The people behind Tsubaki, one of our favorite Echo Park spots, just opened up a sake bar next door. Besides the sake, this place also serves Japanese comfort foods like fried chicken karaage, katsu sandwiches, and okonomiyaki (Japanese savory pancakes).

Great White is a great little beach cafe in Venice, and now there’s a new spot from the same owners right across the street. Gran Blanco, which for now is only open for dinner, is more upscale, with dishes like crispy chickpeas, yellowtail crudo, and lamb kofta, plus cocktails created by the guy behind the excellent ones at Accomplice.

There’s now a second location of the ’90s-themed Silver Lake bar, The Friend, in Marina Del Rey. Like the original, it has pink floors, a disco ball, and an overall feeling that you’re inside an after-school special, but with alcohol.

We keep coming back to Homestate’s Los Feliz and Highland Park locations for breakfast tacos and loaded queso. Now they’re bringing their excellent Tex-Mex to the Westside with this third Playa Vista location, which will also be serving beer and cocktails.

This is the restaurant attached to the newly opened 1 Hotel in West Hollywood. 1 Kitchen serves a wide range of dishes, from lobster and squid ink linguine to grilled beef ribeye steaks - and much, much more than 1 salad in between (eight, to be exact).

A new Italian spot in Silver Lake, Asso takes over the former Blossom space on Sunset. The menu features classic red sauce dishes like lasagna and spaghetti pomodoro, plus some less-traditional pastas, like rigatoni with kale pesto.

Honeybee is a new vegan burger spot next to the Los Feliz 3 Theater. They’ve got vegan versions of cheeseburgers, shakes, and grilled cheese, along with sweet potato fries.

The newest location of Zinque is in Downtown LA. The local mini-chain serves French food, along with an expansive wine and cocktail list. If you’re the kind of person that has lunch meetings, we suspect you’ll find yourself here soon.

This is the first US location of the Naples original - made famous in Eat Pray Love - and they’re serving Neapolitan-style pies, along with taglieri and salads. It’s right in the heart of Hollywood and Highland, but has a big patio set back from the neighborhood craziness. No word if Julia Roberts has a residency here.

Yours Truly opened a few weeks ago in the Venice space that used to be Salt Air. The menu is mostly focused on seafood, with scallop tartare, Nashville-style hot shrimp, and skate wing with couscous.

There’s a new Cantonese dim sum spot in Irvine (by way of Hong Kong). This is their first California location, and it’s a massive restaurant in the bustling Diamond Jamboree plaza. They’ll be serving dim sum classics like baked BBQ buns, sticky rice with lotus leaf, and minced beef rolls.

Kensho is a new place in Hollywood from the same people behind Triniti (one of our Best New Restaurants of 2018). Like Triniti, this cafe/sake and wine bar serves hard-to-classify food, such as roast heart of palm with trout roe and Scottish salmon with marrow fried rice. It’s located on the grounds of Yamashiro, so expect to be served some killer views of LA along with the food.

We checked out Kensho and put it on our Hit List.

This busy Brooklyn restaurant just opened in East Hollywood, right across the street from the big blue Scientology building. The menu features standard brunch fare like avocado toast, gravlax, and omelettes, and at dinner, they’re doing lamb shepherd’s pie, whole-grilled fish, and oysters three different ways.

A new to-go spot from the Milo + Olive team, Milo SRO is serving New York-style pizza. Their pies are much bigger than the ones at Milo + Olive, and in true NYC style, you can get them by the slice. They also have their own miniature version of M+O’s glorious garlic knots.

Alice is a new all-day restaurant inside the soon-to-open 1 Hotel in Weho. The menu has standard soups, salads, and sandwiches - including one particularly interesting one with brisket from Slab, the West Third St. BBQ spot.

Another Westside pizza spot - only this one is in Venice. It’s also vegan, and comes from the guy who started Plant Food And Wine. Their pizzas feature all kinds of nut cheeses, vegan meats, and something called rice cheese.

There’s another new restaurant in the Arts District, this one in a firehouse-turned-hotel on Santa Fe Ave. They’ve got a small menu that includes things like cavatelli with crispy lamb, Manila clams in bacon broth, and charred lemon cake.

We checked out The Restaurant At The Firehouse and put it on our Hit List.

