What Chefs Love About L.A. — and Where They Love to Eat

Nico de Leon

Executive Chef and Co-Owner of Lasita in Los Angeles

What he loves about L.A.: “L.A. is my home. I was born and raised in the Valley (San Fernando Valley for those who are unfamiliar) and in typical local SoCal fashion, I would drive around exploring every square inch seeking out the different diasporas that call this place home. There is NO shortage of good food from all over the world, from traditional to contemporary adaptations— it’s all here.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “It’s tough narrowing it down honestly, but I love Yang’s Kitchen, Azizam, Dunsmoor, Here’s Looking At You, and Sapp Coffee.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “I’m excited to listen to the panels, learning more about the chefs that I both admire and call my peers. I’m really excited to meet and interact with some of the chefs who are coming to L.A. — we don’t always get to leave our respective places to spend time getting to know one another more than our online presences. I’m excited to get to talking and learning more about them, both personally and about their perspective on food/cooking, and how they operate their kitchens.”

Chase Sinzer

Co-Owner of Claud and Penny in New York

What he loves about L.A.: “L.A. is a city like no other: Spread out and disparate, it’s a mix of a million styles all uniquely Los Angeles. The restaurant scene deliciously represents that variation: just a wealth of experiences with so much range and there’s so much ground to cover.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “The second I get off the plane, I am calling a rideshare from the LAX-It lot to Gjusta. There’s something about gently reacclimating to Los Angeles through eating a smoked fish plate and a side of whatever perfect produce they grabbed from the farmers’ market in the backyard.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “We opened Penny, our [mostly] walk-in seafood spot above Claud in New York this past spring, and I love to pop by fellow seafood spots like Found Oyster, Holbox, and Mariscos Jalisco. When I lived in Los Angeles, I was on the West side and now I find myself spending the most time in restaurants toward the East, like Dunsmoor or Quarter Sheets. Other favorites include Antico Nuovo, Baroo, and Chi Spacca.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “We love participating in The Chef Conference and getting to come together with other industry friends while making new ones in a city that means so much to us. We couldn’t be more excited for our Claud pop-up with Lasita — and not just because it is owned by another Chase.”

Joshua Pinsky

Chef and Co-Owner of Claud and Penny in New York

What he loves about L.A.: “I was born in California. I miss the sunshine. That, and the longer growing season. I’m really looking forward to getting to work with nice produce when we’re in Los Angeles. I’m typically in ‘root vegetable’ mood by that time in fall so it is a luxury to be able to play with great ingredients.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “I really enjoyed our meal at Dunsmoor. The pork stew with cheddar is fantastic. On our last visit to Los Angeles, Chase [Sinzer] and I also swung by Queen St. while we were on the East side. The raw bar was a great place to post up for a leisurely snack. If I’m off duty, my ideal L.A. evening probably starts with a martini at Sunset Tower and ends with a beer at HMS Bounty or The Prince.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “I can’t wait to hang out with the Lasita team and to cook alongside chefs I admire for the Southern Smoke dinner at Rustic Canyon. I’m thankful that The Chef Conference is bringing us all together in Los Angeles.”

Bryant Ng

Chef and Owner of Cassia in Los Angeles

What he loves about L.A.: “I’m L.A. born and raised, but I’ve lived in New York, San Francisco, and Paris. But nothing’s like home. The diversity and the ethnic enclaves where you can get really great food is what I love most about L.A. Many of the restaurants we love to eat at you’ll never read about in national publications and their chefs will never get the love they should. But that’s the beauty of LA. … our food culture doesn’t rely on awards, accolades, or stars to thrive and have an identity. It’s the nature of our diversity that does it on its own.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “That’s hard to nail down, and depends on my mood. But Kim [my wife] and I live in the San Gabriel Valley, so I’ll focus on that area:

Yunnan Restaurant: There are multiple restaurants with similar names, but the one I’m talking about is on 301 N. Garfield in Monterey Park. Their Chungking fried chicken cubes (a.k.a. La Zi Ji popcorn chicken) is the best version of this dish I’ve ever had. I also love the stewed pork noodle soup, mapo tofu, diced fish with corn, and their deli case items.

PP Pop: We probably eat here once every two weeks. We love the shrimp fried rice, spicy braised beef noodle soup, fried squid, fried pork-and-leek dumplings, and passion green tea.

Menya Hanabi: We love the Nagoya mazesoba (soupless ramen). This place reminds us most of some places we love in Tokyo.

Dolan’s Uyghur Cuisine: It’s hard to find Uyghur cuisine in general and Dolan’s is the best. We always order the Uyghur goshnaan, diced noodles, fried naan with beef, lamb chop kebab, shredded potato, and Dolan’s special tea.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “Philly is one of our favorite food cities in the U.S. right now. We were there a few years ago and wanted to move there just based on the food we had. Kim had lived in Philly many years ago, so I had a great guide. We’re looking forward to The Chef Conference bringing some of those Philly vibes to L.A.”

Johanna Luat

Executive Sous Chef of Cassia in Los Angeles

What she loves about L.A.: “I really enjoy the diversity and the opportunity it gives people to embrace different cultures and experiences.”

Some of her favorite L.A. restaurants: “When my parents come to visit, we always end up at Olympic Noodle in K-Town. They serve these massive bowls of kalguksu that are so hearty and comforting. Another of my favorites would have to be Avenue 26 Tacos near the Arts District. There’s not much more great things I can say about L.A. tacos.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “I’m very much looking forward to the collaboration. Being fairly new to the food industry and working in restaurants at this level, there’s so much for me to learn and experience.”

