Fathers Office   

Nestled among Montana Avenue's designer boutiques, Father's Office is a paean to post-modern cool with its dim lighting and meager decor. The bar wall reads like a United Nations of microbrews, including staples such as the Horny Devil and Delirium Nocturnum, while the tapas menu is a cosmopolitan mix of aged chorizo cheese, olive medleys and paprika-dusted almonds. Sweet-potato fries served 'a la carte' in miniature shopping trolleys are a delight, but the famed Office Burger, with its aged Gruyere and bleu cheeses, smoked apple-wood bacon and caramelized onions, is the joint's flagship offering. The Office Jukebox (well, CD player, anyway) seals the mellow vibe with mood music from Portishead and Morcheeba, but don't be fooled, this place rocks on weekends as a steady wave of both Westside locals and out-of-towners clamber to take in Santa Monica's savvy, young socialites and the area's best selection of import draughts. -- Jeremy Horelick