Recent Customer Reviews of Spark Woodfire Grill on Pico

Thursday, June 11th, 2009
Elizabeth,

Thank you so very much for a wonderful event. I enjoyed every minute.

My friends and family also just loved the party.

You were so fabulous!

Everyone on your staff was so warm and helpful ( how amazing to have two salsa dancers in the mix).

The DJ was just great and so nice to work with.

I just wanted to thank you again. Everyone loved the space and your planning just made it so easy for us.

We will certainly be back again.

Many many thanks,

Linda

February 23rd, 2009

Hi Elizabeth,

I’m so glad we decided to have the dinner at Spark! We all had a great time! And the food and atmosphere were very enjoyable and relaxed. Couldn’t have chosen a better restaurant! It has been a pleasure to work w/ you as well!

Best,

Pamela

Cedars Sinai Hospital

February 21st, 2009

Dear Elizabeth,
I cannot thank you and Aaron enough for creating such an amazing, unforgettable night for me and my friends. I'm so glad that I chose the Blu Lounge for this special occasion. It was such a unique and lively setting. Hands down, this was the best birthday out of 19. Thank you so much for all of your help and congeniality.

Sincerely,
Eric Hsu

February 12th, 2009

Hello, Elizabeth,
I hope you are having a pleasant morning :) Thank you for your follow-up. Just want to say that everyone was pleased with your "Blu Lounge" and they really enjoyed the bar service, especially the cuisine! No doubt we will hold a future gathering at Spark Grill. Also, I would like to say Thank You for your professionalism and attention to detail. It was a great pleasure dealing with you. Regards.

Rina Chow

Construction Administrator – Construction Department

T 310/478-4456 x6022 / rchow@westfield.com

We're committed to sustainable business practices. Please print only when necessary, and recycle.

February 17th, 2009

Hi Elizabeth,
Indeed, everyone really enjoyed the dinner. The Premier Level was just perfect for our group. Thank you, Heather

Heather Kubinec
Senior Research Administrator
the
broad foundation
scientific | medical research

September 29th, 2008

Hi Elizabeth,
It is Gene and me who should be thanking you....the wedding was "story book". However, from family reports the Friday evening event was just so warm and wonderful....your venue, food and attention to detail was fabulous. I hope you will reprint this letter so that prospective wedding parties will see this.
You helped us make for an unforgettable rehearsal dinner.
Thank you for everything.
best regards,
Ellen

Dear Elizabeth,
The (rehearsal) dinner was amazing! Everyone raved about the appetizers (which I personally thought were unbelievable) and unfortunately, everyone around me ordered the S&T but that was delicious too! The space was great and your staff was amazing. Thank you so much for all of your help! You
were so easy to work with.

The wedding was amazing. My sister and Ryan were so happy the entire weekend and thatʼs all I could have asked for! Thanks again and hopefully
we can work together again soon!

Kim Koral
Mindy Weiss Party Consultants

Hi Elizabeth,
We all loved the food and the beautiful atmosphere, decor, and ambience of The Blu Lounge, and I had a great 50th birthday party. The two people that served and bartended were both really helpful and did a great job. It was a great night. The music ended up being a nice touch-the light jazz and then I hooked my ipod and people seemed to enjoy my playlist. Thanks for your help. I was very happy to have my party at your restaurant. Several people said they would be back to have dinner there in the future.
Mille Grazie!

"Thank you for an enjoyable lunch today. We really liked the way we were treated, the personal touch by the Maitre-d was great. I made a reservation through OpenTable and was very happy that what I requested is exactly what I asked for (booth/table by a window)!! It was our first time at your restaurant and will not be our last! Food was very good, liked the atmosphere. Wish we had room for dessert!We also would like to come back with a few of our friends from work to check out your "Happy Hour". I understand that it's at the bar."

Spark Woodfire Grill Studio City's New Wine and Martini Lounge!

(click on the photo for an even closer look!)

Spark Woodfire Grill's Wine and Martini Lounge is open for Happy Hour, Monday – Friday from 5:00pm – 8:00pm featuring $6 Martinis, $4 Specialty Beers, $5 Well Drinks and special “Small Plate” Appetizers that we have created just for the lounge; Ahi Tuna Stack, Maryland Blue Crab Ceviche, Grilled Shrimp Gazpacho Shooters, Mini “Low Carb” Kobe Beef Sliders and Spicy Popcorn Shrimp.

The lounge has custom made leather couches where guests can relax while they wait for a table or have a drink while they watch their favorite sports on the 2 flat screen tv’s. The lounge menu also offers specialty wines from our 12 bottle cruvinet.

