A sprawling—and stunning—8,000 square-foot indoor and outdoor space made Casaléna an immediate hotspot when it opened in June. There are five dining areas to choose from, including an atrium with skylights and a glass window-wrapped terrace. The sibling-run Mediterranean restaurant draws crowds for a prolific coastal menu featuring crudos, seafood spaghetti with uni butter, and other crowd faves like short ribs with whipped potatoes.

Some of LA’s most exciting Californian cooking is unfolding on its riverfront. Lingua Franca opened in February from the team behind hit neighborhood sandwich shop Wax Paper and takes its mantra—“good food for good people”—very seriously. Dishes like clam frites and root beer-braised beef cheek are just a couple of examples of how the restaurant is cranking out comfort food 2.0., which made it a fast favorite for local media and the restaurant industry crowd.

Mexico City-based restaurant group Grupo Palmares (also behind downtown favorite LA Cha Cha Chá) launched another stylish Mexican hit in March. Since opening, Loreto has earned a glowing review from the Los Angeles Times’s Bill Addison, who described its phenomenal seafood lineup as being “threaded with pan-regional inspiration.”

The second act from chef Sammy Monsour of acclaimed New Orleans-inspired spot Preux & Proper puts a Southern spin on sustainable seafood. Joyce opened its doors in August and is a force to be reckoned with among LA’s other fish spots, as confirmed by enthusiastic shoutouts from the Los Angeles Times and others. Expect excellent Lowcountry-style dishes like trout caviar deviled eggs and black tiger prawn and oyster perloo.

Not only did this eclectic French restaurant get a rave Los Angeles Times review, it was also named one of Eater’s best new restaurants of 2023. Bar Chelou comes from Trois Mec alum chef Douglas Rankin and sits next to the Pasadena Playhouse, making it a sought-after pre-show dinner spot. Its sexy interiors and pitch-perfect cocktails brought a burst of energy to the somewhat sleepy neighborhood when it opened in January.

Red-sauce joints are having a moment in LA this year, judging from buzzy newcomers like La Dolce Vita and Donna’s. But Jemma Hollywood, an October opening by Top Chef alum Jackson Kalb, wins the Italian comfort food game with next-level linguine alla vodka and wood-fired pizzas. The warm and casual spot is the latest in Kalb’s rapidly expanding LA empire (Ospi, Jame, Jemma di Mare), proving he’s in serious expansion mode and one of the city’s most exciting chefs right now.

Level 8 deserves a spot on this list for its sheer ambition: The luxe food hall opened in October at the Moxy + AC hotel and brings together eight cocktail bars and restaurants from some of LA’s culinary heavyweights. Go first for Que Barbaro, lauded chef Ray Garcia’s triumphant return to the kitchen.

Baroo’s 2018 closure was a huge loss for LA, but the beloved Korean spot—which was singled out by Eater for being “fascinatingly unconventional”—got a highly anticipated reboot in September. The modern Korean icon is a trailblazer in a city filled with many more traditional counterparts.

This laid-back pintxos bar landed in Santa Monica in July and would be right at home in northern Spain. Xuntos is where you go for Iberian staples by well-known chef/owner Sandra Cordero like squid skewers, ham croquettes, and a traditional Spanish-style omelet.

Evan Funke isn’t just one of LA’s most talented chefs. He’s also a prolific restaurateur and the force behind some of the city’s best Italian restaurants like Felix Trattoria and Mother Wolf. His latest, which opened in April, is a joint venture with real estate mogul Kurt Rappaport and a love letter to handmade pasta. There are 12 different kinds on the menu, and they’re all crafted in a glass-and-steel pasta lab that is the undeniable focal point of the restaurant.