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I've always been puzzled by two restaurants next door to each other on Washington Blvd. in Culver City's new downtown. It's not unusual for restaurants to locate in the same area, and even next door to each other - look at mall food courts. But Double Dutch Dinette is right next door to another diner even though there are no other diners in the area, and the area is pretty large.

But my bewilderment only lasted until I actually ate at Double Dutch Dinette because it’s a dinette, not a diner. I always thought a dinette was a table and chairs for under $100 at Ikea, but a dinette is also “a small space usually off a kitchen used for informal dining.” That is a fairly accurate description of Double Dutch Dinette - a small informal little restaurant.

The interior is like a kitschy retro diner. The food, too, is homestyle diner-inspired, but a little more up-scale. Salads dominate the lunch menu – perfect for what I am guessing is an entertainment/studio-heavy clientele (Sony Pictures HQ and studios are all over Culver City). There is everything from simple mixed greens, to classic selections like chef’s and Caesar, to more creative or exotic choices like Beijing chicken and Thai steak. Niçoise, with albacore tuna, red potatoes, and olives chopped and tossed together is my favorite, and the Exotic chicken with apricots, feta cheese and walnuts isn't bad, though I've always wondered what was so exotic about it.

Double Dutch has sandwiches, a few hot entrees, and strictly vegetarian dishes as well, some of them dinette-y like a BLT and turkey meatloaf, and some of them not as dinette-y, like baked polenta and raspberry salmon, which is the most expensive thing on the menu at $13. The dinner menu is almost identical, only a few dollars more expensive for each item.

Double Dutch Dinette
9806 Washington Boulevard
Culver City, CA 90232
(310) 280-0991
www.jenniecooks.com/DDD/