The Main Dining Room can be rented for a sit down dinner up to 60 or a standing cocktail reception for up to 80. We can create custom menus with Spark favorites for either type of event.

~

Beverly Hills Happy Hour!

Spark Woodfire Grill BH
Happy Hour Menu

Monday through Friday
5pm - 7pm

• Half Priced Appetizers
• 50% off Signature Martini’s
• $5 House Wine, Well Drinks and Champagne Splits
• $1 off all Beers

Wood Grilled Artichoke
served with a champagne mustard sauce 6

Maryland Blue Crab Cakes
with chipotle aioli and fire roasted corn red pepper relish 7

Fried Calamari
lightly breaded and seasoned, served with homemade tartar sauce 5

Margherita Pizza
with tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil 6

Ahi Tuna Tartare
with mint, capers, green onions and wasabi micro greens 7

Pesto Shrimp
mesquite grilled shrimp marinated in pesto 6

Baby Back Riblets
glazed with our special BBQ sauce and served with coleslaw 9

Happy Hour is only available at the Bar

Please call for more information - 310.277.0133

Father's Day at Spark Woodfire Grill in Huntington Beach

A group of us went to Spark for Dinner on Father's Day - the steaks were great and so was the seafood. We started the evening with a Mango Martini. Don't miss this awesome elixir. I am more of a wine drinker, but this cocktail was unbelievable. With dinner we thouroughly enjoyed the Berenger Knight Valley Cabernet.

For the table we split a couple of Fork and Knife salads with blue cheese, bacon, red onion and walnuts and also the Crab Cakes with fresh corn salsa and a Wood Grilled Artichoke. A little warm bread and we were feasting. Now onto the main courses..

Salmon, asparagus and mashed potatoes

New York Steak, sauteed spinach and scalloped potato

Alaskan King Crab Legs (Shrimp Caesar and a poised cocktail fork in the background ready to pounce!)

Sesame crusted white fish with a spicy Thai chili sauce, rice and grilled vegetables.

We had a really great time!

Spark Woodfire Grill

300 Pacific Coast Highway

Huntington Beach, CA 92648

714.960.0996

http://www.sparkwoodfiregrill.com/
kathleen@sparkwoodfiregrill.com

Mother's Day Specials at Spark Woodfire Grill BH

Soup

Lobster Bisque

Appetizer

Crispy Tiger Shrimp Skewers served with spicy citrus aioli

Entrees

Dover Sole wrapped in parchment with baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, baby leeks and fava beans in a lemon grass sauce

~

Roasted Lamb Shank served with garlic potato puree

Dessert

White & Dark Chocolate Mousse

Spark Studio City Dining Packages are perfect for picnics, parties or maybe a summer trip to the Hollywood Bowl

Spark Dining Packages are perfect for summer trips to the Hollywood Bowl. Please call in advance, order your package, drive up to the front entrance for fast pick up and then head to the beach or the Hollywood Bowl for a fun summer evening with your Spark favorites. Spark Dining Packages serve four guests and are available for Take Out only.

Package #1**

Spit Roasted Rotisserie Chicken

16 pieces or 2 whole chickens

$48

Package #2**

Slow Cooked Iowa Baby Back Ribs

2 full racks of our “falling off the bone ribs”

$59

Package #3**

Baby Back Ribs and Rotisserie Chicken

1 full rack of Ribs and 8 pieces of Rotisserie Chicken

$54

**All Spark Dining Packages also include:
Two (2) Large Salads - Chopped or Caesar

PLUS
One (1) Side Dish - Asparagus with fresh Lemon, Smashed White Rose Potatoes with Chive Butter, Hazelnut Mashed Potatoes, Sautéed Green Beans with toasted Hazelnuts, Sautéed Spinach with Garlic, Broccolini with shaved Pecorino Romano, Jasmine Rice or French Fries

PLUS
La Brea “Pan Rustique” and Spark Tapenade, plates, utensils and napkins.

Call 818-623-8883 today for more information

St. Patrick's Day Celebration on Pico Boulevard

On St. Patrick’s Day, Saturday, March 17th, 2007, Spark Woodfire Grill on Pico Boulevard will be serving traditional Irish Black & Tans which are made with half Guinness Draught and half Harp’s Lager, as well as a Nutty Irishman Martini with Bailey’s, Frangelico, Crème De Menthe and whipped cream.

Menu specials will also be available;
Cabbage and Peppercorn Soup $7
Smoked Salmon and Watercress Salad in a Lemon Caper Dressing $9.50
Baked Cod with an Irish Cheddar Cheese Coat $24Rack of Lamb Crusted with Caraway and Fennel in a Mustard Sauce $32

Come by to celebrate St. Patty's Day, raise a glass and maybe a fork, too!

