A new restaurant, The Canyon Bistro, will be opening in early October in the heart of Topanga. The first new restaurant in Topanga in 10 years, The Canyon Bistro will be serving California cuisine, along with French and Asian flavors, for lunch and dinner, six days a week. “We’re excited to bring a new eatery to Topanga. So many people have told us they want some more dining choices in the canyon. We hope The Canyon Bistro will fill that need with flying colors,” remarked owner Larry Cohn.
Owners Claire and Larry Cohn are also the owners of Café Mimosa, a popular café which is a favorite meeting place for Topangans. “Along with our Café Mimosa, The Canyon Bistro will give our customers a full service menu that they’ve been asking for as long as we’ve owned the café. We welcome all our friends and families to come down and enjoy out comfort foods – done right,” said Claire Cohn.
Having a bistro in Topanga is the realization of a dream for the Cohns, who met each other in Paris about 20 years ago. As Claire Cohn remembers fondly, “Larry and I met when he was a touring musician in France. He was the music director for Michel Jonasz, a famous French singer. I worked in a trendy Paris restaurant, and Larry used to come in after the show for a meal. When we had our first date it was, literally, April in Paris. Very romantic!”
Larry Cohn has traveled extensively in France. A composer and pianist, he always loved cooking. The Canyon Bistro will have the atmosphere of a real French bistro. As Cohn says, “Our menu is filled with the flavors I’ve grown to love through the years. Having spent so much time touring as a musician in France and Japan, I feel a comfort level serving both of these cuisines. We know our customers will appreciate the varied offerings of this eclectic menu too.”
The Canyon Bistro’s menu will include classic French entrees such as French onion soup, croque monsieur, steak au poivre, salade lyonnaise, lentil soup, Quiche Lorraine and the Bistro French omelette. Asian dishes will include a teriyaki rice bowl, sweet and sour shrimp, hot and sour coconut soup, Asian crab cakes, braised short ribs with hoisin sauce and Asian somen noodle salad.
Family meals to go will include whole roasted chicken or the Bistro meatloaf with side dishes and a baguette.
Desserts will provide a special treat with New York cheesecake, crème brûlée, tart au tatin a la mode, hazelnut almond cake with vanilla bean ice cream, among others.
Managing The Canyon Bistro is Francesca Molica-Colella, a recent graduate of Le Cordon Bleu CSCA Pasadena, with a degree in hotel management. Molica-Colella used to manage a hotel in Sicily, Italy and is known for her pastry creations.
The Canyon Bistro’s menu will offer its entire menu for take out. Larry Cohn also operates Mimosa Catering. Cohn says take out will be an important part of his business. “We want to get our customers in and out when they want take out. We will introduce online ordering directly from our website, canyonbistro.com…We want to change the perception in the canyon that service takes a back seat to the food prepared.”
The Canyon Bistro is located at Pine Tree Circle, 120 S. Topanga Canon Boulevard, Suite Number 119. Hours are Tuesday-Friday 11 a.m.-10 p.m. and Saturday-Sunday 10 a.m.-10 p.m, closed on Monday. The phone number is 310.455.7800, and the fax is 310.455.7811. Menu prices range from $7 to $22 for lunch and dinner. For additional information or to order online, go to canyonbistro.com.
