Osteria Mozza 6602 Melrose Ave Los Angeles, CA 90038 A concept by restaurateur Joseph Bastianich, celebrity chef Mario Batali and Nancy Silverton of La Brea Bakery fame, Osteria Mozza serves a more upscale Italian meal than its sister pizzeria. However, both have been very popular since their inception a few years ago. My family is…
Bouchon Bistro 235 N Canon Dr Beverly Hills, CA 90210 As the first meal post-American Wine & Food Festival, my family and I wanted something reliably good. Enter Bouchon. Thomas Keller’s LA outpost serves some well-executed, comfortable French bistro fare. The brunch menu shares some of the popular dinner dishes, such as the steak frites,…
American Wine & Food Festival Universal Studios Backlot 3900 Lankershim Blvd Universal City, CA If there’s one food event I look forward to each year, it’s this one. I’m not the only one – my family flies down from San Francisco each year for this experience. For the most part, the festival works similar to…
WP24 The Ritz-Carlton 900 W Olympic Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90015 I’m often skeptical about “upscale Chinese.” Many of my favorite Chinese restaurants are very reasonably priced, so I have to think twice (or a few times) about spending triple-digits on a Chinese meal. WP24 is Wolfgang Puck’s latest foray into Chinese cuisine, located on…
Asanebo 11941 Ventura Blvd Studio City, CA 91604 Asanebo would be the last stop of a Japanese-food filled weekend with my dad (see Urasawa and Sushi Zo). Asanebo’s emphasis was more on their appetizer-like small plates, and less on the sushi. Whereas the previous two restaurants had 20+ courses of sushi in their omakase, Asanebo…
Urasawa 218 N Rodeo Dr Beverly Hills, CA 90210 Urasawa. This is typically the first word that comes out of my mouth when someone asks “what’s your favorite restaurant in LA?” I first came in 2008 – I had heard all the stories, but could not justify the then-$300 price point until I graduated college…
Sushi Zo 9824 National Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90034 My mother prefers not to eat raw fish. This, combined with the fact that San Francisco’s sushi scene pales in comparison to LA’s (there’s no doubt), means my dad doesn’t get good sushi too often. So my dad and I planned a sushi weekend, and he…
The Slanted Door 1 Ferry Building San Francisco, CA 94111 The Slanted Door was one of my favorite restaurants growing up in San Francisco. It’s been at its current location for a while now, in the Ferry Building Marketplace with great views of the San Francisco Bay. The chef is Charles Phan, who has arguably…