Primitivo Wine Bistro

Waited 20 minutes and was brought bread an water by a busboy, waiter did not even acknowledge our party of 4, very understaffed, got up and left after 30 minutes. This place was so poorly managed and I am not surprised it closed.

We went to Primitivo on a Travel Zoo deal. It was an excellent deal and an excellent find. We had a fabulous experience for essentially what it would have cost to take our family of four to Outback.
When we arrived we were greeted warmly. They had a window table set aside for us which was the perfect mix of indoor/​outdoor. These service was solicitous without being intrusive. The food was amazing. I had the ribeye, which was done to perfection. We split a couple appetizers — the patatas bravas and the baked brie. Yum! We also had wine and dessert.
It was a wonderful birthday meal. I’d definitely go back.

I am currently at this restaurant and I had to post because I am so disappointed. For starters I truly believe this place is extremely unsanitary. I ordered an iced late and there was a long black hair (definitely not my hair since I have blonde hair.) Secondly my friend ordered the French toast and found ANOTHER hair in between the bread. You can say we were very disgusted. Aside from that the waitress was eating behind the bar which is extremely unprofessional. And lastly the same waitress was constantly playing with her hair and running her fingers through her hair. We saw her her go straight to to get plates of food and serve it without washing her hands. This place seriously need to teach their staff sanitary regulations because it’s absolutely horrible. I will never come back and will warn friends to stay away!
Update: we just came home and my boyfriend warmed up the found and in ANOTHER DISH THERE WAS HAIR!!!
If I could give a zero I would !

I came with a big group to celebrate a friend’s birthday. Portions are pretty generous based on the other tables I saw near by. My boyfriend and I shared the SEAFOOD PAELLA and it was plenty to eat. The dish was the best paella I’ve ever had in my experience and I can’t wait to go back and try more of their dishes. ENJOY!

Super cute brunch spot in Venice with $ 15 bottomless mimosas or sangria. I really don’t have to expand much more.
Sadly, we didn’t know we needed a reservation for the patio, which is where everyone was, so we had to sit in an empty restaurant. And the wait staff seemed to be focused on the mob in the patio so we had spotty yet friendly service.
There is interesting art on the walls and the whole place has a very Venice vibe.
They have the BEST freaking croissants ever. It was warm and buttery served with fig jelly. Yum! My chorizo hash wasn’t mind blowing even though it contained my most favorite ingredients ever (chorizo, potatoes, and manchego cheese) but the parmesan fries were bomb! People in my group ordered the paella and it was good.

Pretty good restaurant. Have to love the outside seating, cute rustic look to it.
I’ve been here twice and have enjoyed them both times. The queso fundido is delicious, I kept wanting more and more. The lamb was okay, I feel it was a bit bland, but the texture of it was so soft and tender.
The salted caramel chocolate bread pudding was also pretty good, I liked that it wasn’t too sweet. The drinks are also great! check it out!

One of the best restaurants/​bar in Venice area to hang out with friends for happy hour or get away for a perfect date.
Ambience — While I was here to dine in with a friend on a weekend, a very friendly waitress walked us to the table. The outdoor seating was super laid back and relaxed amidst an indoor garden with a great view of moon as it was a full moon day.
Food/​Beverages — They have a very good selection of wines and cocktails and seem to be perfectly priced for the Abbot Kenny area. I ordered fried calamari, croquettes and Shrimp.
Calamari was fried just to the perfection while the croquettes were crispy and soft. I must say their Sautéed Tiger Shrimp is a must try which comes with a side of bread, the chef was able to bring out a great twist of flavors together making it one of the best picks on the menu.
Over all we had a great experience at Primitivo and I would love to come back again.