This classic Culver City spot has been around since the ’60s, and was supposedly one of Frank Sinatra’s favorite hangouts in LA. Now it’s reopening with a Rat Pack-approved menu, including a tableside Caesar salad, oysters Rockefeller, and a few different steaks.

Another restaurant that’s gone through (some more recent) changes, Dudley Market is reopening after closing down in 2017. Now, it’s a seafood spot with a huge wine selection.

This new cafe in Los Feliz serves things you’d expect at a French spot - strong coffee, pastries, pissaladière (onion tart), and quiche. Everything on the menu is under $13, too. They’re currently just open for breakfast and lunch, but will have dinner soon.

We checked out Loupiotte Kitchen and put it on our Hit List.

Sorra is a new rooftop bar/restaurant in Hollywood offering views on par with the scenery at Mama Shelter. The menu is from the people behind Hinoki and the Bird, and features dishes like avocado tostada with nori aioli, grilled maitake mushrooms, and suckling pig bao.

Aduke is a new Nigerian spot in Pico-Robertson, serving traditional staples like jollof rice with plantains, seafood stews, and yam porridge.

We checked out Aduke African Cuisine and put it on our Hit List.

Ceviche Project has been popping up all over the Eastside since 2015, and now, they have a permanent space on Hyperion Blvd. in Silver Lake, across from The Friend. It’s an almost-entirely seafood spot, with fresh fish and shellfish on ice at the bar. They also have beer, wine, and sake.

We checked out Ceviche Project and put it on our Hit List.

Supercool isn’t your traditional scoop shop - they have made-to-order liquid nitrogen ice cream. It’s in the same building as the Vista Theater in Los Feliz, so you can grab a cone before watching the whatever-anniversary screening of The Shining.

This vowel-averse spot in Santa Monica serves everything from uni pasta and pork katsu to capicola pizza. Everything on the menu is under $20, and it’s in the old Hinterland space on Main Street.

A new spot from the same people as the (now-closed) Prova Pizza, Provami is a new Italian spot on Melrose in Weho. In addition to Neapolitan-style pizzas with a bunch of different toppings, there are salads, and Italian classics like eggplant parmesan and meatballs.

H+H is a massive Brazilian steakhouse in Downtown LA. They have a bar where you can order a la carte, but the emphasis seems to be on the $58, all-you-can eat dinner that includes things like ribeye, lamb chops, and pork ribs.

A new German beer garden, Rasselbock is a spot in Mar Vista from the same people as Wirtshaus in Hollywood. They have a long list of German beers, along with schnitzel and a few different kinds of brats. There’s a big patio, and they have brunch on weekends.

Auburn is a tasting menu restaurant on Melrose from a former Republique chef. You can choose between four, six, or nine courses, with the option for wine pairings - or if you’d rather go a la carte, you can do so at the bar. The menu includes dishes like snap peas with uni, halibut with mushrooms, and duck leg with puffed grains.

We checked out Auburn and put it on our Hit List.

After popping up for two years at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market and Dinosaur Coffee, Maury’s Bagels is now open in Silver Lake, serving bagels and bagel sandwiches. At the pop-ups we usually ordered the whitefish, but you couldn’t really go wrong.

We checked out Maury’s and put it on our Hit List.

This is the second of two sit-down restaurants (the first is Tartine Bianco) inside The Manufactory at the Row in DTLA. They have a short, seasonal menu, including dishes like pasta with Dungeness crab and lamb belly with salsa verde.

We checked out Alameda Supper Club and put it on our Hit List.

Silverlake Ramen is expanding again - after opening in Santa Monica last year, they now have a third sit-down location in Downtown LA. If it’s like the other locations, you can expect long waits and fantastic tonkotsu-style ramen.

This new Chinese spot started as a pop-up in ETA, and now has a permanent location in Filipinotown. It’s run by a mother/son team, and has a small menu of interesting-looking noodles, bao, and vegetable dishes like smashed radishes, and bean curd sticks with mushrooms.

We checked out Woon and put it on our Hit List.

Decadence is a bar/restaurant in Hermosa that has an Asian-ish menu of things like chicken banh mis, chicken and mushroom dumplings, and something called sexy skinny fries. There’s a flower wall inside, and some plush purple lounge seats.

