People Watching Restaurants

Inspired by the hospitable aspects of traditional Italian dining, Nonna of Italy offers a variety of delicious pastas, salads, soups, and deserts for both lunch and dinner. Enjoy Chef Kieth Silverton's innovative take on classic Italian dishes. The restaurant allows for people watching from the patio in the historic Sunset Strip area of West Hollywood. From the wood-fired pizzas, fine seafood, and crispy calamari, to the Apple Tarte Tatin, Chocolate Fondant and the other ever-popular desserts, Nonna of Italy prides itself on its traditional hospitality and traditional Hollywood style. Learn More »

If your idea of a great meal is garlic, garlic, and more garlic, head to Restaurant Row on La Cienega and visit The Stinking Rose. Executive Chef and owner Andrea Froncillo has created a garlic lover’s paradise, featuring great food in a wildly fun, garlic-themed atmosphere. Fantastic for large parties, the restaurant boasts a varied menu with specialties including roasted crab, prime rib, pastas, and giant tureens of steamed clams, all bathed in garlic. Don’t forget to visit "Dracula’s Grotto," one of many ornately decorated rooms, and to try Gilroy’s Famous Garlic Ice Cream. Learn More »

Dish in La Cañada Flintridge has been serving up California comfort food to the chagrin of hungry patrons. Weeknight specials included Fried Chicken Tuesday and half-off beers on Monday nights. All items are made in house, including Banana pancakes featuring banana batter, and desserts like the decadent Turtle Bar. The folksy atmosphere, accentuated by the shabby-chic décor, has touches like pop-up toaster ovens on each table so diners can toast their bread to exact taste. With a warm and cozy feel and filling meals, it is no wonder Dish is popular among those looking for something a little different. Learn More »

Clementine bakery and café in Century City bustles with the activity of patrons who make regular appearances at this sidewalk café. Sensory overload hits guests the moment they cross the threshold into the restaurant. A display case greets patrons with freshly baked cookies, cupcakes, bars, and mini key lime pies. Just when a sweet tooth might surrender to making a meal of just pastries, the smell of homemade soups, fresh sandwiches, and seasonal salads wafts by. Curbside pickup and a take-out dinner menu round out this charming, breezy, bistro like gem. With a new menu every season, highlighting the freshest, … Learn More »

Rod Rotondi, founder and Executive Chef of Leaf Organics, is a culinary expert whose tireless crusade to bring organic foods into the mainstream has reached some of SoCal’s main retailers like Mother’s Markets, Rainbow Acres, Erewhon, and Whole Foods Markets. Rod’s dream was to create an eatery where diners can make healthy and positive changes in their lives. His dream came true and Leaf Organics is now the place to go to when you want to eat from a unique and organic menu. Creative and original items include salads, veggie burgers, rice and noodle bowls, pizza, vegan desserts, chai with … Learn More »

The Village Idiot is a one-stop shop with over thirty types of wine ranging in international flavor as well as beers like Guinness on draft and local craft brews. The menu ranges from breakfast, which is served all day, a "day" menu, as well as a dinner menu. A mixture of continental European pub food and American style cuisine, this gastro pub in West Hollywood proves to be both exciting and delicious. The brick walls, plastered with photos from the 1930s and furniture lends this pub an air of casualness. Come socialize, watch a game with friends, relax and enjoy … Learn More »

Located in a Greek Market that has been open since the 1940’s, Papa Cristo’s Greek Restaurant has been serving South Los Angeles authentic culinary delicacies for more than 20 years. Using imported seasonings, cheeses, olives, olive oils, as well as other ingredients to prepare the culturally true plates featured at Papa Cristo’s, it is no wonder people rave that this is some of the best Greek food available in Los Angeles. A full menu with items like Sizzling Feta & Tomato, Dolmades, Tabouli, Gyro, and Rack of Lamb just to mention a few, will satiate any desire for tasty Greek … Learn More »

Rogelio and Janet Huidobro opened the first Café Sevilla in 1987, honoring their homeland with a Spanish restaurant in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. After finding additional success in Riverside, they launched in downtown Long Beach in 2006. Mid week, the old-world setting draws business types. Weekends attract a younger crowd for upstairs dancing and dinner shows. Café Sevilla specializes in pans of paella and traditional Spanish tapas. The reasonably priced wine list is especially strong on full-bodied Spanish reds like Tempranillo and Torre Oria. Learn More »

YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD WINERY We welcome wine lovers! We help the expert wine aficionado or the wine novice find the perfect wine to pair with food or help find the perfect gift. We're passionate about our wines and we also want our customers to feel the same love that we do! Learn More »

Situated at the cross roads of Beverly Hills and West Hollywood, is a quaint corner eatery called Toast Bakery & Café. This Los Angeles hotspot, often frequented by celebrities, offers a wide variety of menu options. Open from early in the morning to relatively late at night, this café provides a hearty breakfast, a relaxing get away from work for lunch break, or for simply a light cup of coffee when a pick me up is needed. Toast is a phenomenal venue for a Sunday brunch as well as a date. Their menu showcases pastries, eggs, salads, soups, sandwiches, and … Learn More »

Enter into Electric Karma and prepare to excite all your senses. At this upscale casual Indian restaurant on Third Street in West Hollywood, you will find a warm atmosphere suitable for any day of the week. Bold colors and dim lighting set the mood for the experience, and a movie screen projecting Bollywood images is the anchor of the dining room décor. The plush floor pillows in the outdoor seating area invite you to get cozy and take in the scents of exotic Indian spices featured in the restaurant’s extensive menu of traditional Punjabi cuisine. Learn More »