DEAR DANIELLE. MANAGEMENT, I WOULD LIKE TO INFORM YOU THAT SHE IS THE MOST TACTLESS SERVER IN ALL OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY.
Dear Future Customers,
If you want considerate service that places the customers first, GET AWAY FROM THIS RESTAURANT.
We, a party of four, came in at 11:54AM and ordered four dishes + four drinks.
The drinks, four mimosas, took 20 minutes to be made. How hard is it to pour champagne into orange juice? Are you hand picking the oranges from Florida?
As for the food, two of our party members were served first, while my friend and I waited for 30 minutes. A BLAT sandwich is a sandwich; it’s not neuroscience, it’s bread with a few condiments on top.
The food is mediocre at best, but the service is beyond pretentious.
You’re better off going to a beautiful contemporary restaurant in DTLA.
I rarely write reviews, so when I do it’s something that I really notice.
Thank you for making my friend’s birthday a mess of a brunch.
Thank you for making me waste my money on your garbage establishment.
My suggestion: Zinc in the Arts District of DTLA. Now THAT’s a fabulous restaurant!
580 Mateo St, Los Angeles.
BYE!

I came to Primitivo a while ago for dinner and then for brunch a few weeks later. The place has a very comfortable feel to it. The back patio is great for brunch on a nice day. The service was a little slow at times but the food was quite enjoyable
Things I really enjoyed off their menu:
— Duck with sweet potato gnocchi
— Paella with shrimp
— Truney slider and short rib slider (delicious juicy)
The things I thought were so-​so:
Sangria
Crab sliders
Definitely worth trying again

We were the first ones in on ‘First Friday.’ They opened for their Happy hour at 5:30. We had just left another place that decided NOT to have HH (even though I called to ask…) Primitivo stayed true to their word and served happy hour even though First Friday was going on.
Great atmosphere.
Friendly tatted (and cute) bartender. (My 22 y/​o agrees.)
Other staff was also very friendly and engaging.
Bar stool are heavy with backs, thankfully, but not extremely comfortable.
They recently started serving serving liquor. And that’s what I was in the mood for!
We had one wine drinker and the rest of us enjoyed a delicious cocktail on the HH menu.
Only one wine on HH. The wine drinker went off the HH in order to have a pinot noir. Very good. And, again… our cocktail were delicious. It was the GIN MINT-​TINI:
Hendricks gin, fresh lime juice, muddled mint, simple syrup,
mint leaf float, lime garnish. YUMM
Tried the «Albondigas» ~ Grass-​fed beef meatballs, manchego, arrabiatta $ 10. Unilocalers seem to enjoy from HH. Really good. Great sauce.
Also ordered the Croquetas de Jamon ~ Spanish ham, mornay, harissa aioli $ 8. Get those.
Coming back for sure.

ENVIRONMENT
Great Abbot Kenny spot. Lots of indoor and outdoor sitting on its patio.
SALAD
Kale and Quinoa — Small portion, but very good
Spanish Beef Skewers — amazing taste and quality. This one was on the happy hour menu and may note be a standard offering.
DESSERT
Dulce de Leche-​Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding — Good, but I like it softer. There’s chocolate, which makes it good.
Lemon Cheesecake — served in a mug. Light feeling, but probably not.

Went here last night for dinner with a girlfriend and had a fabulous time! I have been coming here for over 10 years and they never fail to exceed expectations.
Warning — if you are not a fan of tapas or shared plates, this is not the place for you. One of the reasons I love this place is the ability to order so many fun dishes.
A couple of my favorites are the paella, baked Brie, tiger shrimp — to name a few. Last night we had the chicken saffron and it wasn’t my favorite. It was a little bland for my liking. The paella is so flavorful that the chicken paled in comparison. We also ordered the peanut butter lava cake and it was divine! Such a unique twist on the traditional lava cake.
I would recommend eating outside on the back patio. You feel like you’ve stepped into another world and it reminds me of restaurants in Europe and Mediterranean. It’s small and cozy. If you don’t like being close to people this is not your place!
Last thing — typically the service is amazing. Last night our server seemed a little upset about something but the bus boys were awesome. They were constantly refilling our water, making sure we were warm enough, etc.
Definitely a place to continue visiting!

The food was just good, nothing extraordinary. The outside patio was nice to sit at. The service was quick and friendly. The food portions were Rediculoisly small, especially for breakfast. I paid 17 bucks for a tiny bit of food, we had to go to Chipotle afterwords to be filled up. The wine list looked good, will prolly go back for drinks.

