3865 Cardiff Ave
Culver City, CA 90232
(310) 736-1321
Happy Hours: 4:00-7:00 M-F
Food - 7
Prices - 6
Service - 8
Bonus +2 for a free parking garage right around the corner (on Cardiff)
Total - 23
UGO, at the corner of Culver and Cardiff, has three establishments in one location - Bar Italiano, a shmancy restaurant, and a wine bar. Bar Italiano and the wine bar both have happy hours, with different menus, but only one was sampled on this outing -- Bar Italiano. If you're in the area, it's worth checking out, but don't make a special trip.
We got to UGO a little after 6:00 (after walking out of the Backstage Bar & Grill, with its blackout lighting and creepy barflies trying to get us to kiss their friend for his birthday), and promptly got a nice table on the patio. They were full enough, not crowded, but definitely a meet-for-drinks place, not a go-and-meet-someone spot. No mingling happening there. Nice atmosphere, very good people watching, got to see a couple breaking up a few tables down (buh! -- and BTW, sweetheart, dry your tears; you can do so much better than him).
Ordered drinks -- the Ginger Pomegranate Martini for me and the Fiore Di Peara for my friend -- took one sip and promptly switched glasses, which made us both happier. They were tasty, made of pure booze and large, and we both started to buzz before the food arrived. At $7.50 each, it wasn't the best bargain, but not bad. Most people won't need more than one (seriously, these were around four shots of alcohol each).
Food wise, there were hits and misses. Ordered the Arancini (rice, mozzarella and salami, deep fried, damn tasty, $4), the Calamari Fritti (easily the worst we've had on the HH tour to date - the chewiest calamari I've ever eaten and breading that felt like it had been fried that morning and microwaved when we ordered it, $6.50), the Affetati Misti (a very nice selection of Italian meats and some amazing burrata - which isn't mentioned on the menu; a good portion of the cheese, but could have used a little more meat for $7), the Caprese Calda (I loved the roasted flavor of the tomatoes, but my companion didn't like eating caprese warm; I'd order this again for $5.50), and we made the mistake of splurging on dessert (which was not on the HH menu) and got two outrageously overpriced and very disappointing Profiteroles and a poorly conceived Peanut Butter Bar. Live and learn -- bars, even bars in fancy Italian restaurants, are not known for their desserts.
The total was $52.42 before tip, $64 after. I wish we'd tried the Carpaccio ($8.50), the Formaggi del bel Paese ($7) and at least one Pizzette (7), so there may be a return trip, since my friend works at Sony and it's practically walking distance. I also think this would be a good spot for a foursome to get a little blitzed and split all of the dishes available.
One other note, although we didn't drink beer that night, The Peroni, Moretti, Blue Moon, Red Tail Ale and Rogue Shakespeare Stout are all $2 during HH, and when the guy at the next table got his Shakespeare Stout, he literally gasped at how large it was. It was mighty big. HH wine is $7 a glass, which doesn't seem that great a deal to me.
So that's it for UGO. There may be an addendum in the future. And next, I really MUST go to Stone Fire Pizza. I already know they have some of the best pizza in town, and the fact that it's all half price, plus all the apps, plus all the booze during Happy Hour propels them to the top of the list. Keep emailing me your suggestions. We'll get to them soon.
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