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(19 Dec 2016) LEAD IN: Hollywood's hip restaurants are preparing for the holiday season in style. They've splashed out on special Christmas menus that include everything from hign end vegan dishes to oysters and saffron in a bid to lure famous faces for some festive cheer. STORY-LINE: LA's hot celebrity restaurants are booked solidly this month as holiday partying is underway. The hottest ticket in town is celebrity hot spot restaurant Catch. It's so popular, reservations must be made three weeks in advance, if you can get one at all. If you're lucky you might get a 5:30 PM seating. Catch has taken Hollywood by storm as it is now one of the new places to be seen. With paparazzi perched nightly, the place is usually filled with actors, models, musicians, agents, directors, producers, media personalities and CEO's. The restaurant says fans include; Bono, John Mayer, David Beckham, Kendall and Kylie Jenner, Paris Hilton, Sylvester Stallone, Jamie Fox, Demi Lovato, Joe Jonas, Chris Brown, Cindy Crawford, Selena Gomez, Cuba Gooding Jr., Brie Larson and Goldie Hawn has just had her birthday there. EMM Group, the restaurant and nightlife company, owns the 400 seat restaurant as well as locations in New York. Dubai and Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. The owners want Catch to be a hospitality experience where dining and nightlife synergize. There's a flower adorned rooftop with spectacular views, big circular booths, hand crafted cocktails, and it's set in the heart of the West Hollywood design district. Mark Birnbaum, EMM Co-founder and co-owner of Catch says many people are attracted by the stunning rooftop in a city with sunshine almost 365 days a year. "People love sitting outside, having this view, getting off the street away from the traffic, the noise and the cars and of course great food, great service and great vibe. If you can do those things well and not one or the other, then you will have a good hit on your hands," says Birnbaum. The food is also a star here. An army-like precision kitchen is on show behind glass allowing viewing from the restaurant. Birnbaum says reservations for the month of December have been non-stop as large groups and parties book nightly. Food specialties are sushi, fresh fish, meats, pastas, and a full vegan creation menu. For New Year's Eve the cost is $150 minimum for early seating, $250 minimum for later seating. Included on the New Years Eve menu is the visually stunning 2.5 pound Whole Roasted Branzino (seabass) stuffed with oven roasted heirloom tomatoes, clams, arugula, sunchokes puree ($75) and Blue Fin Toro ($37) with caviar and sesame vinaigrette appetizer and the Hit Me Chocolate dessert. Farley Elliott, Senior Editor for the website Los Angeles Eater says LA is the premiere dining city in the US. He says to become a celebrity hot spot, a venue must have excellent service, spectacular settings and culinary prowess. "I think there are a lot of factors that it takes to build a restaurant of a certain calibre that celebrities are going to want to go to. I think a lot of that has to do with ambiance building, an environment that people feel comfortable, people feel taken care of, there's exclusivity, there's wealth. If you go to a place like Catch, they've got a rooftop, beautiful view, there are security officers to sort of guide people into a particular segmented rooms and so you maybe play up and say I'm spending a little bit more money than I should at the bar but notice everybody, or you can be a celebrity and sort of hide away with your friends and it's capable of happening in the same type package," says Elliott. In Beverly Hills, Citizen is another new hotspot in full holiday mode booked with Christmas holiday parties. Cary Hardwick is the managing partner of Citizen. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/9ecb0b1024ee298b8ec61baf03a338a7 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork