Lauren Olerich

On the eve of the November outdoor dining ban, we made a res at Massilia... having had it “on the list” to try for several weeks. They have a beautiful outdoor dining area along 4th Street that has a tantalizing vibe for brunch and dinner. Built in ceiling heaters and 6 ft apart tables. Plenty of sanitizer around too. Our server, Jean-Michel, was hilarious and sweet. He truly made it a memorable night!!! He checked on us regularly, each time with friendly conversation and a joke or two :) Food! Fries -5 stars! They rival the thin ones at Father’s Office! Meatballs -5 stars! Very generous portion and with a delish side of toasted bread. Zucchini Gratin -4 stars. Tasted pretty healthy, which we needed the night before thanksgiving lol. Tagliatelle with mushrooms -5 stars. Light for a pasta dish, with beautiful earthy mushrooms. Flourless chocolate cake -4/5 stars. Really enjoyed this and would recommend if you’re a chocolate fan. Can’t wait to go back and truly want to thank Jean-Michel for the incredible service and laughter. We all need some lol’s in 2020.

+2

Alizen

Massilia is a French restaurant nestled in Santa Monica near third street promenade, featuring a cozy interior and an intimate patio. Our group ordered the steak frites and lamb shank and both were quite delicious. Unlike most steak frites, the steak was thicker and you were able to select the temperature as well. The fries were perfectly crispy and deliciously seasoned. You have the option to get a chimichurri or bearnaise sauce, both of which are excellent options. The lamb shank is a gluten free meal and was so soft it pulled right off to the bone! In terms of cocktails, La Française was a clear winner. Anything with St. Germain is an obvious choice. Our server was very friendly, also French, and such a delight throughout the meal service. I definitely recommend dining here for modestly priced options with great ambiance. (32/50--2024)

+4

Andrew Peluso

Came here with my girlfriend for lunch. The setting and ambience is a vibe. Great date spot. They have couches for seating and they are incredibly comfortable. The food was 3.9 stars, but the space is 5 stars. We got the Pasta Bolognese and Spicy Chicken Wings. I was happy enough with both dishes and the price was fair for the quality. Both left something to be desired in terms of flavor, texture, and presentation. I would gladly come back here but wouldn’t get the same meals. It’s worth a visit if you want a beautiful and cozy space to enjoy a meal in. P.S. The otherwise beautiful chandelier needs some TLC. There is so much dust on it that it looks fluffy.

+1

Bailey

Beautiful decor and chill vibes in this place. Food was flavorful and warm. Nice plate presentation and outdoor seating was available. The spaghetti tasted homemade and the steak was perfectly cooked and tender. The croissants 🥐 were super flaky and the jam complimented the flavors very well. Very nice spot and would come again.

Bo Begole

The ceviche was delicious! Bouilabaisse, outstanding. Lamb shank, delectable. But alas, the $19 glass of Zinfandel was corked. I don’t send stuff back. Get it right.

Lea

Nice place with options and good portions. We all enjoyed our dishes. The location is also great. The only reason I’m giving it three stars instead of 5 is because of the service. There was only one (!!!!) server in the whole restaurant, they were A LOT of tables. The server was lovely and attentive as much as they could but it’s absolutely ridiculous that management let that happen, especially on Saturday during brunch.

TiDa VISION

Unfortunately the hostess wasn't friendly or inviting when we arrived, so we were kinda disappointed entering the restaurant. Greetings are important! The place was PACKED, so we chose to sit inside. The restaurant is BEAUTIFUL and the offered seating is VERY COMFORTABLE! The calamari was OK, I am not a fan of too much grease, as that was my only reservation. My fiancée loved the burrata plate very much. We also ordered the mushroom pasta made with Morel mushrooms. SO DELICIOUS! They make it FRESH and it DOES NOT disappoint!The portions are more on the European side; smaller than most Americans are use to; however We found it sufficient. In keeping with the AWESOME mushroom theme, we also order their white mushroom pizza! We had an issue with the pizza but the manager was QUICK to remedy this for us. Overall it was pleasant but I'm not convinced it is worth a repeat visit. The restaurant business is HARSH so having polite employees goes SO FAR these days!

+2

Rashaud A

The food was pretty good over all. The service was great overall, until we were almost finished. Over all our waiter was great. However, after him bringing the check he decided to pretend he was going to cut my daughter’s hair, he had scissors in hand and lend over towards her with the scissors. My daughter was scared and my wife shielded her. My daughter was distraught and my was was extremely upset . Unfortunately, the ultimately derailed out Christmas dinner experience. My family was upset and I believe my daughter was traumatized. This was our family Christmas dinner.

Danielle Danielle

Well I’m not the one to complain but…. I drive in from Palm Springs and was excited to find a European restaurant in Santa Monica near me. I was seated with my aunt, we looked around and the fans up top were dirty like really dirty, then we sat down. I had soft jazz music playing to cancel out the loud road noise and homeless yelling and cussing outside, the waiter then brought us water and took our orders, as another couple left and told the waiter I was playing music on my phone which was not loud at all just low tone for me and my aunt to hear, the waiter then came and told me to turn my phone off and I asked why? He stated there is a certain atmosphere here and if I can turn it off, so I asked him if there was a law stating I couldn’t play my music? He then said can you just turn it off and I said no I’m good, and then said why didn’t you say anything about my music this whole time I’ve been playing music since we sat down, when you took our orders when you brought us two different appetizers he stated he didn’t even realize it was playing and I said exactly it’s not that loud. He said there’s a type of atmosphere here and I’m thinking the loud homeless people yelling or the Loud racing cars with music bumping. Then he never brought me the tea I ordered so I don’t know if he charged me for it because after he charged me and he asked me would I like a receipt I said yes and he acted as if he wasn’t going to get me one I waited and my aunt was like let’s just go. 😞 it’s too bad she never goes out and I thought taking her to a nice place like this would be fun but it was all bad. Bad experience won’t recommend people to come here And just unprofessional on the servers part. So I just told my aunt no worries let’s just go. She said it’s too bad that waiter asked you to turn off your music since it was better than listening to the cars passing by just left a bad taste in our mouths and for $90 bucks and a 14.something tip I could of got better service at YardHouse and got my receipt like I asked for. I eat out everywhere and it’s too bad this happened at a place like this. Just killed the exiting vibe and great night me and my aunt were having. Not satisfied as a customer. And I need my receipt for other reasons.

+5

Elaine Ghobrial

The food was really hit and miss: French fries: A+ Vegetable Couscous: C - it was served room temperature but the flavors were good. Mozzarella Pizza: B+ - this was good. Spaghetti Vongole: B - this was good but some of the clams were sandy Tiramisu: A - the fresh berries on top were a delicious addition to the traditional version. Provencal Mule: A We had a couple issues while dining at Massilia. 1. There were three of us dining. Two meals came out and one meal came out later. They should have all come out together. No problem. It happens, they offered to comp the dessert. 2. Food was spilled on the sofa we were sitting on and my friend's jacket brushed up against it. We notified the waiter so he could clean it up or have someone clean it up. Instead he brought the bus boys to our table. The two bus boys tried to plead their case insisting they didn't spill the food (or bring the food out late). We don't know who spilled the food but it was spilled. It just needed to be cleaned up. It's a restaurant...spills happen. However, it became a shouting match we never should have been part of. We paid the bill, with a tip (even though the waiter told us not to tip) and left. As we were leaving, one of the bus boys said "Don't come back." Somehow these ordinary infractions were horribly escalated. This is totally unacceptable and shows very poor management. I would avoid this establishment if you can. There are a myriad of better options in Santa Monica. If you value your dollar, go elsewhere.