Norah

There's a lot I wanted to like about Norah, but our dinner had the distinct feeling of style over substance. Despite ordering the tasting menu, every course was an exercise is food cost control where some very creative work was done to otherwise average and cheap ingredients. Out of 9 courses, 7 of them were vegetarian. The two protein dishes, a lamb pasta and Arctic Char were light on flavor. The cauliflower "tartare" was excellent as well as the corn bread, but the overly smoky broccoli dish was a big miss. Just about everything else was good, but it's hard to get too excited about a menu that was so vegetarian focused. I kept waiting for a grand finale but it never came. Likewise, the wine list was pretty unimpressive. Lots of varietal options but you would be hard pressed to recognize notable producers.

Overall you can tell they are making a big effort. The intention is there but execution is lacking and they would be wise to add more value to the dishes.

Wonderful and special dinner in Hollywood. The service was lovely, the food was incredible, and we had interesting and yummy wine. good portion sizes even for teenagers. Thank you for a special dinner!

A space so enchanting, fixtures galore,
Enormous and grand, I truly adore.

The bar on both sides, a clever design,
A wall for parties, in a private confine.

Good food and service, excellence found,
Small plates sampled, a culinary playground.

Fresh, flavorful, creative delight,
Though impressed, not blown away by the night.

Cocktails, the stars, bringing me back,
Amazing concoctions, not a mixology track.

Over the complex, simplicity I crave,
Quick bartender service, the drinks to save.

Gorgeous bar area, a visual treat,
Sipping drinks here, an experience sweet.

Walking in, a plus, as parking is slim,
No valet in sight, a casual whim.

Yoga pants and sneakers, our attire so laid-back,
Hostess welcoming, no judgment on our track.

No pretense, a vibe so cool,
Hard to reserve, plan ahead, that's the rule.

Pricey it is, be ready to pay,
Small plates and cocktails, a bill to dismay.

$300 later, with tip in tow,
Neighborhood addition, a gem to show.

Incredibly overpriced and underwhelming food. Paid $34 for one of the worst risottos I've ever had in my life. Where do they get off charging $34 for a vegan risotto?

My friend ordered a pomodoro pasta that would make my Italian grandmother roll over in her grave. Tasted like spaghetti-os for the ripe price of $32.

Oh on top of the already outrageous prices, they have the audacity to add a 4% "restaurant fee" to your bill... wtf is a restaurant fee?

The ambiance is nice but I wouldn't recommend coming here unless you like being robbed for extremely mid food.

With that said, the wait staff are amazing! Credit where credit is due.

Came for Valentine's day. We've been to the original Conca Del Sogno and thought it'd be cool to reminisce with authentic Amalfi flavors. Big mistake. First downer was a pure bait and switch on the menu. At time of booking, the Norah website indicated Valentine's day was ala cart menu with $150 minimum spend. My wife and I are both foodies, and we saw enough options on the Conca Del Sogno menu to excite us for the dinner. Once we were seated, the host presented us a $150 pp 5 course prefix menu that we had to share. The serving sizes were for 1 person and tasted bland. The main entree was steak, and the vegetarian option was what I'd consider pasta in red sauce from a kid's menu. Needless to say, wife was pissed and recounted all the other restaurants we could have went to with better food options.

Staff did their best. Manager comped us a drink. I blame the owners/management that didn't advertise the limited prefix menu at time of booking. Had we seen it, definitely would have went elsewhere.

Ambiance was hip and crowd was diverse.

I am giving 2 stars strictly for the location and beautiful ambiance of the entire restaurant. I wish we sat in the back by the fire but it was a cold night so we stayed indoors.

After three bottles of wine for 5 girls - they cut us off. This was super unexpected since we were not even drunk, maybe buzzed feeling good but in no way shape or form were we acting intoxicated to the point of them having to cut us off ?! We felt really embarrassed and pissed because we were having fun and just wanted to continue the night - but instead we took our business and great looks elsewhere.

The food was nothing to write home about and the service was poor.

I wish I had a better experience but unfortunately I will not be returning to this establishment.

Came for birthday dinner and was very disappointed in the service. Restaurant decor is nice but parking difficult with no lot or valet service. After sitting down our party waited for almost 45 minutes before even being able to order any drinks or food. Everything just seemed disorganized, food came out very sporadically and drinks came out after all the food. Food was decent but many dishes were cold after waiting for the rest of the tables food to arrive. Overall restaurant seemed understaffed which hurt the service. Additionally $50 to cut a cake seemed a bit excessive of a fee.

