Some people arrange their weekly schedules around Angelini's specials: kidney stew on Tuesdays; braised oxtails on Wednesdays, liver alla Veneziana on Thursdays. Read more.
Popular dishes include olive oil-poached baby octopus, wild mushrooms and stewed peas, honey-glazed ribs, and daily specials like rack of rabbit.
Cooks County is a restaurant you could visit three times a week and then come back for oxtail hash and cheese biscuits at Sunday brunch. Read more.
The couple next to us flirted over Champagne and rich,sensual triple crème. They weren't the only ones that night. Somebody else was smooching on the other side of the zinc bar. Read more.
"His prickly pear fruit mimosa is brilliant. So is the house-cured gravlax, slow-smoked and served with crème fraîche subtly flavored with bonito shavings." Read more.
Gjelina is cheerful, boozy & known for both its good-looking customers & Travis Lett's decent organic-fetish Italian food. The scene may be as crunchy as the pizza crust, but relax: It's Abbot Kinney. Read more.
L.A.’s essential rice pudding: touched with cinnamon, drizzled with heavy cream, coaxing the nutty, rounded essence out of every grain of rice. Read more.
The house-smoked Hunan ham has the smoky punch of first-rate barbecue, coarsely chopped and sautéed with dried long beans, garlic cloves, chopped chiles. Read more.
Chefs Jaime Martin del Campo and Ramiro Arvizu are everywhere if you follow Spanish-language media. Try the purple-corn pozole, delicious enfrijoladas, and an impeccable version of chiles en nogada! Read more.
Mantee brings a different kind of edge to Lebanese-Armenian cuisine. Try the platter of beef dumplings sizzling in a bath of garlicky yogurt. Read more.
We sometimes dream of living close to Marouch, close enough anyway to drop in at noon for grilled quail and a beer and midafternoons for a Lebanese sweet and a thimble of thick Turkish coffee. Read more.
The luxury ingredients and luxury prices seem not to dissuade diners who are happy to face down $175 asparagus dinners, showers of truffles and caviar, and even the standard $125 prix fixe. Read more.
Musso's, if you look at it a certain way, is a living museum of 1920s American cuisine: avocado cocktails, crab Louie, jellied consommé, grilled lamb kidneys and Wednesday sauerbraten. Read more.
Nickel Diner bakes its own bread, prepares elaborate cakes and maple-bacon doughnuts and makes delicious fried catfish with corn cakes. Don’t miss the Lowrider Burger. Read more.
Don't miss the bufala mozzarella draped with spectacular anchovy with Meyer lemon and an herb salad. Nancy Silverton makes a great a caprese with bufala, cherry tomatoes and basil.
The thick wine list at Patina is rich in hidden treasures if you are willing to consider Corbières or Slovenian Pinot Gris instead of Napa Chardonnay. Read more.
Get the mole sampler and spend the evening comparing Oaxacan black mole with mellower mole Poblano; with the spicy, smoky mancha manteles; or with the signature mole de los dioses. Read more.
The dishes are exquisitely constructed: An encapsulation of liquid cheese that might be bouncy and over-thick in Bazaar's main dining room will be delicate at SAAM. Read more.
You’re here for an astonishing quantity of meat, charcuterie ranging from potted duck with blueberries to the intense house-cured bacon, and a menu of simple, butcher’s food. Read more.
Go straight for the crabs fried with chile and garlic; the crocks of Old Alley Pork, braised into pig candy; the smoked fish; the stone-pot fried rice; or the pan-fried pork buns. Read more.
The most famous restaurant in the observable universe, reinvented by Wolfgang Puck and his new chef, Tetsu Yahagi. The thick prime rib steak sings with the flavors of blood, age and char. Read more.
Specialty: pasta, handmade, whole-wheat rigatoni more or less in the style of cacio e pepe, cooked extremely al dente and tossed with cheese and a punishing handful of black pepper. Read more.
The turkey sandwich is heavenly: thick slices of nicely brined bird layered on dense house-made bread with thin slivers of just-ripe Camembert cheese, arugula and cherry mostarda. Read more.
Tar & Roses, which also has a terrific, mostly Italian, wine list, may also mark the first time in our nation's history when cauliflower became more delicious than prime steak. Read more.
The basic impression is of Italian cooking translated into an odd American dialect, in which grilled anchovies are laid so beautifully on the plate that you suspect there's an art director. Read more.
The chef, Nicola Mastronardi, is a master of the big, hardwood-burning ovens, of roast porchetta and cuttlefish salad, of the flavors of salt, clean ocean and smoke. Read more.
The Corner Place offers a good number of variety meats for those bored with brisket and pork belly. Try the delicious marinaded bulgogi, the chewy shank bits, or the melt-in-your-mouth tongue slices. Read more.
Don’t miss the Guadalajara-style birria: roasted kid hacked into chunks and served in a strong consommé that tastes like amplified pan drippings. Read more.
These are the best fries in L.A. They are piping hot and ultra-crispy, just beginning to soften in pungent, creamy ultra-garlic paste. Read more.
