WHY Bacon in your salad, bacon for your main course, bacon in your dessert. WHAT L.A.’s foodie sensation is a bare-bones room crammed with people who aren’t even mad that they had to wait 45 minutes… with a reservation. It helps that the staff is remarkably kind, but really it’s because who can stay mad [...]
February 4, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Excellent produce from McGrath’s and Kenter Canyon Farms, among many others, as well as wonderful eggs and free-range chickens from Healthy Family Farms, a good fish vendor, a few bakers and a great source for naturally raised bison. Switch from beef burgers to bison burgers—you won’t be sorry. WHAT One of the finest markets [...]
February 4, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Indonesian street food in its natural habitat. WHAT Set up in a parking lot behind a Duarte motel, Pondok Kaki Lima is one of L.A.’s brightest beacons of Indonesian cooking. The weekly food fair is a collection of a handful of vendors, most of which specialize in a single dish, even if they serve [...]
February 3, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY The kitchen knows when to take a fish off the grill and how to bring out the best in each dish—without overcomplicating it. The setting and the food combine to make this the perfect California restaurant. WHAT This lively (i.e. noisy) Abbot Kinney hot spot has a ’70s open-air Big Sur vibe but a [...]
February 1, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Parisian-style macarons, displayed like objets d’art, in the shop formerly known as Paulette (they dropped the ‘Pau’ after a trademark tussle). WHAT French macarons are not the dumpling-style macaroons (normally made of coconut) that we see in the U.S. These are light, tender-crisp sandwich-style cookies that look rather like colorful, miniature hamburgers, except the [...]
January 31, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY L.A.’s best-kept-secret French bistro. WHAT Almost hidden in a corner of the Farmers Market is a café as authentically French as any in Lyon. It’s part of the adjacent Mr. Marcel market, home of French cheeses, olives, wines, table linens and an array of gourmet foods. Unlike most Farmers Market eateries, which are order-at-the-counter [...]
January 30, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY A wee, charming spot with good, affordable wines, cheeses and charcuterie—just the place to transition from the work day to the evening. WHAT The smart folks behind one of our favorite wine bars, Bacaro, run this 600-square-foot spot in the heart of Downtown. Where Bacaro’s focus is Italian, here it’s French, with good, affordable [...]
January 29, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY For the little-known Muslim fare of Xinjiang, China’s autonomous far western region. WHAT The food at this homey café, a mesh of Chinese elements and central Asian nomad cooking, likely bears little resemblance to anything you’ve eaten in L.A. Sure, Xinjiang lamb kebabs are well known, but owner Munire Omar brings out zhuafan, a [...]
January 27, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Big salads of local provenance, and a huge, sunny patio on which to enjoy them. WHAT This always-busy outpost of the upscale cafeteria is notable for its 1,200-square-foot patio in back, as well as its roster of salads (grilled chicken Cobb; prawns with chorizo, lima beans, arugula, butter lettuce and lemon vinaigrette) and sandwiches. [...]
January 26, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Mexican dishes with a jolt of traditional flavors in a casual, eco-friendly storefront café. WHAT Tinga’s owners were inspired by Santa Barbara’s deceptively casual La Super Rica. Their thick corn tortillas also have a house-made heft, with cochinita pibil pork tacos as spicy as advertised. Taco plates, quesadillas, burritos and tortas made with steak, [...]
January 25, 2012 | Posted in
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