Legend has it that Philippe The Original invented the French dip sandwich. While we can’t prove that, we can prove that this split-level sandwich spot in DTLA is one of the longest-running businesses in the city, having continuously operated since 1908. On weekends or during Dodger games, you’ll have to stand in a fast-moving line for one of their dipped sandwiches layered with roast beef, lamb, or pastrami on a crusty roll. We always order ours with a slice of swiss, which helps the sandwich stick together even after a long soak in the rich jus (ordering an extra side for dunking is non-negotiable).

Text five friends for dinner recs in Thai Town and there’s a high chance all of them will ask if you've been to Jitlada. Following a change in ownership in 2006, the strip mall favorite has climbed its way to institution status, which you’ll quickly realize once you walk into a packed dining room at dinner, The narrow space is covered in press cutouts and portraits of Thai royalty, and the food—roughly 400 dishes, all served in family-size portions—lives up to the hype. It also brings the heat—if you ask for the jungle curry spicy, don't say we didn't warn you.

Unlike other Old Hollywood spots where much of the allure stems from lounging in a booth that the Rat Pack sat in 55 years ago, Dan Tana’s is a restaurant still very much in its heyday. Without fail, Dan Tana’s will place you in the crossfire of several rounds of gin martinis, secret shots with the maitre d’, and chicken parm served on red-checkered tablecloths. You’ll flirt with someone wearing a pink boa at the bar, squeeze your entire group into a red booth, and lose track of how many Oscar winners walk past. No, Dan Tana’s is not serving the most refined Italian food in town. It doesn't matter.

History can be hard to come by in Santa Monica—we still miss the old dinosaur topiary at The Promenade—and that’s exactly why Bay Cities is essential. This century-old Italian deli is a touchpoint for the entire Westside, as well as home to a deli counter that sells one of the city's elite sandwiches in existence: the Godmother. Waits can get long on weekends, so order ahead of time online or grab a pre-made sandwich up front to bypass the line. Also, if you don’t order your sandwich with “The Works” (choose hot or mild peppers), you can’t say you’ve eaten here. Rules are rules.

Lawry’s is one of those restaurants you can’t suggest to first-timers without them asking, “Wait, that Lawry’s?” Yes, that Lawry’s—the Beverly Hills steakhouse whose seasoning is in the back of every spice rack in America. A meal at the ballroom-esque location on La Cienega does feel a bit like eating dinner on a cruise ship, but the food is legitimately delicious. Between the spinning salad, the “meat and potato” martinis, the silver prime rib cart that rolls right up to your table, and carolers who roam the dining room during the holidays, dinner at Lawry’s is a show from start to finish.

There’s something deeply nostalgic about driving up PCH’s Malibu coastline. The wind’s whipping through your hair, the salty air is wafting off the water, and your stomach is growling for a basket of fried seafood. While there are several seafood shacks on this stretch, none of them match the history and sheer joyful kitsch of Neptune’s Net. Open since 1956, this kitschy roadside tavern is an essential PCH pitstop with top-notch views, a unique crowd (it’s a big biker spot), a roomy front patio, and one of our favorite clam chowders in existence. 

Editor's Note: access to Neptune's Net via PCH is currently limited, but the restaurant is open and accessible using Kanan Dume Road or Malibu Canyon Road.

The combination of beans, cheese, and tortilla is a humble thing—but somehow this well-worn stand in Boyle Heights takes that trifecta to a whole other level. Al & Bea’s is a family-owned East LA staple with a loyal fan base that spans from Boomers to the TikTok generation. They serve a variety of Mexican American throwbacks like taquitos and guacamole cheese fries, but most everyone hones in on their purist's bean and cheese, filled with refried pintos that are gloriously flavored with lard and shredded orange cheese that liquefies against the molten beans. Always get the green salsa.

We won't get into the weeds of the wider LA vs. NYC debate, but if we're talking pastrami, Langer's makes what we'd argue is the best in the world. That seems like a bold statement, but if you disagree, you probably haven't had the #19. The most famous sandwich at this 1940s Jewish delicatessen in Westlake—with its thick, hand-cut slices of meat, swiss, russian dressing, and coleslaw between soft slices of double-baked rye—is greatness embodied. The experience of eating it Langer’s is its own ritual, too, between the staff’s white diner uniforms, the well-worn booths, and regulars hiding behind their newspapers while nursing a bowl of matzo ball soup.