Neighborhood is a new coffee shop on an in-between stretch of La Brea near Beverly between West Hollywood and Hancock Park. They also have pastries and vegan ice cream.

A new spot on Sunset in Silver Lake, Tatsunoya is the second U.S. location of a very popular Japanese ramen spot. If it’s anything like the original one in Pasadena, we expect lines and fantastic tonkotsu-style ramen.

This is a new restaurant on the Eastside where you’ll find lots of fresh meat and produce (like ribeye and avocado beet salad) in a nice bungalow space set back from Rowena in a not-crazy part of Silver Lake.

We checked out Small Town, read our first thoughts here.

Audrey is a new restaurant inside the Hammer Museum in Westwood. There’s a big bar if you want some cocktails after looking at art all day and the food menu is straightforward stuff like roast chicken, mushroom bolognese, and bone-in ribeye.

We checked out Audrey and put it on our Hit List.

Border X is a brewery with a massive new taproom in Bell. Much of the beer is inspired by Mexican ingredients, like a saison with hibiscus, a horchata golden stout, and a chocolate stout.

A burger spot on Main Street in Santa Monica, Cowabunga Republic serves burgers, fries, and milkshakes from a takeout window and has a patio with picnic tables out front.

A new wine bar on Ventura in Sherman Oaks, Buvette has a massive selection of mostly French wines both by the glass and the bottle. They also have some snacks to go along with your bottle of beaujolais, like olives, bread and butter, and cheese and charcuterie.

Former pop-up Shreebs has now become a permanent fixture on a trafficky stretch of Glendale Blvd. in Echo Park. They have pastries and some coffee drinks made with unusual coffee ingredients like spruce tips, lemongrass, and black pepper.

La Esquina is a new Mexican spot near Culver Junction in Palms. It’s open all day, and serves breakfast burritos, chilaquiles, and machachas in the morning, then transitions to tacos, burritos, and quesadillas for lunch and dinner. If you’re looking for a new place to mix up your lunch routine in this part of town, this could be a good option.

Eating at Milky Way, a kosher spot in Pico-Robertson, is probably like stepping inside Stephen Spielberg’s mom’s kitchen. That’s partially because it was originally founded by Spielberg’s mom, Leah Adler, but went on hiatus after she passed away a couple of years ago. Now, Milky Way is back and the food is still kosher, but features a mix of cuisines - you’ll find eggplant parmesan and a Cajun fish sandwich alongside blintzes and latkes.

By The Way Burger is a new fast casual spot in Weho. They have shakes, fries, and all kinds of burgers - beef, salmon, chicken, veggie. They’re open until 11:30 on weekends, so next time you’re bar-hopping on Santa Monica Blvd. and need a between-bar burger stop, this could be a good place for it.

This new dim sum spot serves both traditional and non-traditional dumplings. So you’ll find pork and crab xiao long bao, along with ahi tuna egg rolls and cheeseburger dumplings.

We checked out My Little Dumpling, read our first thoughts here.

The backyard burger pop-up that drew massive crowds has now opened a brick and mortar in Silver Lake across the street from Silverlake Wine. The smash burgers are super simple - with cheese, pickles, and onions - and they have shakes and fries, as well.

We checked out Burgers Never Say Die, read our first thoughts here.

From the same people behind Mohawk Bend, California Sun is a place for pizza and beer in Silver Lake. They serve both New York and Detroit-style (pan) pizza, and salads, alongside a tap list that includes a bunch of hard-to-find beers. If you want to take some home with you, there’s a stash of canned and bottled beer you can buy to-go.

We checked out California Sun, read our first thoughts here.

Shaquille’s - named after former Laker Shaquille O’Neal - is a Southern restaurant at LA Live. It seems a bit clubby, with black leather booths and a DJ stand, and it’s decorated with Lakers memorabilia, including a very large chair that is presumably for Shaq himself. No word on whether another famous former Laker is allowed inside, but there is a Kobe beef burger on the menu.

Eleven is a new diner and deli on Wilshire in Miracle Mile. The menu has what you’d expect - reubens, patty melts, all day breakfast, and malt shakes. It could be a good option in this area when you’re sick of the same salad you bring to work for lunch every day.

