Where to Eat in Los Angeles: A Local's Guide to the Best Restaurants
The restaurants worth your time and money in Los Angeles, CA
Guerrilla Tacos: Mexican-Californian in Arts District, Downtown
Chef Wes Avila started Guerrilla Tacos as a food truck and turned it into one of the most celebrated restaurants in Los Angeles. The tacos are Mexican in technique but Californian in spirit — sweet potato with feta and fried corn, uni tostada with yuzu kosho, braised short rib with pickled onion. Each taco is a composed dish that happens to be served on a tortilla. The brick-and-mortar location in the Arts District has a full bar and expanded menu while maintaining the creative energy that made the truck legendary.
Pro Tip
The breakfast tacos are available until 11 AM and are among the best morning meals in LA. The sweet potato taco is always on the menu and always a revelation.
Bestia: Italian in Arts District, Downtown
Bestia helped put the Arts District on the culinary map with its aggressive, deeply flavored Italian food served in a converted warehouse space. The house-made pastas are exceptional — the spaghetti rustichella with dungeness crab, the orecchiette with sausage, and the squid ink chitarra are all stunning. The roasted bone marrow, the grilled octopus, and the whole grilled branzino showcase the restaurant's wood-fire expertise. The space is loud, energetic, and perpetually packed.
Pro Tip
Reservations open 30 days in advance on Resy and fill within minutes. Set an alert and book exactly at midnight when they drop. Bar seats are available as walk-ins.
Howlin' Ray's: Nashville hot chicken in Chinatown
Howlin' Ray's brought Nashville hot chicken to LA and created a phenomenon. The chicken is brined, battered, fried to perfection, and brushed with a spice paste that ranges from Country (no heat) to Howlin' (genuinely dangerous). Even at the milder levels, the chicken is extraordinary — crispy, juicy, and deeply flavorful. Served on white bread with pickles, it's a simple, perfect sandwich. The line is legendary — often two to three hours on weekends — but it moves steadily.
Pro Tip
Go on a weekday and arrive 30 minutes before the 11 AM opening. The Medium heat level is the sweet spot for most people — plenty of kick without overwhelming the flavor of the excellent chicken.
Musso & Frank Grill: American classic in Hollywood
Operating on Hollywood Boulevard since 1919, Musso & Frank is the oldest restaurant in Hollywood and a time capsule of old Los Angeles. The red-jacketed waiters, many of whom have worked there for decades, serve classic American dishes — flannel cakes, Welsh rarebit, filet mignon, chicken pot pie — in a mahogany-paneled room that hasn't changed in generations. Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Faulkner, and Chandler all drank at the bar. The martinis are still stirred the old way and the steaks are still broiled over an open flame.
Pro Tip
Sit at the bar for the full old-Hollywood atmosphere. Order a martini and the flannel cakes (thin, crepe-like pancakes that are a house specialty since 1919). The valet parking on Hollywood Blvd is well worth it.
Jitlada: Thai (Southern) in Thai Town
Jitlada in Thai Town specializes in Southern Thai cuisine — fiery, complex, and profoundly flavorful dishes that go far beyond the Americanized Thai food most people know. The crying tiger beef, the morning glory stir-fry, and the dynamite spicy crispy catfish are legendary. Chef Jazz's specials, handwritten on the enormous menu, are where the real magic happens. Jonathan Gold championed this restaurant for years and called it one of the best Thai restaurants in the world.
Pro Tip
Tell your server your real spice tolerance — Southern Thai food is genuinely hot, and Jitlada doesn't hold back. Start with Medium if you're unsure. The specials menu is where the chef's passion lives.
Beyond the Usual: Exploring Los Angeles's Food Scene
Los Angeles's dining scene extends far beyond these highlighted restaurants. The city's neighborhoods each bring their own culinary personality, from ethnic enclaves serving family recipes passed down through generations to ambitious young chefs redefining what Los Angeles food means. The best strategy for eating well in Los Angeles is to stay curious, ask locals where they eat (not where they take visitors), and be willing to follow a recommendation into a strip mall, a food truck, or a hole-in-the-wall that doesn't look like much from the outside but serves food that stops you mid-bite. The restaurants listed above are proven starting points, but they're doors into a much larger world. Every neighborhood has its own food story, and the best meals in Los Angeles are often the ones you discover by accident — turning down a side street because something smelled incredible, or sitting at a counter because the only table was taken. Trust your instincts, tip generously, and eat with the kind of open-minded enthusiasm that Los Angeles's best chefs bring to their kitchens every day.
Explore More
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. We earn a commission at no additional cost to you when you purchase through our links.