probably head to Hayden anyway.
The sun-drenched dining room features high ceilings, a row of tables opposite the counter (where you order), a back wall full of wine and light fixtures that look like melting Hershey’s Kisses.
What to order: James Beard Award semifinalist chef Kolender is making one of the best turkey sandwiches in the city. He’s using Bub + Grandma’s bread — the thick, fluffy, foccacia-like slabs support a slew of toppings without sagging. The bread is topped with a layer of Kewpie mayo, sliced roasted turkey, avocado and radish sprouts. It’s simple, but you’ll be thinking about it later.
Then there are the oysters, fresh from both coasts (maybe briny Pacific Golds one week and sweet Prince Edward Island Cupid’s Choices the next), served traditionally with a few wedges of lemon, horseradish and a tangy mignonette. You can also order Japanese breakfast bowls full of Koda Farms’ brown rice, cucumber, shiitake, avocado, a soft egg and kampachi tataki. And for dinner: braised lamb with Lima beans and pistou or jambon de Bayonne-topped buckwheat waffles with honey butter and a soft egg.
What you’re sipping: Cailan curated the beverage program. He’s showcasing bottles from winemakers in France, Italy and California, and he’s happy to offer suggestions to pair with that turkey sandwich, your two dozen oysters or the braised lamb. You can also buy bottles from the wine shop inside the restaurant. There’s plenty of rosé, and moderately priced bottles to impress date. At the moment, there are more whites and rosés on the menu than reds.
Best place for imbibing: The patio offers ample seating and excellent people watching. This is also where you should sit when ordering one of the restaurant’s many canned seafood tins, a.k.a. conservas. Sardines, squid, mussels, clams, mackerel and more are served out of tin cans alongside baguettes and various acidic accouterments. Oh, and you can bring your dog too.
Info: 8820 Washington Blvd., Culver City, hayden.la.
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