The Best Spots for Asian Food in Los Angeles

Hangari Kalguksu is a welcoming, family-owned Korean spot in Los Angeles. They cut their noodles fresh each day and let their broths simmer for hours, giving every meal a comforting homemade feel. It’s a relaxed place where you can enjoy authentic flavors in a cozy, laid-back setting.

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Nicole Jacobsen

Co-Founder TheFoodOffice

One delicious eat in Koreatown is Hangari Kalguksu. They specialize in Kal-guk-su (hand cut noodle soup). Kalguksu is the most perfect comfortfood - hearty, steaming bowls filled with a rich noodle soup that are flavored with garlic and onions and thickened with potatoes and must include Manila clams. Each order comes of course with traditional sides of radish and cabbage kimchi. Really tasty and damn, those hand cut noodles!!

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Kato Restaurant in Los Angeles offers a creative approach to Taiwanese-inspired cuisine, blending fresh local ingredients with playful techniques. It has earned a Michelin star while maintaining a casual and welcoming atmosphere. The staff is known for being friendly and attentive, helping guests feel comfortable as they enjoy an ever-changing tasting menu.

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Carsten Schmidt

Culinary Explorer

A Michelin Starred restaurant in a strip mall next to a dry cleaner and supermarket, it doesn’t get more LA than that. But what also doesn’t get more LA than that is the freshness of the ingredients, the playful mix of cultures, and just the innovation and fun you can taste in each bite. The Tomatoes were amazing, this explosion of flavors, the steamed fish, and lastly the yogurt/melon were the standout dishes for me. Lastly, let me also just say that the staff was amazing.

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Hokkaido Ramen Santouka is a Japanese ramen chain located in a supermarket food court in Los Angeles. Diners line up to pay and then wait for their number to be called, making it a straightforward, casual experience that many find worth the wait.

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Nicole Jacobsen

Co-Founder TheFoodOffice

The white tonkotsu (pork bone) soup served with a small, pickled plum in a round bowl at @ramensantoukausmawa is worth traveling for. This is a Japanese ramen chain located in the food court of a Japanese supermarket in Los Angeles. The process is simple, you line up with your cash ready (cash only), then choose from shio (salt), soy, miso or spicy miso ramen. Move on to place your order and then just wait for them to call your number over the loudspeaker. We tried the Hokkaido-style shio (salt) ramen which is a bit lighter than other bowls of tonkotsu that we have tried over the years - and damn this was a comforting bowl!! 🤤👏🏻

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Jinsol Gukbap 3rd is a relaxed spot in Los Angeles known for its southern Korean-inspired cooking. Founded by the same person behind Hangari Kalguksu, it focuses on rich broths and straightforward comfort food. You’ll find a welcoming atmosphere and a genuine commitment to satisfying flavors.

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Randy Moon

Restaurant Owner

Southern Korean comfort food. From the founder of Hangari Kalguksu, southern Korean food of the highest quality. I like the (massive) kimchi stew, the jjimdak, and of course the namesake gukbap.

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Kuya Lord is a casual Filipino restaurant in Los Angeles that began as a backyard pop-up by Chef Lord Maynard Llera. The friendly team serves regional Filipino dishes inspired by the chef’s childhood in Lucena City, using simple ingredients with a personal touch. It’s a cozy spot with a short, focused menu that makes you feel welcome as soon as you step in.

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David P. Leja

@thegastrojourney

Small casual restaurant serving regional Filipino dishes in chef Lord Maynard’s way. One of our favorite meals in LA was this one, and it’s very unlikely you will find a better value for money spot in the city. This place was initially born as a pop-up during covid times until former Bestia chef Lord Maynard decided to turn it into a restaurant. The menu is short but packed with super tasty dishes. We ordered the following: * Tray with slow-roasted rolled pork belly. * Almond wood-grilled Hiramasa collar, toyomansi & chili-garlic oil. We liked both dishes, but the pork belly was definitely our favorite, and actually every part of that tray was really tasty, the pickled vegetables were super refreshing and had a nice touch of acidity, the noodles were very flavorful and the rice was perfect to combine with the pork belly. The place felt so genuine and the owners were so friendly and always asking for feedback, you could really feel they were really happy running the place.

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Housed in a 1920s former bank building in Los Angeles’ Arts District, YESS is a progressive Japanese restaurant that emphasizes local, seasonal ingredients with a nod to tradition. Chef Junya Yamasaki and the team use an old-style wood-fired stove and charcoal grill in a spacious dining room that invites guests to enjoy a down-to-earth experience. Their approach highlights nature’s constant changes, creating a menu that feels both rooted and open to what the day brings.

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Randy Moon

Restaurant Owner

Yess Restaurant, one of the most exciting restaurants in the US. They've spared no expense in turning a former bank building into a supremely ambitious but also uncomplicated meal of local seafood and vegetables, California meats, and old-fashioned cooking.

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n/naka is a two-Michelin-starred restaurant in Los Angeles that offers a modern California approach to traditional Japanese kaiseki, using local, seasonal ingredients. Its calm atmosphere and thoughtful service create a welcoming dining experience. Reservations are released monthly through their website.

