What’s Cooking in LA This February

These newly opened restaurants offer a glimpse at where Los Angeles dining is headed — thoughtful, intimate, and rooted in point of view.

CORRIDOR 109 

Photo Credit: Shelby Moore

641 N Western Ave Ste A, Los Angeles, 90004

Chef Brian Baik’s long-evolving chef’s table concept has finally settled into a permanent home in Melrose Hill, and the result feels deliberate and quietly transporting. Guests begin at Bar 109 before being guided through a curved passageway into a dining room where the kitchen is the experience: a 10-seat stained walnut chef’s table wrapped around the open line. The tasting menu unfolds as an 11-course seafood-driven journey shaped by Baik’s deep relationships with fishermen and purveyors, including rare ingredients sourced directly from Japan — think ikura tartlets and aji toast on house-made milk bread. Baik’s pedigree — rooted in his family’s Koreatown institution Kobawoo House and refined through Michelin-starred kitchens — makes Corridor 109 feel less like a night out and more like a moment.

BROKEN SPANISH COMEDOR 

Photo Credit: Broken Spanish Comedor

12565 Washington Blvd, Los Angeles, 90066

Broken Spanish Comedor, the more relaxed, neighborhood-minded counterpart to Chef Ray Garcia’s landmark Broken Spanish, revives the bold, contemporary voice of Alta California cuisine that made the original a national touchstone. The menu brings back signatures such as crackling chicharrón with garlic mojo and pickled cabbage, while new dishes like fideo verde with hoja santa and avocado lean into weeknight craveability. An in-house nixtamal program anchors the food in craft and cultural storytelling, while a full bar with a strong agave backbone bridges Mexican flavors and California sensibility. Designed by Candace Shure, the space feels warm, layered, and lived-in, with sage tiles, block-print wallpaper, and soft linen lighting.

88 CLUB 

Photo Credit: Marcus Meissler

9737 S Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills, 90210

There’s an ease to 88 Club that feels deliberate. The Beverly Hills eatery presents Chinese cuisine with polish and purpose, guided by chef Mei Lin’s deep connection to the food and restaurateur Francis Miranda’s instinct for creating places people want to return to. The menu leans into family-style dining, layering bold flavors with refined technique — chrysanthemum salad with geema vinaigrette, and standout mains like sweet-and-sour squirrel fish and char siu secreto. Designed by Preen, the dining room balances modern elegance with warmth, anchored by jade details and a central lazy Susan that reinforces the communal experience. At its core, 88 Club feels less like a statement restaurant and more like a confident one —one that’s built to last.

DARLING 

Photo Credit: Ron De Angelis

631 N Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood, 90069

Chef Sean Brock’s West Coast debut is less about spectacle and more about intention — a restaurant and hi-fi listening lounge that channels his reverence for Southern foodways through the lens of Southern California’s micro-seasons and live-fire restraint. The menu shifts often, with dishes that let smoke, fire, and produce do most of the talking: venison tartare layered with subtle bitterness and crunch, grilled quail kissed with citrus wood, and steaks pulled from a custom wood-burning grill. The bar follows the same seasonal philosophy, with cocktails that reinterpret classics using produce-driven ingredients. Adjacent to the dining room, the vinyl-only hi-fi lounge anchors the experience with warmth and analog soul.