This place is delish!

Such a gem in West Hollywood.

I often come here for special celebrations or just a nice meal with a friend or colleague.

The food is delicious and not too heavy. Their menu is seasonal and there's always lots to choose from.

Most recently I had an amazing, 5 course meal for my close friend's birthday.

We started with their cast iron cornbread with rosemary honey- this is good enough to bring you back to your childhood. It inspired memories of eating cornbread for breakfast with the family. Except it's the best cornbread you've ever tasted and it's served warm with that rosemary flavored whipped butter.

Then we had the flatbread with hummus, the arugula salad, and the panzanella salad to start the meal. The flatbread came steamy hot and pairs well with their creamy hummus. The arugula salad is so good, it's loaded with nuts and veggies definitely give this a try. The panzanella salad has toasty croutons that soak up a delicious zesty dressing. Even if you don't like salads, these will get you to love them.

For the mains we had the halibut, the short rib, and the uni butter poached shrimp. My favorite was the halibut which was perfectly buttery on the inside with crispy skin. The short rib was classic and loaded with umami flavor. So was the shrimp which came in a buttery uni sauce which made me appreciate the creaminess of the uni.

You can tell everything is freshly prepared using quality ingredients and the service is great. Both our waiters (one Jude who was super helpful with menu suggestions) brought our food out on time and made sure we were taken care of every step of the way. The hostess, I believe her name was Mirabella, even took our picture before we left and she got a great photo for us!

We rounded off the meal with warm chocolate chip cookies and berries and cream. The berries and cream came with a yuzu sauce that was life changing. Chocolate chip cookies were warm, gooey, and everything I didn't realize I needed.

I love this place and I am always excited to come back for more!

I usually love Norah, and have gone many times over the years. However, my most recent experience left much to be desired.

Server was pretty much nonexistent during our meal. Had to flag him down a couple times. Never had water refilled, felt rushed through our courses (everything came out at the same time and we couldn't even fit everything on the table).

The restaurant was out of multiple items on the menu even though our reservation time was only an hour after opening. The menu is fairly limited as it is, and to be out of multiple items (on Christmas Eve no less) was very disappointing.

The worst part, though? One of the people in our party was celebrating a birthday, which I noted in our reservation. Our waiter brought out a dessert with a candle (which we didn't order) and then charged us $17 for it without even asking if we wanted it. It was nice for our friend to get a candle in a dessert, but it would have been nicer to know we were being charged for something we didn't even order.

Overall was left feeling less than stellar after this. Leaving three stars based on other visits, but if I were basing it solely on my most recent one, I'd only leave one.

LOCATION: heart of West Hollywood downtown, the place is a bit hard to find with no actual sign but there are plenty of parking in the back neighborhoods. Meter parking is another thing you will have to pay

SERVICE & ENVIRONMENT: friendly and hospitable service. Sarah was our server and the host were all very kind and great customer service. It was a very slow morning and not a lot of people so that definitely helped. The ambiance and vibe inside is immaculate and modern. Bathrooms are nice and clean and gender neutral.

FOOD: the cornbread was the perfect heat and texture with a bit of salty and sweet taste. The honey butter is a must on it. The French omelette was the perfect balance of soft and flowly with egg and cheese and density of the eggs. The sauce for the salad is very tasty with some acidic and tangy flavors. Eggs Benedict was very delicious and the muffin underneath was very tasty.

Highly recommend Norah.

We came here with a big group of people and our babies and had a lovely time. The staff was really accommodating and thoughtful. This restaurant tends to get packed and has a high customer turnover rate so expect busy!

We sat outside on the patio with the heat lamps and it was perfect for a nice weekday in April. We ordered basically the entire menu because there were so many of us but here are the must order items:

1.) Cast Iron Cornbread - we ended up ordering two because it was so yummy
2.) Hiramasa Crudo - the fish just melts in your mouth
3.) Crispy fingerling potatoes
4.) Margherita pizza
5.) Tagliatelle (this was served to us with a spoon which I didn't understand but the pasta was delicious)
6.) Coffee Braised Short-rib - this was chef's kiss
7.) Coffee and Donuts - brought to us on the house! The donuts were slightly underdone but still so yummy

Towards the end of dinner, it took some time to clear our plates and get our check but we had a great time. The food was better than expected - especially for ordering such a large quantity. I surprised at how many dishes were a hit. I would definitely come back here!