The Hotel Bel-Air Has a New Chef, Lounge, and Pastry Shop

Chef Wolfgang Puck, until recently, had led the culinary direction at the historic Hotel Bel-Air since 2011. But despite Puck’s famous name and reputation, his menus, which included options like halibut with quinoa and loup de mer, were not drawing in new crowds. Ultimately, the chef’s partnership with the hotel ended in 2023. Chef Joe Garcia (formerly of Bicyclette, Manzke, and Bouchon Beverly Hills) joined the 78-year-old hotel in early 2024 to completely revamp its dining approach.

“I’m most excited about being on a legendary property after chef Wolfgang,” says Garcia. “I saw this as a great challenge to follow in his footsteps.”

Garcia reworked the food at the Restaurant at Hotel Bel-Air earlier this year by refreshing classic dishes with seasonal touches, and recently tackled the lounge adjacent to the hotel’s reception area called the Living Room; he has also introduced a new dessert counter called Patisserie along with pastry chef Christophe Rull. To appeal to Hotel Bel-Air’s longtime customers and attract new diners, Garcia developed fresh ideas while acknowledging the property’s history. The new menus at both venues debut on Friday, August 16.

Starting with the Living Room, diners can find a $140 high tea service, Garcia’s truffle grilled cheese sandwich, an Ora King smoked salmon rillette, and caviar service. Some of Garcia’s more playful additions include a French onion dip made with caramelized Vidalia onions, crisp onions and chives, creme fraiche, and pickled pearl onions; the dip originated in Los Angeles. The Living Room’s cocktail list includes a martini labeled as the “coldest martini in town.” Champalimaud Design upgraded the Living Room with additional pastel and neutral sofas, lush plants, and stencil artwork on the walls.

For the Patisserie, a former gift shop was converted into a sumptuous display for Rull’s pain au chocolat, chocolate chip and Tahitian vanilla shortbread cookies, and salted caramel chocolate tarts. Rull’s team also prepares sourdough loaves using a 10-year-old starter with a gluten-free option and marble and banana pound cakes. The new array of sweets is also available in the hotel’s courtyard along with a gelato cart.

The Hotel Bel-Air sits on 12 acres in the heart of Los Angeles’s most expensive neighborhood. Its origins began with oil tycoon Alphonzo Bell purchasing the property as his home in 1922 with the hotel opening in 1946. The property became a legendary hangout with old Hollywood regulars, including Elizabeth Taylor, Bette Davis, and Audrey Hepburn. Scattered throughout Bel-Air are some of LA’s priciest and vast estates. For most Angelenos, Bel-Air is an area driven through or around, with Stone’s Canyon Road providing an efficient way to cut through the Los Angeles Basin into the San Fernando Valley.

Though celebrated for its history, the Hotel Bel-Air has been embroiled in labor issues and a boycott in recent years. In late 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the Hotel Bel-Air to pay millions to its former employees after management refused to rehire 152 former employees in 2011 following the hotel’s temporary closure for remodeling, a violation found by the National Relations Labor Board. The Dorchester Collection, which is backed by the Sultan of Brunei, owns the hotel. Celebrities like Elton John and George Clooney called for a boycott of Dorchester properties in 2019 due to the Sultan of Brunei’s anti-gay policies that allow LGBTQ people, in the most severe example, to be stoned to death for their sexuality.

The Hotel Bel-Air is located at 701 Stone Canyon Road, Bel Air, CA, 90077. ThePatisserie operates daily from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Living Room is open Wednesday through Sunday from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. with afternoon tea served at 3 p.m. on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Hotel Bel-Air