Get slightly more burn with the dazzling tom yum pork noodle, afloat with crispy fried pork belly squares, lean ground pork patties, shrimp, meatballs and a sprinkling of crunchy ground peanut topping Read more.
At Lunasia the most iconic item is probably the jumbo shiu mai, a roe-crowned dumpling the size of a child’s fist, which requires two bites minimum. Read more.
Get a bowl of boat noodles with clean broth that sings with capsicum heat: Read more.
The char-speckled mixed tandoori platter is a must order, stacked with brick-red chicken, cubes of lamb, and long beef seekh kebabs.
Don’t be surprised if you run into a celebrity or two here — Asanebo inspires fierce loyalty in its customers, many of whom just happen to be movie stars. Read more.
This Downtown LA Indian joint is a family affair that serves a lamb burger worthy of their legacy.
As my Texas friend would be the first to tell you, Bar Amá may be the first place in the history of Los Angeles restaurants where it is possible to order a chicken-fried steak without embarrassment. Read more.
I could happily order the grand seafood platter with another person and spend the evening working through the oysters, clams, shrimp, Dungeness crab and more, polishing off the lobster @ the very end. Read more.
At Brent's, an LA sandwich institution, the smoked pile of peppered-at-the-edges pastrami seem to multiply endlessly with every bite. There is something more at work than just your average reuben.
"Pig's ear 'Cheetos,' guacamole fluff and lemondrop martini Kool Pops from a cart. The future is already here." Read more.
Must have: the tiny flautas, the house specialty, are tightly rolled and very crisp, buried under layers of chile sauce, thick guacamole and tart Mexican sour cream. Read more.
Craft is in the weeds...literally: It’s debuting a menu devoted to wild fennel. Try the meaty halibut with fennel purée, soubise made from the bulbs and stems, and a finish of delicate fronds: Read more.
Call in early enough to order the feast of roast duck. But the newer thing to try is the smoked duck, which is then sliced thinly & finished off on a table-top grill, paired with a variety of sauces. Read more.
If you have contemplated a meal of blowfish, your dreams were probably shaped by the popular conception of the notorious fish of death. Here it's the centerpiece of a pleasant evening. Read more.
LA Weekly's Best of LA 2010 pick - Best Late-Night Korean/Best Kim Jong Il Mural!
"Tiny Peruvian scallops, cold and fresh, have a penetrating nutty sweetness only heightened by a pinch of spiced salt." Read more.
They make a mean gua bao, or a fatty pork sandwich studded with peanuts, a tangy hoisin sauce and cilantro. Read more.
This higher-end Korean barbecue is most notable for having 20-plus banchan just before the meat comes out. And the beef is near the top in terms of quality. Read more.
Tony Bourdain tried the side dishes. Ham Ji Park is famous for 3 dishes (pork belly, pork spare ribs marinated in spicy pepper paste, and pork stew).
The rice is warm, and the sushi is achingly fresh, though selections are a bit more straightforward than other high-end places. To get beyond the set menu with special items, politely ask the chef.
Frito Pie in a Bag. Chili con carne joins shredded cheddar, crisp iceberg lettuce, diced tomato, tangy sour cream, and tart pickled jalapenos, layered textures & flavors coalescing in the Fritos bag.
The hui tou really are good soup dumplings, tender and swollen with hot broth, plumped out with fresh crabmeat, although in retrospect they may not be the soup dumplings of a specialist. Read more.
Ichimi-an specializes in soba and udon, both hot and cold, which they make in-house. Try the hot buckwheat soba with mochi or the cold, green-tea flavored soba, served with umi plums and shiso. Read more.
Fish, man - raw fish - from Tokyo’s Tsukiji Market and jetted right to you, careful slabs of yellowtail, tuna, fluke, sprinkled with salt & drizzled olive oil, Italian sashimi on a pretty glass plate! Read more.
Jeon Ju's stone pot bibimbap bowls are still some of the best in town. The fried fish and hearty bowls of kimchi and soybean paste stew are also tops. Read more.
Featured in LA Weekly's "30 Scoops in 30 Days" Read more.
Sit alongside Japanese businessmen for a lunch of tonkotsu. The pork broth’s velvety texture and intensity make us appreciate the minimal garnishes of bamboo, nori, mushroom and slice of char siu. Read more.
Fish is the star of the menu, but that's only one reason the 18-year-old restaurant's loyal clientele keeps returning. The seasonal banchan outshines those found at most Korean barbecues. Read more.
Cochinita Pibil is the order of the day at La Flor de Yucatan, the 40 year old Pico-Union bakery-cum-taqueria. The Mayan specialties that flow out of this smallish space are authentic and delicious. Read more.
Modeled on neighborhood Creole Italian places from New Orleans, so along with the burrata salad you get oyster po' boys, crawfish garnishing grilled fish, and fried shrimp with artichokes. Read more.
The duck is brought out with its lacquered hide separated from the moist flesh (a bland soup is made with the carcass), which you wrap in a rice-flour pancake... Read more.
Here we find the best version yet of the chef’s signature vacherin glacé, set atop raspberry coulis. Read more.
A swanky restaurant tucked into the Terranea resport in Rancho Palos Verdes, which clings to the cliffs of Los Angeles' South Bay.
