Joachim Splichal

Both special menu offerings were designed with the tastes and desires of Patina’s Los Angeles clientele in mind. When we first opened for lunch, we had a lot of people who came constantly—they’d have three lunches here in a row. When you do that on a day-to-day basis, you want to eat light. You can’t just eat things full of butter and calories.

Some customers see angel hair pasta with tomato and basil as light. I think of broiled fish or vegetarian dishes as definitely light, and maybe more satisfying. The Garden Menu was developed to highlight the best available produce, while the Crustacean Menu was a way to offer a lighter menu which did not rely on vegetables alone.