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Los Angeles may be known for its beach living and celebrity-infused backdrop, but it was once a farm town. The hillsides were covered in citrus orchards and dairy farms, and agriculture was a major industry. Today, even as L.A. is urbanized, the city's culinary landscape has re-embraced a local, sustainable, and seasonal philosophy at many levels—from fine dining to street snacks.
With a growing interest in farm-to-fork, the city's farmers' market scene has exploded, becoming popular at big-name restaurants and small eateries alike. In Hollywood and Santa Monica you can often find high-profile chefs scouring farm stands for fresh produce.
Yet the status of the celebrity chef continues to carry weight around this town. People follow the culinary zeitgeist with the same fervor as celebrity gossip. You can queue up with the hungry hordes at Mozza or try and snag a reservation to the ever-popular Trois Mec that’s much like getting a golden ticket these days. Elsewhere, the seasonally driven bakery and insanely popular Huckleberry in Santa Monica has been given a Brentwood counterpart with the rustically sweet Milo & Olive created by the same owners. In Culver City, a run-down International House of Pancakes has been turned into the ski chalet–inspired A-Frame Tavern. The Ace Hotel opened an L.A. chapter Downtown, creating a hip haven when you can enjoy cocktails and locally sourced menu items poolside or in the restaurant.
Ethnic eats continue to be a backbone to the L.A. dining scene. People head to the San Gabriel Valley for dim sum, ramen, and unassuming taco lounges; Koreatown for epic Korean cooking and late-night coffeehouses; and West L.A. and "the Valley" for phenomenal sushi. Latin food is well represented in the city, making it tough to choose between Guatemalan eateries, Peruvian restaurants, nouveau Mexican bistros, and Tijuana-style taco trucks. With so many dining options, sometimes the best strategy is simply to drive and explore.
Legendary Italian chef Massimo Bottura opened this spot, his first L.A. eatery, to loads of fanfare and celebrity sightings. The restaurant mirrors the Florence, Italy, location of the same name with a menu filled with favorites like a mouthwatering tortellini with Parmigiano Reggiano crema. The locale sits atop the roof of the Gucci retail outlet on Rodeo Drive with prime positioning for watching the high-end shoppers and glitzy denizens of the neighborhood.
Heaven for carnivores, this upscale European-style butcher shop and fine-dining restaurant serves wood-fire-cooked meats in a copper-and-marble art deco setting. From Australian celeb-chef Curtis Stone and his brother, Luke, and named for their grandmother, Gwen's butcher shop serves up quality cuts of humanely raised meats to locals during the day, while the elegant dining space within view of the glass-enclosed dry-age rooms, charcuterie curing, and roaring firepit elevates the smoking, searing, and roasting of those quality meats to an art form by night. The focus is obviously meat here but the seasonal sides, cocktails, desserts, and Australian coffees are superior, too. Daytime there's coffee and pastries available; sit at the outside patio for a refined coffee break.
It's a gem tucked within a treasure box: hidden within Citrin, a one-Michelin-star restaurant, is Mélisse, a two-Michelin-star restaurant. Chef-owner Josiah Citrin entrusts chef/partner Ken Takayama to blend his modern French cooking with seasonal California produce at this Santa Monica institution. On any given night, the rotating,18-course tasting menu might feature Santa Barbara uni cromesquis, Kagoshima A5 Wagyu beef or a hojicha macaron. The cheese cart is packed with domestic and European selections, and the dining room is contemporary yet elegant, with well-spaced tables and fine china. The tasting menu can be made vegetarian.
Chef’s Table star Niki Nakayama helms this Michelin-starred kaiseki fine-dining establishment. Small and intimate, any given night might feature sashimi with kanpachi, sea bass with uni butter, or Myazaki Wagyu beef. Wine and sake pairings are tailored to your palate and never miss the spot. The meal is three hours, and not cheap, but worth every minute.
This is widely considered one of the best seafood restaurants in the country, and chef-owner Michael Cimarusti elevates sustainably driven fine dining to an art form. The elegant space is the perfect spot to sample exquisite seafood with the chef's signature application of French technique, traditional American themes, and Asian accents. Pastry chef Mac Daniel Dimla’s exquisite desserts are not to be missed. Obsessed with quality, Cimarusti maintains a network of purveyors who often tip him off to their catches in order to ensure that the fish on your plate is the freshest in the city. The drinks menu is equally elevated with a creative non-alcoholic beverages available that can be paired with each course.
Wolfgang Puck's flagship restaurant is a modern L.A. classic. Spago centers on a buzzing redbrick outdoor courtyard (with retractable roof) shaded by 100-year-old olive trees, and a daily-changing menu that offers dishes like smoked salmon pizza or off-menu schnitzel. Dessert is magical, with everything from an ethereal mango soufflé to artisanal cheeses. Opt for the tasting menu as it comes with a personal tour of the kitchen, and if you’re lucky, a meet and greet with Puck himself.
One of L.A.'s finest sushi restaurants, Asanebo is a no-frills establishment serving a wealth of innovative dishes made with top-quality raw fish and A5 Wagyu to an A-list clientele and monied business men. For more than three decades the downright giddy sushi sensei Tetsuya Nakao has whipped up succulent scallop yuzu with caviar, halibut truffle sashimi, and lemon basil salmon. There is also a full range of soups, salads, tempura, and charcoal-grilled seafood and meats. If you want to try a little of everything, sign up for the omakase.
One minute you’re in an old library quickly converted into a lounge, the next you’re in the cabana of a modest country club. Yet Firefly's eclectic design is part of its appeal, and its excellent, if a bit pricey, French-American fare will make you forget all about it.
Tucked into the back of Sugarfish (a popular sushi chain) in the middle of Beverly Hills, this secret omakase sushi spot has only 10 seats, where master chef Osamu Fujita slices up the freshest cuts of raw fish from a 20+-course tasting menu. If you ever wanted to get a one-on-one with a culinary wizard, this is your chance as you sit a foot away from the chef while he prepares your perfect portions. Reservations aren't easy, but can be made 60 days in advance.
Vespertine earned two Michelin stars by providing a disruptive multisensory event and a space-age dining experience that's nothing short of unique. Chef Jordan Kahn—who cut his chops as Thomas Keller's youngest-ever chef at French Laundry while still a teenager—and architect Eric Owen Moss have created a one-of-a-kind, spare, undulating space with a menu that's as artistic as it is delicious. You’ll need to fork over $395 for the tasting menu, and the food and the atmosphere have both been contentious over the years, but think of the expense and experience as an artistic journey into a foodie wonderland.
