In the heart of Los Angeles, 3rd Street has been a food destination since the summer of 1934, when a group of farmers gathered at 3rd and Fairfax to sell their produce. Seventy-five years later, the L.A. Farmers Market hosts millions of tourists annually while remaining a popular gathering spot and food source for locals. The section of 3rd Street extending about a mile west from the market has evolved into one of the city’s top shopping rows, with plenty of gourmet food shops, restaurants, cafés and wine bars in the mix.

French-style baguette sandwiches and frites at Mr. Marcel

Start your tour at the Farmers Market, of course, with coffee and a bear claw at BOB’S COFFEE & DOUGHNUTS. It’s a superlative fried-dough experience coupled with unsurpassed people-watching: sugar-buzzed screenwriters, tables of elderly regulars on their third cup of decaf and bemused out-of-towners on a bus tour. Nearby, HUNTINGTON MEATS sells Harris Ranch beef as well as an impressive array of house-made sausages and a hamburger blend ground to chef Nancy Silverton’s specifications. Huntington is next to MONSIEUR MARCEL GOURMET MARKET, which aims to satisfy all cravings, from anchovies to Zinfandel; the adjacent café serves authentically French salade de chevre chaud and poulet rôti.

Just steps away is LITTLEJOHN’S CANDIES, an old-fashioned candy shop where visitors can watch the confectioners make their justly famous English toffee. At the other end of the market is MARCONDA’S MEATS, a butcher shop that custom-cuts meats to the most demanding standards and offers its own meatloaf blend in ready-to-bake pans. If it’s time for lunch, head to LOTERIA GRILL, a Mexican counter spot that serves very good tacos (try the cochinita pibil, carne asada or a vegetarian option).

There are many other worthy food options here, but with 3rd Street beckoning, head west to AOC, a wine bar and dinner-only restaurant owned by Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne, where you can pair tastes from one of L.A.’s most interesting wine lists with delicious appetizers and roasted items from the wood-burning oven (reservations advised). The wine theme continues with TASCA, another very good wine bar about a block west (also only open for dinner), specializing in Spanish and Italian-style tapas.

The bakery counter at Joan's on Third

Farther along the same side of the street, the ultra-charming, pricey, open-air restaurant THE LITTLE DOOR has become so popular that it recently added a companion café/market, LITTLE NEXT DOOR, which sells house-made preserves from kumquat jelly to duck confit, along with pastries, prepared foods, cheeses and charcuterie. Another great spot for browsing is JOAN’S ON THIRD, a café, bakery, gourmet-to-go and caterer that recently expanded, making room for one of the city’s best selections of gourmet items. We’re heartbroken to report that neighborhood landmark THE COOK’S LIBRARY closed recently, but you’ll find many good food-related travel books next door at TRAVELER’S BOOKCASE.

Since reading about food and travel stimulates the appetite, it’s fortunate that the bookstore isn’t far from MINESTRAIO TRATTORIA, chef Gino Angelini’s newish spot in the Orlando Hotel. Sit down and relax over a glass of Prosecco and some salumi. You can stay here for dinner (delicious and surprisingly inexpensive handmade pasta dishes), or backtrack a few blocks east to Celadon, the Little Door, Tasca or AOC. As long as you stay on 3rd, you can’t lose.

—Jean T. Barrett

In the Farmers Market at 3rd and Fairfax:

Bob’s Coffee & Doughnuts
323.933.8929

Huntington Meats
323.936.5379

Littlejohn’s Candies
323.936.5379

Loteria Grill
323.930.2211

Marconda’s Meats
323.938.5131

Monsieur Marcel Gourmet Market
323.939.7792

Along 3rd:

AOC
8022 W. 3rd St., 323.653.6359

Joan’s on Third
8350 W. 3rd St., 323.655.2285

Minestraio Trattoria
8434 W. 3rd St., 323.782.8384 

The Little Door
8134 W. 3rd St., 323.951.1210

Little Next Door
8142 W. 3rd St., 323.951.1010

Tasca
8108 W. 3rd St., 323.951.9890

Traveler’s Bookcase
8375 W. 3rd St., 323.655.0575

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