A Feast for the Eyes, That’s It

Michael Hricak’s idea of a restaurant tour of Los Angeles takes in eight places in one day. Except you don’t get to eat at most of them. Last Saturday, he led his annual UCLA Extension course on restaurant design.

By 10 a.m., a 35-strong group was on its second dining room, an 8-month-old Korean-Brazilian place in Beverly Hills called Temple. As a mix of aspiring restaurateurs, designers and restaurant enthusiasts climbed out of a tour bus, Hricak explained, “We let them wander around first, then we answer questions.”

With no maitre d’ standing in the way, half the class barged past the bubble-shaped bar stools, into the canteen-style dining room, on into the galley kitchen. Another stream headed for the patio and into the bathrooms. A straggler outside wiggled the “T” on the signage to see how firmly it was affixed to the wall.

It took the group only minutes to case the place and re-form back in the dining room. Temple is one of those less-is-more places, so minimal that the “Exit” sign takes on the quality of artwork.

Next, Hricak introduced the owner-designer, a tall, chic man named Jun Lin, who explained that he came from the fashion industry and “wanted something very modern” and “somewhat Asian.” The group admired the natural lighting, simple materials and asked where the waiters’ uniforms came from.

“Banana Republic,” said Lin.

Much was made of the bathroom, where there is a colored window separating the gents’ and ladies’ rooms. “I tell my students: Always go to the bathroom because that’s where the design falls apart or where it really flourishes,” said Hricak.

At Temple, the toilets got a thumbs up. “It’s all the same kind of tile, dark wood, it all holds together,” said Hricak.

He should know. Hricak is not just an enthusiast, but a Harvard-trained architect who has designed restaurants himself.

“There was a time when we did half a dozen a year,” he said during a phone interview after the tour. These included prototypes for everything from frozen yogurt stalls to restaurants serving light Mexican food.

But that was in the boom days of the 1980s. While the business is flatter now, he says there is still a healthy turnover of businesses. In fact, one of the restaurants on the tour, Sushi Roku, is on the site of a place he designed, called Rice Man.

Rice Man had a concept problem, he explains. “It was built around a large after-work drink and finger-food idea. And in Los Angeles, everyone after work goes to the gym. They don’t go to the bar.”

As Hricak tells it, restaurant years are kind of like dog years, but even more compressed. “I do think a five-year run on a restaurant is a very long run. For a restaurant to celebrate a decade is a minor miracle,” he says.

Only a few restaurants become classics, according to Hricak. The classic on his tour, he says, is probably Patina. He also commends Chaya Brasserie and Michael’s as places that have stood the test of time.

Will the 8-month-old Temple be on next year’s tour? Time will tell.

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For information on the class, which is given once a year, contact UCLA Extension at (310) 825-9061.