This casual French spot on La Brea is from a big-deal chef who used to run an excellent fine dining place that closed in 2011 called Ortolan. The menu focuses on seafood, pasta, charcuterie, and oysters and they also have a massive wine list.

We checked out Kass, read our first thoughts here.

A new spot in Santa Monica attached to Heroic Deli, this Italian wine bar has a short a la carte menu of dishes like eggplant parmesan ravioli, uni pasta, and cioppino. Or you can choose four courses for $50.

We checked out Heroic Wine Bar, read our first thoughts here.

The same chef behind Rosaline opened a new all-day spot in West LA. They serve things like breakfast burritos in the morning, sandwiches and burgers at lunch, and oysters and chorizo ragu for dinner.

We checked out Pikoh, read our first thoughts here.

Dumpling Monster is a new dim sum spot next to the Trader Joe’s on Santa Monica Bvd. in Weho that serves a whole bunch of pan-fried dumplings and xiao long bao, along with fried rice and noodles.

This is an upscale Japanese-influenced dinner spot on Melrose and La Cienega in West Hollywood. The seafood includes things like scallop and sea urchin with daikon, and non-fish options like pork chashu with udon, and chicken meatballs.

We checked out Pacifique, read our first thoughts here.

Teddy’s started as a truck on the railroad tracks in South LA, where they served one thing: fantastic beef birria. Last year, they opened a location in Pico Rivera, and now there’s a new one by the beach in Venice.

We checked out Teddy’s and put it on our Hit List.

This complex at the Row in DTLA has a few parts. Tartine Bianco is a casual dinner spot, The Market serving flatbreads, salads, and pastries all-day, and there’s also a coffee and ice cream window outside. It’s a collaboration between the excellent Tartine Bakery in San Francisco and a big-deal pizzeria from Phoenix, so there’s good reason to be excited about this massive, bread-filled restaurant.

We checked out The Manufactory and put it on our Hit List.

Hom is a new Italian spot in Woodland Hills that specializes in handmade pastas. They also have a whole bunch of pizzas, and meatier dishes like lamb chops, ossobuco, and branzino.

El Segundo Brewing Company has opened a pizza shop in their hometown. They have a wide variety of pies with both traditional and less traditional toppings (including one with charred spam and pineapple) to go along with a huge tap list of El Segundo beers.

We checked out The Slice And Pint, read our first thoughts here.

The Arts District’s latest addition, House of Machines is an all-day motorcycle-themed cafe/bar. They have breakfast burritos and sandwiches until 11:30 daily, and then serve mostly bar food (ribs, burgers, salads) after that. There’s a decent selection of beer on tap, and some barrel-aged cocktails too.

LN2 is a new Italian-ish spot on Melrose that serves wood-fired pizzas and upscale pub food. The pizzas have a huge range of toppings, from duck confit and butternut squash to kale and sundried tomato. They also have a very interesting-looking build-your-own sundae option, and serve sandwiches at lunchtime.

The excellent all-vegan spot Donut Friend has now expanded from Highland Park to Downtown LA. The menu is pretty massive, and has some crazy toppings, including one donut with vegan cream cheese, strawberries, and basil, and another with Sriracha and peanut butter.

San Francisco’s popular Tartine Manufactory has begun its LA takeover. For now, it’s just a coffee and ice cream window where you can also buy sandwiches and pastries, but they plan on expanding to a full restaurant and bakery in the next few weeks.

The second outpost of the extremely popular (and fantastic) Jon and Vinny’s just opened up on San Vicente in Brentwood. The space looks a bit bigger than the original, and they offer the same classics - cacio e pepe, meatballs, and the LA Woman pizza.

We checked out Jon & Vinny’s Brentwood, read our first thoughts here.

Simonette is an all-day cafe/bistro/bar in the new Palihotel in Culver City. They’re open daily from 7am-11pm, so pretty much anytime you’re in Downtown Culver and want a niçoise salad or some steak tartare, Simonette is there for you.

We checked out Simonette, read our first thoughts here.

The people behind Bar Caló and Ostrich Farm - two of our favorite spots in Echo Park - have taken over Brite Spot, the diner on Sunset. They’re planning on a complete redesign and an entirely new menu this summer, but in the meantime, they have an updated menu with a whole bunch of American diner classics.

