Los Angeles is no stranger to restaurant openings, whether splashy openings in iconic buildings helmed by big-name chefs, a humble neighborhood spot, or a pop-up leaping into a permanent space. Consider this monthly rundown a go-to guide for the newest and boldest debuts across the Southland.
The exterior of Xibei at the Shops at Santa Anita in Arcadia. HaoYuan Ren
On August 1, Xibei, a restaurant specializing in the grain-rich flavors of Northwestern China, quietly opened its first U.S. location at the Shops at Santa Anita in Arcadia. The 11,356-square-foot space, formerly home to Meizhou Dongpo, features high ceilings, multiple private dining rooms, and a sleek, modern dining hall. (A refined bar area is slated to debut soon.) China’s Xibei Catering Group, founded in Inner Mongolia in 1988, now runs nearly 400 locations across the country; its Arcadia debut introduces a lesser-known regional cuisine to Los Angeles diners. Northwestern food reflects the nomadic heritage and Muslim influences of the Uyghur, Hui, Mongol, and Kazakh communities across Shaanxi, Gansu, Ningxia, Xinjiang, and Inner Mongolia. It emphasizes lamb, ancient grains such as oats and millet, and a variety of noodles made on-site, as well as hearty dumplings.
Fish and nigiri at Zanmai Sushi. Sushi Zanmai
Sushi Zanmai — Koreatown
With great fanfare, the tuna king arrived in Los Angeles on August 2. The Japan-based restaurant chain Sushi Zanmai, helmed by Kiyoshi Kimura, opened its first U.S. location in Koreatown on August 2, taking over the former Sake House by Hikari in Chapman Market. Kimura initially opened the first Sushi Zanmai in 2001, and quickly gained a dedicated following for its around-the-clock hours and affordable sushi. As Zanmai expanded, Kimura became a legend in his own right — in 2019, he paid a record 333.6 million yen (more than $2 million) for a single bluefin tuna at a New Year’s auction. Purchasing the first fish of the year is considered an honor in Japan and attracts big crowds: On the restaurant’s opening day in Koreatown, Kimura was on-site to slice into a 500-pound tuna. The menu is straightforward, with crowd-pleasing hand rolls, cut rolls, nigiri, and more. Starters comprise dishes like edamame, shishito peppers, and spicy tuna crispy rice, topped with a thin slice of jalapeño.
Lotteria after dark. Lotteria
Lotteria, a major Japanese-Korean fast-food chain with locations across South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and more, just opened its first U.S. location in Fullerton on August 11. Lotteria was founded in 1972 by South Korean businessman Shin Kyuk-ho in Japan, with a name that’s a portmanteau of Lotte (its parent company) and cafeteria. By 1977, Lotteria had more than 100 locations, and expanded to South Korea just two years later in 1979. Lotteria’s biggest market has 1,300 locations in South Korea, with more than 1,600 locations worldwide. The restaurant is best known for its unique fast-food dishes, such as marinated bulgogi burgers, shrimp burgers, fried chicken, and the Jeonju Bibimbap Rice Burger, served on gochujang-seasoned rice patties. It’s also known for tailoring its menu to its location, so Southern California-based lovers of the restaurant should keep an eye out for Fullerton exclusives.
Stage at Blue Note Jazz Club in Los Angeles. Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times
New York’s legendary Blue Note Jazz Club expanded to Los Angeles on August 14 inside the Cinerama Dome complex. It’s quite a moment for the influential venue, which has locations in Tokyo, Milan, Napa, Waikiki, Beijing, and more; Danny Bensusan founded the original Blue Note Jazz Club in 1981 in New York’s Greenwich Village. Blue Note has grown to one of the most famous jazz clubs in the world over the last four decades, hosting performances from musicians like Ray Charles, Lionel Hampton, Sarah Vaughn, and more. Nat Adderley, who composed the jazz standard “Work Song,” took the stage on night one with a quartet. Operators added two performance rooms: a larger “A” room for headliners, and a “B” room for smaller artists and jams. Chef Asaf Maoz of Carmel put together the menu, though the Los Angeles Times notes that ”bold” and “internationally-inspired flavors” will accompany the Jazz Age-inspired cocktails. The club will serve dinner throughout the week and weekend brunch. Seating at the tables and bar area is first-come, first-served; arriving early is encouraged.