You can't bring up Oaxacan food in LA without talking about Guelaguetza, and for good reason—this Koreatown spot deserves credit for bringing top-tier mole to the masses (their website is literally ilovemole.com). But mole aside, Guelaguetza is where you go to eat tamales in banana leaves, black bean enfrijoladas, and crispy tlayudas with tasajo and spicy chorizo. Dinner here is always an event: there’s a gift shop selling merch, an open kitchen where you can take photos of sizzling meats, and a live band playing Latin jazz. Guelaguetza works for large group dinners, blowout birthdays, or any time you're in the mood for a mezcal flight.

The East Hollywood location of this beloved Lebanese-Armenian restaurant might technically be older, but it's the Carousel in Glendale that functions as the social center of its neighborhood—and arguably Southern California's Armenian community at large. The gigantic, belly dancer-filled dining hall is a party almost every night, and the massive kebab platters, assorted meze, and shawarma can feed groups of any size. Even if you're not coming to celebrate something, expect to end up clapping along while a server delivers candle-topped baklava to a stranger.

Hawkin’s House of Burgers is a storied takeout spot in Watts that smells like fryer oil and looks like it hasn’t been touched since the Lakers moved to town. Meaty, chargrilled, and piled high with bacon, their standout cheeseburger is our favorite in South LA. They’ll also make you pancakes for breakfast, a pastrami sandwich for lunch, or a basket of chili cheese fries for dinner. But whether you keep it simple or go all out with the Whipper Burger (stacked with two thick patties, pastrami, and a hotlink), the food at Hawkins makes stuff at other burger stands taste like it’s missing something.

Kobawoo House has been around since before Koreatown was the land of limited street parking and soju bars blasting pop music. This traditional Korean restaurant is an oasis of calm in a strip mall off busy Vermont Avenue where you can sit peacefully in a booth while a water fountain trickles in the background. Kobawoo serves excellent jeon and chewy acorn noodles, but the specialty here is undoubtedly bossam. The portions are huge, the service is warm, and you'll leave with a renewed appreciation for the power of pork belly with kimchi.

Every LA neighborhood has an old third or fourth-generation California-Mexican spot to claim as their own. Koreatown has El Cholo, Sherman Oaks has Casa Vega, and Boyle Heights has El Tepeyac. But the most storied of them is El Coyote. This combo plate landmark on Beverly is home to lots of bizarre local history, and its Christmas-light-strung dining rooms still swell with people who are down to get a little weird. The food is by no means special, and that's fine. You’re here to drink potent margaritas, fill up on complimentary chips and salsa, and eat enchiladas plastered with an obscene amount of melted cheese.

Musso & Frank has been open for over a century and is perhaps the only restaurant in town where both brochure-clutching tourists and old men complaining about Nixon’s foreign policy live in harmony. Hollywood's timeless steakhouse is an undisputed civic treasure, and even if you don’t need to rush to order anything from the throwback menu—though the filet mignon with watercress is surprisingly good—sitting at the bar and ordering a cocktail is a quintessential experience. We prefer the classic martini, served with a chilled sidecar on ice. It’s a timeless, technically perfect drink that still makes gravity tricky after a few sips.

The Apple Pan isn't a museum, but stepping into this burger counter does feel like visiting a well-preserved landmark (motto: Quality Forever). The staff wears classic soda jerk hats as they flip burgers and slice wedges of banana cream pie. There's some plaid wallpaper on display, red leather chairs at the counter, and a general hominess that's impossible to replicate. The ham sandwich and tuna melt are stealth favorites, but the required order is the delicious, if divisive, Hickory Burger, with its sweet-tangy sauce that falls between ketchup and barbecue. It's a true LA original, and you won't find another burger in town quite like it.

If there was an SGV Hall of Fame, Newport Seafood would have had its jersey hung from the rafters years ago. This upscale Cantonese seafood spot has seen more birthdays, wedding banquets, and graduation celebrations than all the for-hire clowns in Southern California, and it’s still the place to mark a grand occasion with a table packed with fantastic seafood, stir-fries, and noodles. Just make sure the house special lobster is part of your order—wok-fried, weighing at least four pounds, and smothered in scallions, jalapeño, ginger, and butter, you’ll see it on every table in the dining room.

If you’ve ever seen Wolfgang Puck’s grin on a can of tomato bisque at the supermarket, thank Spago. When it opened in the 1980s, the sceney Sunset Strip spot (now located in Beverly Hills) changed how the country thought about food in LA, making Puck a superstar in the process. It might no longer be as groundbreaking as it was when angel hair pasta with goat cheese blew minds, but Spago is cruising well into middle age. The airy space looks like a movie mogul's estate and the food is still luxurious. There'll be some nice seasonal specials on the menu, but make sure to order the perennial hits like tuna tartare cones and smoked salmon pizza.