Ord & Broadway is a Filipino-ish spot in Chinatown. They have some traditional Filipino options, like lumpia, tapsilog rice bowls, and oxtails adobo - and also a whole bunch of other stuff, like Buffalo wings, shrimp tacos, and bulgogi.

We checked out Ord & Broadway, read our first thoughts here.

This new beer bar in the Arts District has a glass-blowing studio inside of it. There are also a whole bunch of beers on tap and a big patio filled with greenery to go along with what appears to be a little room where you can watch a man blow glass.

We checked out High Tide and put it on our Bar Hit List.

A new French cafe/bistro, Cafe Parisien is in Larchmont Village and has the classics you’d expect: mussels, steak frites, escargot, and a big case of pastries.

A handful of new delis have been opening up around town, and this Italian deli in DTLA is the latest. It’s in front of Bar Clacson, and you can bring your food back to the bar if you want a cocktail with your Italian hero or chop salad.

We checked out E Stretto and put it on our Hit List.

H Cafe is a new all-day spot in Koreatown that serves pub-style food like short rib hash and biscuits and gravy in the morning, and chicken and waffles and steak frites at dinner.

Equal Parts opened up back in December, taking the place of the Smog Cutter, a legendary Virgil Village bar. It looks pretty divey - they have some old-school video games like NBA Jam, and like the old Smog Cutter, they’ll start doing karaoke soon.

This is a new Mexican spot from the same chef behind Wolf. They serve mostly tacos, as well as some brunch options like chilaquiles and eggs with a pork roll. The a la carte tacos are $3.25 each, and there’s a good crispy jackfruit vegetarian option.

Nightshade is an Asian-inspired place in the Arts District from a pretty big deal chef. The menu is short with interesting-looking things like mapo tofu lasagna, prawn toast, and a remix on hot chicken that uses Szechuan-spiced quail. It looks a lot like some other big spots in this area that opened in the last year - so you can expect light wood, hanging plants, and an open kitchen.

We checked out Nightshade and put it on our Hit List.

From the same people as solid neighborhood spot Balcones De Peru, this is a new Peruvian restaurant in Studio City. While a couple plates are the same as the original this menu has a whole new mix of ceviches and larger-format grilled meat and fish dishes. It’s in the old Girasol space, so we expect an excellent patio.

We checked out Los Balcones and put it on our Hit List.

This new ramen spot in Koreatown switches things things up from the traditional tonkotsu (slow-cooked pork broth) style you’ll find in most LA noodle places. They do have the classics, but they also have yuzu chicken broth and pork broth with truffle butter or burnt garlic.

We checked out Iki Ramen, read our first thoughts here.

A new biergarten in Highland Park, Hinterhof serves all-vegan German food. They have 12 taps of German beer, a huge front patio with long picnic tables, and meatless versions of schnitzel and currywurst.

The Shelby is a new bar/restaurant on West Third near the Beverly Center. They have Southern food and a long cocktail list, so it might be a good option if you’re in Beverly Grove and want to check out someplace new for date night.

We checked out The Shelby, read our first thoughts here.

Wax Paper is one of our favorite sandwich spots in LA, and they’ve now opened a second location in Chinatown. And things at the new spot are slightly different - while there are a couple of classics from the old menu, there are also four brand new sandwiches, including one with roast beef and onion dip that we’re excited to investigate.

We checked out Wax Paper and put it on our Hit List.

Just off the Strip in Weho, Blackship is a new dinner place that serves Japanese-Italian food which means things like ramen carbonara, karaage tortellini, and hamachi bolognese. There’s a bar and a dining room up front, and a nice-looking patio filled with hanging plants in the back.

We checked out Blackship, read our first thoughts here.

Counterpart Deli is a new daytime spot in a residential part of Echo Park with a vegan menu of sandwiches, toasts, and a seitan breakfast burrito. It looks to be a pretty casual order-at-the-counter set-up, with tables inside and on the sidewalk.

A Korean rice bowl spot called BBQ + Rice has opened up in the old Baroo space in East Hollywood (RIP). We’re happy to hear that one of the Baroo owners is involved, and they’re serving beef bulgogi, kalbi with kimchi, and other barbecued meat over rice.

We checked out BBQ+Rice and put it on our Hit List.