FOX Searchlight Celebrates Deepa Mehta's Best Foreign Language Film Nomination for Water at Spark Woodfire Grill

Deepa Mehta is a Canadian based Indian Filmmaker whose film “Water” became eligible for a Best Foreign Film Oscar nomination through a recent Academy ruling that a country may now nominate a film that is not in it’s native language excluding predominantly English spoken films. Ironically, this was not the only twist of fate that narrowly allowed Deepa to share her tale of the repression endured by Varanasi Hindu Widows in the late 1930’s.

According to Hindu Law when a married man dies, a part of his wife dies as well. The widow is offered three options; die beside her husband on the day of his burial, marry his younger brother or carry out the rest of her life in an Ashram in penitence and shunned from the rest of society. “Water” follows the lives of four widows including that of an eight year old little girl.

“Water” is the third part of Mehta’s film trilogy. The first of the series to be released was “Fire” based on the principles of sexuality, secondly “Earth” covers the politics of nationalism and “Water” envelops the principles of religion. Filming began in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, however protestors burned the movie set and threatened Deepa Mehta’s life because they felt she was portraying a distorted view of Hindu Culture. The production was abandoned and filming had to be resumed several years later in Sri Lanka.

Despite these hardships, the film has received numerous accolades; three Genie awards including Best Picture, Best Director from the Vancouver Film Critics Circle, the Freedom of Expression Award from the US Board of Review and most recently, the Canadian Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Film. "It's been very fulfilling to have that kind of recognition and it's important for people who are marginalized in the world," she said in an interview with CBC Arts Online.

A long overdue celebration will begin on Sunday, February 25, at 4pm guests will start filing into Spark Woodfire Grill on Pico Boulevard for a cocktail hour before sitting down for the show. This is not the first Academy Awards event at this location. Last year South Africa’s Best Foreign Film winner “Tsotsi” hosted their Oscar gala at Spark Woodfire Grill. The show will be visible on several screens throughout the three levels of the restaurant. Full dinner will be served along with some traditional Indian Samosas and desserts. The event is closed and for invited guests only.

~

View Article online at - http://www.goarticles.com/cgi-bin/showa.cgi?C=403903

Private Party Customer Testimonials

Whole Restaurant Special Event

Thank you again, Elizabeth, for putting on such a wonderful event! It was the most low maintenance event I’ve ever coordinated and that was all thanks to you and your wonderful staff. The food was excellent, the service was impeccable, and everyone had a great time. I am still new to this job at Echo Lake and if anything went wrong at the party it would be me who would be blamed. I so appreciated your lovely, soothing J phone message that night to ease my concerns. I did indeed get a good night’s sleep.

Thank you again for everything, Elizabeth! And please commend your staff for a job well done!
Jenny Chynoweth
Echo Lake Productions , LLC
(Hosted Oscar party 2/25/2007 for Foreign Film Nominee “Water”)

Blu Lounge (Upper Level)

...everyone was very happy with the food, room and service they received. It turned out great. Thank you for your help.
Maria
PROSKAUER ROSE LLP

~ ~ ~

The board dinner was a big hit- thank you! The food was delicious and theservice was very good. It was also nice to be able to walk to the restaurantfrom our hotel. We appreciate you adding the cake to the menu on such shortnotice- that worked out very well. Thanks for all your help!

Beth

SHRM Foundation President

~ ~ ~

I want to thank you and your entire staff at Spark for helping make my mom's party such a smashing success. Our guests did not want to leave. The food and drinks were amazing and plentiful. And the atmosphere was warm and welcoming. I hope I have the opportunity to entertain at Spark again soon. In any event, you know we are lifetime regulars for lunch and dinner!

You are the best. Thank you again for everything.
See you soon.
With love and gratitude,
Stacia
~ ~ ~
The party was terrific. I think everyone enjoyed the more intimate set up of the dining room, which was possible because we had less people. I heard several comments on the tasty food, especially those "smashed potatoes"! I really liked the addition of the tuna appetizer. Every year it just gets smoother and smoother.

Thanks for all of your assistance,
Sarah
~ ~ ~

Everything went great and the food was also great. I especially commend thehelp...they were the best.Thanks again for all your help and for putting on a great party. Nataliehad a great time.

Best,

Donna - Hosted daughter's Sweet 16

Premiere (Center Level)

WOW! What a fantastic evening. The food was incredible. Everyone was sothrilled with the entire package. So many positive e-mails regarding last night's event.

Thank you so much. We can't wait for our next event at SPARK.

