Most people who know me know that I’m a pretty exploratory eater… with one exception. I can’t eat raw animal products.

That’s right. I don’t eat sushi. I know, I know… it’s an abomination. Even after visiting the world’s most famous fish market in Tokyo, I still haven’t been able to change my ways.

So when the team at Petrossian in West Hollywood invited us to visit their French-inspired restaurant, I was a bit nervous after checking out their menu full of a variety of selections of caviar. But, I finally decided not to pass up an opportunity like this, and THANK GOODNESS I didn’t!

Located close to some of my favorites like Genwa and The Spice Affair, Petrossian is located right on the strip where all the good restaurants are in West Hollywood. As soon as we walked into the bright and airy store, I was super excited to give all of their food a try.

The menu offers authentic French flavors with seasonal California inspiration. This is truly a place where you can come to indulge in elegant, refined dining without the feeling of being in a snobby setting.

Our waiter gave us a quick run down of the history of the restaurant before introducing us to the different menu options. Run by an Armenian family, Petrossian is a leading international brand of caviar, distributing about 20% of the world caviar market.

We kicked off the night with a couple of refreshing cocktails that tasted even better than they look. I’m always down for a refreshing, fruity spirit :)

Our first course was the caviar course! We cleaned the tin of caviar and got to try three types of roe.

I was so worried the caviar and roe would be super “fishy” and taste like the ocean. I’m a huuuge lover of the ocean (have you seen my diving posts yet?), so I generally like to keep my interactions with sea critters in the ocean and not in a restaurant. Petrossian’s Shassetra caviar was well worth the try, though. There was absolutely no “fishiness” and combined with the bread and toppings it was served with, the caviar was an amazing way to start out our dinner.

Our second course centered around foie gras. Duck is definitely something I’m not afraid of, and Petrossian’s foie gras dishes totally exceeded my expectations both in creativity and presentation.

The strawberry rhubarb dish pictured above was definitely the highlight of the night. The acidity of the rhubarb paired perfectly with the richness of the foie gras… I’m drooling thinking about it still! The second foie gras course was inspired by crème brûlée, served in an adorable mason jar and definitely much richer than the rhubarb foie gras.

Finally, we closed off the night with a couple of seafood entrees. By this time I was already soooo full from stuffing my face with caviar and foie gras, but we still completely cleaned off the octopus and sea bass dishes that followed.

Both proteins were grilled to perfection and completely lacked any sense of “fishiness” that I always fear to find in sea food dishes. They were paired with delicious potatoes and a heavenly sauce that just tied everything together perfectly.

The cool thing about food is that as long as you keep an open mind, you can always be in for a delightful surprise. Your taste buds change every seven years, and I hope mind continue to change so I can enjoy more elegant meals like this one at Petrossian. Huge thanks to the team there for inviting us to visit this beautiful restaurant!