Katana is a chic assault on the senses. Like an industrial, futuristic Zen temple, Katana’s steel and wood décor juxtaposes urban grit with delicate sophistication. Its staggering menu presents a delightfully daunting selection of treats, through which diners are free to sample with reckless abandon. Katana features two distinctive styles of Japanese cuisine: the familiar sushi bar, and the more novel robata bar, which features tapas-like Japanese barbeque. Food is sculpted skillfully with almost architectural heights, echoing the artistic details of the surrounding environment. With one of Los Angeles’ only sake sommeliers and a sake selection as distinguished as its … Learn More »

Asanebo dishes gourmet Japanese cuisine to the crowds of Studio City. Tucked into a strip mall, the exterior of Asanebo mirrors the surplus of similar restaurants around town, yet hidden behind the window blinds awaits a luscious Japanese sushi experience. This classy and engaging restaurant differs vastly from other places, from its simple but creative food presentation, to its sophisticated décor. While the menu features signature pieces such as Seared Toro with Fresh Seaweed Sauce, and a selection of cooked and raw dishes, it is the Omakase option that makes Asanebo a top rated spot. This Japanese version of a … Learn More »

Huckleberry Café in Santa Monica has a fresh approach to cafeteria style dining. Homemade artisan breads, pastries, soups, salads, sandwiches, rotisserie chicken, and deck oven flatbread pizza are just a quick sample of the items on offer. All produce is sourced from a local farmer’s market, and all meat and dairy is free range, as well as hormone and antibiotic free. The menu changes frequently due to the seasonal nature of the produce used and whims of the baker, so expect something new with each visit. The Thursday night family dinner is different week to week and allows guests a … Learn More »

The Grill on the Alley in the heart of Beverly Hills serves classic American food in a warm and unpretentious atmosphere. The Grill, created and modeled after great grills in San Francisco and New York, has earned an international reputation for its quality and consistency. There are mirrored walls and chandeliers hang from the ceiling. As for the food, The Grill presents simple comfort food in generous portions. A dish to try is the Braised Short Ribs that fall off the bone because they are so tender. The Grill is a great power lunch spot as well as a place … Learn More »

Taste in West Hollywood offers diners a California spin on down home American comfort food. Lunch features soups, salads, pizzettas, sandwiches and burgers, as well as pasta entrées. Dinner pares down the overall menu options, but expands upon main courses to include items such as Lobster & Brown Butter Risotto, Grilled Salmon, and Crispy Parmesan Chicken Paillard. Brunch, served on the weekends, offers a la carte items like Huevos Rancheros and Brioche French Toast, while a Prix Fixe menu allows diners to choose from a two-course menu for a flat fee. Every Thursday, Taste offers the “Farmers’ Market Dinner,” where … Learn More »

Sweet Rose Creamery offers small batches of homemade ice cream to those looking for a cool treat in Brentwood. The fine folks at Sweet Rose use only organic ingredients in creating their fabulous flavors, and never use any stabilizers or ice cream bases. Toppings, cones, sauces, and ice cream sandwiches are made from scratch on a daily basis, so patrons can rest assured that freshness is at the forefront at Sweet Rose Creamery. Ice cream flavors feature rotating staples like Peanut Butter with Brownie Bites, Ginger with Honey, and Toasted Coconut with availability throughout the year. Classics like Old Fashioned … Learn More »

Your senses may revel in the stunningly engaging décor and modern Japanese cuisine menu presented at Katsuya. Executive Chef Katsuya masterfully crafts traditional sushi rolls and distinctive specialty dishes to please more seasoned and fresh palates alike. Dishes like the Crispy Rice and Spicy Tuna and the Kobe Filet with Foie Gras have developed their own loyal following. Chef Katsuya’s artful menu is complemented and heightened by the truly innovative and equally satisfying décor of designer Philippe Starck. Striking contrasts of black and white capture snippets of moments for patrons to muse over as they dine in the appetizing “wooden … Learn More »

Since 1983, Wolfgang Puck’s Chinois on Main has been serving Asian Fusion cuisine to the hungry hordes in Santa Monica. The décor has not changed since the day the doors opened, but Chef Rena Mata presents a menu that features not only selections of dishes that made Chinois on Main famous, but some new additions as well. All dishes presents ingredients from the Far East, transformed into modern culinary masterpieces of daring and stimulating flavors. Dishes served family style include classics such as Whole Sizzling Catfish with ponzu, Shanghai Lobser, Mongolian Lamb with cilantro-mint vinaigrette, and the Famous Chinois Chicken … Learn More »

Typhoon located at the Santa Monica Airport is not just another Asian Fusion restaurant. Serving over 70 dishes from the Pacific Rim, and with one of Los Angeles’ finest selection of Asian beer, guests at Typhoon are not left for choice. The restaurant is famous for serving dishes with scorpions, ants, water bugs, silk worm larvae, and crickets, but just as popular is the Deep-fried Whole Catfish, Chinese Crispy Duck, and Mongolian Lamb. A wall of windows faces the Santa Monica Airport’s runway, so patrons can watch as airplanes depart and arrive, a sight especially breathtaking at night. For a … Learn More »