Out of all the bars and restaurants in Santa Monica, The Misfit is the epitome of hipness. Located in the ground floor of the iconic Clock Tower Building, this art deco architectural landmark that stood as the tallest building in Santa Monica since 1929 until recently, is a two-story spot that's only a few blocks from the beach.
In addition, it's right around the corner of third street promenade, a fun, and lively shopping area.
The restaurant is dimly lit, intimate, sophisticated, and will make you feel like you just walked into the golden age. Think of them as a magical oasis of refined dining and intimate gathering.
I've been coming here for the last three years, and it only gets better with each visit. Unlike other restaurants, this one offers an open kitchen and crafts neo-classic comfort dishes, sure-footed across an ever-changing geographical palate. The menu ranges from American bistro staples to globally-inspired dishes. They use the freshest ingredients and their drinks are all thoughtfully created, mixed, and stirred.
They have a great happy hour, starting from open until 6pm every day featuring $5 off cocktails, $7 select beers, and $8 off house pour spirits.
The menu changes with the seasons, but I have a few staples that are always offered and I always recommend to everyone I bring to this place. If you have any friends or family visiting, this is the go-to place to give them a taste of Los Angeles.
First, check out their drink menu.
Their Festival de las Flores is a popular one with blanco tequila, grapefruit, and fresh thyme. Another one I always go for is their white sangria, with fresh cut fruit.
However, my ultimate favorite is the Goodnight Emily, with ford's gin, red ruby grapefruit, mint, honey and peychaud's bitters. You will not regret this drink, it's both refreshing and perfectly sweet. My boyfriend always goes for their Topa Topa Chief Peak IPA from Ojai valley and he swears by it.
In terms of food, they have a great selection of appetizers to choose from. Their infamous Mac & Cheese is gluten free with green chiles, they have a refreshing Peruvian Ceviche with jumbo shrimp, cilantro, lime, cucumber, avocado and szechuan chiles which is always a nice dish to have when looking for something light.
My ultimate favorite appetizer is their hand-cut fries with their in-house made honey mustard. I usually ask for 3+ sides of honey mustard because it's so good I could drink it. The fries come in this large bowl that feels bottomless but when it does end, you can't help but order another bowl.
I went here for dinner yesterday and discovered their crispy brussel sprouts that are so good I think I have an obsession for brussel sprouts now.
They have great seafood options like salmon for dinner, or striped bass, but what I typically go for is their Misfit burger with tillamook cheddar cheese, red onion, pickles, lettuce, tomato, secret sauce and my personal twist on it: ask to add bacon.
If you're not into burgers try their crispy lobster nik niks that are absolutely insane, made with their house bacon, tomato, secret sauce on king's Hawaiianolls. They took these off the menu for a while and my heart broke a little but they're back now and I never fail to order two.
If you're more into chicken I highy recommend their crispy chicken sandwich, made with jidori chicken breast, fennel slaw, granny smith apple and a spicy mayo. It's absolutely delicious and puts all other chicken sandwiches to shame.
After multiple Goodnight Emily's and appetizers, I decided to go for a lighter dinner so I went for their Tuscan Kale-Quinoa salad with sunflower seeds, grapes, bell pepper, parmesan and I asked to add a side of grilled chicken to it. You can add salmon or crispy chicken if you're not a fan of grilled but it was the perfect light dinner and kept me satiated and satisfied.
You can't make reservations but you can put yourself on the waiting list on Yelp so I highly recommend doing that and trying this place out. You won't regret it.