Everywhere to Eat in Downtown LA
Visit Downtown LA for the culture, stay for the food.
Downtown LA is a confusing set of contradictions. It is alternatingly fancy and funky, crowded and abandoned, touristy and hidden, and it can ping back and forth between extremes block by block, floor by floor, and minute by minute. That means it serves a lot of purposes—there are great things to do in Downtown LA for tourists, from world-class art museums like The Broad to massive entertainment complexes like L.A. LIVE, and there are excellent low-key vintage shops and secret places for locals to discover too.
That also means that there are great restaurants in Downtown LA that serve a diverse clientele of visitors, office workers, business travelers, and locals out for a night on the town. The Arts District has become one of the city’s premier dining neighborhoods, thanks to an abundance of converted industrial spaces that lend themselves well to the exposed brick and beam aesthetic that still dominates trendy restaurant architecture. And the core of Downtown also has plenty of great options, from quick-service lunches to luxurious skyscraping tasting menus. For all of that and more, here’s our guide to the best restaurants in Downtown LA:
Charles Namba and Courtney Kaplan already had a pair of hits on their hands with Echo Park restaurants Tsubaki and Ototo, and moving downtown for their next restaurant hasn’t slowed them at all—it’s already clear that Camélia is another winner. The ambitious restaurant moved into the legendary former Church & State space, a huge and stylish home for their very cool French-Japanese bistro. Namba’s food menu deftly blends those traditions in dishes like a Croque Madame with ham katsu served on shokupan, and Kaplan’s sake pairings are as brilliant as ever.
If you’re looking for a dinner that places equal importance on the liquid portion of the meal, Everson Royce Bar is the place. The effortlessly cool bar and restaurant is part of the ever-expanding Silver Lake Wine empire, and it has absolutely everything you need for an extended evening out: a truly lovely patio, a great cocktail list, cool natural wines, a spirit book that’s thick and ornate like a Medieval manuscript, and a menu composed of perfect modern takes on bar food. The biscuits are immaculate, the taquitos are classic, they make their vegan chorizo in house, and the simple, laser-focused burger may be the best in town.
Jennifer Feltham and Teo Diaz-Rodriguez, Jr.'s taqueria has become an absolute institution downtown, an icon of the flour tortilla and carne asada game in LA. Their inspiration comes from the border town of San Luis Río Colorado in Sonora, and they continue to do it justice every day with their excellent tacos, burritos, lorenzas and chivichangas. The meats are deeply smoky from the mesquite grill, and you can add a roasted poblano chile to almost anything on the menu, which is always a good idea.
It was big news when Pizzeria Bianco opened in the Arts District’s walled city of ROW DTLA, and for good reason—Chef Chris Bianco’s Phoenix original was a revolutionary pizzeria, and Bianco himself is perhaps the most-awarded pizzaiolo working today, with a litany of trophies from the James Beard Foundation and the Michelin Guide, among others. Bianco’s LA outpost is bright and charming, an anchor for the mall and offices around it, and most important of all—the pizza absolutely rips.
This elegant modern Korean-American restaurant comes from chefs Katianna and John Hong, spouses who met during stints at Santa Monica fine dining staple Mélisse. It’s been through several iterations, but the current one is undoubtedly the best, a grown-up and artistic restaurant that’s perfect for date night.
If you’re out chasing stars in Downtown LA, don’t bother tracking paparazzi or looking at the night sky—head instead to Michelin-starred Camphor, a very cool French bistro that weaves in global influences from sensational Chef Max Boonthanakit and owners Cyrus Batchan and Sarah Lam. The menu really works, the drinks are great, and do not, under any circumstances, skip dessert.
Stephanie Izard’s second foray into Downtown LA after The Girl & The Goat comes via a Peruvian-inspired rooftop eatery perched on top of the Hoxton Hotel where you can take in the scene from a loungey seat on the open-air patio and bar, or take a table in the dining room with a retractable roof, both offering killer views.
This modern Taiwanese restaurant by Jon Yao was already one of the very best restaurants in the city when it was in a West LA strip mall, and it's only gotten better in the grander digs at Row DTLA. The tasting menu highlights dishes inspired by Taiwanese and Asian-American flavors and ingredients, and it also happens to have some of the coolest and most interesting cocktails in LA. Sit for a full tasting menu, try the abbreviated bar version, or duck in for some quicker but no less spectacular snacks and drinks—you absolutely cannot go wrong.
