The Non-Snobby LA Dining Guide

This isn’t a guide to the fanciest food in town. We aren’t trying to be like the Michelin Guide. We’re normal people, who just like really, really good food. What follows is what we believe is the best food in LA – we ignore factors like the pedigree of the chef and the price level. Our sole criterion is how good it tastes.

01. Fritto Misto

Big thanks to the brilliant @charsiuubaoo

Address: 601 Colorado Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90407

Yelp Link

• Best Pastas ever
• Try their pink sauce
• Their Cajun pasta is bomb

2. Bombay Palace

Address: 8690 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90211

Yelp Link

• The best Indian restaurant in Los Angeles
• Try their Paneer Makhani

3. Bottega Louie

Address: 700 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90017

Yelp Link

• Excellent Pizza
• Try their Portobello Fries (even if you hate mushrooms)
• Their macarons and other desserts are famous

4. Ayara Thai

Address: 6245 W 87th St, Los Angeles, CA 90045

Yelp Link

• Excellent Panang Curry
• Try the fried ice cream

5. La Serenata de Girabaldi

Yelp Link

• The most legit Mexican in LA
• Instead of chips and salsa they start you off with quesadillas
• We love their tomatillo enchiladas

6. Langer’s in Westlake

Address: 704 S Alvarado St, Los Angeles, CA 90057

Yelp Link

• An LA institution – for good reason
• Almost everyone gets the #19 (HAND-CUT HOT PASTRAMI, COLE SLAW, RUSSIAN DRESSING, SWISS CHEESE ON DOUBLE-BAKED RYE BREAD)

7. Masa of Echo Park

Images courtesy of Roman Roze

Address: 1800 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026

Yelp Link

• Amazing Bread Pudding
• People love the deep dish pizza – order ahead of time (takes 45 minutes)

8. Orochon Ramen

Address: 123 Astronaut E S Onizuka Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Yelp Link

• Amazing spicy ramen in DTLA
• They can make a vegetarian broth if requested

9.Grimaldi’s Pizzeria

Address: 2121 Rosecrans Ave, El Segundo, CA 90245

Yelp Link

• The best pizza in LA (because it’s from NY)
• We recommend adding garlic as a topping

10. Wood Spoon

Address: 107 W 9th St, Los Angeles, CA 90015

Yelp Link

• Delicious Brazilian in DTLA
• Get some plantains & collard greens on the side

11. Mendocino Farms

Locations all over LA

Yelp Link

• Farm fresh sandwiches with a twist
• Check out the menu – tons of interesting options
• We’ve never met someone who didn’t like Mendo’s

12. Tuk Tuk Thai

Address: 8875 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90035

Yelp Link

• Excellent Panang curry
• Terrible Pad Thai

13. El Chato Taco Truck

Address: 5300 W Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90019

Yelp Link

• Small, tasty, cheap, flavorful tacos
• $1/Taco – get 6

14. Clementine

Address: 1751 Ensley Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90024

Yelp Link

• We love the Build Your Own Grilled Cheese section of the menu
• Intelligentsia Coffee is served

15. Radhika Modern Indian

Address: 966 Mission St, South Pasadena, CA 91030

Yelp Link

• Modern Indian done right
• Paneer Makhani and Malai Kofta are the clear winners
• Huge portion sizes

16. The Village Bakery & Café

Address: 3119 Los Feliz Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90039

Yelp Link

• Excellent Pastries: we love maple scone, apricot scone, chocolate pudding
• Great for brunch

17. Porto’s Bakery

Address: 315 N Brand Blvd, Glendale, CA 91203

Yelp Link

• An LA institution – if you come on a weekend be prepared to wait in a LONG line
• Everything is executed so well here
• We love the guava pastries, Parisian cake, fresh OJ
• Pricing is unreal – supppppper cheap

18. Guisados

Address: 8935 Santa Monica Blvd, 90069 and 541 S Spring St #101, Los Angeles 90013

Yelp Link

• Cool Mexican spot with some unique soft taco options
• We love the Chiles Toreados – Habanero, serrano, jalapeno, and thai chiles blistered together over high heat. Served on top black beans. This taco is extremely spicy.

19. Hollywood Pies

Address: 6116 1/2 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90035

Yelp Link

• Excellent Deep Dish Pizza
• Reminds us of Lou Manalti’s pizza

20. Bossa Nova on Sunset

Big thanks to Ryan – check out his awesome feed!

Address: 7181 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90046

Yelp Link

• Brazilian place that also serves creative pizzas
• Everything here is good, cap it off with chocolate mouse

21. India Sweet House

Address: 5992 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90035

Yelp Link

• Giant Paratas (Stuffed bread) with fresh homemade yogurt
• Fresh, homemade sweets – try their giant gulab jamun

22. Wurstküche

Images courtesy of Paul Sun

Address: 800 E 3rd St, Los Angeles, CA 90013

Yelp Link

• Tons of great dogs, their vegan dogs will blow your mind
• Great beer selection

23. Daikokuya

Address: 327 E 1st St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 and 2208 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064

Yelp Link

• Considered one of LA’s most authentic Ramen spots
• The ramen here is thick with a creamy soup base

24. Jaipur Indian Cuisine

Address: 10916 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064

Yelp Link

• Their mint chutney is incredible
• We recommend the Paneer Makhani, Malai Kofta & Chai

25. BLD

Address: 7450 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Yelp Link

• Amazing Doughnuts and French Toast
• Blueberry Ricotta Pancakes are excellent
• Excellent Brunch

26. Araya’s Place

Address: 8101 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048

Yelp Link

• Vegan Thai – but you won’t miss the meat
• We recommend the Drunken Noodles, Pad Thai, Mango Panang Curry, and stir fried green curry

27. Genwa Korean BBQ

Address: 5115 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Yelp Link

• Not an All-You-Can-Eat place, but still totally worth the $$
• Gets really busy, long lines, no reservations

28. Bäco Mercat

Address: 408 S Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90013

Yelp Link

• Super trendy Mexican place
• Great if you’re bored of eating the same style of Mexican food and want a modern, elevated twist

29. Manas

Address: 2823 S Vermont Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90007

Yelp Link

• Low key Indian, South Indian and Indo-Chinese spot
• Try the Gobi Manchurian and Chana Butura

30. Mario’s Peruvian & Seafood

Address: 5786 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038

Yelp Link

• Come early (they close at 8PM!)
• Lomo Saltado is popular here

31. Pita Bar & Grill

Address: 519 N Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Yelp Link

• Amazingly fresh falafel place; low key, hole in the wall gem
• Try the falafel plate, with a fresh drink and tons of great sauces from the condiment bar

32. Bao Dim Sum House

Address: 8256 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048

Yelp Link

• Modern, clean, craft cocktails and authentic dimsum: it’s a grand slam
• The Moon Bun is pretty delicious for dessert

33. Fat Sal’s

• Forget hole-in-the-wall, this is a shack on the street, but it’s GOOD
• Tons of saturated fatty goodness – you can add things like mozzarella sticks to your sandwich

34. Badmaash

Address: 108 W 2nd St, Ste 104, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Yelp Link

• Gastropub in DTLA with some great Indian-inspired food
• Everything is flavorful and well executed

35. Kay n’ Dave’s

Address: 9341 Culver Blvd, Culver City, CA 90232

Yelp Link

• Service, Food, Drinks, Outside Patio all get a thumbs up from us
• Great Happy Hour, Excellent Margaritas