Los Angeles Restaurants

At glam and dimly-lit La Dolce Vita, you’re looking at a menu of Italian-American classics: dry martinis, strip steaks, and spaghetti bathed in red sauce and parmesan-dusted meatballs. It’s all impressively good without reinventing the wheel, and the service is excellent.

This place is all about its platters of oysters, crudo, and peel-and eat prawns. Go for one of those, plus an order of white anchovies and Bub & Grandma’s bread. Ask your server about pairings from their curated wine list.

When Clark Street took over the former 101 Coffee Shop space, locals crossed their fingers that not too much has changed. And Clark Street Diner honors the building’s roots: They serve standard diner fare, just with better bread.

Hippo, with its flowery murals decorated with cartoonish animals, is playfully unserious; it’s just as much about a good time as it is about good food. The house-made noodles are the real deal. Go with a group and catch up over crudo and something grill-fired, or take the kids after practice for spaghetti on the patio.

Everyone’s here for the duck carnitas. Order a few tacos to go or settle in with a cocktail.

From the same people who started LA Cha Cha Chá in the Arts District, Loreto is a high-end seafood spot inspired by the bold, zingy flavors of the Baja peninsula. The space feels expansive, with a wide bar, several dining rooms, and a sandy patio. By day, they serve a separate lunch menu under the name Za Za Zá—still seafood-heavy, with agua frescas and micheladas to boot.

Chef Justin Pichetrungsi received a James Beard award shortly after taking over his family’s Thai restaurant in Sherman Oaks. In a city full of great Thai spots, it’s one of the best. The à la carte menu is classic—chicken satay, drunken noodles, and curries, all present—with seasonal twists. Two special menus to consider: One weekend a month, Anajak Thai hosts a ticketed omakase-style dinner. And every Tuesday, they take walk-ins only for an unbelievably good taco night starring excellent ingredients like albacore, uni, and ikura. 

For a (garlicky, lemony) taste of Lisbon summer, go to Barra Santos and order tuna crudo, sardine toasties, and the house vinho. They don’t take reservations—you can order a glass of wine to the sidewalk while you wait.

Chef Brian Dunsmoor’s successor to Hatchet Hall stakes itself as a new classic for smoky, cast-iron Americana. Opt for a hearty lamb shoulder or heritage Kentucky ham. They also have an astounding wine list.

In Silver Lake, locals line up well before first pitch to catch a table at Avish Naran’s James Beard Award-winning Indian sports bar. Naran and chef Miles Shorey have done away with the less desirable qualities of a sports bar situation—sticky floors and ranch dressing, begone—in favor of blonde wood and Indian twists on classic bar fare, like dosa onion rings and paneer pizzas. To skip the line, it’s well worth the small hassle of booking reservations, which release at midnight a week in advance.