Pann’s is a space-age diner where Ladera Heights regulars, tourists on their way to LAX, and old friends who went to high school decades ago can be found eating biscuits and gravy on a Wednesday morning. Everything here exudes morning-time comfort: the hearty Southern-leaning food, the booths you sink into, and the existence of at least one waitress who will call you “hon.” Drop in for a stack of hotcakes, fried pork chops, or a tuna melt with a side of onion rings, but take time to soak in the atmosphere, too. You’ll feel like you’ve stepped onto a retro mid-century movie set (because it kind of is).

Cielito Lindo is a food stand on Olvera Street that could easily be confused for a cantina-themed information booth, but make no mistake, the history on display is very real. This miniature taqueria has been open since the 1930s and is revered for one thing: crispy beef taquitos fried until golden brown in a big pan and smothered in an equally famous tangy avocado salsa. They're a simple, quick snack that delivers exactly what you crave while shopping for ceramic bowls, but they're also something else—a nearly century-old symbol of LA's Mexican American community and its deep roots that run through the city.

Located exactly one crosswalk away from Warner Brothers Studios, Smoke House has been a Valley legend since 1942 and a place where, on any given night, you’ll find celebrities, set designers, and security guards all swigging Manhattans and toasting to another day on the lot. The space is a series of massive interconnected dining rooms, each filled with various fireplaces, wood-paneled walls, and of course, hundreds of framed headshots. As for food, don’t get too cute with your order— if your table isn’t filled up with caesar salads, massive plates of prime rib, and several orders of their famous garlic bread, you took a wrong turn somewhere.

Of the countless sushi options in LA, Sushi Gen exists at the top of the quality-meets-value pyramid. For over 40 years, this Little Tokyo institution has been serving excellent sushi at affordable prices. Most people go for the specials—basically samplers of the best-selling nigiri and sashimi on one plate. But if you know exactly which specific cuts you want (or which ones you don’t), you could also just post up at the bar and order all the à la carte sushi your heart desires, while sitting front row to veteran sushi chefs cranking out fresh nigiri like clockwork.

If there's one constant in Chinatown, it's people crowding the sidewalk on Broadway outside Yang Chow on weekends. The main attractions are the namesake fried rice and the slippery shrimp—a dish so popular the staff wears shirts telling you to order it—though almost everything on the classic American Chinese menu is good. The dining room is a portal to a bygone era complete with '70s-style carpet and upholstery and photos of old celebrity guests lining the walls. Yang Chow even has surprisingly strong—and reasonably priced—cocktails, so you can sip a mai tai or lychee martini while you wait for your pile of sticky-sweet shrimp to arrive.

Whenever LA and soul food appear in the same sentence, Roscoe’s is guaranteed to be part of the conversation. This local chain with big brown booths and pink neon signage introduced the West Coast to fried chicken and waffles back in the ‘70s and has famously kept its menu tight ever since. Whether it’s 8am or midnight, or your first or 500th visit, the Scoe’s special is our favorite place to start: two pieces of glistening thin-crusted fried chicken plus two cakey, cinnamon-laced waffles begging to be smothered in Louisiana hot sauce and rich, sticky syrup.

We don't always recommend eating breakfast at a bowling alley, but when we do, it's at Gardena Bowl. This lovably retro diner is a neighborhood staple serving Japanese and Hawaiian dishes that reflect the diverse history of LA's South Bay: loco moco, banana pecan pancakes, kimchi bacon fried rice, and meat-filled freeform scrambles called "royales." The food is comforting and generous, and you can rent some shoes and hit the lanes after, but what makes this place a treat are the tiny details: handwritten specials above the counter, blue vinyl swivel chairs, and $5 bags of boiled peanuts they sometimes sell at the register.

Dinner rush at this 70s-era Italian cafeteria in Burbank is a sight to behold. Parents with kids in soccer uniforms and exhausted studio workers line up with red trays pointing at meatballs and giant lasagna squares behind the glass. Wine is served in goblets. And, yes, there are wooden Pinocchio dolls everywhere. With its combination of retro prices, solid red sauce staples, and a only-in-LA brand of kitsch that could only exist in LA, it’s no mystery why this place has a cult following. Be sure to explore the attached deli for pastries and silky gelato (a.k.a. dessert).