WHY Delicious updated feel-good food, like sloppy joes, saucy BBQ pork, soups and vegetable lasagne, to feed two people or a crowd. WHAT In addition to being one of L.A.’s more popular caterers, Annie Miler also runs this café, bakery and takeout place. Some dishes, like sandwiches and breakfast items, are served on an individual [...]
May 16, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Warmth, a strong sense of neighborhood and a serious approach to food—and, more importantly, to Mexican chocolate in all its forms. WHAT The name was a poor choice—everyone stumbles over it—but everything else about this richly colorful café/deli/market succeeds. You order at the counter to eat in the café or out on the patio, [...]
May 4, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY With its chill vibe and entertaining concept—six choices in each category (appetizers, sides, entrées), six brews on tap and six wines by the glass—the Six fills a gaping need in the Overland-Pico neighborhood, where the mall overwhelms sidewalk life. WHAT This café-pub is a relaxed but confident departure for owners Will Karges and Jake [...]
April 30, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Starry Kitchen spices up the Downtown lunch scene with a modern, irreverent approach to Vietnamese-influenced cooking. WHAT California Plaza is a little less corporate with the success of freewheeling Starry Kitchen, which started as an underground restaurant in the owner’s apartment. You pick a protein (free-range lemongrass chicken, the famed crispy tofu balls, spicy [...]
April 29, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Of all the great westside hybrid café/takeout/gourmet markets that have popped up recently, this is the first that doesn’t feel like a lunchtime splurge, with most sandwiches and salads priced less than $10. WHAT Regulars come here for Chinese chicken salad with fried won tons and sugar snaps; tomato, mozzarella and pesto sandwiches; and [...]
April 28, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY First-rate short-order cooking served in a classic lunch-counter diner that’s been here for more than 50 years. WHAT With its lunch counter, black-and-white linoleum floor and retro feel, this small coffee shop would seem more suited to the Midwest than West Hollywood. But it’s beloved by locals for just that old-time atmosphere (and service), [...]
April 21, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Good-value Indian cooking in an area that appreciates it, with free delivery to boot. WHAT Bright and busy, this affordable café has an extensive vegetarian menu, prepared in a separate kitchen, but carnivores are not neglected—the tandoor chicken is savory, and the tikka masala is satisfying. Be warned that the hot dishes are seriously [...]
March 23, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY On a coolish day there’s nothing better than a big bowl of Jinya’s aromatic tonkotsu ramen, laden with toothsome noodles and sliced pork belly. WHAT A Jonathan Gold rave put this ramen house on the foodie map, despite its location in a dark corner of a Studio City strip mall next to Marshall’s. The [...]
March 21, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY Echo Park mixes it up with a winning combo of reasonable prices and modern Vietnamese food that incorporates a nod to the neighborhood’s Latin American roots. WHAT Tacos get a burst of rich flavor from pho-style beef, while dishes like Vietnamese crèpes, mi quang (a rice noodle dish with shrimp and pork) and banh [...]
March 9, 2012 | Posted in
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WHY It’s a special occasion. Or your boss is paying. Or you’re coming before 7 p.m. for the light $24 three-course meal, great for pre-theater. WHAT Glide through the Ritz-Carlton lobby, ascend 24 floors heavenward, make your way through the hubbub of the lounge and prepare to enjoy some of the best food ever served [...]
February 15, 2012 | Posted in
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