View John Mariani's Article on Esquire.com

A "maize cake" is John Sedlar's new unit of consumption at Playa: a thickish, palm-size patty of nixtamal, passed across a griddle just long enough to crisp the surface. It tastes a little like the thick, handmade tortillas you sometimes get at Central American restaurants. The surface of the Bombay Taj is smeared with a kind of masala paste, both tart and hot, and dotted with bits of chewy, pungent mango pickle and a bit of seasoned yogurt. The spicy maize cake supports three or four cubes of pork belly, cooked sous vide with duck fat to a melting softness and crisped a moment before serving. It's basically a luxury-class carnitas taco but twisted 90 degrees, made new by the new platform, the sharpness of the pickle and the mephitic breath of turmeric.

View Full Article at laweekly.com

On the plate, a wide-eyed Malcolm McDowell stares up at me from beneath his bowler. It's a bit disconcerting to find the violent figure from "A Clockwork Orange" sharing space with seared day-boat scallops at Playa. On another plate, squash blossom tempura is framed by another scene from the brilliant (and creepy) film.

John Sedlar is pushing the envelope again.

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And yet none of that seems to get in the way of his cooking. When he's on — and these days he's very on — dishes just ring loud and true as a gong.

View Full Article at latimes.com

The discovery of a new dish, wrote Brillat-Savarin, does more for human happiness than the discovery of a new star. This week's splash of happiness is the maize cake Bombay Taj as served at Playa, John Sedlar's beachy new small-plates restaurant in the old Grace space on Beverly.

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The place is congenial to both multicourse meals and quick snacks, an after-work glass of albariño and a late-night stop for chocolate cake and coffee. Playa, at least in its early weeks, is an easy place to fall into.

View Full Article at laweekly.com

Check out Plate by Plate's visit to Playa!

The Playa kitchen is Sedlar's playground, equipped with all the toys and esoteric ingredients of the modernist kitchen but playful — a lot of the dishes are plated on glass-covered photographs of the chef's native New Mexico.

View Full Article at laweekly.com

Weekend brunch at Playa is a revelation. First of all, it’s wonderful to experience the light-drenched space in the daytime, without the crowds and the buzz. It’s a tranquil time, especially if you get there early. A cook bends over the tortilla press, arranging flower petals for the tortillas florales just so. The bartender mixes up a Bloody Mary made with rye and muddled basil for someone waiting for a friend.

In the light, you can appreciate the design details -- the pattern of the tiles, the sheen of the tabletops, the texture of the upholstery, the sizzling color palette.

Start things off with blue corn muffins with almond butter. I have to stop myself from eating the entire order. Seriously. Or try those tortillas florales with marmalade.

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View Full Article at latimes.com

This Sunday, September 23rd, we welcome our second chef of the Baja Chef series, Benito Molina of Manzanilla. Benito will be cooking with Chef Sedlar until Tuesday, September 25th.

We invite you to our Baja Chef Series starting Sunday, September 16th. Three of Baja's Best Chefs will create unique a la carte menus in conjunction with Chef John Sedlar's Cielo Verde Menu.

See a time lapse video of Cielo Verde, Playa's new rooftop garden, from setup to harvest.