Q&A With Chef Danny Elmaleh Of Cleo Mediterráneo

Cleo Mediterráneo is not your typical Mediterranean restaurant. The sbe brand has six locations internationally, including two in Los Angeles – Hollywood and Third Street – as well as Kuwait City, New York, and The Bahamas.

The menu is filled with classic and delicious Mediterranean dishes with a modern flair. Chef Danny Elmaleh's take on beloved plates such as shawarma, hummus, and babaganoush are yummy and gorgeous. The Los Angeles Third Street location's menu is divided into Cleo Mezze, Chef Danny's Signature Nush Nush, shared main courses, and kebabs. The chef's signature "Menu for the Table" is a sampling of hummus, kebabs, seared scallops, dessert, and more.

Elmaleh answered the following questions about Cleo and the inspirations behind the menu.

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What was the inspiration behind the menu?

It's the new wave of Mediterranean that incorporates a lot of Californian ingredients, light, fresh, exciting and even though it's Mediterranean we are more heavily on Eastern Mediterranean. We have some Israeli influence, we have some Moroccan influence things like that.

What is probably the most popular thing on the menu at the moment?

The popular thing on the menu I would say that the Brussel sprouts and probably pretty popular. They have been popular for a long time. I think when we put the Brussel sprouts on the menu it was like nine years ago and at that time it was still a new thing. But I think the Brussels sprouts are pretty popular, the Shawarma is popular, the Branzino is very popular it's also one of those dishes that we've had on the menu for a while.[[{"fid":"5051025","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","alignment":"center","field_image_alt[und][0][value]":false,"field_image_title[und][0][value]":false,"field_image_caption[und][0][value]":"%3Cp%3EPhoto%20by%20Mallory%20Carra%3C%2Fp%3E","field_image_caption[und][0][format]":"filtered_html","field_image_credit[und][0][value]":"","field_image_credit[und][0][format]":"image_credit","field_has_syndication_rights[und]":"1","field_licensor[und]":"","field_license_id[und][0][value]":""},"link_text":null,"type":"media","field_deltas":{"2":{"format":"default","alignment":"center","field_image_alt[und][0][value]":false,"field_image_title[und][0][value]":false,"field_image_caption[und][0][value]":"%3Cp%3EPhoto%20by%20Mallory%20Carra%3C%2Fp%3E","field_image_caption[und][0][format]":"filtered_html","field_image_credit[und][0][value]":"","field_image_credit[und][0][format]":"image_credit","field_has_syndication_rights[und]":"1","field_licensor[und]":"","field_license_id[und][0][value]":""}},"attributes":{"class":"media-element file-default media-wysiwyg-align-center","data-delta":"2"}}]]
What do you recommend for somebody who is coming here for the first time?

I think the dishes that we've talked about, we have a lot of different salads that are also very beautiful right now, we have watermelon salad, which is really fresh in the summertime– it's great. And we do a lot of dips; we have four different types of dips on the menu that with a loaf of bread. I think that's something that people when they come to Cleo; they get some kind of a dip and a bread together.

What is the overall experience you hope that your dinners will come away with after dining at Cleo?

Well you know I think the idea is for them to come in and have fun. The way that we put together the menu, you have the ability to kind of pick a couple of dishes for a set price, that allows people to try multiple dishes.

The meal is the subject of this review was provided at no cost to the contributor.