If you were at all troubled by the feeling that great new restaurant openings in LA had slowed down, that the difficult economic moment had scared away potential restaurateurs or forced too many chefs to defer their dreams, let this anecdote be your antidote: I usually update this guide to the best new restaurants in LA every few months, changing out a handful of spots and replacing them with the new hotness. But this time I left a little extra gap in between updates, and when I started to collect new restaurants for this edition, somehow there were enough to fill the whole damn list twice over.
That is to say: there are still so many exciting restaurants opening in LA, from the beach to the SGV and from Inglewood to Cypress Park and beyond. These 15 are some of our favorite new restaurants in LA, but it’s really only the tip of the iceberg—by the time you check these ones out, there will be just as many worthy new places that have opened in the interim. And hopefully there will be a new edition of this list to help you out. So for now, here are the most exciting new restaurants in LA:
Photo by Ben Mesirow for Thrillist
The best new restaurants in Northeast LA
Bar Sinizki
Atwater Village
Honestly, there aren’t many places to get a great plate of pierogies in LA, and that’s a damn shame. And there are even fewer places to get a great plate of pierogies with an immaculate Americano Perfecto spritz and sit on a lovely sidewalk patio in high continental style—which makes Bar Sinizki all the more precious. The elegant new restaurant comes from the team behind Dune and Elf, and despite the Polish and Ukrainian inspiration it fits right in with their shared aesthetic across cuisines. The menu is simple and short—curated, you might call it—with lots of seasonal touches and a bent towards fresh herbs, bright acidity, and plenty of vegetables. There is also a particularly excellent Bistro Burger and Steak Frites if you need a little more protein.
Photo by Ben Mesirow for Thrillist
Taqueria Frontera
Cypress Park
Many of the best and most romantic meals in LA come from taco stands and trucks, but their greatest asset—ephemerality—can also be their greatest liability. Sometimes it’s nice to open a door, to sit inside, to know precisely where a restaurant will be when you need it. And the new Taqueria Frontera has a lot more going for it than its foundation: Owner JC Guerra is a scion of the Tijuanazo family, a legendary Tijuana taco chain, and Taqueria Frontera sprung fully formed from his forehead as one of the most exciting new taquerias in LA. They’ve got all the taco hits in true Tijuana style, individually wrapped in little paper cones. The adobada sliced straight from the trompo is an early highlight, and don’t overlook the vegetarian tacos with nopales, either.
Carnal
Highland Park
When the chef behind one of the best mariscos trucks in town—and one of the best marisquerias more generally—goes into a brick and mortar location, it’s only natural to hope for more mariscos. But that would be too easy for chef Francisco Aguilar of Símon and the new Carnal. Instead, Aguilar has opened with a selection of refined rancho cuisine, inspired by his Oaxacan roots. That means an opening plate of pickled pineapples, Tetelas Enfrijoladas and Chilaquiles with Lengua at brunch, and at dinner a Tlayuda with Tuna Tasajo and Chapulines, Cabbage Veracruzana, and a particularly stunning Maizhongo—mushrooms and huitlacoche cooked with hoja santa and served with chochoyotes, little bowl-shaped bites of masa that visually mimic mushrooms. The space is striking and dark, an elegant design accented by rough-hewn pottery.
Photo by Peter Quinn, courtesy of Zizou
Zizou
Lincoln Heights
When was the last time you had a really great tajine? Whenever that was, it was probably too long ago, and the new Zizou is here to help. The French-Moroccan restaurant comes from childhood friends Maati Zoutina and Boris Macquin, two Frenchmen who reconnected working in various parts of the restaurant industry and decided to open a restaurant that pays tribute to their homeland. But it wasn’t quite that easy—it took them four whole years to build out Zizou. The result is impressive, a lovely taste of Southeast France with a verdant patio, warm energy, and an eclectic and tightly curated playlist. With a space so stylish and a collection of cool regulars from the Brewery Arts Complex, the food could almost be beside the point—but it isn’t. Don’t miss that Date & Fennel Tajine.
