The LA Restaurants That Need To Be On Your ‘Must’ List This Winter

The best new restaurants to try in LA as the weather gets colder.

MOTHER TONGUE

Photo Credit: Angelo Clinton

Michael Mina has a new and unusual concept in La La Land, in that it’s the first of his eateries to debut in a fitness club. The celebrity chef’s latest offering, Mother Tongue, is located within HEIMAT, a multilevel health and wellness respite inside of a 1930s industrial building in Hollywood’s Media District. While HEIMAT — which translates in German to “the feeling of home” — is for members only, Mother Tongue is available to all. Martin Brudnizki’s sensual designs are the perfect backdrop for Mina’s globally focused fare, which includes items such as striped bass with Peruvian bay scallops in a spicy coconut broth, Filipino lumpiang sariwa, and Japanese-inspired wild Pacific salmon chan chan yaki with white miso sauce, caraflex cabbage, and shimeji mushrooms, among other international offerings. While dining around the world, make sure not to miss a stellar American option: the chef’s own reserve caviar.

Photo Credit: Angelo Clinton

Mother Tongue, 960 N. La Brea Ave, 4th floor, 90038

CATCH STEAK

Photo Credit: catchrestaurants.com

Los Angeles is the setting for Catch Hospitality Group’s crowd-pleasing hot spot, Catch Steak, the sister spot of neighboring Catch LA. This see-and-be-seen eatery offers a winning combination of a classic steakhouse with the energetic, over-the-top vibe that Catch has become known for. The restaurant itself, as designed by the Rockwell Group, is warm, intimate, and inviting, with a street-facing patio, wine room, secret garden-like spaces, and the Red Room — a private dining area that overlooks the double-height dining room — in the two-level space. The menu offers a curated collection of cuts, including American Imperial and Japanese Wagyu, and is one of the few restaurants nationally to have an official Kobe license from Japan, which allows for a unique table-side “Beef Sommelier” experience. Yes, you read that right.

 Catch Steak, 650 N. La Cienega Blvd, 90069

MES AMIS

Photo Credit: Michael Mundy

My friends, Mes Amis is finally here! The long-awaited French-inspired brasserie from chef Lincoln Carson and Ten Five Hospitality, located at the Thompson Hotel in Hollywood’s Vinyl District, is earning rave reviews — both for its fare and its flair. Designed in collaboration with Martin Brudnizki Design Studio and Creative Director Bernadette Blanc, the 6,000-square-foot brasserie blends traditional elements of Parisian design with a modern California airiness. Café-style chairs, marble tables, vintage black-and-white photographs, tan leather banquettes, and an open-air terrace are the perfect backdrop to Carson’s contemporary take on classic brasserie fare. Plates such as the chicory salad with fourme d’ambert, citrus and walnut, as well as the steak tartare with “everything lavash” pair perfectly with a French-meets-Californian wine program and cocktails named in tribute to Old Hollywood, as well as an unmissable roving champagne cart.

Photo Credit: Wonho Frank Lee

1541 Wilcox Ave, 90028

SAN LAUREL

Photo Credit: ThinkFoodGroup

After saying goodbye to The Bazaar at the SLS Beverly Hills, José Andrés has brought his magic back to a different hotel this year — the newly opened Conrad Los Angeles — with a variety of culinary and beverage concepts. San Laurel is the focus here, a restaurant that features the flavors of Andrés’ native Spain as seen through a Californian lens, focusing on the beautiful ingredients of the Golden State. Highlights include Wagyu ribeye; grilled romaine with manchego espuma; and roasted celeriac carpaccio, all in an equally beautiful space that features antique-brass framed fluted glass screens, leather and velvet, and a large central bar with glazed tile and a pale stone countertop. Other venues under Andrés’ Think Food Group umbrella here include Agua Viva, a chic outdoor restaurant with beach club vibes and Latin and Asian cuisine; Airlight, a pool deck with tiki punch bowls and house-made push pops; the craft cocktail concept SED, with libations inspired by chef’s worldwide travels; and the small but mighty classic-meets-modern cocktail bar, The Beaudry Room.

Photo Credit: ThinkFoodGroup

100 S. Grand Ave, 90012