They say there is something for everyone to enjoy eating in Los Angeles. This is, in large part, due to the melting pot of cultures that make up LA. In fact, food is so crucial to the entire culture of Los Angeles, that there’s even a specific subreddit for it! Well-known food writer Jeremy Jacobowitz keeps an up-to-date blog on his Morsyls substack each time he visits the city and tries out the new, breakthrough eateries, which is well worth keeping your eye on if you are looking for the next, great place to catch up with friends. One thing that makes LA stand-out for its food scene is that the word new really does mean a brand new idea, rather than a rehashing of someone else’s existing plate. You can always find something ideal for your taste buds in this city. We’re going to break down the city’s palate into three distinct areas to keep your eyes on, and why such cuisines thrive there: street food, fine dining and fusion cuisines. 

Street food for every palate

It’s hard to know exactly where to start with street food in LA. We have such a rich tapestry of influences here that you can find tasty options for almost any cuisine. However, we think some of the best examples of our street food come from Mexican or Asian palates. 

There are two fantastic representatives of Mexican cuisine that you just love to return to, again and again. Whether you want a quick pit stop at a taco truck or you want a casual seating experience, this cuisine is perfect for either. We love to stop at Mariscos Jalisco on E Olympic Blvd for their jaw-dropping take on seafood. Specialising in shrimp ceviche, their menu is full of colour, with octopus and oysters also on the menu. Sonoratown is our go-to, both downtown (E 8th Street) and mid-city (San Vicente Blvd), for their chivichanga and their burrito 2.0, and fillings that range from the expected - asada, pollo or chorizo - to the traditional - cabeza (braised beef head) and tripa (beef intestine).

When people talk about the breadth of Asian cuisines available in Los Angeles, they are not lying. We’ve got everything from Chinese and Korean to Filipino and Thai, but let’s start with the iconic California roll and all things sushi. Most LA residents will tell you to look no further than Yama Sushi Marketplace for the best in town - their cali rolls are so large, you need to eat it to believe it! We love their K-Town spot on W Olympic Blvd in particular. Now, to famous asian-style BBQ: Dollar Hits on West Temple Street has the most delicious Filipino-style BBQ skewers, with a range of options each day, whilst Baekjeong on W 8th St brings the authentic Korean BBQ experience with a grill in the centre of a table and allows you to enjoy spending time with your own community around the table.

There’s also a breadth of regional Chinese options at Good Alley on E Valley Blvd in Rosemead. Whether you’re looking for dumplings, steamed buns or a noodle dish, their menu is wide-ranging and there’s something for everyone. Finally, we cannot forget Thai street food can be found plentiful on the weekends at Wat Thai, a beautiful market at the temple on Coldwater Canyon Ave in North Hollywood.

Taty’s Food Truck on Fairfax Ave, LA; © Abhishek Navlakha

Bring a star to your stomach

On the other end of the culinary scale, because of LA’s global appeal and esteem, we are also home to 27 different Michelin starred establishments. TimeOut keeps a handy list here, whilst Eater has the 2025 James Beard Award finalists from Los Angeles. Like TimeOut did, we also want to point out a few eateries awarded a Bib Gourmand which goes to more affordable restaurants. Los Angeles is home to three of these: Komal, Rasarumah and Vin Folk

Komal, located in Mercado La Paloma on S Grand Ave, is the city’s first craft molino and offers fresh tortillas, tostadas and a truly unique menu of masa-based antojitos. You cannot miss their tlacoyos, and if you love their tacos, you can go home with some of their home-made tortillas of your own.

Rasarumah on Beverly Blvd, in the historic Filipinotown area, is home to dishes inspired by Malay and other Southeast Asian cuisines, and host to an early-evening happy hour where cocktails are available for $10 and their beef rendang roll for $12. Their skewers are priced at $5 each, whether you choose chicken, pork jowl or mushroom as your main ingredient. It is also worth mentioning that their drinks menu truly reflects the cuisine of the restaurant, with a variety of tea options too.

Vin Folk is a family-run neighborhood bistro in Hermosa Beach, with Chefs Kevin De Los Santos and Katya Shastova at the helm. The LA Times called it “the most exciting restaurant to open in the South Bay in recent memory”, with the mussels tart truly capturing the imagination of their restaurant critic, Jenn Harris, as well as the beef tongue inspired by Chef Katya’s upbringing in southern Russia. This is the most expensive of the three Bib Gourmand awarded restaurants, but still a more affordable price compared to Michelin-starred fayre. 

Get your fill of fusion, delivered the authentic way

Fusion cuisine is often described as traditional plates being gentrified for Western palates to make them more familiar to us. However, the beauty of the melting pot here in LA is that fusion cuisine is truly the blending of different styles, rather than making every dish an alternative version of an American staple. One restaurant that does this excellently is DAMA on E 11th Street. Their Cuban-led Latin fusion menu sees a blend of Jamaica and Cuba, bringing dishes like whipped beans (heirloom white beans and crispy pork, with cheese, chives, radish and pickled onion) and arepa together on the same menu with rotisserie chicken and fried chicken tacos. 

Another great example of true fusion is Escala in K-Town (W 6th St). Here, you can enjoy a mash-up of Colombian and Korean flavours, as well as typical American comfort food. With a menu that features items like kimchi fried rice empanadas, guava and cheese gyoza, and Chef Oh’s Frit-Oh’s Mac ’N Cheese, you can understand why we call this true fusion food. 

It is through restaurants and eateries like these that you can truly understand the heart of Los Angeles. Our culture is made up of many different nationalities, cuisines and languages, but the soul of the city is seen when people from all walks of life come together to create something truly unique. This uniqueness is what makes LA different to other cities, and even as locals, we have to remember to enjoy what’s on our doorstep and continue to support businesses like these, in the same way that investors support our startup firms. The fact that our climate makes it easy for businesses to thrive as food trucks or with tables out in the alleyways next to small establishments, all of these individual elements come together to create one perfectly blended culture, just like a cocktail at a fusion restaurant here in the city.

Title image: Fresh apples at a farmer’s market in Los Angeles; © Albert Cai