III Mas
Glendale
Arthur Grigoryan’s ongoing project at III Mas has taken on many different shapes over the years. It’s been a barbecue pop-up, a tasting menu dinner series, a khorovats specialist, and now it’s III Mas Bakery & Deli, an Armenian-American ghost kitchen on San Fernando in Northwest Glendale. But regardless of the shape, this has always been true: Grigoryan is riffing on legacy Armenian dishes with his modern perspective, combining a scholarly attention to detail with his impeccable palate, and making dishes that absolutely rip. At this incarnation, he’s serving just two sandwiches, one with his much-lauded Basturma Brisket and another with Mortadella and Labneh. These both come tucked into Grigoryan’s stunning house-made pita, and he’s also baking excellent Lahmajoun with beef chuck that he grinds and marinates himself. It’s early days and pickup only for now, but it’s an incredible experience and we’ve got our eyes glued to wherever it goes from here.
Belle’s
Highland Park
I was living in a deli town, didn’t know it was a deli town. We’ve lost a lot of deli legends over the last several years, from Greenblatt’s and Junior’s to Label’s Table and Billy’s. But luckily a new group has stepped up to continue the legacy, and Belle’s is at the head of the class. What began as a backyard bagel pop-up in 2014 has grown into a full deli, just opened in the heart of York Boulevard’s most happening stretch. The vibes are immaculate, retro-chic and full of allusions to LA deli icons, with bagels in the morning, sandwiches for lunch, and fun cocktails in the evening. The bagels are as good as ever, the pastrami comes from RC Provisions, and the mushroom schnitzel is honestly worth a trip all on its own.
Photo by Nicholas Gingold Photography, courtesy of Butch Bar
The best new restaurants on the unofficial east side of LA
Butchr Bar
Echo Park
It’s easy to become divorced from our foodways, to convince yourself that a steak was always just a rectangular slab that someone tossed on the grill. But allowing that alienation to permeate modern life is a mistake—as we grow further from material truth we become further disaffected. So it is refreshing to find Butchr Bar, a labor of love from owners Tyson and Bridgette Blackney, dedicated to reforging some of that connection. Tyson is the scion of an Australian import and export family, and he’s used those connections to vertically integrate their meat into the menu, bringing in some of the very best lamb and beef in the world and processing it in-house. They create magnificent charcuterie of lamb and boar, as well as dry-aging wagyu beef steaks and lamb chops. Despite all of that meat, the ethos is light, bright, and airy, much like the beautiful dining room itself, all hand-hewn in shades of pink with stone accents. And don’t overlook the produce, either, where chef Danny Rodriguez’s artful touch is on display from the fermented tomato to the giardiniera and even the kumquat mostarda that comes alongside the steak. The world won’t heal its psychic disconnect with charcuterie and natty wine, but it’s not a bad start for us.
Photo by Ben Mesirow for Thrillist
A Tí
Echo Park
It’s not easy to open a restaurant in LA, under any circumstances. But sometimes things do fall into place, and with a dash of kismet, a few phone calls to industry friends, and some elbow grease you’re on your way. Such is the case at the brand new A Tí in Echo Park, the brick and mortar endeavor from chef Drew Ponce, an Echo Park local who somehow managed to execute a one-day turnaround from short lived Osaka-style kushikatsu specialist Kushiba to his own LA-Mexican vision. Not that it was quite that easy, or quite that fast—Ponce has been popping up around town as A Ti for a while, drawing deserved acclaim for his modern and multicultural reinterpretations of Mexican dishes. His talent with this stuff is immediately apparent in the new restaurant, even on its literal first day. A Tuna Tostada comes with a thin sheet of fish atop lemon aioli, decorated with a gorgeous salsa negra. The Sweet Potato Taco gets a shio koji crema and a hit of chile morita, and the showstopping Scallop Aguachile gets a dusting of charred serrano and urfa chiles doused in a bright citrus. There’s a full bar too, much of which appears inherited from the previous tenants but reshaped to fit Ponce’s vision—don’t miss the Michelada with a tomato dashi and a sidecar of pickled mussel in escabeche. It’s brand new, but A Tí has the makings of a real winner in Echo Park.
Photo by Gry Space, courtesy of Udatsu Sushi
The best new restaurants in Hollywood
Udatsu Sushi
Hollywood
It takes a lot to make a mark on LA’s lauded and crowded high-end omakase scene, but the new Udatsu Sushi has the juice to do it. It’s the third location for chef Hisashi Udatsu, after a Michelin-starred original in Tokyo and a first expansion to Hong Kong. Chef Udatsu works at the intersection of art and sushi, infusing his menu with a painterly touch, from the tiny shiso blossoms dotted atop slices of flounder to the way the smoke flows out of a glass jar to reveal slices of fatty tuna. His hand is delicate but audacious, parceling out bold flavors and temperature contrast in precise measure. There is a lash of char on the blackthroat seaperch, a snap of yuzu on the simmered scallop, and hot fried squash plays with cold caviar. The room, like Rokusho downstairs, was designed by gry space, and the deep slate and black color palette with rough-hewn pieces sets a soothing, contemplative tone on top of which Udatsu and his protege chef Shingo Ogane can innovate and display their art.
