Found Oyster’s Ari Kolender Wants You to Order Fried Chicken with Everything
To-Go Takes is Resy’s regular feature wherein we quiz the folks behind some of our favorite restaurants about all things related to takeout.
In this edition, we speak to Ari Kolender, executive chef and partner of Found Oyster in East Hollywood. Kolender oversees the menu for the restaurant, which has a “boat deck” for outdoor dining, along with takeout and delivery. The space also has a marketplace filled with fresh seafood and shellfish he sources from around the country, everything from Dungeness crabs to littleneck clams and caviar, plus pantry staples. Basically, anything you need to transport you to a beach somewhere, even if it’s only in your mind while you eat on the hood of your car on Fountain Avenue. Below, Kolender shares some of his favorite takeout tips, tricks, cocktails, and regular stops.
- The Resy Guide to the Best Outdoor Tables in Los Angeles
- A Year in the Life of Restaurant Workers: Samantha Quintero, Sous Chef
- The Resy Guide to Where Chefs Get Takeout in Los Angeles
- At Anajak Thai, a New and Californian Vision of What It Means to Be a Thai Restaurant
- The March Hit List, Lunch Edition: Larry’s Smashburgers, Superba, Gamboge, and More
Restaurant: Found Oyster
Name + Title: Ari Kolender, Chef & Partner
Resy: What’s your favorite dish on the Found Oyster takeout menu?
Kolender: My favorite dish on our takeout menu is the Shrimp Louie Roll. In short, we make our take on a shrimp louie and stuff it into a Martin’s potato roll. It’s wild!
From where are you getting takeout these days? What’s your go-to order?
Some go to take out spots have been Night + Market, La Morra Pizzeria, Apple Pan, Mizlala, Tamales Elena Y Antojitos, and Dano’s Dumplings. At Tamales Elena Y Antojitos, I order the pork tamale wrapped in banana leaf, as well as the outstanding pozole verde. At La Morra Pizzeria, the pepperoni and the vegan pizzas are fire. At Mizlala, it is the falafel plate, every time.
What’s a tip someone can do to amp up your takeout?
No matter what you order from us, you need to add the fried chicken. Put it in the fridge and eat it cold the next day. It’s even better, I promise. Picnic chicken!
What’s your favorite place for to-go cocktails and why?
The fine folks from Bludso’s BBQ launched a tiki pop up, Lost Cove Tiki. Everything is awesome. The drinks come with fun straws, garnishes, umbrellas, and traditional tiki mug options. I feel transported.
What single restaurant dish would you walk miles for?
French fries and a martini with olives at Musso & Frank.
What was your first meal out when restaurants reopened?
Bell’s in Los Alamos. It took a while to get there, though. I don’t get out much.
What do you miss most about restaurants being fully open?
The warmth of hospitality.
Found Oyster is open for outdoor dining Thursday through Sunday; make a reservation here. Takeout and delivery are both still available as well; find menus and info here.
