14 mid-range rooms in Los Angeles, editor-picked. the comfortable everyday-good rooms in Los Angeles — no surprise on the bill, real cooking. All Los Angeles food.
KazuNori ★ 4.7
downtown-la · 421 S Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90013
KazuNori on Main Street in downtown Los Angeles is the original temaki handroll bar, with the five-roll set delivered within 30 seconds of rolling.
Tip: Walk-in only, the line moves once a seat opens; eat each handroll within 30 seconds, the nori loses snap fast.
Jitlada ★ 4.6
thai-town · 5233 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Jitlada in East Hollywood, Los Angeles has been LA's southern Thai room since the 1980s. Owner Jazz Singsanong runs the dining room front of house.
Tip: Ask for the green Southern Thai menu, not the laminated one; it's a different restaurant once you do.
Guelaguetza ★ 4.6
koreatown · 3014 W Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90006
The Lopez family's Guelaguetza in Koreatown, Los Angeles has cooked Oaxacan moles, tlayudas and clayudas for the city since 1994. A James Beard winner.
Tip: The Lopez family runs a moles-by-the-jar takeaway out the side door; carry one home on the plane.
Tsujita LA Artisan Noodle ★ 4.6
sawtelle · 2057 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025
Tsujita LA in Sawtelle, Los Angeles is the LA outpost of Tokyo's Tsujita, simmering tonkotsu broth for 60 hours and serving it as ramen and tsukemen.
Tip: Tsukemen is served exclusively before 15:00; after 15:00 the menu switches to ramen and stays open until 02:00.
Pijja Palace ★ 4.5
silver-lake · 2711 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026
Avish Naran's Pijja Palace in Silver Lake, Los Angeles, fuses Italian-American pizza and pasta with Indian sauces in a sports-bar room. Walk-in only.
Tip: Walk-in only, three TVs always on sports; the wait at 19:30 is 90 minutes, at 17:00 it is zero.
Kismet ★ 4.5
silver-lake · 4648 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Sara Kramer and Sarah Hymanson's Kismet in Los Feliz, Los Angeles plates a vegetable-led California Mediterranean menu in a sunny corner room.
Tip: Brunch on weekends from 09:00 takes walk-ins; dinner is a 30-day-out booking.
All Time ★ 4.5
silver-lake · 2040 Hillhurst Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Tyler Wells and Ashley Wells's All Time in Los Feliz, Los Angeles runs a 30-seat neighbourhood room with the best brunch eggs in Eastside LA.
Tip: Brunch is walk-in only Saturday and Sunday from 09:00; dinner books two weeks out.
Pine & Crane ★ 4.5
silver-lake · 1521 Griffith Park Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026
Vivian Ku's Pine and Crane in Silver Lake, Los Angeles serves Taiwanese family recipes at a counter and a dozen tables on Griffith Park Boulevard.
Tip: Counter service, fast turnover; this is the casual sibling of the more formal Joy in Highland Park.
Sun Nong Dan ★ 4.5
koreatown · 710 S Western Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90005
Sun Nong Dan in Koreatown, Los Angeles serves seolleongtang ox-bone soup 24 hours a day and a cheese-topped galbi jjim that built a TikTok following.
Tip: 24-hour, two-hour wait at 22:00 Friday; come at 23:30 instead, lines clear.
Hippo ★ 4.5
highland-park · 5916 1/2 Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90042
Matt Molina's Hippo in Highland Park, Los Angeles is a 50-seat Italian-California room serving handmade pastas from the Mozza alum since 2021.
Tip: The chalkboard menu changes weekly; reservations only on OpenTable, four weeks out.
Sqirl ★ 4.4
silver-lake · 720 N Virgil Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90029
Jessica Koslow's Sqirl on Virgil Avenue, Los Angeles invented the ricotta toast format in 2012 and still draws a daily brunch line at the counter.
Tip: Order at the counter, sit at a sidewalk picnic table; the queue is for groups, not solos.
Joy ★ 4.4
highland-park · 5100 York Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90042
Vivian Ku's Joy on York Boulevard, Highland Park, Los Angeles serves Taiwanese family-style on a covered patio. Sister room to Pine and Crane in Silver Lake.
Tip: Sister to Pine and Crane but takes bookings; ask the host for the back patio when you book.
Cofax Coffee Shop ★ 4.3
mid-wilshire · 440 N Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Cofax Coffee Shop on Fairfax, Los Angeles updated the LA breakfast burrito with chorizo verde and house-fermented hot sauces. A reliable Mid-City stop.
Tip: Counter and patio only; queue at 09:30 weekends, walk-in fine weekdays.
Cassell's Hamburgers ★ 4.3
koreatown · 3600 W 6th St, Los Angeles, CA 90020
Cassell's Hamburgers inside the Hotel Normandie in Koreatown grinds its own chuck for griddled patties, a recipe in continuous use since 1948.
Tip: Cassell's grinds beef in-house every morning; the breakfast burrito is the under-rated order from the same kitchen.