The Attic is in a cute little cottage style house over in Belmont Heights, and it serves up some “southern inspired cuisine with a Southern California twist.” The house, which sits on a corner lot, is very spacious both indoors and on the outdoor patio, with plenty of parking in the back lot.
My family and I were greeted warmly and seated inside with a view of the patio. The hostess and our waitress were friendly and welcoming, and immediately we had menus and beverages. Our waitress was very helpful and answered all our questions about various menu items, which is a big plus in my book. You won’t believe how many wait staff out there don’t know anything about what they are serving. Kudos!
We started off our meal with an appetizer called a short rib “Poutine,” which is simply a dish that has a base of hand cut fries topped with braised short ribs in a red wine demi-glace dotted with cheese curds. The short ribs were “melt in your mouth” delicious, and the fries were crisp and flavorful. Luckily the portion was large enough to share, because I really enjoyed this and could have eaten the whole thing by myself.
Next we chose a variety of items off the menu for our dinner entrees and proceeded to share. A lovely roasted wedge salad to start with was served with Point Reyes bleu cheese, bacon, toasted almonds, and grilled red onions. Who knew you could actually roast lettuce? The lettuce had a nice smoky flavor that complimented and balanced the drizzle of balsamic vinegar and bleu cheese they had over the top. Next was a tasty risotto with vegetables and mushrooms tossed with parmesan cheese. As I am not usually a fan of risotto, I have to say I did like this. Lastly a nice turkey meatloaf served with bourbon BBQ Sauce and a vegetarian frittata served open face with fresh vegetables. The sauce on the meatloaf had whole tangy cranberries, which were very tasty and an unexpected surprise, and it put the sauce just over the top. The frittata, however, was only just alright and seemed a little sad looking on the plate.
Overall though, I give the food a thumbs-up. All the dishes were flavorful and filling and met our need for comfort food nicely this evening. My only concern might be that the Attic is a bit pricey, considering Christy’s is just down the street as their likely competition, so they may want to “swank up” the place or price down for comfort food.
As a neighborhood restaurant offering some solid menu items, I think this will be a nice addition to the area. Although the interior is a bit sparse for my taste, the atmosphere was pleasant and inviting. Unfortunately there weren’t a lot of diners, so apparently the word is not out yet. People, let your family and friends know you should give this place a try, because if we don’t spread the word that The Attic is open for business, we may keep dining alone, and that would be a shame. Until next time…..Bon Appetite!
The Attic is located at 3441 E Broadway, (562) 433-0153, theatticonbroadway.com