Yours Truly Serves Nashville Hot Shrimp with Japanese Milk Bread

Crispy octopus with strawberry harissa, lebni, walnut dukkah and sprouts

Vartan Abgaryan’s excellent food distracted diners from the staggering view at fine dining venue 71Above, and now, he’s throwing his heart into a rustic and cozy revamp of the old Salt Air space in Venice. The chef’s latest venture, Yours Truly (310.396.9333), showcases his elevated, modern California cuisine with an emphasis on global ingredients. Middle Eastern elements soar in dishes like crispy octopus, which incorporates lebni, walnut dukkah and mustard greens served with strawberry harissa. In a nod to fried chicken, Nashville hot shrimp are served with a brightly flavored coleslaw. The hot and sweet coating provides the perfect crunch, while Japanese milk bread soaks up the seasoning. “You can have extreme flavors and temperatures, but everything on the plate should somehow balance itself out,” Abgaryan explains. A low-alcohol cocktail menu was also created to complement the intensity of the flavors. The chef’s refinement and attention to detail shine with the chicken liver mille crepe, a gorgeous construction made with microthin layers of airy, whipped poached chicken liver terrine, kumquat and artichoke on rye crepes. Inspired by a Lady M mille cake, the recipe includes three different wines and requires a full hour just to assemble it. Another hit: The cacio e pepe-style confit fingerling potatoes are so good, you won’t miss the pasta at all. “People are dipping bread into it and the plate is coming back clean,” says Abgaryan, who names the dish as one of his personal favorites. “That’s what you want to see.”