Now on Resy: Chateau Marmont, Yess Restaurant, KinKan, and More Local Favorites

Just like the original in Silver Lake, this airy South Park spot serves craveable Taiwanese and Chinese dishes, like twice-cooked pork, beef rolls, potstickers, dan dan noodles, and more. Pro tip: Whatever fresh, green vegetable is available, get it.

What started as a home restaurant for creative bento boxes is now a cathedral of global experiences on the plate. Chef Nan Yimcharoen has fun with her menus, taking you to favorite destinations via seafood preparations that sing of Thailand, bites of Japanese sashimi, French-influenced tartare, Mexican ceviche, and more.

Because Tesse is super chic with its wide booths, a fantastic bar, and a West Hollywood vibe that just won’t quit. The menu screams French with a California soul, so plates of housemade charcuterie, hamachi crudo, and strip steaks with bordelaise are fitting. Start with cocktails, natch, and definitely explore the wine list — it’s tailor-made for sampling and sipping through the night.

From a bright orange sashimi food truck to a haven for smoky wood-grilled dishes, this Arts District spot from lauded London chef Junya Yamasaki fits right in with the buzzing neighborhood. Order something from the ever-changing menu, grab a drink, and then expect to order at least another round.

When it’s peak Santa Monica summer, consider this your next stop along the beach bike path for lemon-scented kale salads, burgers with twice-fried fries, and hibiscus coolers spiked with mezcal. It’s amazing how easy a bottle of rosé disappears here. 

It’s pink, it’s sleek, it’s the kind of hidden DTLA space you want to stumble upon when the need for a plate of calamari friti, Caesar salad, and spaghetti alla vognole (clams) strikes. We love the well-curated wine list with just enough to keep everyone in the group happy. 

It’s toasts, matcha, and coffee drinks by day, and meatballs, olives, and prosecco spritzes at night. Just go by what you’re craving: pancetta and scrambled eggs on Bub & Grandma’s bread, or burrata and Serrano ham with a glass of orange wine.

Depending on who you ask, this K-town spot is a fantastic sushi restaurant, a home to kaiseki and omakase masters, or a blowout happy hour find. Thankfully it’s all of the above, so you can’t really go wrong. The build-your-own hand roll lunch option is always a hit, but the small dishes and pristine sushi served in the omakase menu are pretty exquisite, too. Sake pairings are worth it.

Those who know, know this is where you go for hot, bubbly wood-fired pies, lots of shareable bites (burrata and meatballs, mini burgers, and a great chopped salad), and top-notch cocktails. It’s one of those Valley gems regulars want to keep to themselves.

When your night on the Sunset Strip beckons for a one-pound Wagyu meatball smothered in marinara and creamy burrata, a hot cacio e pepe pizza, and pastas (many gluten-free), you’ve found the place. Drinks vary from the classic to the dramatic, including one served under a smoke-filled cloche.

From the same duo behind sandwich specialists Wax Paper, you’ll find a family-friendly vibe and views of the Los Angeles River at this all-day spot. It’s streamlined but cozy, just what you’d expect for a neighborhood place that serves patty melts and piles of matchstick fries, really lovely salads and vegetable dishes, and root beer-braised beef cheeks with polenta.

Because discovering tasty scallion beef rolls, Hunan-style steamed fish, scallion pancakes, and other dim sum specialties at the base of a Little Tokyo apartment building is what dining in Los Angeles is all about.

Whether weekend brunch or dinner, the view of the surf, sand, and pier is pretty stunning at this perch on Santa Monica State Beach. If you time it right, you’ll get a picture-perfect sunset with that hamachi crudo, lobster spaghetti, and Liquid Gold cocktail. 

The French-focused dining room adds even more reason to walk through the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Tucked towards the back, hidden and somewhat romantic — if only because it’s nothing like the tourist chaos out front — you’ll find favorites like Lyonnaise salads, beautifully curated charcuterie boards, and wood-grilled steaks and seafood.

The acronym ADKT stands for art, drinks, kitchen, and tunes, which pretty much sums up what you’ll find at this swinging West Hollywood spot. Throw in some Parisian boudoir vibes, French influences on the California-centric menu, and drinks like the Bisou Bisou (a spiced kiss made with rum, pineapple, and absinthe), and your night is made.

It’s hard not to feel the spirit of Charlie Chaplin in this little hidden gem of a wine bar — he once had a studio in this building. That kind of Hollywood lore may draw you to a place like this, but the wine selection, snacks, and helpful staff — who are equal parts wine stewards and social directors — always make it a worthwhile stop.

Thank goodness chef Jackson Kalb brought that oozy fried provolone with vodka sauce from his South Bay hit Jame to Venice. It’s the beach-adjacent dish you need after a breezy day on the boardwalk. That, and crispy thin pizzas, top-notch pastas (lamb-neck cannelloni for the win), and parm-style butter chicken. Brunch is fantastic, too.

This is why you love L.A.: Two chefs, one Venezuelan and one Korean, open an intimate nook of a restaurant above a beloved Italian spot in the heart of Beverly Hills. Upside-down ceviche tostadas, crispy chicken skin tossed in Korean sweet-and-spicy sauce, and borracha arepas with gochujang aioli tell the story.

This little box of a spot sits directly across from the Gold Line stop with the tracks curving overhead, just the kind of place to impress a date, friends, and just about any New Yorker. Order in waves, maybe some sardines and bread, then a Bibb lettuce salad, escargots, steak with garlic butter, and at least a few glasses of wine.

Power lunching doesn’t get more on the nose at this café located inside the high-powered United Talent Agency building. Even if you don’t have or need (or are) an agent, it’s a great spot for breakfast or lunch any time, from shakshuka and loaded bagels to grain bowls, chicken al pastor burgers, and shoestring fries.