On the rooftop of Platform in Culver City is a new restaurant from the same people as Norah. The food is Italian and Spanish, so they have focaccia sandwiches during lunch, and then lots of seafood and grilled meat at dinner.

We checked out Margot, read our first thoughts here.

Vino Bistro is a new wine and Italian tapas bar in Hollywood that has a massive selection of Italian wines, with a bunch by the glass. There’s a menu of small plates like fried artichokes and an octopus salad, plus a handful of pastas, and it seems pretty affordable - you can do a mini tasting menu with a wine pairing for $20.

We checked out Vino Bistro and put it on our Hit List.

This is a new place in Koreatown that one thing: rotisserie chicken. You can get a half or whole bird, and it comes with tortillas, salsa, and a bunch of other taco fixings.

This is a new French spot in a mall off Mulholland in Bel Air. They’re open for lunch and dinner with a menu of cheese and charcuterie, bistro classics (like steak frites and a niçoise salad), and plenty of wine.

Another new sandwich spot, this one is an Italian deli just off the Promenade in Santa Monica. They claim to have the “world’s best Italian hero,” which is a big claim considering Bay Cities is so close by, but we’ll hold off on judging it until we stop by.

Another day, another new place to eat at the Row in DTLA. This one is a casual Japanese spot with a lot of fried chicken, which you can eat in the form of a sandwich, rice bowl, or basket with pickles and onigiri. But if you’re looking for something not-fried, they also have egg drop soup and some salads.

We checked out Pikunico, read our first thoughts here.

Daughter’s is a new deli on the Strip from someone who’s spent a lot of time around cured meat. The owner’s grandfather founded Langer’s, the legendary deli in Westlake that’s home to the world’s best pastrami. Though the two spots aren’t officially related, much of the food seems similar, like the “Papa,” which looks an awful lot like the famous #19 sandwich from Langer’s. They also have other Jewish deli classics like lox, whitefish, and matzoh ball soup.

We checked out Daughter’s Deli, read our first thoughts here.

To enter this new Chinatown speakeasy you have to walk through an alley, a doorway, and a walk-in freezer before finally getting to the bar. Once you’re in, you’ll find some fancy-sounding cocktails involving smoke and homemade bitters. It’s just a bar right now, but they’re planning to add daytime hours for coffee soon.

This is a new Chinese spot in Pasadena with a smallish menu of handmade dumplings, noodle soups, and a handful of bigger dishes. The noodles and dumplings are made in-house, and the latter come steamed, pan fried, or in soup dumpling form.

We checked out Dan and put it on our Hit List.

For the past couple of years, one of the best places to find BBQ in Los Angeles was in some dude’s backyard in Studio City. That underground operation was called Trudy’s Underground BBQ, and it’s now become a permanent restaurant on West Third Street called Slab. They serve Texas-style brisket, pulled pork, a couple of different ribs, and smoked chicken, plus all the expected BBQ sides and even frito pie.

We checked out Slab and put it on our Hit List.

Trying to eat your way down Fairfax in a day would take approximately four stomachs, and now Fiona is yet another reason to go stomach shopping. At the moment, they’re a daytime operation that serves pies, cakes, and biscuits (made by an ex-Gjelina pastry chef), but there will be a full menu starting next week involving things like curry leaf toast and miso chicken noodle soup.

We checked out Fiona and put it on our Hit List.

Even if you haven’t been to the original Millie’s in Silverlake, chances are you’ve driven by the line outside on a Saturday morning. This almost 100-year-old diner just added a second location in Pasadena, with the same menu as the original. This is excellent diner food (we love the egg, sausage, and guacamole dish called the Devil’s Mess) that we’d absolutely sell our soul for.

The people behind Tsujita, the fantastic dip ramen spot in Sawtelle Japantown, just opened a to-go and delivery spot on Fairfax. In addition to the original location’s famous tsukemen, they also have dishes from their offshoot restaurants, including regular non-dip ramen, pork buns, and dan dan noodles. As LA enters the season where it gets as low as 50 degrees, this could be a lunch option when you want to pretend it’s cold enough to need soup.

Castaway in the Valley has some of the best views in LA, and they’ve just opened a speakeasy in the back of the restaurant. The Green Room has some upscale bar food, plus the same perfect view. There are only five cocktails on the menu, but they all sound crazy, and come in fancy contraptions that look like equipment from a Harry Potter potions class.