Bridgetown Roti
East Hollywood
It wasn’t impossible to find Caribbean roti around LA before Rashida Holmes started her Birdgetown Roti pop-up in 2019, but it certainly wasn’t easy. Thanks to Holmes, though, over the last few years roti and patties seem to be on the tip of everyone’s tongue, and the city is better off for it. Holmes and Bridgetown Roti have won awards from Eater and Esquire, been nominated by James Beard, and made it to a lofty spot on the LA Times’ annual 101 Best Restaurants list, and at her new brick and mortar location across from LACC in East Hollywood, the food is only getting better. The headlining roti are excellent across the board, from the Pumpkin Choka to the Red Pepper Goat, pushing saltiness right to the edge in the best way, cut through with bright Fresno Mango Masala or a spike of Pepper Sauce. But don’t overlook the sides and the cheeky section called Caribbean Tings—the Pigeon Peas and Rice with Fried Okra is homey and comforting, and the Cocobread Cutter is up there with the very best fish sandwiches in town.
The best new restaurants in the San Gabriel Valley
Tendon Tempura Carlos Jr
Pasadena
Serious tempura-heads have long been making the pilgrimage down the 110 to the South Bay for chef Carlos Pinto’s tempura rice bowls. But thankfully folks in the central and northeast ends of the city no longer have to sweat that commute, now that Carlos Jr. has a second location in Pasadena, right near Vroman’s in the heart of the action. And all of the expertise that Pinto brought to the South Bay tempura scene has translated up here—pieces are perfectly fried, and the tentsuyu is just right. Breaking open and mixing a tempura-fried runny egg into their excellent rice is a special treat. And the menu also has well-executed soba and udon to mix in with all the fried stuff.
Authentic Xian Liangpi
Temple City
We love a specialist, the kind of place that only does one or two things, but absolutely crushes them every time. We also love an endorsement from David Chan, a legend in the Chinese restaurant game who has forgotten more Chinese restaurants than most of us will ever know. So when he gets excited about a new restaurant, it turns heads. Such is the case with Authentic Xian Liangpi, a new spot that specializes in—you guessed it—Xian-style cold noodle dish Liangpi. The short menu has Liangpi served a few ways, served with Secret Sesame Sauce Chicken or Braised Beef, and a selection of Rougamo, which are often called Chinese Hamburgers. It’s tucked into another restaurant called Unique Smokehouse, but the menus are separate.
Photo courtesy of Vespertine
The best new restaurants on the unofficial west side of LA
Vespertine
Culver City
Chef Jordan Kahn’s Vespertine is back after a multi-year hiatus, and it hasn’t missed a beat; the restaurant has already regained its two Michelin stars, just a few short months after opening. Kahn is undeniably one of LA’s most talented chefs, and he has also notably been one of LA’s most serious chefs, the one most dedicated to cuisine as art, the restaurant as theater, and the chef as a sort of composer/conductor; dinner is, by its nature, fleeting, and it has long felt like Kahn’s mission to turn a brief few hours into a conversation piece, the kind of experience that slithers its way into lasting memory. But this is not the same Kahn as the one who ran Vespertine’s previous iteration; he is more open, more conscientious, by all appearances happier, and that filters through the restaurant. Now servers smile and joke, even as they precisely drop an obsidian obelisk of smoked mussels with a prismatic rainbow of algae oil and pour elaborate dressings over ceramic rock bowls full of flowers. That is to say, where before Vespertine felt a little bit like dinner in Baron Harkonnen’s private library (complimentary) it now feels something like the dining room for visiting dignitaries on a Federation starship (also complimentary). Instead of the abstract, almost anti-farm-to-table statement of the original Vespertine, Kahn’s menu is ambassadorial, plucking the best that humanity has to offer and featuring farms and producers from around the world. With Vespertine 1.0, Kahn’s eyes were on the stars, and nothing about that astronomic ambition has changed. But now his feet are also
