Los Angeles isn’t just an elite city for sunshine and surf. It’s also a premiere dining destination. In fact, some would even dare call it the premiere dining destination in all the land—including a source as well-traveled as Phil Rosenthal. The star of the Netflix show Somebody Feed Phil told me during a recent interview that LA had surpassed New York to assume the top-tier title.
My personal hot-take is that Los Angeles, America’s second biggest metropolis, actually manages to be its most underrated. Whenever outsiders are talking about this town, there tends to be a derisive tone. But dismiss this diverse and flavorful landscape at your own peril. Here’s a whole heaping portion of what you ought to be sipping and savoring right now.
Yangban Society — 712 S Santa Fe Ave; Arts District
Superstar chefs (and spouses) Katianna and John Hong envision their unique concept as a Korean-American deli. But it’s really several concepts rolled into one. On one side you have Super, which is a minimart holding housemade canned cocktails, natural wines and makgeolli. At the adjoining restaurant the genre-bending alchemy of the Hongs is on full display. Congee is studded with roasted red abalone and served in pot pie form. An oversized buttermilk biscuit is drenched in Korean curry gravy chockablock with ground beef and pork. The signature wings are twice fried and smothered under a sweet and spicy soy glaze. There’s matzoh ball soup featuring sujebi dumplings. All of it can be enjoyed alongside the aforementioned adult beverages from Super. None of it is short of sensational.
The show-stopping buttermilk biscuits under Korean curry gravy at Yangban society
San Laurel — 100 S Grand Ave; Downtown
José Andrés is not in the business of disappointing. In fact, despite global acclaim, the humble chef and humanitarian still manages to overdeliver—as he does at this artfully-rendered eatery inside the sleek new Conrad Los Angeles hotel. His inspiration here was to build a bridge between Spanish and California culinary traditions. It arrives by way of local sea urchin under gazpacho consommé, garden fresh salads covered in pomegranate, pea shoots and marcona almonds, and Fideuá pasta joined by Idiazábal cheese and chanterelles—dubbed as adult Mac n’ Cheese. On the drinks side are some invigorating sherries by the glass as well as a robust list of Spanish reds and whites. Next door at Agua Viva it’s all about playful-yet-balanced fruit-forward cocktails, such as the Tornup Tiki Punch: Vanilla-habanero infused rum with pineapple, grapefruit and cinnamon.
Dining alfresco, with the Disney Concert Hall in the background
Mother Wolf — 1545 Wilcox Ave; Hollywood
Already one of the hottest tickets in town, there’s not much more to say about chef Evan Funke’s outsized ode to Roman cuisine than what’s already out in the ether. To recap: the pizzas and pastas are all world-class. But not enough has been spoken of the cocktail menu here. The $18 selections leverage a variety of bitter-forward modifiers not often seen in high-bar drinking dens, let alone restaurant bars. The S.P.Q.R. is a case in point: vodka emboldened by orange blossom and olive-infused Cocchi. Then there’s the Contorto—a sturdy rye from High West rounded out with Barolo Chianti and Amaro Montenegro [insert chef’s kiss].
Parent company Ten Five Hospitality deserves significant praise for the entire culinary transformation they’ve stewarded in this part of town. Between the adjacent Thompson and Tommie Hollywood hotels, the restaurant group counts a handful of notable venues. If reservations at Mother Wolf are proving too elusive, head over to Ka’teen, where chef Wes Avila is crushing Yucatecan cuisine in a verdant space that’ll portal you to Mexican rainforest. Meanwhile, mezcal-fueled drinks reign supreme on the drinks menu. Start things off with the ¡Ay Maria! — agave spirit with Tamarindo, red mole and sesame seeds. Then keep the party going upstairs on the roof of the Tommie at Desert Five Spot, a boisterous alfresco outpost featuring fantastic frozen margaritas, with a view to match.
A cart of amari rolls through the stylish dining room of Mother Wolf.
Soko — 101 Wilshire Boulevard; Santa Monica
It’s hard to tell whether Masa Shimakawa is a sushi chef or an actual magician. So let’s just settle on some combination of the two. Tucked into a hidden corner of the Fairmont Miramar lobby, in a space previously reserved for storage, the maestro is left to his own devices, crafting a nightly omakase for just 8 guests at a time. His chilled egg custard, loaded with lobster, roe and uni is the stuff dreams are made off. And that’s just the launching point. Make sure you select the thoughtfully-curated sake pairing to maximize the impact of a six course dinner.
Sushi Chef Masa Shimakawa presents his tomago omelet at Soko.
Or Bar — 8228 Santa Monica Blvd; West Hollywood
This stylish new gay bar in the heart of West Hollywood places as much emphasis on the quality of cocktails as it does on the elegance of its interior. And both are pretty dang elevated, to be sure. Apple brandy stands beside armagnac and coconut in the Liberation—a drink nearly as ornate as its namesake. The Twig N’ Berries brings a blast of subtle fruitiness to an already refreshing combination of gin and tonic. And here you’ll find one of the best Bloody Marys ever assembled in a club setting.