The Resy Hit List: Where In L.A. You’ll Want to Eat in May 2025

After a five-year hiatus, Top Chef winner Mei Lin (Nightshade, Daybird) returns to fine dining with 88 Club, an opulent Beverly Hills restaurant that combines echoes of her Michigan childhood with Hong Kong’s famously glitzy banquet culture. It’s a delicious, idiosyncratic jumble, blending technique, nostalgia, and inherent whimsy, in dishes like the nam yu chicken wings, caviar-topped sesame prawn toast, and juicy kung pao scallops. The 44-seat dining room is itself befitting of royalty, with jade-lacquered walls, moody lighting, and vintage art procured by co-owner Francis Miranda. Then, there’s the name, which alludes to the luckiest figure in Chinese numerology — 88 meaning “double fortune; double prosperity.”

Two years (and many hours of construction) later, Beethoven Market has undergone a stunning transformation from beloved neighborhood grocery into a Mar Vista hotspot with a rustic-chic vibe that Nancy Meyers would approve of. The California-Italian menu has everything you need for a mellow summer hang, including handmade pizzas and pastas; focaccia smeared with whipped ricotta and avocado tree honey; and suppli al telefono, crispy little fried rice ball stuffed with fior di latte cheese — plus a stunning patio space. Knowing how much this space meant to the neighborhood, owner Jeremy Adler also ensured the protection and preservation of the building’s bones. Luckily, they’re quite beautiful, particularly the original wooden ceiling and its gorgeous soaring beams, which remain intact today.

In a Westchester strip mall just two miles from LAX, you’ll find this three-floor farm-to-table restaurant that redefines airport-adjacent dining. Led by husband-and-wife team Harry Posner and Natalie Dial, Tomat is uncompromising in its use of high-quality, hyper-local ingredients sourced exclusively from farmers’ markets, local fishers, and regional dairy producers. The menu, a unique fusion of Persian, Japanese, and British flavors, is a testament to the couple’s diverse culinary heritage: think saffron-scented tahdig, a Persian rice dish adorned with pickled raisins, pumpkin seeds, and dill, cooked in a Japanese donabe. Try the Future 75, a refreshing cocktail made with gin, sparkling wine, and a hint of lemon  — a collaboration with Future, a queer and women-owned distillery in L.A., with 100% of the proceeds being donated to World Central Kitchen.

After permanently closing the doors to his cherished Cantonese spot, Pearl River Deli, chef Johnny Lee did what any reasonable person would do: he left the country and ate his way through Southeast Asia. Inspired by the bustling roadside hawker stalls he’d seen, Lee returned to L.A. to open Rasarumah, a swanky Malaysian restaurant in Historic Filipinotown serving fusion dishes like pork jowl satay (juicy, Hainanese-style meat skewers) and char kway teow, stir-fried noodles laden with Chinese sausage. In a match made in sambal-slathered heaven, he’s also partnered up with Last Word Hospitality, the restaurant group behind Barra Santos, Shins Pizza, and Queen St., among others.

KinKan is a genre-defying culinary playground where Thai-American chef Nan Yimcharoen throws almost everything at the wall — chirashi bowls inspired by Japan’s Nishiki market, $250 tasting menus dedicated solely to crab, warm house-made pumpkin mochi served in a stunning pumpkin dish — and we, in Los Angeles, collectively say “thank you.” At its core, KinKan is a bold union of Thai and Japanese cuisines, a masterclass in the unlimited potential of “fusion” cooking. Every few months, she’ll reveal a new tasting menu, each one thoughtfully centered around a specific idea or memory, because beyond its food, KinKan excels at storytelling. Dishes are imbued with significance, whether it’s a ten-course omakase homage to her grandma (who cooked for the Thai royal family), or a green curry dessert presented as a magic trick.

Esme (“beloved” in Farsi) is a cheery all-day bistro in Culver City that’s surprisingly flying under the radar. The restaurant’s motto—”a little bit of this, a little bit of that”—describes its sprightly menu to a T, which blends Persian, Middle Eastern, and Latin flavors with aplomb. Life partners and co-owners Ivan Corona (formerly of Bouley and Thomas Keller’s Per Se) and Gabby Ardaki run this dual-personality charmer. By day, Esme serves smoked salmon bagels, shakshuka, and merguez sandwiches packed with harissa-scented lamb. At night, it transforms into a cheffy  gastropub, offering mussel toast, Spanish-style striped bass, and sumac-dusted short ribs perched atop a potato rösti throne. Don’t miss their daily happy hour, which runs from 4-6 p.m., when all  beers and wines are buy one, get one half price.

