Friday, May 29, 1998
Schatzi’s doesn’t measure up to celebrity status
RESTAURANT: Schwarzenegger, Shriver’s eatery doesn’t serve up
enough taste for meal’s expense
By Frances Lee
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
It’s not Planet Hollywood, but it’s not exactly Spago,
either.
Schatzi’s on Main Street, the Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria
Shriver-owned restaurant in Santa Monica, falls disappointingly
short of expectations, especially given the new chef, Matt McLinn,
and a revamped menu featuring Mediterranean, New American and a few
Austrian dishes.
For people who revel in having their taste buds assaulted, this
is not the ideal eatery. The dishes are not terribly exciting, the
flavor is subtle or barely there.
With prices ranging from $10 to $30 per entree, Schatzi’s is not
easy on a student’s budget, either. The menu, although not huge,
offers everything from pizza and pasta to some of "Arnold’s
favorite Austrian dishes."
The plum tomato gazpacho soup with seared ahi tuna ($5) sounds
good, but unless you’re a big fan of cold spaghetti sauce, stay
away from this one. The soup is a little too thick and the texture
feels like a mouthful of Nerds – the candy that snaps, crackles and
pops. Perhaps if it had been a hot soup, this might have
worked.
As for one of Arnold’s favorite dishes, the wienerschnitzel
($18) – not a hot dog – is a decent entree and a fairly large
portion consisting of two thin, breaded pork cutlets, steamed
spinach and spaetzle, a potato pasta. The tender meat slices easily
with a fork, but the flavor is almost reminiscent of Shake N’Bake
and remains unimpressive. The spaetzle has a gummy texture, and
together with the light olive oil flavor, combines unique
tastes.
The pasta-loving crowd should try the risotto with asparagus and
scallops ($14). Again, there isn’t much flavor, but this dish
doesn’t really need it. The risotto, slightly crunchy, along with
the scallops, come close to perfect.
"Perfect" is the only word to describe the Viennese apple
strudel a la mode. Served with what tasted like homemade vanilla
ice cream, the dessert earns high marks for both presentation and
taste. This wispy pastry and hot apple, cinnamon, raisin and nut
combination, along with the ice cream, spectacularly tops off any
meal.
Despite the average food, the service is excellent.
Immediately after sitting down, servers place a basket of bread
on the table. But instead of the mandatory butter or margarine,
Schatzi’s offers a spicy cracked mustard spread and a diced olive
vinaigrette, both of which clear the palette for the meal ahead
(not that it needs much clearing, since most of the dishes are
rather bland).
Waiters always hover nearby, ready to refill water or clear the
table of dishes.
Low-key and inviting, this is the kind of place to take an
out-of-town guest, or to throw a large party (think "graduation
dinner").
But if you’re strictly looking for a great place to eat,
consider staying home and ordering take-out Chinese instead.
Think of it this way – you’re not paying for the food, but the
ambience and the chance to hang out with the "beautiful
people."
GENEVIEVE LIANG/Daily Bruin
Schatzi’s is Arnold Schwarzenegger’s newest restaurant
venture.