The Factory Kitchen

The pasta might be the obvious standout at the Factory Kitchen, but so is everything else. Since 2013, owner Matteo Ferdinandi and chef Angelo Auriana have been churning out some of Downtown’s most consistently delicious Italian cuisine. In the last decade, the restaurant’s mandilli di seta has cemented itself as one of L.A.’s most iconic dishes, and the Ligurian-style focaccia, a.k.a. focaccia di Recco, is one of the best versions of bubbling, cheesy, crunchy flatbread in the city. (The absolute best, however, is still served at Chi Spacca.) Other menu standouts include the slow-roasted Italian-style porchetta and the prosciutto di Parma, sliced razor thin and served with sage-dusted savory doughnut puffs and creamy stracciatella cheese. More recently, the Factory Kitchen has expanded to Las Vegas, where you’ll find many of the kitchen’s greatest hits inside a restaurant known as Matteo’s Ristorante Italiano inside the Venetian.