Fine Dining (New International Cuisine):
Bastide, Melisse, and
Providence are all very, very good.
Spago isn't quite what it was, but it's still a helluva lot of fun. All obvious picks.
If I was going to drop huge amounts of coin on dinner in Los Angeles and was only going to be here for a limited time, I'd spend it on raw fish -- either the Japanese or Korean versions of sushi/sashimi; or on some sort of super duper banquet in one of the really good Chinese places in the SGV.
It's not that we don't have great fine dining here as good as anywhere else in the country; more that the Asian scene is just unbelievably good.
Mexican food too, but the Mexicans haven't figured out how much the stuff is actually worth and keep undercharging. Wherever you're staying, I probably know where to get good Mexican food.
If you've never had Oaxacan food, you should go for the mole sampler at
Guelegetza. Mariachis on the weekend, you have been warned. There are other wonderful Oaxacan places, including
Monte Alban which is on (surprise!) on the west side.
Mexicans aren't the only huge Latin American population here. If you've never tried a pupusa or a Salvadorean tamale, you should.
If you haven't been to
El Mercado del Oeste Los Angeles, you haven't experienced chaos at its best.
Orale! Two large restaurants upstairs, an infinite number of mariachi bands on the weekend, dueling mariachis most of the rest of the time, souvenier stands, a bakery, a meat market, and everything else you can think of scattered around. It's a theme park on acid, and where Chicanos go for the "American version of the Mexican experience."
If you're interested in high end Chinese cuisine, the
Duck Restaurant in Monterey Park is amazing. Because "Duck - Three Ways" is essential to eating there, and reperesents more than enough for two people, I can't really recommend the place unless you're a party of four (or more). Highest recommendation.
Speaking of Chinese food, nearly all the really good dim-sum places have 86d the carts and are serving off ala catre menus. A few places, including
Seafood Harbor on Rosemead in Temple City, and
Elite on Atlantic in Monterey Park (across the street from the
Duck Restaurant) are of Hong Kong quality, inventiveness, etc.
Back to sushi/sashimi, in addition to the usual suspects like
Asanebo, and
Matsuhisa (great place to spot celebs!), there's a few interesting variations on the theme.
Shibucho, for instance, does a lot of interesting wine pairings.
The Hump combines very good sushi with all sorts of other fine dining possibilities. I'm very fond of
Echigo, too.
My favorite sushi-ya are the Korean "Japanese Restaurants" which emphasize sashimi over sushi, do a lot of fusion with the variety of panchon, spicy soups, and whatnot. And are just generally more fun and anarchistic than the seriously good Japanese places. My favorite is a place called
A-Won in K-Town. If you're serious about $100 each "Chef's Choice," let me know and we can go through some of the signals you'll have to know so you get the real deal instead of the "white folk" special. Highest recommendation!
By the way, Korean Japanse restaruants (of which there are a great many very good ones) are also very good for lunch. Hwe do bap is a sort of sushi salad, and impossible not to love. Damn! You got me jonesin' just thinkin' about it.
Lots of great Korean Barbecues too -- some of which serve impossibly good meat (including
wagyu) and are expensive enough that you absolutely will impress your date.
BDL