The Top 5 Italian Restaurants In Los Angeles Of 2020

Los Angeles’ culinary scene has blown up in recent years to the point that it’s almost impossible to pick our favorite eateries—there are just too many exceptional restaurants. Missing from this list (but deserving of are Nancy Silverton and Joe Bastianich‘s chi SPACCA, Angelini Osteria, Drago Centro and Evan Funke‘s pasta paradise, Felix. So without further ado, here are our top five favorite Italian restaurants of 2020 in the City of Angels.

Alimento

 Photo Credit: Alimento

ROSSOBLU

Photo Credit: Rossoblu

The fare at Steve Samson‘s downtown Italian restaurant Rossoblu tells the story of the two places that Chef considers to be home: Los Angeles and Bologna, which is why his cuisine is such an exquisite merging of both place. The downtown restaurant, located in a beautiful, 100-year-old building at City Market South, serves as an homage to Samson’s heritage by childhood memories of summers spent in Bologna, with a menu comprised of handmade pastas, market fresh produce, and an extensive in-house butchery and salumi program. Make sure not to miss the wine cellar, which affords diners an inside look at chef’s pasta workshop and butcher box. Standout dishes include Mom’s Minestra Nel Sacco, Tortellini en Brodo, Maltagliati and Marinated Big Eye Tuna.

 Osteria Mozza

Photo Credit: Osteria Mozza/Instagram

Nancy Silverton and Joe Bastianich are the power team behind Osteria Mozza, a pitch-perfect eatery in Hollywood with a buzzing energy and beautiful interior that matches its award-winning fare. We can’t say the highlight (because it’s impossible to pick just one!) of the restaurant is its white Carrara marble Mozzarella Bar, though it’s certainly the centerpiece, chock-full of imported mozzarella, as well as ricotta and cream-filled burrata. Standout dishes include the grilled beef tagliata, handmade pastas and the goat cheese ravioli. And we can’t stress this enough—this is not the place to be good and cede dessert. Pastry Chef Dahlia Narvaez’s award-winning edibles are some of the best in L.A.—especially her rosemary olive oil cakes.  

BESTIA

Photo Credit: Sierra Prescott

The husband and wife team of Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis love what they do, love food and love each other, which is why eating at their downtown L.A. joint labor of love, Bestia, feels like a “Like Water for Chocolate” experience: some sauce, some salt, a sprinkle of love. The restaurant focuses on regional rustic Italian restaurant ‘from scratch’ fare, offering house-made charcuterie, handmade pastas and pizza made in an Acunto oven.  Try the Burrata Pizza, Lobster Crostino, Calamari and Agnoloti.

Jon & Vinny’s Fairfax

Photo Credit: Erica Gould

At this stage in the game, Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo appear to have mastered almost every cuisine since opening their meat-ery, Animal, in 2008. Case in point: their crowd-pleasing Italian, Jon & Vinny’s, became so popular since its 2015 opening, that they launched a second location in Brentwood last year, with Marina del Rey, Sherman Oaks, and beyond all planned. So what should you expect? A restaurant where food is the focus, food and food alone. The menu focuses on pastas and pizzas (which are adorably named after their kids), all made in-house. There are even breakfast pizzas and “crust dips” on the menu. That being said, this is the kind of place where everything looks good, so you could be poring over the menu for some time if you’re a newbie. Our recommendations: The White Bronco pizza (cacciocavallo, fior di latte, whipped ricotta and garlic), Linguini & Clams and Mozzarella Sticks… because when they’re homemade, and homemade like this—you’ll be dreaming about them until you can have them again.