This natural wine shop and bar has been doling out a solid dinner menu that’s heavy on interesting shareable small plates. Hit happy hour, between 2 and 6 pm daily for discounted beer, wine, spritzes, and snacks. And check the calendar for more eponymous good clean fun like wine flight nights, meet the winemaker events, and themed dinners.
Renowned Mexico City chef Enrique Olvera of Pujol opened this stunning Arts District restaurant as his first foray into LA, and current Jefe de Cocina Chuy Cervantes is nailing the assignment. The menu is heavy on produce and seafood, with creative takes like Carrot Aguachile with sal de gusano. And don’t miss their fun Monday nights, a day for Cervantes to experiment with new dishes and seasonal ingredients, and some excellent guest chef collaborations.
Bestia was one of the first restaurants to open as part of the revitalization of the Arts District, and kinda started it all when it comes to a great meal in an old warehouse in a DTLA alley. When they opened in 2012 Chef Ori Menashe put together a menu of excellent Italian dishes from vegetables to pizzas, pasta, and wood-fired proteins, and Genevieve Gergis built out one of the best dessert menus in LA, and Bestia has been going strong ever since.
The second Arts District restaurant from the aforementioned Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis is another true stunner, this one dedicated to Levantine flavors. There is, of course, the now legendary Lamb Neck Shawarma and the deeply smoky Oyster Mushroom Kabob, but don’t skip the breads and spreads—the fresh pita, laffa, and buckwheat toast are all truly outstanding, and you’ll probably want a few of each to go with the Hummus Duck ‘Nduja and Baba Ghanoush.
The daytime restaurant’s name is a nod to Downtown’s fabled flower market across the street, and it’s a great go-to when you’re in the mood for comfort food. Expect Southern-inspired dishes like Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Waffles, Shrimp and Grits, and Pulled Pork Hash and Eggs. The third-floor rooftop “Poppy Patio” that launched mid-pandemic is covered in emerald Astroturf, potted succulents, and umbrella-shaded picnic tables, and open Friday through Sunday, serving as the perfect place to park yourself for a boozy brunch.
The 30,000-square-foot food hall has been around for over a century, offering just about every type of cuisine you can imagine, with long-term tenants like Tacos Tumbras and China Cafe, alongside relative newcomers like Villa’s Tacos and Broad Street Oyster Co. You can also get fresh oysters and champagne from The Oyster Gourmet, carnitas from Villa Moreliana, pull up to Golden Road’s counter for a fresh brew, get some creamy scoops of McConnell’s Fine Ice Creams, then wake yourself back up with a shot of espresso from G&B Coffee.
You’d never know that this bright and elegant space once housed clergymen, though the adjacent cathedral-turned-event-space Vibiana might give it away. Inside, longtime LA chef Neal Fraser and restaurateur Amy Knoll Fraser have created a menu of modern-American comfort food with a refined touch. In addition to the main dining room with its retractable roof and intimate front lounge, the restaurant added additional (and rather romantic) seating in the Redbird Garden during the pandemic that still remains.
This massive, rustic Italian mainstay in the Fashion District quietly does some of the best fresh pastas in town, with standouts like a Tagliatelle Bolognese; swiss chard-and-ricotta-stuffed Tortellini, and the signature Minestra Nel Sacco, pillowy parmigiano dumplings floating in broth. The front courtyard patio is a lovely option, but for some of the best seats in the house inside, ask to dine at the bar surrounding the open kitchen where you can watch chefs grill enormous ribeyes and dry-aged orata, and put the finishing touches on those beautiful bowls of pasta.
After spending six years as one of the most beloved food trucks in town, Wes Avila’s Guerilla Tacos parked the truck and found success at this brick-and-mortar Arts District spot he and business partner Brittney Valles opened in 2018. Avila has since moved on to other projects, so Valles is running the show with chef Crystal Espinoza in the kitchen, and the tacos haven’t missed a beat. They remain as creative, fun, and delicious as ever, with lots of fresh produce and regular specials. And there’s one major benefit of the brick-and-mortar: they also have a great selection of tequila and mezcal to go with.
Lizbeth Scordo is a food and lifestyle writer. Follow her on Instagram@modlizbethand Twitter@lalizbeth.