Bleu Bird — Manchester Square
Another blue-named operation opened adjacent to the famous street corner of Florence and Normandie Avenues on August 16. Bleu Bird is from the Court Cafe crew, led by Bleu Kitchen’s chef Calvin Johnson, Taco Mell’s Jermelle Henderson, and Mr. Fries Man’s Craig Batiste. The opening weekend was a madhouse, with a line around the block for deep-fried Korean-style chicken sandwiches; fried chicken plates with the spot’s own hot sauce; or two, three, and four-piece chicken meals with gumbo, greens flecked with chicken andouille sausage and smoked turkey, macaroni and cheese, and smashed fried okra as sides. Diners in the know can add cream-cheese frosting to the sweet potato biscuit.
Raw minced Wagyu, roe, shallot, celery, anchovy aioli, and truffle chips. Stan Lee
Dom’s Taverna — Santa Barbara
On August 22, seafood expert chef Dom Crisp opened his Basque-leaning restaurant, Dom’s Taverna, in Santa Barbara. With the opening, he joins a growing number of Los Angeles-based chefs who have made the trip north to open exciting new spots in cities like Ojai, Ventura, and Montecito. Crisp spent years in notable kitchens throughout the Southland, including at L&E Oyster Bar and the Lonely Oyster. In January 2025, he relocated to Santa Barbara full-time and purchased the building that houses Dom’s Taverna with his business partner, Raj Nallapothola of Toronix Gourmet. Basque-inflected shakshuka, seafood-heavy cioppino pasta, and a saffron bomba rice bowl star for lunch. Dinner brings squid ink crab rice, along with mussels or clams over Basque sausage with sherry vinegar. Evening starters comprise pintxos with buttermilk chicken croquettes and Txangurro tortas (crab corn cakes). Crisp puts the region’s finest seafood on display with the crudo bar.
Cooking in the fire hearth at Betsy. Cathy Chaplin
Restaurateur Tyler Wells reopens his Altadena restaurant, now named Betsy, in the heart of the neighborhood on August 30. Formerly called Bernee, his live-fire restaurant had only been open for 31 days when January’s Eaton Fire tore through the foothill community. Altadena residents who sustained the restaurant in its earliest days are still largely displaced eight months after the wildfires that destroyed nearly 10,000 structures. Many surrounding businesses and residences are destroyed, so Betsy is a bit of a beacon on Lake Avenue, slightly south of Altadena Drive. It’s a quintessential neighborhood restaurant that seats 39, where diners can feast on something from the roaring wood-fired hearth, like ribeyes, gnocchi, and even cheesecake that meets the heat. Betsy’s food and wine menus are driven by the relationships that Wells has fostered with farmers, fishermen, vintners, and ranchers over the course of his career.
Hi-fi lounge. Ron De Angelis
Darling — West Hollywood
Chef Sean Brock opens his first Southern California restaurant on Sunday, August 31, as a complete departure from his Southern roots. Darling isn’t only focused on Brock’s long-standing appreciation of California ingredients and cooking over live fire, but an element the James Beard Award-winning chef has held for decades: a room with a hi-fi listening lounge. His West Hollywood restaurant will feature a rotating seasonal menu and cocktails from Jason Lee, who created the programs at Pijja Palace, Kali, N/soto, and Baroo. Darling’s 12-item menu will shift each month, as will Lee’s cocktail menu. Dishes and cocktails will be synchronously developed with local ingredients. Brock’s custom hand-forged wood grills will support the 45-day bone-in New York strip cooked over red oak, the dry-aged steak burger, and the almond wood-grilled Dungeness crab with green almonds and cucumber. The chef brought along a specific collection of 45s to be played over seven custom speakers designed in collaboration with Darling’s music director, DJ, and speaker specialist MaxV. Be sure not to miss the stunning 23-foot mural by artist Narsiso Martinez, who repurposed flattened produce boxes into a powerful piece titled Legal Tender, centered around California’s undocumented Mexican farmworkers, painted with charcoal, gouache (opaque pigments), gold leaf, and ink.