Ippudo is a ramen spot that’s one of the highest-rated restaurants on The Infatuation NYC, and they’ve just opened their first LA location a block away from the Promenade. Ippudo in NYC gets extremely busy, so there’s a good chance there will be similar lines in LA.

We checked out Ippudo, read our first thoughts here.

The people behind Boneyard Bistro in Sherman Oaks just opened up a cantina in the same neighborhood. The menu is Latin-inspired, with a bunch of ceviches, tacos, and tequila and rum cocktails.

The Downtown work crowd now has access to one of the city’s best patty melts for lunch. Koreatown burger spot Cassell’s has now opened another location in DTLA. In addition to classic burgers and melts, they’re offering a few more menu options than the original, like a fried chicken sandwich.

There’s a new Mexican restaurant in the old Superba Snack Bar space on Rose in Venice. It’s called Chulita, and the set-up seems to involve lots of light, plenty of plants, and a patio in the front. The menu consists of mostly modern Mexican dishes, like cauliflower fundido, skirt steak with refried sunchokes, and squash blossom quesadillas.

We checked out Chulita, read our first thoughts here.

Easy’s had a burger pop-up in Chinatown a few years ago, and they just reopened as a much bigger, permanent diner in the Beverly Center. The menu is huge, all over the place, and not your average diner food, with things like Sriracha tuna melts, crawfish pappardelle, and duck parmesan. When we last ate the burger at the pop-up it was excellent, so we’re interested in seeing what the new Easy’s is up to.

We checked out Easy’s Diner, read our first thoughts here.

This new restaurant in Los Feliz looks like the inside of a fancy barn. It’s from the people behind Sawyer and Kettle Black in Silverlake, and, like those spots, the menu here is pretty eclectic, with everything from octopus al pastor to squash agnolotti and cauliflower shawarma.

We checked out Atrium, read our first thoughts here.

Free Play is a new restaurant and bar attached to LAFC’s stadium in Exposition Park. The menu is mostly bar stuff like nachos, burgers, and BBQ chicken, and there’s a long tap list of both beer and cocktails. Even if you’re not here on game day (you don’t need a ticket to the stadium to get in), there’s plenty to keep you occupied in this huge space - like pinball machines, TVs playing sports, and pool and foosball tables.

40 Love is a new sports bar from the same people as The Nice Guy and Petite Taqueria. The interior is modeled after a country club and seems like the kind of place a US Open winner might drink martinis in the 1960s. So while you can technically watch a game here, it’s more likely that you’ll find Emily Ratajkowski in a hoodie eating a grain bowl than a loud Warriors fan spilling ketchup on himself. You will, however, find regular sports bar food like wings and burgers (but there’s also avocado toast on the menu).

Conservatory is a big new space on Santa Monica Blvd. in Weho that involves a few different parts. There’s an all-day cafe out front that serves coffee drinks and breakfast burritos, while upstairs there’s a big bar and a mostly-outdoors restaurant. The restaurant menu serves a bunch of plates meant to be shared, including tons of salad options and lots of fish and steak.

We checked out Conservatory, read our first thoughts here.

One of the best bakeries in LA, Lodge Bread Co., has opened a second location in Woodland Hills, which means Valley locals no longer have to deal with the 405 to buy a cinnamon roll as big as a baby’s head. If it’s anything like the Culver original, we’re expecting fantastic bread, pastries, and sandwiches.

Waterfront is a new all-day spot along the boardwalk in Venice that has a nice patio with a view of the beach, and an interior that looks like a surfer’s living room. There’s plenty of seating inside and outside, a forthcoming Happy Hour, and a menu of burgers, tacos, and salads.

This new spot from the chef behind Melisse and Charcoal has taken the place of Commissary at The Line hotel in Koreatown. Openaire is a relatively casual greenhouse-like space that serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner where you can expect pasta, some Asian-ish dishes, and a big steak on the menu.

We checked out Openaire, read our first thoughts here.

