The Best Fine Dining Restaurants in Los Angeles

Kato Restaurant offers a unique blend of Taiwanese and Japanese cuisines, presented in an ever-changing tasting menu. The freshness of the ingredients and playful mix of cultures are evident in every bite, with standout dishes including their explosive tomatoes, steamed fish, and yogurt/melon dessert. The staff at Kato is also noted for their exceptional service.

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Carsten Schmidt

Culinary Explorer – Washington/Los Angeles, USA

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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Damian, a restaurant serving contemporary cuisine inspired by Mexican culture, is known for its culinary creations that highlight the fresh, local ingredients of Los Angeles. The dining experience is elevated by the friendly service, a selective mezcal selection, and the beautifully designed decor. From the seafood dishes that showcase the finest fish to the use of traditional Mexican herbs and avocados, every dish at Damian reflects a fusion between the culinary traditions of the Pacific coasts and the seasonal Californian produce.

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Carsten Schmidt

Culinary Explorer – Washington/Los Angeles, USA

After several visits to Enrique Olvera’s Mexico City Pujol I was truly looking forward to the opening of Damian. It took some tries to get in due to the shut downs last year but then on my most recent trip I was finally able to eat there and it was so worth the wait. I would say the food is somewhere between Pujol and Cosme … a bit more elevated than Cosme but also a bit more accessible than Pujol. The restaurant certainly takes advantage of LA access to fantastic ingredients and you can taste that in anything from the various fish to the Mexican herbs and obviously the avocados. While the food certainly shines and is the star of the show, I have to say the service was outstanding, extremely friendly, and mezcal selection, while selective, was outstanding, and the decor was beautiful. Located right across Bestia in the Arts District this is a place I am already looking forward to coming back to … soon

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Meteora is a holistic culinary experience curated by 2-Michelin Star Chef Jordan Kahn, known for his inventive and elemental compositions. The menu is centered around live-fire cooking, highlighting sustainably-sourced wild and organic vegetables, grains, seafood, and meats. This unique dining destination combines the primal nature of live-fire cooking with ingredients of rich biodiversity, creating an interactive, nourishing, and memorable meal experience.

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Robert Dentice

Food | Wine Connoisseur – LA | NYC, United States

Tulum through the eyes of Mad Genius Chef Jordan Kahn Stunning meal that showcases Chef Kahn’s brilliance. Tulum inspired. A combination of styles and influences that recall some of his best moments at Red Medicine, Destroyer and Vespertine. Latin American influences pair harmoniously with California ingredients. Along with Destroyer, this is now one of our favorites in LA. Don’t let the scene fool you, the food is as cerebral and serious as any in the U.S.

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This two-Michelin-star restaurant, n/naka, offers an exceptional dining experience with a modern interpretation of the Japanese culinary art form of Kaiseki. The restaurant prides itself on using the finest seasonal ingredients from both California and Japan to create a unique fusion of flavors. The menu is constantly evolving, offering a preset thirteen-course dinner service from Wednesday to Saturday, with each course exquisitely plated, balancing old and new tastes and flavors.

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Geeta Bansal

EIC of Salty Magazine – Newport Beach, USA

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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With a surprising interior that belies its unassuming exterior, Scratch|Bar & Kitchen offers a captivating dining experience. The restaurant features a unique dining layout where guests start with snacks and cocktails at the bar area before moving to the dining area, often seated at a counter with a direct view of the cooking process. The menu is praised for its remarkable consistency, with standout dishes including the live Maine lobster seasoned with soy sauce and ponzu, squab liver mousse with brown butter, and a unique dessert of toasted brioche with cheese ice cream.

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David P. Leja

@thegastrojourney – Palma, Spain

We found out about this place on our first visit to Los Angeles and have been going ever since. This is one of the best places we've eaten and when we knew the Michelin inspectors were returning to Los Angeles we were convinced they would get a star (unfortunately we were wrong but it deserves one in our opinion). The place is located in a little plaza in Encino, where when you see the outside you would never expect to find something so fascinating inside. First, you get seated at the bar area where you get served some snacks (the best popcorn on earth amongst them), appetizers and some world-class cocktails. After that, you get seated at the dining area in the next room, where if you are a party of 2 or 3 you will most likely get seated at the counter and see them directly cooking in front of you. This is one of the few menus where every item on the menu is fantastic and many bites will be unforgettable! The chef, Phillip, used to work for Alinea and has been a finalist for a San Pellegrino "Young Chef 2015" and he is the main responsible for the savory dishes. His wife, Margarita, is in charge of the desserts, and her desserts are some of the best ever! Our favorites from Scratch were: -Live Maine lobster seasoned with soy sauce and ponzu, a layer of Santa Barbara Uni on top, another layer of chopped gelatine made with local tomatoes and wild thyme, puffed quinoa, fresh flowers from their own garden and salted cream on the side. -Squab liver mousse with brown butter and sea salt on top and mini parker house rolls. -Toasted brioche with butter and brown sugar on one side. Cheese ice cream with smoked honey and chives on the other side. Definitely a must on every trip to LA!

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Specializing in kappo cuisine, Shibumi offers an elegant and mesmerizing Japanese dining experience with a focus on seasonality. The intimate 40-seat restaurant, run by Chef David Schlosser, is known for its unique and rare selection of beverages paired with seasonal offerings. The dishes are prepared using the highest quality local, organic, and sustainable ingredients and are served on handmade ceramics, adding to the overall aesthetic experience.

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Nicole Jacobsen

Co-Founder TheFoodOffice – Stockholm, Sweden

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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Transforming a former bank building into a dining space, YESS offers an uncomplicated menu featuring local seafood, vegetables, and California meats. The restaurant is known for its ambitious approach to traditional cooking. It is recognized as one of the most exciting dining spots in the US.

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Randy Moon

Restaurant Owner – Los Angeles, USA

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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