Cafe Bizou

14016 Ventura Blvd, Sherman Oaks
(818) 788-3536

Recent Reviews

Jennifer A.

We came here at lunch time during DineLA week and ordered off the set menu. The soup was good and both our entrees were good. The shrimp and scallop pasta was on the lighter side, can really taste the flavor of the herbs and tomato. The muscle pasta (which might have been a special for DineLA) was rich and creamy. Definitely on the heavier side but perfect for when you want something comforting. For dessert, the bread pudding was served hot with ice cream on top and it was delicious. The tiramisu was nothing special. It was fluffy and on the wetter side and I think needed some more coffee flavor and richness to it. DISCLAIMER: this place is very dated. The furniture looks like it's from the 80's (hasn't been updated) and it's pretty dark inside. Try to ask for a table by the window.

Kat A.

I wanted to branch out and try a different restaurant that was not in LA, so I decided to try Dine LA and explore something different. My sister is a pescatarian, so I wanted to make sure I found something she would like. So we went for lunch which was 20 dollars for a three course meal. My sister got the lobster bisque as her appetizer and she said it was really tasty, I got the baked mushrooms, and they were amazing, I wish there would have been more :D! And of course my sister and I are fatties, we decided to get a different appetizer that didn't come with the dine LA meal. We also ordered popcorn shrimp, wow it was sooo good and the dipping sauce was amazing! We both decided to get the pasta with the black tagallini, lobster, shrimp and mushrooms. It was actually quite tasty, I really liked the flavor of the sauce. For dessert I got the bread pudding and my sister got the flourless chocolate cake. Personally, I thought the bread pudding was better, it came warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the top! :D The restaurant was different than I expected, my sister and I were seated in a booth closer to the front of the restaurant, I was happy with this seating since the inside of the restaurant seemed a little crammed. This restaurant offers valet parking, but my sister and I found free parking on the street :)

Del M.

Service - the waiters were friendly and tried hard Food quality - unfortunately dreadful: very bland, extremely boring and tasteless. I added lemon juice and salt to the lentil soup to just be able to give it a little bit of taste; I added butter and cheese to the angel hair pasta to encourage myself to eat a few mouthfuls: the dish was literally just angel hair pasta and pieces of chicken and some tomatoes on a plate with no ingredient to bring it together or bring out any taste. I asked for olive oil: it was the really low quality kind. The bread and butter at outset: the bread was hard and stale. Just unacceptable to get basics like bread and olive oil wrong. The kitchen and the chef have much work to do in order to attract the discerning customer.

Liz G.

Ok, FULL DISCLOSURE here. I REALLY LOVE this quaint French restaurant, but they always seem to F**K it up with my reservation time (which I made weeks before on Open Table), I end up waiting 45-60 minutes to be seated, and I always have friends who I've brought who have heard FABULOUS reviews about it! Can SOMEONE at your restaurant figure out a F**KING way to deal with the SH**TY reservation system you guys have in place?! Because your food is DEVINE and the $2 corkage fee is wonderful! But the WAIT TIME SUCKS B**LS!! It RUINS the WHOLE experience of your (almost) PERFECT restaurant!

Kathy Z.

I came here for a DineLA dinner with a plus one and was, quite frankly, not impressed. For $29 per person, a three-course meal is a steal. Well, I'm not sure if they knowingly sacrificed quality to make up for the price, because they certainly did not sacrifice quantity. Portions were nicely sized, but taste was sub-par. RESERVATIONS What's the point of making a reservation if you're going to get seated 30+ minutes later? And what's this business about having dozens of waiting patrons clumped together by the front door? Is this not a fire hazard? The hosts have a giant piece of paper in front of them that they use to track which tables have been seated and which groups are up next. No modern system like, say, a computer. They note comments on patrons' appearance on a little yellow pad to remember which one is which. Has anyone seen those notes, since they are left out in plain sight? I read a couple -- they are not kind. SERVICE The hosts, in general, are quite rude to patrons. The servers, on the other hand, make an effort -- but, gosh, our server was in a frenzy all night. She also tripped over our chair three times... that lady needed a break. Service was slow, but they were pretty busy that Friday night. Clearly, this is not typical for them and they could not handle it. FOOD As part of our DineLA deal, we got the Lobster Bisque (watery, but a good amount of stringy lobster), the Shrimp and Lobster Risotto (starchy, wouldn't reorder), the Lobster Black Pasta (sauce was decent), the Flourless Chocolate Cake (microwaved?) and the Trio of Sorbet (yum). We also ordered the Popcorn Shrimp, which was delicious. The bread was warm and quite good, by the way. All in all, a swing and a miss. I have always wanted to try this place, and I am quite disappointed. My boyfriend had been here a few years ago for DineLA, and he said his experience was leagues better. Not sure what happened since then. Hey, we left with full bellies -- at least there's that.

