How Mr. C Beverly Hills Updates Old-World Cipriani Style

(Gerry Furth-Sides) From Head Valet, Jason on our arrival, to the friendly hotel guests waving us goodbye, Mr. C in Beverly Hills does the fourth generation Cipriani Restaurant family proud. 

Mr. C’s made a controversial splash when it opened a decade ago on a site that had previously been changed hands often. But it has quietly grown a steadfast following for itself ever since. I have even attended parties with chefs flown in from Italy to celebrate Italian Academy Award Winning films, such as the delightful Dogman. //(//ccnewspaper.com/2018/11/cinema-italian-style-opens-dogman-with-gourmet-meal-from-italy/)

Restaurant Manager, Miguel Morales, (below) and server Ohad Bitton (above with pillow) made the evening special before we even got to the food. Help, only as needed, is attended to with old-school charm and aplomb.  Not that the staff wasn’t  “tested!” The former restaurant executive chef/catering company owner chef I was with, and I, made up a “high maintenance” table.

Executive Chef Max Farina, brought over from northern Italy to oversee the kitchen, prepares traditional Italian cuisine. Fresh, local California ingredients are skillfully used to update a few of them. Categories include grilled specialties, savory pizzas, risotto and baked pastas, such as the Tagliolini Pasta.

Chef Farina’s refined, perfectly seasoned Pappardelle Bolognese that he combined for us off the menu, for example, was the best we’ve ever eaten. It turns out that credit for the sauce goes to the chef’s special combination of beef ingredients this evening: strip loin, brisket and tenderloin.

Classic Cipriani dishes always feature the signature Carpaccio. But let’s have a cocktail and start with the story of how Giuseppe Cipriani was able to open the original bar itself. His legendary hospitality influenced both.

As a young bartender, Cipriani befriended a down-and-out American student, Harry Pickering, and loaned 10,000 ($500) lire to tide him over. Harry returned two years later in 1931 and repaid it – five times over. The idea was for Cipriani to use the money to fund a new bar and name it, “Harry’s”.

Located on Venice’s St Mark’s bay waterfront, Harry’s Bar attracted international celebrities, from royals to rogue writers, from its beginning. Patron’s affection was so strong and steady that the ripples of sentiment actually inspired Harry’s Bar and American Grill in Los Angeles to sponsor an International Imitation (“bad”) Hemingway Contest with the prize of a trip to a Harry’s Bar in Venice, no less, for over a decade.

The classic Bellini cocktail was invented at the bar, which is also credited with inventing carpaccio in its kitchen. As the years passed, Harry’s Bar went on to world renown with restaurants and hotels under the names Harry’s Bar, Harry’s Bar & Grill and Cipriani. Hospitality was always key.

The deep list of classics and contemporary cocktails at Mr. C’s plush bar features the original Bellini, and famous extra, extra dry martini served in a glass without a stem. And again the staff made this first part of our visit special.

We were taken with the Señor Masaryk cocktail. Since I am named for the first president of Czechoslovakia, Tomáš Barrique Masaryk I had to know. My Czech mother carefully chose it because this beloved leader championed democracy, feminism, unification and education.

The cocktail with Patron Silver, Grapefruit Juice, Lime Juice & Cinnamon Syrup ($17.95) turned out to be as refreshing and invigorating a taste for summer or winter. The only clue regarding its origin was a brief note along with the ingredients : “Served for the first time in Cipriani Mexico City.”

It was Restaurant Manager, Miguel Morales, who researched the cocktail for me, and confirmed the Czech connection. It turns out that the city of Prague donated a statue of Masaryk in 1999 in honor of the street, Avenida Presidente Masaryk, in the very posh and fitting Mexico City restaurant neighborhood. What a wonderful addition for me to this evening.

Next came an old favorite and the most classic of Cipriani dishes, the signature Beef Carpaccio. It turns out that founder Guiseppe Cipriani himself, not a chef, created it in Venice for regal guest, Contessa Amalia Nani Mocenigo.

The Contessa’s doctor had forbidden her to eat cooked meat. So Cipriani layered transparently thin slices of raw beef, with a delicate sauce dribbled in what became his signature checkerboard pattern on top. He named the dish “Carpaccio” in honor of the famous artist whose signature color was blood red.

We had written up this dish at Cecconi’s across town, which turned out to have no connection to the Cipriani restaurant at the hotel. We should have known. The Fellini-esque atmosphere there is more more Roman than the more elegant northern Italian.

Greens and cheese top the Cecconi version, which differs from the original. However, creating different versions of the famed dish is not uncommon. When Cipriani opened in New York in 1986, there was a flurry of carpaccio copies, including long-lasting editions with fish and seafood.

A curated wine list changes with the seasons. The wine has always been served in smallish glasses, another quirk of the restaurant. I’m sure the staff would graciously guest requests for a different size glass.

We left our final entrée up to the kitchen. Since it was late, the kitchen served us a traditional Prosciutto crudo di Parma with Melon. Next time we would order the Grilled Branzino served with spinach, a long-standing customer favorite worldwide.

Desserts are almost an after thought at an Italian meal because the food and drink are so balanced and satisfying. They are usually served in the afternoon or later at night.

We tried the classic Tiramisu and the Vanilla Meringue layer cake being served to guests at the spirited 21st birthday party outside. Restaurant Manager, Morales, told us it is the “signature cake” of the hotel worldwide.

A heated tent proved to be a wildly successful 21st birthday party venue, even in the nighttime, nippy January weather. The upbeat energy was infectious. Service is close enough to the main kitchen for dishes to arrive at the proper temperature although covers are still provided to be sure.

When my aunt threw birthday parties for herself every five years, there was no other option than the penthouse with a view. This unique penthouse dining room with a view of the city lights is temporarily closed.

Options include the inside dining room or the oasis of a patio even though you are yards away from Beverwil and Pico. The inside dining room on the ground floor has its own plush charm. It is easily accessed from the hotel’s lobby or through the dedicated restaurant entrance off the main driveway.

And we learned this year that even the outdoor valet waiting space has all the amenities to please because Mr. C’s staff that makes you feel special anywhere on the site.

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Mr. C’s Beverly Hills, Rest1224 Beverwil Dr, Los Angeles, CA 90035, (310) 277-2800