Recommended by

Geeta Bansal

EIC of Salty Magazine

Chef Niki Nakayama’s 2 Michelin star, Kaiseki California take utilizing local, seasonal ingredients. In full disclosure, a reservation at the 2 Michelin starred Kaiseki style Japanese restaurant is not easy to land but definitely worth pursuing. Chef Niki Nakayama’s version is a modern California take utilizing local, seasonal ingredients, some not usually identified with the traditional multi-course style, instilling a unique sense of place to the dining experience. The vibe at n/naka is serene and elegant, the service gracious, the sake and the wine and non-alcoholic pairing well-curated. While the exquisitely plated courses open a window into modern Japanese food they magically manage to balance the old and new in taste and flavors. The dinner service runs Wednesday through Saturday with a preset thirteen-course menu. The standout course, a Chef’s choice or Shiizakana, is a nontraditional and absolutely delicious spaghetti alla chitarra, a black truffle topped pasta dressed with abalone liver and pickled roe. Since the menu is hyper-seasonal and evolving constantly, the highlights vary with each experience adding unique taste memories. Chef Nakayama and her partner Carole Iida also opened n/soto, a California Japanese style Izakaya during the pandemic offering an evolving bento with a la carte service to follow.

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Shibumi is a cozy Japanese restaurant in Downtown Los Angeles that serves kappo-style cuisine rooted in seasonality. Helmed by chef David Schlosser, it highlights local, organic, and sustainable ingredients in a relaxed and personal setting.

Recommended by

Nicole Jacobsen

Co-Founder TheFoodOffice

It’s no surprise that Shibumi, a Japanese restaurant that specializes in kappo cuisine, tops our list of food experiences in Los Angeles! To be frank, Downtown LA was a​ disappointment for us but one restaurant not​ to miss out on is Shibumi - a restaurant that specializes in kappo cuisine, which results in an elegant and mesmerizing Japanese dinner with a focus on seasonality. We tried their medium-range omakase, twelve very different and beautiful dishes by chef David Schlosser.

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Tsubaki is a Japanese izakaya in Echo Park, Los Angeles, that pairs traditional flavors with a relaxed California feel. The cozy space offers indoor and outdoor seating, creating an inviting spot to enjoy shared plates with friends or family.

Recommended by

Margaux Koopman

Foodie

Delicious Japanese restaurant. Delicious Japanese sharing plates in Echo Park with intimate ambiance. I particularly recommend the prawns and chicken skewers.

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Anajak Thai Cuisine offers a relaxed setting where you can enjoy Thai flavors in both a cozy dining room and a lively outdoor alley space. They’re known for an impressive wine list and a friendly team that makes you feel welcome. It’s a straightforward spot where good food, music, and atmosphere come together.

Recommended by

David P. Leja

@thegastrojourney

Thai restaurant with a nice wine selection in Sherman Oaks. This was one of our favorite meals, if not the favorite meal of this trip. First of all, Sherman Oaks is becoming cooler by the minute, we want to explore this area more on our next trip, as on our way there we saw many cool spots and just a nice general vibe. We really enjoyed the restaurant's atmosphere, the sommelier was super friendly, as was the rest of the team, and perhaps the only downside is that it can be a touch tight depending on where you get seated. Regarding the wine, they have a pretty wide selection, and it includes a couple of natural wines so there’s a little bit for everyone here. Now, focusing on the food, we had the following: * Massaman Brisket Curry. * Southern-Thai Fried Chicken. * BBQ Pork Collar, coriander molasses, soy & sesame. * Pad Thai. Except for the Pad Thai, which wasn’t bad, but we wouldn’t order it again, we absolutely loved the rest of the dishes, and the one that stood out the most was the Massaman Brisket Curry, this was the best Massaman we’ve had so far, it’s super rich in flavor, with a nice thick texture, the brisket was still juicy, just a great dish. Definitely one of our new favorite spots in the city, and a place we want to come back to on our next trips.

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Night + Market Song is a laid-back spot in Los Angeles serving Thai cuisine with a personal twist. The staff is welcoming, and the place has a fun, relaxed energy that makes it easy to enjoy. They also offer a noteworthy selection of natural wines and keep prices relatively affordable for the area.

Recommended by

David P. Leja

@thegastrojourney

Thai restaurant with natural wines. First of all, this restaurant has three different locations in Los Angeles, all similar but at the same time all have some different dishes and wines, so it can be interesting going to all of them. Out of all the restaurants we visited in LA, this had the most fun and enjoyable atmosphere without a doubt. The staff here is super super friendly, fun and helpful at all times as well, another thing we loved here. The food as mentioned is Thai, but sometime with a personal twist on it. The dishes we had were: * Khao Soi Jay. * Grilled fatty pork jowl. * Beef short rib panang. All dishes were tasty and in our opinion well executed, but the dish that stood out the most for us was the Khao Soi which we totally loved, fresh with a nice acidity but still very rich and flavorful, and with a nice play of textures. The wine list is extensive and exclusively based on natural wines, and when it comes to natural wines it’s definitely one of the best lists in town. As a tip, ask for the reserve list if you want the best bottles in the house. One last thing to mention, this place is actually cheap for LA standards.

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