Gerly B.

Me and my boyfriend came for DineLA to get their 3-course dinner for $29. I really wish I could say I had a better experience here. Inside was cute and tables were candlelit so it was more on the romantic side. It seemed to be packed for dinner, luckily, we had reservations so we were seated almost immediately. The service was really slow. Each time we finished our course, it took quite a while to receive the next course. It was awkward because we can see that the tables next and across from us were also having the same issue (whether it was waiting for food, their bill, or to-go boxes). Another thing that really detracted from our experience was that there was a constant loud noise located from where we were seated. We were seated towards the front (outer) side corner and located behind us were pipes of some sort. We kept hearing a loud noise that could be water going through the pipes but it was a noise that would come back every so often. Now onto the food: 1st course: Lobster Bisque & Tuna Tartare I really liked the lobster bisque especially if you dip the complimentary bread in it! The tuna tartare, however, tasted great but is definitely not worth the extra $8 for it. 2nd course: Shrimp & Lobster Risotto // Lobster, Sea Scallops, and Shrimp Pasta My risotto was flavorful, however, it was lacking a sort of creaminess to it. It still tasted really great and I prefered it over the pasta. The pasta was good as well but I wish they had given smaller pieces of tomato. 3rd course: Profiteroles & Bread Pudding I regret spending an extra $5 for the profiteroles. They just tasted okay but the shells were more on the hard side. I did like the chocolate syrup they put on it which went nicely with the ice cream. The bread pudding however, tasted the best! It was nice and warm- a good dessert to end our dining experience here. Overall, to me: Food was a 4, but my overall experience was definitely a 3.5.

Gabby K.

We came here for the dineLA lunch special with a 12:30p lunch reservation. I found free 2 hour street parking up the block. The $2 corkage fee is great. It took a while for the waiter to come over to us but once we ordered, it took even longer to get our appetizers and it took another HOUR for our entrees. They gave us water when we sat down and did not refill it ONCE throughout the two hours we were at the table. For the appetizer, I ordered the lobster bisque. It came in a tiny cup and was watery and cold. I ordered the lobster, scallop, shrimp pasta and it was supposed to have black (I think squid ink) noodles and it was just spaghetti. I flagged down a server to ask about this and he said that they must be out. I wasn't informed of this change and didn't want spaghetti...I reluctantly requested penne and my new dish came out reasonably fast. My boyfriend and I were splitting our entrees anyway, so we ate the filet mignon burger in the meantime. The burger was good, the meat was very tender and tasty. The fries were supposed to be cajun, per the menu, but they were just regular, unseasoned, bland fries. Everything was cold though. Once the pasta finally came out, it was actually hot for a change. Overall, it was fine. Sauce was pretty good, very similar to the lobster bisque actually - wouldn't be surprised if it was the same thing. There were literally 2 shrimp and 4 tiny scallops. As with the lobster bisque, there were just stringy pieces of "lobster." Wine was long gone by the time this even came out since we had to wait so long. For dessert, we ordered the tiramisu and bread pudding. Compared to everything else, this came out fast. The tiramisu sucked. It tasted like grocery store cake. The bread pudding was great though. It was hot, had a scoop of ice cream, and was served in a delicious puddle of butterscotch sauce. Overall, everything about this place was a hit or miss with a lot of misses. The dineLA menu was a great deal, but i wouldn't come here otherwise.

Nicole K.

Solid service, food, drinks! I've been here twice now with a large group during the holidays, and man, this place can get packed! They know how to handle it though. Great selection of food choices, from steaks to fancy seafood. They don't make a fuss about substituting one side for another. The plant salmon was great! If you're a meat lover or even pescatarian, there's lots of good choices, it's hard to pick! But not that many options for my vegetarian friend however.

Oren A.

Me and my whife went to celebrate her birthday after long time... we went to Cafe Bizou. The service was the worst ever, are waiters was so rude and we have tried to communicate with him but no response. He totally distroyed are night. We had no choices to leave the restaurant and celebrate in different place. We will never will come back again.

