Violet, you're turning violet!

I've been busy in the five days since my last post, so I'm catching up with multiple posts. Friday night Brent and I enjoyed another Dine LA meal, this time at Violet in Santa Monica. Parking was a pain, but it was worth it. The restaurant is relatively small and has a funky, indie vibe. A guy covered in tats, wearing black nail polish, eye liner and a V-neck t-shirt brought us our water, which I thought was pretty cool. Brent said that he was the owner. Skeptical, I asked Brent if he was sure. He replied, "Well, he has 'Violet' tattood across his chest." Hmm...yeah, probably not just a devoted employee. He was, in fact, the owner. Anyhow, on to the food! (Click the photos to biggify.) I started with the white onion soup while Brent had an ahi tuna dish. My entree was salmon with bits of apple and a creamy sauce. Sounds a little weird, but it was quite yummy! Brent had a delicious cheesy risotto, although I think it had another strong flavor, which I can't remember. For dessert, I had chocolate bread pudding. (Psst...Jolene and Kay...a place for our next bread pudding adventure?) Brent had a creamy dessert that I can't remember the name of, but the taste was unforgettable. I'm really glad we decided to finally try this restaurant, which specializes in tapas rather than the larger entrees that we had. I'm excited to go back and try some tempting dishes like the mushroom raviolli and baked macaroni. "Roses are red, violets are blue. That's what they say, but it just isn't true. Roses are red, and apples are, too. But violets are violet, violets aren't blue. An orange is orange, but Greenland's not green. A pinky's not pink, so what does it mean? To call something blue when it's not, we defile it. But what the heck, it's hard to rhyme violet." - Dot, Animaniacs