Christina Nguyen

Chef and Owner of Hai Hai and Hola Arepa in Minneapolis

What she loves about L.A.: “I love the food scene and community in L.A. It has some of the country’s most inspiring chefs, cooking with some incredible produce that you can’t get in other parts of the country. There are so many enclaves with amazing immigrant food like Little Saigon and K-town, and you can find tasty taco trucks all around the city, representing all regions of Mexico. I love the access and variety of food in L.A., its neighborhoods, and surrounding areas. The specialty grocery stores are abundant, and I feel like a kid in a candy store there.”

Some of her favorite L.A. restaurants: “I love Jitlada and Night+Market for Thai food. I always have to get Korean barbecue when I go to L.A., and Park’s is delicious. Birdie G’s and Felix Trattoria are fantastic, too. I love going to a special Vietnamese snail place in the O.C. and can never pass up going to Brodard to eat their spring rolls and other amazing dishes.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “I’m really looking forward to collaborating with some of my favorite chefs on a couple of dinners when I’m in town. I’ve been to Cassia before and love their take on Southeast Asian food. I’m also thrilled to cook with an incredible lineup of chefs for a dinner benefiting the Southern Smoke Foundation. I’ve been to The Chef Conference in Philly before and loved meeting fellow chefs and getting to hear their perspectives in the different panels. It’s always an exciting event to be a part of.”

Johnny Cirelle

Chef and Partner of The Benjamin in Los Angeles

What he loves about L.A.: “I was born and raised here. I went to college here. L.A. is my home. I love everything about it. I think my favorite thing though is the diversity of the cuisine in the city. We have the best Korean, the best Japanese, the best Mexican. Lucky for me, some of my favorite spots in Koreatown and Thai Town are open late after service.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “It’s hard to narrow down, but I’d have to say off the top of my head: Bestia, Tsubaki, Dunsmoor, Hama Sushi, and Barra Santos.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “There’s not a ton of industry-driven events that happen in L.A., so I love that The Chef Conference is doing it here and bringing so many great people into town.”

Frankie Olivieri

Chef and Owner of Pat’s King of Steaks in Philadelphia

What he loves about L.A.: “We love the weather, the variety of foods, and the access to all the locally grown ingredients.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “Pink’s Hot Dogs, Polo Lounge, Pizzeria Mozza, and Joan’s on Third.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “We are looking forward to connecting with friends and making new connections at the conference in Los Angeles. We’re grateful for the opportunity to be part of what Michael Traud [conference organizer] does both in Philadelphia and now in Los Angeles.

“And we don’t often get to bring authentic Pat’s King of Steaks to the West Coast, so it will allow us to meet many of our supporters in Los Angeles.”

Jeremy Fox

Chef and Partner of Rustic Canyon Group in Los Angeles

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: Otafuku, Musso & Frank, Dunsmoor, Tsujita Annex, Ronan, and Sqirl.

Elijah Deleon

Chef De Cuisine of Rustic Canyon in Los Angeles

What he loves about L.A.: “How different every city is. You could drive 15 miles and it’s vastly different. My favorite part of L.A. is the South Bay, where I’m from. I like how quiet it is. The beaches, the food. I love K-Town for the nightlife and the food there, too.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “Dan Sung Sa in K-Town. Ototo in Echo Park. There are a ton of good Japanese lunch spots in Torrance and Gardena. Destroyer for lunch. Leo’s Tacos, to name a few.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “Getting to work with all these amazing chefs, inviting them into our home, and just collaborating with them.”

Claudette Zepeda

Founder of Chispa Hospitality in San Diego

What she loves about L.A.: My circle of friends and family who live there. It’s one of the few cities that I enjoy going out in, to grab dinner or to go to a concert. It’s the city that my father first immigrated to in the ’60s from Mexico; when I was little, we would drive up from Tijuana in the summer and he would act as a tour guide and revisit his favorite areas. I remember the smile on his face when he was showing us around.

Some of her favorite L.A. restaurants: Night+Market, Dama, Gjelina, Gjusta, Pizzeria Bianco, Felix, and Sonoratown.

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: I’m most looking forward to cooking with my friends and sharing stories on our panel that can hopefully help someone. And sitting through the other panels scheduled during The Chef Conference. I have only been to the first one in Philadelphia but it left such a wonderful impression on me; I can’t wait to experience it in Los Angeles. I am sure it will be great.

Chris Shepherd

Founding Director and Honorary Chairman of the Southern Smoke Foundation in Houston

What he loves about L.A.: “I love the diversity in food and the people cooking it. The sprawl reminds me of Houston along with the diversity of the food scene.”

Some of his favorite L.A. restaurants: “Pizzeria Bianco, Bavel, Burritos La Palma, and Park’s BBQ. I really want to eat at Yangban and Yeastie Boys Bagels when I’m in town, and I’m very excited for the Southern Smoke Foundation dinner at Rustic Canyon.”

Looking ahead to The Chef Conference: “I’m most looking forward to sharing Southern Smoke resources with the conference and making sure all food-and-beverage people in L.A. and California know about our Behind You mental health program, and how to access emergency relief grants. I also can’t wait to see everyone. The Chef Conference is always one of my favorite events each year — there’s so much good knowledge shared by so many people I respect.”

Deanna Ting is Resy’s New York and Philadelphia Editor, and while she calls New York home now, she was born and raised in the South Bay of Los Angeles. Follow her on Instagram. Follow Resy, too.