The Single Best Meals in Los Angeles, As Told by Friends of Eater

Bill Esparza, Food Writer

Mocotó in São Paulo. But here in L.A., the guest chef series at Providence with Enrique Olvera, Virgílio Martinez, and Michael Cimarusti.

Oren Peleg, Eater LA Contributor

Revolutionario Tacos. God bless you, Zadi.

Brigham Yen, DTLA Rising

The corzetti pasta with lobster at Miro ​

Lesley Balla, Zagat, Angeleno

The white truffle menu at Maude. Not a new restaurant, but wow. Just wow.

Jeff Miller, Senior City Editor, Thrillist

I lost my mom to cancer this year, and the meal I keep going back to was the last time I ate with her, brunch at the 4 Seasons in Santa Barbara. If I could repeat any meal this year, that would be the one.

Katherine Spiers, LA Weekly Food Editor

Ordering the charcuterie at Cassia, just for myself, and eating the whole dang thing. Dessert was the lime soda.

Eddie Lin, Food Writer

Jason Neroni's Rose Cafe was the site of my most decadent and tasty feast. Whether the dish was fashioned from lard, bone, pasta, offal or even vegetable, as in the case of Neroni's famous summer vegetable tartlet, nothing was lackluster. But my favorite plate was — and is — his legendary smoked bucatini carbonara.

Caroline Pardilla, Eater LA Contributor

Chef Ludo Lefebvre's Hennessy XO dinner at Trois Mec. Lobster paired with XO on the rocks!

Sarah Gim, The Delicious Life

​Pollo a la Brasa, at home​

Josh Scherer, Food Writer

A dinner I had this spring at Lasa in Unit 120. There was this charred octopus sinigang that got its sourness from locally grown rhubarb, and all the flavors were so vibrant and clear and unique. Ditto for a daikon cake with radish greens cooked in salted coconut milk. The Valencia brothers have something special going on with Lasa and I'm excited (you should be excited too) to see where they end up.

Jim Thurman, Eater LA Contributor

Mok pa at AJ Asian Kitchen in South El Monte

Katrina Yentch, Eater LA Contributor

AYCE BBQ from Bulgogi Hut with loads of beer and sake on my birthday this year

Nicole Iizuka, POPSUGAR Senior Producer

It's a toss up between sharing a meal with Wolfgang Puck as he doled out delicious cuts of meat at Cut or, you know, eating one of everything at Disneyland.

Hadley Tomicki, UrbanDaddy

An all-you-can-eat Dungeness Crab feast at George Inlet Lodge in Ketchikan, Alaska

Esther Tseng, Eater LA Contributor

One of two times having the tasting menu at Trois Mec. Admittedly, it was a buy-out but everything was equal parts delicious and thought-provoking

Meghan McCarron, Eater Senior Features Editor

I have the great good fortune of editing Eater's travel packages, and the best meal I had period this year was in Paris; I also saw a restaurant there called O'Tacos, so I was happy to come back to Los Angeles. My best meal here at the high end was hands-down Shibumi. I am stunned by this restaurant. Each dish was delicious and arresting without bombast; they were just good. As the fine dining world flattens into global sameness, Shibumi is strikingly unique.

At the less pricey end of things, every meal I have at Sichuan Impression is a revelation and a delight and I can't wait to go back.

Euno Lee, Eater LA Contributor

Sentimental reasoning: Brunches at Katella Deli.

Critical reasoning: Orsa & Winston, Downtown L.A. Omakase with beverage pairing from the incomparable Eater Young Gun, Maxfield Schnee. I would be perfectly fine with Orsa & Winston being L.A.'s international community-facing fine-dining flagship, and I think the way it encapsulates everything about L.A. deserves the kind of respect to the point where a schmoe like me shouldn't be able to book a table.

Crystal Coser, Eater LA Associate Editor

Kali

Farley Elliott, Eater LA Senior Editor

A holiday feast with the Eater team at Republique, LA's best do-it-all restaurant. After that it's a close second between various pop-up dishes at Unit 120 and a full meal, with cocktails, enjoyed from the bar at Here's Looking at You.

Matthew Kang, Eater LA Editor

A stunning steak dinner at the bar at Gwen with a dear friend of mine. The tasting menu at Gaggan and lunch at Nahm solidified my desire to return to Thailand, and I’m going back very, very soon. Eating Franklin Barbecue at a park in Austin with 15 of my best friends in the world. And perhaps the best single meal was the special omakase at Q Sushi.