Question: how much credibility does someone have who Googled primitivo for 5 minutes straight and still couldn’t figure out the definition have when it comes to criticism of reputable dining establishments? ? ??
??? Tough to say
Here’s an easy one: Do you like bland overpriced food?
??? but if you do primitivo is for you !
I feel like the oddball for dinging this place but boy was I disappointed with the dishes here (and the exceptionally slow service on a Monday night with a handful of diners)
Started with Mezze platter which had the standard pita, hummus, pepper dip combo. Pickled veggies on the plate were warm and soggy lacking crisp. Pita bread tasted standard and the hummus reminded me of soft beans in the worst way. Pepper dip or Muhammara was super sweet strangely.
They had a queso dip which was ordered at a whim and tasted like something I could heat up in the microwave from 711 (a bit harsh, let’s just go with Whole Foods).
Ordered the Moroccan spiced chicken which was overdone and was tremendously under seasoned. The Cous Cous it sat tasted like a salty butter soup swimming in chicken stock.
The roasted pork loin was another misstep with it’s overdone temperature and super sweet «garlic» sauce. The fingerling potatoes accompanied with it lacked crispness on the outside and were just basically cooked and rolled around in olive oil.
To add fuel to the criticism fire, service was super slow and the bill was super high.
The Unilocalers have let me down here :(maybe an off night or maybe I just don’t understand sophisticated Mediterranean Moroccan tapas queso wine fusion.

I rarely go out to Venice as its quite far and the traffic is always pretty bad. But when my friend suggested Primitivo for brunch, I decided to give it a chance. And boy am I glad I actually came out here.
From the front entrance, you would have never guessed there was a big outdoor patio in the back. When I came for Saturday brunch, the inside was completely empty while the back patio was almost all seated. The patio is adjacent to a nursery so you can look out to some green plants while enjoying your brunch. The patio is covered and the building blocks the direct sunlight, so you can enjoy the ocean breeze that passes by in the cool shade of the patio while you enjoy their unlimited sangria.
The brunch items are quite delicious. The 4 of us shared the bread pudding french toast, the kale and quinoa salad, the paella, and the chorizo hash. My fave would be the bread pudding french toast. It had crispy edges while a dense and soft center, topped with fresh whipped cream and berries.
Service: Our water glasses and sangrias were constantly refilled. Our waitress kept coming by to check up on us. But the best part I enjoyed was that we were able to sit and have a relaxing Saturday without being rushed by the restaurant to leave.
Overall, I would return if I ever trek out to Venice again.
Parking: Street parking.

