The 75 best dishes and drinks in Los Angeles 2017: Burgers and sandwiches

Sure, we were all surprised when Michael Cimarusti opened a casual, all-day restaurant in the Ace with barely any warning. What none of us should have been surprised by was how good the burger is. Similar to the gooey, cheddar-smothered patty at Connie & Ted’s—Cimarusti’s WeHo seafood spot—Best Girl’s burger is rich, flavorful and textured, but swaps Thousand Island for a house-made umeboshi mayo. Those pickled and salted plums in the sauce help cut the density of its four-ounce patty, as does that incredible dill relish. Don’t be surprised by its size; this burger is small but mighty. $16. — Stephanie Breijo

Sweet, buttery, salty, velvety: These are a few of my favorite things, and they all come together on chef Brandon Kida’s uni-piled take on a classic French baguette. It’s certainly one of the messiest sandwiches I’ve eaten this year—its house-made ricotta, local honey and delicate uni oozing from between two chewy pieces of house-baked bread—but it’s also one of the most delicious. Honey-drizzled uni forever. $16. — Stephanie Breijo

Yes, the high-profile chef collaborations at this NoMad preview on wheels are worth checking out (as is the heavenly soft serve). But it’s the namesake chicken burger, a flavorful patty with perfectly crisp skin and topped with a dependency-causing truffle mayo, that’ll leave you obsessively tracking this truck’s every move. $10. — Michael Juliano

The meat case at Curtis Stone’s Hollywood restaurant and butcher shop is the first thing you see upon opening the door, and it’s intentional; yes, that’s where you can stock up on locally raised cuts of pork and house-made sausage, but it’s also at the heart of Gwen. The restaurant’s menu is ripe with house-made charcuterie and rare-breed meats, with attention to detail in spades. At lunch, snag Stone’s hearty meatball sub, made of gargantuan house-ground, dry-aged beef meatballs that get lathered with pomodoro sauce, complemented by a broccoli rabe pesto and coated in gooey mozzarella. $12. — Stephanie Breijo

Jeremy Fall’s ode to the neighborhood bodega kills it with top-notch sandwiches that can only be accessed by a single question at the front register: “Do you sell birthday candles?” (They do, just in case you actually need a pack.) From there you’ll get buzzed into the back room, which is where you’ll find a sandwich speakeasy slinging house-cured deli meats and classic sides by the pound. But what you really want are the sandwiches, specifically the Cuban Reuben, with house pastrami, ham, mustard butter, pickles, melty Swiss cheese and a small mountain of tangy slaw between crusty bread. Have mercy. $10 for six inches, $19 for a footlong, $31 for a two-foot sub. — Stephanie Breijo

I was a little apprehensive about this burger. After all, a half-pound of beef smothered in pepperjack and cream cheese already sounds like an undertaking (and maybe cause for an undertaker), but throw on entire fried jalapeño poppers and some habanero aioli and you’ve got yourself a stack that could stop your heart, even if just from the fear of it. But, as we’ve repeatedly learned, the burger alchemists at Grill ‘Em All know how to spin myriad ingredients into grilled gold, and this is one of their finest creations. It’s meaty and cheesy, but the spice cuts through all that richness—OK, well maybe just some of it—and what you get is a flavorfulgut bomb that’s worth the food coma, I promise. $12. — Stephanie Breijo

Erik Black is a certifiable pitmaster, and this observation’s coming from someone who once followed Tuffy Stone around for a few months. Catch Black adding his phenomenal pit-smoked pastrami to menus around town—get it in your Cofax breakfast burrito, I dare you—but always bank on his being at Smorgasburg on Sundays. This is where you can snag some burnt ends and even ribs, but opt instead for the pastrami, especially if it’s your first visit. He’s going to ask if you want it on bread (say yes) and if you want mustard (say absolutely). The bread is chewy, its crust toothy and the meat is so buttery it melts on the tongue. 10/10 would order again and again and again (and they do, so expect a small line). $10 per quarter-pound sandwich, $20 per half-pound. — Stephanie Breijo

The Kurobuta pork belly banh mi from Mendo makes my mouth water just thinking about it. This take on the classic braises and then caramelizes Kurobuta pork belly, then adds house-pickled veggies and ciabatta. This flavor-packed sandwich is definitely one to order next time you visit. $10.95. — Jenn Brous

One of my most-craved sandwiches is woefully far from me and most Angelenos—unless you happen to be traveling. SlapFish’s lobster roll, made with sustainable seafood, is a thing of beauty: a meaty, massive mix of claw and tail that gently hits a flat-top before getting tossed in a lemon-and-butter mayo with fresh chives and stuffed in a buttered brioche roll. Unfortunately, the nearest SlapFish is, at least for now, in LAX. On the upside, if you find yourself at this location in the morning, this particular SlapFish also offers a lobster-laden breakfast menu featuring the likes of lobster breakfast tacos. Up and at ‘em. $Market Price. — Stephanie Breijo

Much of Farida’s menu skews toward shareable small plates—all worth ordering—but you’d be a fool to skip the chicken shawarma sandwich, which just so happens to be a meal unto itself. The seasoned poultry roasts on a spit before it finds its way between two fluffy pieces of grilled bread, along with a slathering of spicy tahini spread, shallots, garlic sauce and greens. Point: restaurateur George Abou-Daoud. $15. — Stephanie Breijo

Brooke Williamson and Nick Roberts have all but cornered the Playa del Rey market. Just a few blocks from the beach—and their multi-concept operation, Playa Provisions—you’ll find the Tripel: a teeny taphouse that’s home to one of the best burgers not only in South Bay but all of L.A. The Tripel Burger is messy, it’s sticky, meaty and a handheld meal you won’t want to put down, a pork-and-beef patty with duck confit, topped with truffled pecorino, house apricot jam and peppery arugula, perfectly walking that line between sweet and savory. $15. — Stephanie Breijo