Bestia

Bestia is one of the city’s best Italian restaurants, and one of L.A.’s busiests restaurants for a reason. Chef and co-owner Ori Menashe’s rustic renditions of pizza, pasta and starters still manage to delight and impress, no matter how many times we’ve ordered them. Despite the decade and change since Bestia first opened in 2012 (and the fact owners Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis have opened two more restaurants), Bestia still requires a reservation on weekend evenings. The seasonal menu rotates slightly, but there’s a couple of heavy hitters I always recommend, including the roasted bone marrow with spinach gnocchetti—one of the dishes that cemented my desire to write about food—and the chestnut and mushroom agnolotti. The latter consists of tiny mascarpone-stuffed pasta pockets topped with fried sage and fennel pollen; a combination these days that’s no longer novel, but still shockingly good. Paired with the industrial-modern digs and the sleek ambience, it’s a place where we’re likely to linger until the staff starts bussing our dessert plates and wine glasses.