Take-Out Taken to a Higher Plane

Los Angeles’ upscale take-out phenomenon has recently entered a new stage. Where two, three years ago you might have walked into a sweet-looking little shop to pick up, say, a Cornish game hen and an assortment of pasta salads, now you can walk into a modern, bright, highly designed space and order . . . Cornish game hen and an assortment of pasta salads. But even the same old food seems somehow slicker now. The huge success of the mom-and-pop take-outs has led to professionalization. More big-deal restaurant people are getting involved in take-out, and important architects are designing the places.

In the case of the newly opened Flora Kitchen, 460 S. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 931-9900, the chef is Steve Neveaux, who previously worked at Opera, and the pastry chef is William Harry, who came from the Brentwood Bar & Grill. Together they’ve created an appealing menu--besides the pasta and the game hen, there are wonderful sandwiches made on Nancy Silverton’s La Brea Bakery bread. There’s also a swell apple pie. And though most of the food seems ready to take home, there are a few tables for eating in.

The design comes from two architects who work in the office of City-Border Grill-Campanile designer, Josh Schweitzer. Schweitzer’s influence shows in the clean lines and muted colors of the place. It’s a good place to sit and people-watch--sort of a post-modern cafe scene. And if you notice that the flowers are extraordinarily beautiful, the credit goes to Flora Kitchen’s proprietor, Rita Azar--she runs Rita Flora, the flower shop next door.