TL;DR: 5 out of 5 wine bar with cute patio seating and great food! Everything is good on the menu, but get the Grilled Rib Eye and Herb Marinated Fried Chicken
Location: located in the heart of hipster Venice, so you know parking is going to be hard. There are various valet parking around the area. However, you can always find parking in the back residential area, even on the weekends. You may have to walk a few blocks though. There is only street parking around here.
Ambiance: hipster and romantic. I definitely recommend coming her for a date. Whether it is for brunch or dinner, you should sit outside. We came here once on a rainy day and still sat outside since it was an enclosed patio with heat lamps. It was super romantic. See picture above. Whether you sit inside or outside, the lights are dimmed to candle light. The noise level is perfect since it is not too quiet, but you can still carry on a conversation. They play hipstery Top 40 music in the background. I recommend coming here for brunch or dinner, both are equally romantic and fresh.
Price: $ 30 per person
What to get, or not:
The menu changes periodically. So check out their website, which is always updated, for the most current menu. It looks like they only update their dinner menu, and all the other menus appear to be the same.
Bacon Wrapped Medjool Dates ($ 13): I thought these were a bit overpriced. Chorizo, balsamic reduction, candied walnuts. You get about 8 of them, and the bacon is super crispy. It is a good balance with the walnuts, which are sweet. However, after 2 bites, I was kind of over it, since it was overwhelming. However, this is what Primitivo is known for a and a lot of people like this. However, I do not like that it is overpriced for what it is.
Seafood Tower ($ 26): I thought this would be a lot bigger given the price as well. This is a seafood dish including salmon and tuna casserole. It was a little creamy for my taste. I love creamy stuff, but that is only for dessert. The fish was super fresh though. For being called a «tower,» the height of this was less than 2 inches tall. This is currently not on the menu, but I do not recommend you get this.
Grilled Baby Octopus ($ 13): Calamari with lemon-​oregano vinaigrette and served with arugula. This had the perfect texture and chewiness. I definitely recommend this. The sauce was sweet and sour, which was a perfect combination with the «seafood taste» of calamari. The arugula was plentiful and not bitter. They use local vegetables, which means everything tastes extremely fresh.
Spanish Style Mussels & Clams ($ 21): I like mussels and the broth that comes with it a lot. The broth is a mixture of chorizo fresco, shallots, and garlic. This is a play on one of my favorite French dishes. However, unlike what I am accustomed too, there was too little broth. I like a lot of broth so I can just dip my baguette into it. You can barely taste the chorizo in here, but just be aware that this is pork if you have any dietary restrictions.
Sauteed Tiger Shrimp ($ 14): Toasted garlic, chilies, parsley, Albarino. I seriously love this dish. The flavoring is amazing. The tiger shrimps are truly large and juicy as well. Even for that price, I would definitely get this again since it was extremely flavorful and tasty.
Herb Marinated Fried Chicken ($ 13): This is definitely one of my favorite dish. I am a lover of fried chicken, and I definitely eat this dish a lot. Primitivo brings it to another level. The chicken was super crispy, but the catch was it did not taste as oily as other places. The chicken itself was very well marinated and flavorful. They also had an addicting argula pesto sauce on the chicken, which I cannot place the taste. But it definitely made the fried chicken taste that much better. Your veggies include Sauteed zuchini, and yellow squash.
To be continued at
!
Spanish Paella ($ 28): I recently had this dish at a self-​proclaimed authentic Spanish restaurant, and it just fell flat for me. It was just too bland. Fast forward to trying this dish here: epic. The dish is served with organic chicken, tiger shrimp, black mussels, chorizo. The Spanish rice was well cooked. While it was not bland, it had a very mild flavor. Perfect!
primivito3
Grilled Ribeye ($ 26): I got my rib eye medium rare as always. The meat itself was so juicy and tender. However the money maker and show stopped was definitely the smoked paprika chimichurri sauce. Whatever it is, it is mind-​blowing. I recommend this dish for no other reason then to enjoy the sauce with the amazing well-​quality rib eye. Your veggies include roasted root vegetables: potatoes and carrots.
It is funny since this is a wine bar, but I have NOT tried the wine yet. Reason why, the food is just that amaz

You had me at bacon wrapped dates and sparkling sangria!
Upon checking in, we got excited to see a pre-​fix check in offer, but found out it’s for weekday lunch only.
The sparkling sangria had two grapes in it. There wasn’t anything special about it, if anything the elderflower made it kind of on the sweeter side.
I wasn’t impressed by the bacon wrapped dates (mushed dates and stuffed with piece of ham). One of them was even missing the mushy date filling and was just bacon wrapped ham.
The brussel sprouts were served in a small skillet. I kind of wishes they cooked them a little more or added some more seasoning.
The mussels and clams were cooked well and the sauce was on the light side.
Overall the service was attentive, the food was ok, the atmosphere is nice. It is a little pricey, but hey it’s a tapas place in West LA!
Unilocal 100 Challenge — 68 of 100