Ernie Casas
Irell & Manella Greater Los Angeles Association of Legal Administrators

Bistro (Lower Level)

Thank you very much for you great service and delicious food. Everybody enjoyed the meeting and the location
Michi
~ ~ ~
Everything went swimmingly, we much enjoyed our evening and appreciate all the effort you put into coordinating it. I heard great comments about the crab cakes, the steak and the apple tart. The service was superb, absolutely excellent! We’ll definitely be back, thanks again so much.
Best,
Jane

Please do not hesitate to Contact Eliabeth Chait the next time you decide to plan your next party at elizabeth@sparkwoodfiregrill.com. (She's obviously really good at it!)

Buzz of LA Review

Spark Wood Fire Grill stands for fine, innovative cuisine served in an artfully decorated setting that alludes to a time when fine quality and value were expected virtues.

In 2004, Spark Woodfire Grill opened in Beverly Hills adjacent in a location that previously housed an Italian restaurant called Orlando Orsini. Since this building was purchased by Spark and its partners, there was an opportunity to do something very special with the remodel and transformation of this location.

After a year of design and construction, Spark opened a unique tri-level restaurant with three distinctive environments for dining and private parties. Spark Beverly Hills seats over 200 guests and can accommodate up to 250 for special events, birthday parties, rehearsal dinners and receptions.

It was a first class dining experience. Executive Chef Freddy Escobar who applies his years of training and keen sense flavor coordination to put together some of the tastiest dishes in the entire city.

Shortly after being seated, our server brought us fresh bread with homemade olives Tapenade that I loved. The menu is extensive, with a large variety of appetizers, so we were surprised by their traditional woodfired pizza; their pizzas are made in the traditional Italian style from hand rolled dough and 100% whole milk mozzarella. The pizza sauce is made fresh daily from imported Italian pear tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil and oregano. Ours was the Asparagus and Goat Cheese, a great choice for vegetarians; it went perfectly with our glasses of crisp, Napa Valley Chardonnay.

Next, we sampled an exotic appetizer tray, which included tender, Wood Grilled Artichoke with champagne mustard sauce, and Maryland Blue Crab Cakes with Chipotle Aioli and a roasted corn red pepper relish. Each of these offerings was a masterpiece unto itself and, with a little Sauvignon Blanc, would have constituted a full meal for most people.

Our server then arrived with three of Spark Wood Fire Grill's signature dishes the Atlantic Salmon with crusted vegetables, chive mashed potatoes and a tarragon sauce, simply divine, the Salmon was dense and extravagant in fine taste and aroma, one of the best I’ve ever had, indeed.

Also memorable were the next 2 dishes which meat lovers would be in heaven, and they were both extremely flavorful, and proved to be a wonderful prelude to our incredible course; the slowly cooked “Iowa” Baby Back Ribs, glazed with their special BBQ sauce, served with mashed potatoes and hazelnut green beans, if you love ribs, these are truly to die for, simply divine, it can’t get better than this.

We also had a taste of their distinctive grilled steaks, which are hand-cut from USDA Midwestern, corn fed beef that has been aged a minimum of 28 days for optimum flavor and texture. All Steaks served with two sides: French Fries, Mashed Potatoes, Smash Potatoes, Sautéed Spinach or Fresh Green Beans. In my opinion the delightfully balanced with gently sautéed spinach and potatoes were a wonderful complement to this dish. Steaks are also available with steak butter or a Cabernet Peppercorn Sauce. Ours was the New York “Center Cut” the most lean and tender cut steak you can ever try; this thick and tender cutwas bursting with flavor and truly a meat lovers delight. We absolutely enjoyed the entire dinner.

Spark Wood Fire Grill's Restaurant is a real winner, and delightfully balanced with gently sautéed spinach and a chive potato cake. The roast lamb shank with mashed celery root, seasonal vegetables and a dense, decadent demiglaze was the elemental mix of comfort food and haute cuisine.

Gorgeous partner and special events coordinator Elizabeth Chait, personally delivered our dessert sampler, although it was a bit difficult for us to fully appreciate at this point in our sumptuous repast. Nonetheless, the Chocolate Brazilian cake was a real knockout, as was the he Fresh Fruit Cobbler with its crunchy topping.

Whether it's a birthday celebration, business lunch or an intimate dinner, Spark Wood Fire Grill is, without a doubt, the place to go when you are looking for fine food, attentive service and dependable value.Our special thanks to the amazing Elizabeth Chait for her kindness and hospitality.
Check out the whole Buzz of LA article here - http://www.buzzofla.com/Detail.aspx?aid=217