WHY Free backyard fruit, vegetables and herbs from thoughtful urban farmers. WHAT Actress Hynden Walch started this nonprofit co-op, through which residents from Glassell Park, Silver Lake, Los Feliz and Eagle Rock drop off their excess backyard crops at a pre-set time and place, and Walch and volunteers bag up assortments that are then delivered [...]
WHY Real shabu-shabu made with exceptional ingredients, notably the Wagyu beef. Best of all: When you finish cooking and eating your meat, seafood and veggies, they take the pot back to the kitchen and turn the now-rich broth into a heavenly thick soup with rice or udon. WHAT It’s a modest-looking place, and shabu-shabu (meat, [...]
WHY Local microbrews, good wine by the glass and tasty, affordable modern pub chow. Try the quick-fried garbanzo beans, the soups, the shrimp bruschetta and the fish ‘n chips. WHAT A high-ceilinged old brick building in gentrifying Highland Park is home to this simple but stylish pub, a pioneer in L.A.’s gastropub movement. Order your [...]
WHY One of the first spruced-up bars of Downtown’s renaissance. Kogi fans take note that the taco truck sometimes parks outside. WHAT The funky name and neon sign date from the bar’s original incarnation, but this modern version is a sleek stop on the Downtown bar circuit, with an outdoor smoking area complete with couches. [...]
WHY Need we remind you of the importance of supporting a 58-year-old antiquarian bookstore that celebrates the printed page? WHAT Owner Leonard Bernstein (not that Lenny) focuses on all aspects of western American history including culinary (he was the one to get MFK Fisher’s papers and books upon her death in 1992), with attention to [...]
WHY Chinatown restaurants can seem all too similar, but JR stands out for hot pots, lobster specials and well-prepared standards. WHAT The same owners’ JR Restaurant was one of the westside’s top Chinese restaurants, and faithful customers will find many of the same favorites at this slightly slicker updated spot with white tablecloths, beer and [...]
WHY A terrific array of Italians and a brick-walled, candlelit basement tasting room that’s become the hippest spot in Atwater every night from 5 to 10 p.m. WHAT This eastern outpost of Santa Monica’s Wine Expo is an oenophile hot spot in suddenly hip Atwater. As in Santa Monica, the specialty is small-producer Italian wines [...]
WHY Ultra-fresh Mexican-style seafood, including Happy Oysters, freshly shucked and topped with a vibrant chopped shrimp cocktail, andcaldo de siete mares, a light soup generously stocked with Alaskan crab legs, mussels and shrimp. WHAT This eastside branch of the Inglewood original serves the seafood dishes of Mexico’s Pacific Coast beach towns, and while it’s not [...]
WHY Simple, perfectly grilled pork, beef and chorizo tacos. WHAT Some love the carne asada, others prefer the lengua (tongue), but all agree this truck parked outside the Vons market on Alvarado grills up some of the best meats in the area. Come anytime after 7 p.m., but expect crowds later in the evening, when [...]
WHY For ‘slow’ fast food that’s really tasty: pulled pork, rotisserie chicken, burgers, Belgian fries, fresh salads and monster cupcakes. WHAT A former drive-through got a near-complete makeover but still retained its ’60s A-frame goofiness. The gimmick is fast food prepared the slow way, with quality ingredients—a burger joint for people who read Cook’s Illustrated [...]
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