There is no doubt that California has a plentiful supply of great food fueled by the state’s agriculture and diversity found in cities like Los Angeles and San Diego. Six hundred restaurants in The Golden State have received a Michelin nod, but that’s not the only accolade that warrants attention. Whether you live in California or just visiting, it can be hard to pinpoint where you should eat, as the restaurants here will blow your mind and taste buds with their unique offerings.
So, as expected, this list was challenging to narrow down. However, to help you make better culinary choices, we sailed through the difficulties to bring you California’s best restaurants. The state’s diverse culinary scene is, perhaps, even more evident in the types of eateries it hosts, from French fine dining and Mexican seafood counters to Asian fares and casual grab-a-bite hubs. Here are some of the best restaurants in the state of California. Unsurprisingly, these restaurants are quite popular, so we’ve noted how to snatch a seat and visit them all.
Holbox, Los Angeles
Holbox is a counter inside Mercado La Paloma, a small food hall in downtown Los Angeles that existed before these indoor spaces became trendy. For either lunch or dinner, you can walk into Mercado La Paloma and order some of the impeccable Mexican seafood dishes at Holbox: octopus tacos, scallop aguachile, uni tostada, and more. There are two ways to experience Holbox, and we love them both.
One is to go for the à la carte menu, affording you the freedom to customize your meal. The second is to reserve a seat for the restaurant’s eight-course tasting menu, offered only on Thursdays and Fridays. For this experience, Chef Gilberto Cetina flexes his creativity and puts out more ambitious and experimental menu items like abalone tamal and more. At $120 per person, the tasting menu is one of the best deals in Los Angeles.
Kato, Los Angeles
Kato is a rare offering even in California’s diverse culinary scene: a Taiwanese-inspired tasting menu. The restaurant has gone through a major evolution over the years. Chef Jonathan Yao started Kato at a small strip mall in West Los Angeles with a five-course tasting menu that costs just $49. Kato quickly gained a lot of accolades, and Yao eventually moved his restaurant downtown and turned it into an ambitious project where he now serves a 12-course tasting menu…