"Are there vegetables, a boiled egg, a handful of bean sprouts in the broth? There are not. Broth and noodles. The Noodle Boy has spoken." Read the entire Jonathan Gold review by clicking 'More Info' Read more.
The esprit of Nozawa lives on at this smaller, more intimate sushi bar behind the Sugarfish in Beverly Hills, where a fixed omakase gets served with extreme precision. Quality of fish is top notch.
Try out our new obsession here: roasted duck salad. Once you grab a bite with a fingerful of sticky rice, soaking up the lime-and-fish-sauce-heavy dressing, you'll quickly understand why we order it: Read more.
"You're eating spicy pork belly with raw garlic and fresh herbs. And sometimes, maybe most of the time, happiness is an end in itself." - Jonathan Gold
The menu here changes weekly, but expect to find stuff like filet of trout w/ quinoa, beets, and nettle reduction. Read more.
Order Mama Leah's Coconut Beef, its smoked nuggets lacquered with a thick layer of rich coconut sauce: Read more.
Wait for a hot, crisp-crusted 18-inch pizza. We enjoyed the herb-flecked beef-and-pork meatballs, which pepper the pizza landscape like boulders on the moon: Read more.
Papaya salad FTW. Also they'll make the crispy pork with morning glory if you ask.
We love Scott Conant's Beverly Hills brunch and it's a great deal with the pricy spaghetti dish included. Read more.
For lovers of funk-laced ciders, lesser-known Spanish wines, sherries and even dry rieslings, Smoke.oil.salt has you covered. Read more.
Barbecue is hardly an American creation. At this Koreatown restaurant, specialties such as bool kogi and kalbi kui are grilled on charcoal-burning braziers in the center of your table Read more.
This is not a masochist's stinky tofu. This is a subtle, carefully controlled, artful bit of fermented snackery. Be sure to check out the stuff on the menu labeled "Memorable Side Dishes." Read more.
Jonathan Gold says: I will never forget my first taste of Quintarelli Amarone here, which is as close as I had gotten to a sweet, musky taste of heaven. Read more.
Southern hospitality here is never in doubt. As with previous occupants, the patio at Willie Jane is the place to be.
Chef Hughes Quintard cooks eclectic fare inspired by the Mediterranean countryside, whipping up duck confit ravioli, braised oxtail with pappardelle, and vegan roasted vegetable stew with cous cous. Read more.
Entrees come with a kind of Euro-banchan: thick sourdough crepe, horseradish butter, carrot salad, wood-roasted tomato and more. Read more.
This sleek Italian restaurant pays homage to the 1950s, NYC-Style Italian steakhouses. Their dry-aged steaks are charred and cooked to perfection and they also excel in their freshly-made pastas. Read more.
Try their Zigong Rabbit, which is stir-fried with dry peppers and served cold on a bed of chili peppers chunks. Novice spice eaters should stay away from this dish as it is extremely spicy. Read more.
The sticky toffee pudding is an archetype, a round of dank cake with a slick toffee surface, its dark sugar flavor seeping into every nook of the dessert. A Read more.
Ledlow offers a burger that's a cheffed-up look at yesteryear. 4oz house-ground patties can be stacked three to a bun if desired and each is cut through with a double dose of American & cheddar cheese Read more.
The tortelloni here is all plant-based, which means no egg. Still satisfying for diners looking for a delicious vegan pasta. Filled with almond cheese and laced with oven-dried tomatoes. Read more.
Featured at the First LA Weekly Tacolandia serving their incredible Birria Tacos with Goat Meat in a tomato broth! Read more.
Some of the dishes are straight-up statuesque, such as monkfish tikka masala, which comes as two kebabs resting on a wooden board, in a creamy, modestly spiced sauce and crowned w/a sculptural papadam Read more.
This comfortable Italian-esque restaurant produces an expansive menu of approachable pastas, salumi, pizzas, and hot plates that should appeal to nearly everyone. Read more.
Unlike Aro Latin, Don Chente serves one of the best aguachiles around, its vibrant green sauce bright with lime and chile, the shrimp almost creamy, the avocado topping beautifully ripe. Read more.
It's a modern, multi-level Asian eating house complete with its own rooftop deck, which is a huge draw. The menu is inspired by Chef Tikaram's Fijian-Chinese heritage and Australian roots. Read more.
Go with a friend, & get both the goat and the lamb, which is cooked in avocado leaf and chiles and comes with a bowl of juices for dipping the meat! Featured at the First Annual LA Weekly Tacolandia! Read more.
Kinjiro is an upscale izakaya located in Honda Plaza that focuses on premium and sustainable ingredients. Imported straight from Japan, the A5 wagyu steak sirloin will melt in your mouth. Read more.
The tofu is served in thick chunks and scored slightly so that the aroma wafts out. It’s a lovely dish (if you like stinky tofu) served with pickled cabbage, and it pairs well with the pork over rice. Read more.
The oyster pancake is not too gloopy, and the oysters are plump. Pair with a side of stinky tofu, because a primer to Taiwanese food is incomplete without it. Read more.
