In another bid at keeping up with the digital age, Michelin has added nine new L.A. restaurants to its California guide, including several that have opened in the last six months. Among them you’ll find Sushi Sonagi, Time Out’s best new restaurant of last year, which we loved for its Korean-influenced omakase and warm approach to service, plus other picks that Angelenos might recognize from our best new restaurant and all-time best restaurant guides. In other words, these newly recognized restaurants shouldn’t come as a surprise to our longtime readers or anyone familiar with the city’s dining scene.
To be clear, these nine additions to the guide—labeled simply as “new” for now—haven’t been awarded Michelin stars or a Bib Gourmand, but they potentially could receive either of those distinctions later this year.
In alphabetical order, the nine L.A. area restaurants are as follows, with full inspector notes available via Michelin's official press release. All restaurants are within city limits unless otherwise specified, with any Time Out star designations noted with brackets.
- Amour (West Hollywood)
- Funke (Beverly Hills)
- Little Fish
- Liu’s Cafe
- Pollo a la Brasa
- Quarter Sheets
- (Bar) Sawa [5 stars]
- Sushi Sonagi (Gardena) [5 stars]
- UKA
For those unfamiliar with how Michelin restaurants are selected, here’s how it works: Anonymous Michelin inspectors travel across a given region, awarding the best of the best anywhere from one to three stars. Here in L.A., that’s meant both ultra-special occasion meals like Hayato and Providence, as well as more slightly less expensive, date-night friendly restaurants like Orsa & Winston and Gwen. Bib Gourmand makes up a second category of budget-friendly restaurants considered notable by inspectors. These relatively newer picks generally acknowledge the more diverse cuisines of Los Angeles beyond the French and Japanese fine-dining spots typically favored for awarded stars (Michelin will announce those as well as more Bib Gourmands at an awards ceremony much later this year).
In order to be considered for the more affordable category of the French tire company’s world-renowned dining guide, Bib Gourmand restaurants must offer a full menu that makes it possible to order two courses and drink or dessert for under $49 (sans tax and gratuity). These days, that’s a tall order with inflation, but it can still be done.
Here in Los Angeles, there’s plenty to work through if you haven’t already tried these Bib Gourmands. Spanning from the Westside to the San Gabriel Valley, they include annual additions from 2019 to 2023, except for 2020. (Michelin skipped handing out awards that year due to the pandemic.)
RECOMMENDED: All of L.A.’s Michelin star restaurants