This spot in Westwood is the newest restaurant and brewery from the people that run Tony’s Darts Away, Mohawk Bend, and almost every craft beer bar in LA you can think of. The food is mostly classic Southern stuff (baby back ribs, shrimp and grits, a fried chicken sandwich) and there are also plenty of vegan-friendly options. There’s a full bar with a long tap list, and they’ll be brewing their own beer here soon too.

Here & Now is a new cocktail bar in the Arts District with classic cocktails and bar food in a space that appears to look like the set of Murder On The Orient Express. Fortunately, there’s a much smaller chance you’ll be interrogated by an eccentric detective here than on the actual train.

One of the San Gabriel Valley’s most well-known restaurants, Sichuan Impression, has opened a second location in West LA. Like the SGV spot, there’s a huge menu of southwestern Chinese classics, like steamed chicken with chilis, cold noodles, bamboo shoots, and tea-smoked ribs.

We checked out Sichuan Impression and put it on our Hit List.

Alta is a new restaurant in West Adams from a big deal San Francisco chef. The menu will have a bunch of California-style comfort food like pig’s foot salad, shrimp and grits, and barbecue cauliflower. There’s a chef’s counter in the dining room, along with a bar and a big patio. The same people are also running a daytime spot next door called Adams Coffee Shop, where they’re serving typical coffee and lunchtime things like salads, bowls, and sandwiches.

We checked out Alta and put it on our Hit List.

One of Infatuation NYC’s favorite ice cream places has opened in LA. It’s in one of those bungalows in Los Feliz that you imagine Jenny Slate lives in, except instead of a comedian inside there’s ice cream with flavors like butter cake, and chocolate milk and cookies.

We checked out Ample Hills, read our first thoughts here.

This huge restaurant/bar/brewery inside Union Station is from the same people as The Normandie Club and Arts District Brewing. It’s a good place to come if you like activities - they have chess boards, pool, and shuffleboard tables so you can compete with your friends (or strangers) while you drink. The food is mostly bar-type stuff, like chowder, ribs, and po’boys, along with dollar oysters during Happy Hour. There’s also a smaller, more upscale cocktail bar attached called Streamliner, if you want a quieter spot than the big beer hall.

We checked out Imperial Western Beer Company and put it on our Bar Hit List.

Wally’s, a serious wine store with a massive selection in Beverly Hills, has opened another location in Santa Monica, close to the beach on Wilshire. In addition to being a place for agents to buy expensive wine bottles for other agents, there’s also a restaurant that serves pizza, charcuterie, and other things that go well with wine.

Another new Chinese option for Westsiders is Ms. Chi in Culver City. It’s open all day and specializes in dumplings, like wontons with peas and carrots, or Sichuan pork and shrimp. There are also larger plates available, like mapo tofu and zhajiang mian with pork.

We checked out Ms Chi Cafe, read our first thoughts here.

Gold Line is a bar in Highland Park that only plays vinyl, and the only vinyl they play is from the owner’s personal collection. The owner also happens to have his own music label, so you probably won’t be stuck listening to Barry Manilow all night. Just like also-new Arts District spot In Sheep’s Clothing, the emphasis here is on the music, so you can expect different DJs all the time. As far as drinks, they have natural wines, craft beer, as well as big whiskey and mezcal collections.

We checked out Gold Line and put it on our Bar Hit List.

Konbi is a Japanese-inspired coffee and sandwich spot in Echo Park. The menu is small, and focuses on katsu sandwiches, vegetable plates, and daily pastries. The katsu options are pork or eggplant, which is sliced thin, fried, and served on bread with cabbage and sauce. Konbi is open for breakfast and lunch, and you can sit at the counter, or take your sandwiches to go.

We checked out Konbi, read our first thoughts here.

Silverlake Ramen is already a kind-of mini Eastside empire, with locations in Silver Lake, Highland Park, and Echo Park. And now they’re expanding west - to the Third Street Promenade of all places. These guys are known for their excellent tonkotsu pork broth, and seeing as wait times at the original Sunset spot are still pretty long, we can only expect heightened insanity when the tourists get involved too.

Baby Blues is a Venice barbecue staple, and they’re opening another location in Echo Park. The menu is the same, with smoked meats like brisket, ribs, and pulled pork on platters or in sandwiches. There really aren’t many Southern barbecue spots on the Eastside, so if you’re on this side of town and want something covered in BBQ sauce, you know where to go.