Top Rated Restaurants & Cafes in Los Angeles

Walking up to this diner, you can see it's anything but typical. The front windows display mannequin heads with interesting hairdos, scarves, and even bread hats. The food is also made to stand out. Interesting flavor combinations like the maple bacon donut and the peanut butter potato chip cupcake dominate the pastry menu. Breakfast and brunch items are plentiful, and range from sweet, like the homemade brioche french toast, to savory, like the tofu scramble. There are also delicious lunch and dinner dishes like the pulled pork sandwich, salads, and burgers. Stop by for reasonable prices and great people-watching.

You'll feel like you've stepped into an Art Deco club room at this downtown favorite. Regarded as being the best seafood restaurant in L.A., the menu has been tweaked by Spago Alum chef Michael Cimarusti. The food here keeps getting even better. American seafood specialties include Maine lobsters and Dungeness crabs fresh from the restaurant's tanks. You can also enjoy the raw bar, hard-to-find fresh fish and New England clam chowder.

Spread the cheer with wine and bites at Mignon. The wine bar is a favorite hang out place for locals who like to finish their dinner here, sipping the drink at leisure and pecking on the range of charcuterie and tapas bites. The menu comprises of small morsels of cheese, meat and sandwiches along with platters of Market Vegetables, Okame Spinach and Fresh Market Fruit. The wine list also has a few gems. The quiet ambience offers a splendid place for a romantic date or a post-dinner nightcap. The venue has soft lights that create a dramatic appeal. Happy hours are from 6p to 8p from Monday to Saturday and upto midnight on Sunday.

Lovingly restored to its original glory and reopened after decades of inactivity, Cole's is one of the most popular downtown food destinations. Drop by during happy hour to enjoy a signature cocktail and survey a slice of motley downtown demographics: mellow professionals draped over their after-work aperitifs, keen-eyed tourists, seasoned winos, local artists escaping their lofts for an evening break. The menu is short, perhaps the shortest in LA, but what's on it is finger-licking good. Vegetarians, beware: you would have to tough it out with a bowl of tomato soup and fries, the only non-meat choices on the menu.

Shojin is an organic food restaurant specializing in Japanese cuisine. It offers a beautiful ambience, with interiors dimly lit by a chandelier and walls adorned with bold floral artworks and intricate black and white designs. Strings of light bulbs or paper lanterns are used to add charm to the place on certain occasions. Their menu includes Spicy Shiso Tempura, Mushroom Miso Soup, Yuzu Ponzu Seitan and Edamame Salad as appetizers. For the main course, guests can savor items like Green Dynamite Roll Sushi, Marinated Garlic Seitan Steak, Mellow Miso Ramen and Sweet Orange Chicken Seitan. The lack of artificial preservatives, seasonings and additives makes their food as healthy as it is delicious.

Lively din and jovial camaraderie reign at Wurstküche, a German restaurant that's a neighborhood favorite. The fare is refreshingly simple, consisting of hot dogs and beer. But make no mistake, this place serves only the best. From alligator to chicken, you will be enjoying only succulent gourmet dogs, expertly seasoned, and the choicest brews. Stop by to relax and order a pint of beer, some Belgian fries and the sausage of your choice.