Inside Gusto's New Home Along West Third, Where Pasta Reigns Supreme

Farley Elliott is the Senior Editor at Eater LA and the author of Los Angeles Street Food: A History From Tamaleros to Taco Trucks. He covers restaurants in every form, from breaking news to the culture, people, and history that surrounds LA's dining landscape.

Here it is: The first full look at Gusto, chef Vic Casanova’s reborn Italian hotspot right along West Third Street. The new address was previously home of Pistola, a moodier, dimmer restaurant that had acted a more straightforward Italian chophouse for the past three years.

Now Gusto gets to expand, jumping from 35 seats to a full-realized restaurant space, complete with private dining, one heck of a wine case, and a big, open dining room. That’s great news for fans of Casanova’s ambling Italian cooking, because Gusto was basically since day one packed every night. Adding a full 100 seats, a lengthy bar, and a patio that seats 20 diners around an olive tree should help.

As for the menu, expect the usual slate of options Gusto has been so known for these past five years. There’s the bucatini carbonara, the rigatoni all’amatriciana, the crispy squash blossoms, and all the rest. With the updated kitchen space, the team will also be verging into nearly a dozen different pizza options too, and the bar is to be overseen by none other than Devon Espinosa.

Gusto opens tonight at 6 p.m., keeping hours from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Brunch will run 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

Gusto
8022 W. 3rd St.
Los Angeles, CA