WHY A multi-purpose, festive Mexican spot with killer tequila selections in Downtown’s cocktail gulch. The downstairs rec room is fab for private parties. WHAT Silver Lake favorite Malo has spawned a bigger Downtown sister location in a cavernous and often deafeningly loud historic jewelry store. Hide out in the ’70s flashback basement lounge, or sip [...]
April 19, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY You never know where it’ll pop up or what’s on the menu, and that’s the fun of it. WHAT Good luck getting a reservation at L.A.’s (and now the nation’s) premiere pop-up restaurant. (So many people want in, the online reservation system usually crashes soon after it opens.) Ludovic Lefebvre is a classically trained [...]
April 18, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY Except for low prices, this place has everything that’s missing from Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne’s other restaurants with similar farmers’-market-friendly Cal-French cuisine: breakfast, brunch, kids’ menus, cocktail bar, even a takeout counter. WHAT This glammed-up addition to the Lucques/AOC family is light-filled by day and romantic by night, with a takeout-friendly café as [...]
April 16, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY Excellent and authentic Argentinean classics: empanadas, milanesa, white fish, huge platters of sizzling meat, mashed potatoes and bread pudding, all at more than reasonable prices. WHAT At this quirky café in the middle of a deli and meat market, patrons cheer their soccer team on TV or simply kibitz while munching on sandwiches slathered [...]
April 15, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY A near-perfect pairing of yakitori and oden. WHAT Torihei splits its kitchen equally between yakitori and oden, a relatively rare but harmonious coupling. The yakitori is made from tender, flavorful Jidori chicken.Oden is the more unusual of the specialties, a homey dish that’s typically prepared as a one-pot stew. Here, however, items are parceled [...]
April 14, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY New Orleans heaven: gumbo, jambalaya, soft-shell crab, crawfish etouffée and, most of all, the fried chicken. WHAT A landmark on a battered stretch of Jefferson, Harold & Belle’s is home to L.A.’s best Cajun and Creole cooking. This is not the funky dive some people expect given the neighborhood—it’s a nice restaurant with a [...]
April 11, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY Classic Javanese cooking and crisp fried chicken. WHAT The history of Merry Istiowati’s namesake restaurant traces back to her culinary academy in the Indonesian city of Surabaya. Here in a West Covina strip mall, her cooking is indebted to that past. There is, of course, ayam goreng kremesan, Indonesian fried chicken covered in crunchy [...]
April 7, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY Superb New York—style pizza, by the slice or the pie. WHAT Is this the best New York—style pizza in town? Many think so, and it’s certainly on our very short list. There’s no seating, just a stand-up counter with room for two to eat a slice or wait for a pie; Cheviot/Palms locals get [...]
April 1, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY A place for chileheads to give their palate a thrill ride. WHAT Light years beyond kung pao, the Sichuan fare at this nicely designed little storefront is the winning contender for capsicum artistry in a city filled with peppery stir fries and incendiary noodles. The fresh fish hot pot has a fan club, but [...]
March 31, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
WHY Downtown-style cocktail chic in a formerly frumpy Pasadena landmark restaurant. WHAT It was a stroke of genius for the owners of the Raymond, a pricey restaurant in a circa-1886 cottage, to turn space over to cocktail guru Aidan Demarest (of Edison and Seven Grand fame). The drinks are terrific, the cozy interior has a [...]
March 30, 2012 | Posted in
Discoveries |
Read More »
RSS Feed
Become a Fan
Follow Us
