Urth Caffe

I'd heard that Urth Caffe was one of the hot spots on the Westside for lunch (with many star sightings on Defamer as proof of its hipness), but I was skeptical that the food would live up to the hype of the atmosphere. I'm no longer skeptical.

With mostly outside seating on Melrose (right after the Pacific Design Center, so the street is smaller and not obnoxiously noisy), Urth had a really good atmosphere that was enjoyable for people watching (including a celebrity sighting!... more on that later). Don't bother sitting inside, because it's too stuffy. We have great LA weather, you might as well enjoy.

On to the food... I ordered the Panini Caprese, a grilled sandwich, with mozerella, tomatoes, roasted peppers, basil, pesto, and an olive spread.
After the vinagrette fiasco at Joan's on Third, I was understandably hesitant about ordering something with pesto and a "spread," but my fears proved to be unfounded. There was just the right amount of pesto and olive spread, so it didn't dominate the flavors of the panini, which is a good thing, because the sandwich was flavorful. There wasn't too much cheese (a big plus for me), the tomatoes and basil were tasty, the roasted peppers were actually kind of sweet, and the bread was grilled to perfection (crisp on the outside, soft in the middle). The one downside of the meal was the bland salad. The mixed greens were bitter, the dressing practically non-existent, and there were no candied pecans like the menu said. Aegean went with the Panini Prosciutto (parma prosciutto, italian cheese, sundried tomatoes, basil, and housemade olive spread), and loved her meal too, but also complained about the lackluster salad.

Urth Caffe is also famous for its organic desserts (and if you don't have tastebuds, they do have vegan cakes as well), and they certainly don't disappoint in that department. We went with the Chocolate Blackout Pound Cake. For $5, we somehow ended up with three slices.
The cake was moist and not too rich, and was overall very satisfying.

A meal at an L.A. hotspot wouldn't be complete without the aforementioned celeb sighting. And it was a good one (at least IMHO): Sarah Chalke from Scrubs (who is more beautiful in person, even without a lot of makeup).

With a down to Urth food staff (get it Ravi?!), solid menu, tasty dessert, and celeb sighting, Urth Caffe gets an A- (Sarah Chalke bumps up the grade from a B+).

Urth Caffe (Menu)
8565 Melrose Ave.
West Hollywood, Ca 90069