No reservations. Find more info here.

Although owners Brian and Yoona Lee say their beloved Koreatown sandwich shop is “inspired by the bodegas of New York,” this is a Los Angeles joint through and through. The husband-and-wife duo partnered with long-time friends and chefs Andrew Marco and Ralph Hsiao (previously of Rice Guys) to create an eclectic menu celebrating their favorite places to eat in the city, best exemplified in the Normandie, a sandwich inspired by Yoshinoya and Philippe The Original. A bit of a head-scratcher, but after one bite of the thinly sliced gyudon beef brisket, tucked under a blanket of melted provolone, suddenly, everything clicks into place. Check their Instagram, where they announce pop-ups, like Linggo, a recurring Sunday brunch offering genre-bending Filipino comfort food, including a cast-iron bibingka absolutely dripping in fermented honey.

No reservations. Find more info here.

Do not sleep (or even nap!) on this new Spanish tapas and wine bar in Silver Lake, where drinking delicious sherry is all but a requirement. Here, L.A.’s love affair with tinned fish lives on, with Botanica co-owner Heather Sperling and the husband-wife duo behind cult-favorite tinned fish brand Siesta Co. at the helm. Compared to the building’s previous tenant, Alimento, the 38-seat dining room is almost unrecognizable, with its warm, earthy color palette and antiques sourced from Spain, creating a cozy and inviting atmosphere. Rustic Canyon and Botanica alum Keith Phillips runs the kitchen, so expect traditional tapas made with Californian produce, like ensalada de achicorias, which uses chicories from Roots Organic Farm in Santa Ynez. The pan con tomate is always a good idea, too, served on a crusty slice of Bub & Grandma’s bread.

As one can imagine from the name, the team at Vin Folk takes its wine seriously. Its thoughtful list constantly changes and features various bottles from small, sustainably-minded producers. Recent offerings include Johan Vineyards’ “Jazzy Juice,” a vibrant light-bodied red from the Willamette Valley, and a lovely pét-nat from Petaluma’s Cruse Wine Co. The terrific wine list, paired with a cozy, romantic dining room, has quickly made it a gold-star destination for Westside date nights. In the kitchen, chefs Kevin de Los Santos and Katya Shastova (who both previously worked at Michelin-starred Vespertine, Maude, and Somni) have crafted an eclectic bistro menu to go with all of that wine, like spicy, spreadable red pepper ‘nduja over rye bread, and a beef tongue that comes with tomatoes and Hrenovina, a somewhat obscure Slovenian horseradish.

As the first member of his Chinese immigrant family to be born in America, and raised in the American South, Firstborn is as much chef-owner Anthony Wang’s meditation on his identity as it is a sophisticated and highly ambitious Chinese-inflected brasserie. Located in Chinatown’s Mandarin Plaza, Wang draws inspiration from his family’s Beijing roots (a story also told by his older sister, Lulu Wang, in her movie “The Farewell”), his upbringing in Atlanta, and the European kitchens he’s worked in, such as Auburn, Vespertine, and ink. Here at Firstborn, you’ll dine on dishes like steak tartare with the flavors of mapo tofu, or a riff on steamed egg custards, the classic dim sum snack made here with pan-roasted scallops and sea lettuce vinaigrette. Don’t miss Kenzo Han’s cocktails, either, like a well-balanced baiju-infused Negroni.

Like chef-owner Travis Lett’s previous ventures (Gjelina, Gjusta, that impossibly tasteful apartment on the Westside the restaurant group casually rents out, etc.), RVR is a certified hit. Sure, the stylish Japanese izakaya (pronounced “river”) feels light-years away from the smoke-filled dens of Tokyo. (Between its dreamy Abbot Kinney digs and the floor-to-ceiling vinyl collection, RVR shares more DNA with Japanese listening bars than the country’s drinking taverns.) But fussy details like that tend to fade away while you’re eating roasted mushrooms draped in miso butter, or gyoza stuffed with Peads & Barnetts pork belly. At the helm at RVR are executive chef Ian Robinson and wine director Maggie Glasheen (previously of Anajak Thai), who’ve teamed up for a robust menu of hand rolls, binchōtan charcoal-grilled meats and seafood, and ramen served with house-made noodles.

