When the Buffalo Club opened at 1520 Olympic Boulevard in 1994, it endeavored to provide guests with a first class dining experience amidst a lively and relaxed atmosphere.
Executive Chef/Managing Partner Patrick Healy said it was one of the first fine dining establishments in Santa Monica to have late night live music.
Over the years, Healy noted that some of his customers enjoyed this ambiance, while others preferred a more traditional dining environment.
He decided that the best way to please all of his guests was to provide both options.
In September 2012, the Buffalo Club launched a dual-restaurant concept.
Guests now have the choice of two significantly different dining experiences.
Inside, The Iroquois Room is a fashionably elegant dining room featuring a more sophisticated, classic dining experience. Outside, The Garden Courtyard now features a new menu of international small plates designed for sharing.
Healy said guests had provided plenty of positive feedback to the dual-restaurant concept.
“The Iroquois Room has a real classic New York chophouse feel to it,” Healy said. “Outside, it’s much more casual in the open-air garden setting. Inside I felt it really worked developing a menu that was more sophisticated while outside it made sense to serve a small plates menu designed for sharing. We thought it would be a good way to please all of our customers.”
Before the introduction of the dual-restaurant concept, the same fine-dining menu was served both inside and out in the courtyard.
As part of the new look menu for the inside Iroquois Room, Healy serves a selection of dishes tableside on a Mahogany table that can be wheeled around the dining room.
“We have a Dover Sole which we fly in fresh from the English Channel,” Healy said. “It’s roasted on the bone and then at tableside, I’ll often step in and do the boning right in front of the guests. We have a couple of captains in the dining room that are experts at it as well.”
He said another popular table service dish was the Texas dry rub Tomahawk Chop.
“We source our meat from Niman Ranch, which is a wonderful provider of beef, lamb, and pork that is completely 100 percent sustainable, no antibiotics, and everything is completely natural,” he said. “The Tomahawk Chop is for two people – it’s like a double rib eye, prime meat that’s been dry aged for about three-and-a-half weeks. We roast it then slice and serve it tableside. We also have a French lamb dish that’s braised that we also serve tableside.”
The Iroquois Room also features a premium scotch and whiskey bar that has a selection of fine small batch producers from all over the world.
Outside, the Garden Courtyard offers guests a fun and informal experience with a price-friendly menu and a wine list featuring a variety of small-production wines from around the world, all reasonably priced between $24 and $50 a bottle.
The small plates are $14, side dishes are $7, and desserts are all $9.
“Some of the most popular small plates is the Oxtail dumpling served with mint and braised mushrooms and natural juice,” he said. “We also have a Diver Scallop Tamale which is wrapped in fresh seaweed that comes from France. It’s steamed in the seaweed and served with a Tomatillo Emulsion sauce. The most popular dish is the Wagyu, a Kobe style beef. We use the boneless short rib and it’s prepared Korean BBQ style, served with a coleslaw that we make.”
Healy started his career in France where he lived for five years and trained under chefs Alain Ducasse, Jean and Pierre Troisgros, Michel Guérard and Roger Vergé, all recipients of France’s highest restaurant honor; a three star rating by the prestigious Michelin Guide.
His resume includes Oye Restaurant (1996-1997), Xiomara Restaurant (1992-97), Champagne Restaurant (1987-92), Colette Restaurant-Beverly Pavilion Hotel (1985-1987), and Le Saint Germain Restaurant (1982-1985).
The Buffalo Club is open for lunch Tuesday through Friday from 12-2:30 pm, and dinner Tuesday through Sunday from 6:30 pm onwards. A late night menu is also offered Friday and Saturday nights from 11 pm to midnight.
For more information about the Buffalo Club, call 310.450.8600 or visit www.buffaloclub.com.
