The opening of the new Downtown Los Angeles Spear steak and seafood house

Following the Sip and Sweet event I attended with my friend Laquan, I was in the desperate need of a chill relaxation amongst my friends. Being cooped up trying to overcome an un-welcomed hangover, over the irresponsible liquor to mix ratio of many cocktails I had, the thought of a Sunday Funday brunch was just in my alley.

I had been invited to a Sunday brunch in downtown in order for a particular restaurant to see their way on the chart among the cool, savvy and trendy community. It’s nothing new as unlimited bottomless mimosas and Bloody Mary’s are a popular treat in the surrounding Hollywood areas; but here in downtown, somehow the concept is a bit behind.

Spear Steak & Seafood House, is right in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles where people eat and drink as a luxury. While I don’t frequent the Downtown area because the parking is a pain in my royal bum if you’re not a local, and frankly I have a phobia with valet, every once in a while, I’ll find myself at some hidden gem.

I invited a few of my friends to catch up over more drinks, I know, and food. The weather had a bit of an overcast, but was manageable to tolerate being outdoors. The decor of this restaurant was comfortable and refreshing as I chose the lower patio. I happened to be the first to arrive and needed a pick me upper. That being a solid mimosa.

A sweet girl, Maria, was walking around with a tray of Bloody Mary shots that had the taste of cilantro sponsored by Absolute Vodka ,which I quickly tried to take down until I realized I way in over my head with the punch of vodka and tomato mix. So I sipped and guzzled my mimosa with vitamin c as I waited for my other guest. Because I was still disoriented from the night before, the blaring sounds of the saxophone along with the music was beating my ear drums.

During breaks, I felt a sense of ease and calmness being able to listen to the sounds of people while staring at the minimal Christmas decorations.

Upon request, I met the General manager, Ryan Adams, who was warm, friendly and attentive. We engaged in conversations regarding the start of their new Sunday plans of attracting locals on a consistent basis while also taking my observations and critiques with a humbled heart. It’s a trial process, which I could see more success rather than errors. I preferably enjoy my Sundays being able to unwind after a long work week, so this would be the place to hit the spot.

The first to arrive was my friend Carmen with Wanted and Desired then shortly after my friend Laquan . I immediately had our lovely waitress grab each of us a drink, I was on my third by this time. Because I typically lean towards Bellinie’s which have a more sweeter taste, I asked if they had any type of peach syrup to add which they kindly offered for my taste palate. While we all sat and discussed our plans for the new year, I wanted to introduce myself to another manager I had been referred to, Justin Kim, as well as introduce my group of friends as bloggers and artist. Justin who so happens to know and understand the social atmosphere and business financial gain from these routine events, actually manages another popular restaurant, Wokano, on Melrose that have thee best chocolate cheese cake and green tea ice cream.

Moments after, the special events director, Tammy Nguyen, joined the conversation as the five of us went over ideas and creative ways in supporting the business in order to flourish past the point of just being another restaurant.

Once we built up an appetite, we decided to order from their brunch menu that included entrees we’d all enjoy. While Carmen and I chose the Crab Cake Eggs Benedict, Laquan chose the Vegetarian Omelet. We were so involved into our deep conversations and the continual pouring of drinks, that we failed to even notice the time of our food arriving. For all we knew it could’ve been an hour; but somehow the ambiance of this place just relaxed us past the point of even caring.

I don’t go out to eat for the sake of rushing. That just seems so asinine knowing you can never truly have full control of an environment you’re oblivious to; and unfortunately, coming from a servers stand point, not a lot of people understand that common factor of fast food and a sit down restaurant that operates differently from the one next door. Basically, social etiquette lacks in most situations.

I wanted to walk around a bit to observe the patrons in their natural setting while I took photos. It wasn’t all that busy, so I really couldn’t blend in well undercover, but the overall feeling was greeted just as welcoming as the staff.

People were engaged into each others conversations and interactions were genuine.

By this time a female dj was set up spinning for the restaurant who might have brought the crowd of more urban chic individuals that stayed towards the second level of the balcony.

Our food finally arrived and while Laquan’s omelet was a bit flat, mine and Carmen’s was hearty. Now typically with eggs benedict, the ooze of the yolk runs across the dish, but coincidentally, mine didn’t which I preferred. Any food critic or snob would’ve had a stroke, but with some added crab sauce, hot sauce and green chili, there was not one thing to complain about. My mouth still savors the sweet taste of the crab sitting on top of spinach and a mc muffin. While one egg was more of a hard boil, the other actually did run a bit, so I had the best of both worlds.

I honestly couldn’t get enough of my potatoes and sriracha with ketchup sauce that Laquan hogged for himself at first.

In the other dining room we were told that there were mounts of gifts from different sponsor Absolute or rather Absolutist that were free to grab. T-shirts, tin cups, ear plugs, glowing sticks, to light up our lifes. The gifts just kept giving, but I was courteous not to keep taking.

My friend who had told me about this spot had finally made his way inside after a trip and joined the rest of the party, but we were almost on our way out. With all the help of our lovely server and even the hostess who helped us with our photo frenzy, we were able to add to our collage of another day of cocktails and winter bliss. I’ll definitely be back in support of the Downtown community and introduce this spot to my friends as I wish Spear much success. Now hopefully we can do something about the parking situation in that area because it’s killing my vibe.