On a sunny LA Day, which has been far too many to count, you really can’t beat patio seating and bottomless mimosas. Primitivo offered the best of both worlds! The outdoor patio in the back is truly a refreshing place to dine. My friend was quick to point out the lush horticulture that occupied the center of the covered patio area. If given the option I would certainly recommend the outdoor seating over the inside.
I went on a Saturday for the bottomless mimosas which are served from 11:00am-3pm. Seems like a large window of time, but the ambiance will have the time fly by fast. We stayed well past the last call because we were so enthralled in our conversation. Great place to sip and enjoy the day which may lead into evening…
I was ambivalent when it came to the food options, not because nothing seemed delicious, but because everything sparked my interest. I was torn between the Bread Pudding French Toast (Brioche, berry maple syrup, vanilla bean whipped cream), the Spanish Paella (Organic Chicken, tiger shrimp, black mussels, chorizo, peas) and the Poached Egg and Avocado (Grilled focaccia, avocado spread, marinated cherry tomatoes). I ended up getting the Poached Egg and Avocado which was served with the yummy Patatas Bravas. It was certainly tasty for those who love poached egg. Above all else it was very filling. I literally scrapped my plate clean it was that damn tasty! I would also recommend both the BPFT and Spanish Paella. My friend got the BPFT and was in love and the Spanish Paella ignited the whole patio and a delicious aroma every time someone ordered it!!!
Above all else and what really makes this a 5 star place is the customer service. The customer service here was superb! Our waitress was fantastic, ever-​so-​patient and very informative. She was also very accommodating with the menu, if there was something we didn’t like about the dish she didn’t hesitate to offer a substitution free of charge. Also when my friend didn’t like her food she was nice enough to remove it from the bill no questions ask. Really amazing service where you can tell they care about their customers. We also were fortunate to meet the owner Jimmy who was super sweet. You could really tell he really took pride in his business.
Overall great place for brunch!
Bottomless mimosas ($ 15) — Check
VIP Bike Parking in Front — Check
Amazing Patio– Check
Excellent Customer Service — Double Check

We had one groupon for Primitivo as a gift and one we bought because we loved it soooo much!
1. We came here for brunch when they had bottomless mimosas/​sangria and ordered of the brunch menu.
2. We came here after a bike ride and they still honored our groupon even when it wasn’t brunch anymore. We order a lot yummy food.
We got the lobster tower, the meatballs, and the paella. GET THE PAELLA!!! Their sangrias are amazing! Get the white sparking sangria! So delish! Our server was a little disjointed. She didn’t write our order down. She did it by memory, which is cool but she brought out the wrong order… but all is forgiving because the food was delicious and in general, primitivo is gorgeous inside, outside, and in the garden.

What a surprise! A very cute little Mediterranean tapas restaurant and wine bar in Venice beach! We made a last minute reservation, got there right on time, in order to accommodate our request for a window seat, the very friendly host girl set up a table in the corner in the second dining room for us, we were the first dining people in the back room, she also asked if we wanted a tall bench table in the beautiful patio, but we preferred indoor, it was very nice of her to let us choose a table!
Loved the menu, lots of seafood and veggies choices, too bad they ran out of fresh fish that evening. Started off with bottle of sparkling water and Italian sparkling wine, they were bubbly and refreshing, just what I needed at the moment! And they have some expensive reserved wines up to $ 600 or so, impressive!
Starters:
Half dozen of oysters: the housemade sauce was very unique, with some interesting herbs on the plate, they provided strong flavors to the fresh oysters, very different, both hubby and I loved them!
Complimentary bread basket: delicious bread with warm butter, but too much for two people.
Tapas we tried:
Crab and lobster tower: very fresh and tender crab and lobster, the flavor was very light, I loved it, so yummy!
Sautéed tiger shrimps, in garlic tomato sauce: the shrimps were fairly tender, the sauce was very flavorful, added amazing flavors to the shrimps!
Grilled asparagus: light and dry, tasted almost raw to me, but I love asparagus anyways.
Flat Iron steak: the first one came out medium well, had to send it back, second one was a perfect medium rare, the potatoes in it were so delicious! Hubby liked the steak.
Desert:
Crème brûlée: they made this desert perfect! Probably one of the best I have ever had for a very long time!
20 year Tawny: fantastic as always.
Double espresso: hubby’s usual after dinner drink, he liked it.
An amazing tapa dinner, the portions were actually big for tapas, we got quite full in the end. Our waitress was friendly and attentive, tab was $ 162.
I really enjoyed our casual dinner date there, we don’t come out to Venice beach often, at least I know of a great restaurant in this hood now, a great find for us!
Ps. Valet right in front of the restaurant.