Inside the busy Mercado La Palma food hall, chef Fátima Juárez is hard at work, turning dried corn into masa, the glorious dough that, with a bit of alchemy, will become Komal’s signature tortillas. The tiled walls of this bustling Mexican molino—yellow, brown, and white—mirror the varicolored Indigenous corn Juárez uses in her cooking, sourced directly from farmers in Mexico. Here, fresh masa is ground on-site and sold by the pound, alongside pre-Hispanic dishes like tlacoyos—thick, oval-shaped, blue-corn tortillas filled with beans and topped with slivers of cactus—and quesadillas filled with squash blossom flowers. Juárez’s signature tortillas can also be found at its neighbor, Holbox, the Michelin-starred Mexican seafood stand where Juárez and her husband, Conrado Rivera, worked before branching out on their own.

No reservations. Find more info here. 

There’s probably a witty Shakespeare reference to be made here (“to lula kabob or not lula kabob…”), but let’s focus on the rich selection of barbecued meats instead. Hamlet’s Kitchen, truly one of the gems of Glendale, is a reliably fantastic pit stop for lunch. Located in the back of a strip mall in the shadow of a neighboring Toyota dealership, there’s always a sense of peace emanating from this Armenian takeout spot. And there is truly nothing better than finding yourself here on a random Tuesday, ordering a ton of kebabs, like the chicken or beef lula — ground meat infused with spices and a wreath of bright, fragrant herbs, served over a bed of buttery rice. Round it out with a few sides, like eggplant caviar and creamy hummus, and an Armenian pear soda, a sparkling delight made of natural fruit syrups.

No reservations. Find more info here.

Found Oyster, chef Ari Kolender’s postage stamp-sized East Hollywood ode to seafood, is still one of the most sought-after tables in town.  And now, for the first time, you can actually make a reservation there (hello!). Gone are the days of walking up, putting your name down, and waiting for an hour to be seated. (Although the walk-in will never die at Found Oyster — as their website cheekily reminds us, “Wham bam, thank you, clam!!”) For the uninitiated, Found Oyster is an East Coast-style seafood shack that lives next to the city’s bluest, most Scientology-est building. Gorge yourself on the raw bar, paying special attention to the wonderfully plump oysters sourced from general manager Joe Laraja’s family’s farm in Massachusetts, the peel ‘n eat prawns, and a lobster roll that rivals the best in Maine.

This modern Mexican pop-up, roving around L.A. since 2021, has finally entered its next chapter: a residency in Echo Park. The dimly lit restaurant and bar (with a fun playlist ranging from nostalgic hip hop to R&B) is a playground for chef Andrew Ponce’s (formerly of Bestia, Jon & Vinny’s and Taco María) farmers market-influenced take on upscale Mexican food. His tiny-but-mighty menu sings with dishes like crispy duck mole with house-made blue corn tortillas, and an amplified hard-shelled taco made with braised beef shank that pays homage to Tito’s Tacos. While everything is a labor of love, including bar director Dave Fernie’s Japanese-laced Latin cocktails (like a michelada punched up with dashi), Ponce aims to keep things casual with simplified menus and an easygoing atmosphere that fits nicely in the neighborhood.

In a rushed, rattled world that seems to be screaming “Go!” all the time, La Sung feels like an oasis. The Koreatown restaurant, on the corner of Olympic and South Ardmore—just steps away from its sister establishment, Lasung House, and its supermassive, Frisbee-sized pork cutlets—celebrates life in the slow lane through gentle, deliberate, and mindful cooking. Traditional Korean sotbap and soondubu take center stage alongside a supporting cast of short ribs, bossam platters, and seolleongtang—a soul-warming bone broth that’s simmered for three days. Unlike Japanese donabe (clay pot), sotbap is prepared in cast-iron or stone pot, which creats a pillowy, aromatic rice with a crackling, crisp bottom. Pair this nourishing rice with minari-laced clams, salted pollack roe, or lovely grilled eel.