Rothschild's Restaurant

Rothschild's feels like a long-running neighborhood ritual, a stately Italian that has outlived trends and picked up a following along the Pacific Coast Highway. You sit under walls crowded with art, in wood-paneled rooms that still remember linen napkins and celebratory toasts. The short rib falls apart, the cacio e pepe is cheeky and perfectly seasoned, and the garlic bread arrives crisp and steaming. The bar has a New York steakhouse confidence; espresso martinis land creamy and insistent. Service moves with practiced ease, helpful when they squeeze your party into the upstairs private room or fetch the valet in back. It can be a romantic, low-light dinner. It can also swell into a louder, late-night scene when the music picks up and conversations climb. If you want quiet, come early; if you want the energy, wait for the foam on the espresso martini to settle and join the crowd by the bar.