Lindsey S.

I had an amazing time here from the food to the service to the valet. We were a large party on a busy Saturday night, but everyone had a fabulous experience. First, the food....one of the best meals I've had recently! * Appetizers: Baked Mushrooms - delicious...the balsamic sauce perfectly complements the other flavors. Could've made a whole meal out of these. * Lobster Salmon Ravioli - also delicious * Salad: Green Salad - great dressing & candied walnuts * Main Course: Crispy Potato Scaled Salmon - phenomenal...almost everyone in our party ordered this and nobody was disappointed. Huge portion of salmon cooked to perfection, delicious sauce, and the spinach & mushrooms are fresh. The scaled potatoes are not heavy and add a wonderful touch to the salmon. I would order this again in a New York minute. * Dessert: Flourless Chocolate Cake - surprisingly light, not overly dense like most flourless cakes. Had more of a soufflé texture, which I enjoyed. Served warm with a touch of raspberry and fresh whipped cream (I normally don't care for whipped cream, but this was so fresh & homemade I actually liked it) * Honorable mention: the table bread is very good. Warm, fresh, perfect texture & taste, butter melts right into it Our server was attentive, patient, helpful, and very nice. He had a big job on his hands dealing with our large group, but he handled it very well. Excellent service from start to finish!

J B.

Great place , very homey ... people are nice , food is great and price is reasonable and the best part is you can take your own wine with you ... I've gone there over 10 times in my life and its always been a good experience. Parking is a bit of an issue and reservation a head of time is a must or you be waiting for a while.

Yana T.

I am extremely disappointing experience in one of my favorite spots. 35 min wait, with reservations and I am still waiting. When your restaurant is full, do not take reservations, what is the point? This is disrespectful to the people who come here year after year. This very upsetting..

Daniel M.

My go to special place to eat in the valley. I recall the first time coming here over 15 years ago I was impressed with just how beautiful this place is. It looks very classy but seriously you can come in with a nice pair of jeans and shirt. The second time I came in the same host (who still works there to this very day) remembered me months later. Now before you think he may have just pretended to know me I don't think so. He asked about where my kids were since they hadn't come the second time around. Now that's a memory. The food is outstanding. I recommend the lobster bisque. Serious. Serious serious. Get this. Their escargot is good but is more of just being able to say you are snails. They weren't too bad though very garlicky. As for the main selection you simply can't go wrong with their seafood pasta dish. It's a linguini (I think) that is black (squid ink) and is super flavorful. You will lick the plate. The entire menu is outstanding. I've had things I don't know the names of and have never had a dish I didn't like. Parking is valet though you likely could find parking down a side street but I'd recommend just letting valet do it for you. I've been here maybe 12 times and all the times I am satisfied. I just wish I didn't live so far away or I'd be over there all the time.

Suzy B.

We had a wonderful dinner with our amazing friends. Our waiter was James & he was very nice. He was helpful & patient with all my questions about the different fish. It was very busy, I mean non stop crowd waiting to get in, but the employees were very fast, helped one another. They had prefix menu & regular menu available. I can't get over the corkage fee $2.00 and it's been that for years and I love it. They don't abuse the corkage fee like most places charge so much for corkage fee. Our seats were perfect window seats in the patio with the window slightly open for nice cool breeze. Enjoy pictures of our food, we sure did. Yu

Ian S.

It was a two-star experience last time I went in a few months ago but it's normally better. I'm averaging it out to account for the 10 to 12 times I've been here. Yes, growing up in the SFV, of course this has been a family go-to for decades... it's a familiar place where a family can get together for a meal and not break the bank. A menu that is all over the map, food that is consistently average, many times better than average. and tonight less than average. Small portions of everything. Either over-salted (the mussels) or under-salted (the mushroom potato soup... tho that's an easy fix, right?)... the "fresh berries" in my Berry, Fig and Goat Cheese Salad were about 25% mushy/bad... no way those should have been put on a plate and served. Salmon... too much of the bloodline (brown layer) given how small the piece was... I prefer that the brown part be removed entirely but that's me. Mussels... they were average, salty, served with a small piece of bread. (and good french fries) Beef Stroganoff... no complaints from my dad but the bite I had was average. The waiter took about 7 to ten minutes to come take our drink order... not the end of the worls and I felt bad for him becuase they had him on too many tables. I

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