Phil D.'s Profile

The first time I went to the "little parlor" was shortly after they had opened. I found everything to be good, if not a bit underwelming . That being said I didn't get anything all that exciting (the old school which is basically a pepperoni pizza) and although I thought it was interesting, I wasn't in love with the sweetness of the sauce, which is derived from mixing the tomato sauce with roasted red peppers.

I am happy to say that upon my return to the little parlor I discovered despite getting hit pretty hard here on yelp they have seemingly really gotten their act together or I just ordered really well.

I started out with the Duck Confit Mac & Cheese, which turned out a hundred times better than I could have imagined. I will be returning frequently for that dish alone as it is not only a one of a kind but creamy, decadent and gamey all in the best ways possible.

I can't remember the name pizza I had but it was the most expensive at 16 and equally impressive. Crust was wonderfully thin with a crisp char, the non-tomato sauce based pizza had pork shoulder, panchetta, speak, some sort of sausage and peppercini. No where near as heavy as it sounds it ranks up there with some other better pizzas I have had in town, sans Mozza and Bianca. Even so a reviewer stated that better pizza can be found at Bianca, but in my opinon littler parlor is aiming for different things and don't think that are accurately comparable, Mozza would be but that is hardly fair.

It's really worth checking out despite some of the hammering it is getting on here - especially if your solo and want to eat up at the bar. My only suggestion is if you are like me and not huge on a sweet sauce, go with their many options w/o the tomato sauce but the Duck Confit Mac & Cheese is a MUST.

I got a soft spot for Houston's and the Hillstone "Empire". Unlike almost every other group of broad corporately owned chain restaurants - the Hillstone restaurants are always on the precipice of design, have flawless service, and more importantly their food, despite being on spread out all over the country, has not had its quality diminished even slightly.

The concept of R + D, as it has been relayed to me, is simply they are using the restaurant as a test ground (research and development obviously), what works here goes to Houston's, Bandera, et. al. Some of the more negative reviews probably reflect a failure in the more experimental nature of this concept - if it doesn't work they are going to fix it. The menu is limited but  one thing it won't be is in a state of inertia.

I wasn't huge on the a la carte aspect of the sides - I always find that a bit tacky. Deviled eggs and such I understand - but I'd rather you include a side into the price, even if it ends up being the same price, then pay what feels like more. Chart House, when they were bought out by Landry's, not only did the food go downhill precipitously, but they moved to a la carte, a gesture that says, "Hey give me more money."

That being said I ordered the Deviled Eggs to start. I love Deviled Eggs and these are fine but the apex of Deviled Eggs can be found at La Grande Orange in Pasadena. For the entree I ordered the Ahi Tuna Burger (the special that evening) and good lord. The burger itself was done more in the style of an actual burger, ground but still seared on the outside and rare in the middle, and was unbelievably good. The sandwich itself though couldn't hold a candle to its own bun, so perfect it can almost overpower anything between it. I made a similar comment to my waiter who concurred saying, "Sometimes I just order the bun." It is honestly that good, I could say without any doubt it's the best bun I have ever had on anything, period.

I enjoyed the meal immensely, why I am not giving it 5 stars I am not sure. I think it's the lack of diversity maybe and because of that it doesn't reach the heights of a restaurant deserving 5. Although the place has one of the best bathrooms I have seen in a while. Hillstone usually goes above and beyond in the bathroom department but they out did themselves this time.

Although it's a great location and solid spot for solo dining, it's also a tough sell. Father's Office is just up the street, and although I imagine R + D gets a lot of spill over from there, you aren't going to get me to order a burger from here knowing FO is just up the street.