{"id":596341,"date":"2026-02-17T12:48:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T12:48:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/596341\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T12:48:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T12:48:14","slug":"inside-l-a-s-shifting-food-scene-plus-notable-february-openings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/596341\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside L.A.\u2019s Shifting Food Scene, Plus Notable February Openings"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tThe Los Angeles<\/a> food<\/a> scene has changed its rhythms.<\/p>\n

\n\tScroll Instagram on any given day and you\u2019ll see it: a line curling around the block for bagels, Einspanner matchas and laminated pastries. By evening, the energy turns to happy hours, earlier dinners and shorter nights.<\/p>\n

\n\tFew things capture the moment better than the response to Max & Helen\u2019s, the elevated diner in Larchmont opened in November by Phil Rosenthal and Nancy Silverton. Guests routinely wait up to eight hours for its viral $17 waffle and $9.50 hot chocolate.<\/p>\n

\n\tSilverton credits both Rosenthal\u2019s visibility and a broader cultural longing for familiarity for the restaurant\u2019s popularity.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cPhil Rosenthal has a huge following right now,\u201d said Silverton, the longtime L.A. restaurateur behind Osteria Mozza and Pizzeria Mozza, among others. She recently debuted Italian-Korean pasta bar Lapaba on Feb. 3 with McKenna Lelah and Matthew Kim. \u201cHe walks down the street and everybody jumps on him. So that does not hurt, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe concept itself came from Rosenthal. A television writer, producer and host, he was best known as the creator of \u201cEverybody Loves Raymond\u201d before becoming a global food<\/a> ambassador of sorts through Netflix\u2019s travel and dining series \u201cSomebody Feed Phil.\u201d The show\u2019s multiseason success has made Rosenthal a familiar face among food lovers, and while he\u2019s backed L.A. restaurants over the years, Max & Helen\u2019s marks his first as owner, named after his parents.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cHe really wanted to open a diner,\u201d Silverton went on. \u201cHe felt that it was a segment of the restaurant world that was diminishing. It was an important part of his growing up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSilverton sees today\u2019s appetite for nostalgia and earlier dining as part of a broader global shift, accelerated by the pandemic and reinforced by changes in how people work and socialize. Lunch service, once a staple, has diminished as remote work reshaped daily routines, while dinner has steadily crept earlier.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cOur whole daily lives have changed, timing, the types of food we want to eat, the kind of environment we want to be in,\u201d she said. \u201cPeople don\u2019t want to eat after 9.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe used to open at 6, now we open at 5, and sometimes the restaurant is full at 5 o\u2019clock,\u201d said Edoardo \u201cEdo\u201d Baldi, who operates E. Baldi and Il Ristorante di Giorgio Baldi (opened by his father, the late Giorgio Baldi in 1990), and is preparing to unveil Baldi, a Tuscan steakhouse at the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills. \u201cThey tend to eat earlier.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBaldi connects the move toward earlier nights to lifestyle priorities, particularly among younger diners.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s also a health-conscious decision,\u201d he said, pointing to growing awareness around digestion and overall wellness. Eating earlier aligns with better sleep and more intentional routines. <\/strong>\u201cWe\u2019re in an environment where health comes before anything else now, and you see that with the new generations, where they really focus on health, healthy food and genuine food.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor operators, the shifts, coupled with the city\u2019s rising cost of living, have required a recalibration of how restaurants invite people in. It extends beyond menus and hours to the physical spaces themselves, said Holly Fox, cofounder of Last Word Hospitality.<\/p>\n

\n\tAcross her group\u2019s restaurants \u2014 including hot spots Found Oyster, Queen St., Barra Santos, and the recently opened Hermon\u2019s, which draws long lines for its $10 martini happy hour \u2014 Fox has been rethinking design details that shape how guests feel once they arrive.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe\u2019re looking at things like upholstered seating, the right type of lighting. How do we make people feel as welcome and comfortable as possible?\u201d Fox said. \u201cWe\u2019re even talking about replacing all the bar stools so they have backs.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\tThe choices are directly tied to what diners are responding to right now, she said. \u201cIt\u2019s nostalgia, big time. Really, that\u2019s been all we\u2019re focusing on now, because it\u2019s what people want. We\u2019re trying to play the hits super well, maybe with little twists. It feels old school. It feels traditional.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor Fox, the lines themselves aren\u2019t just about hype, they\u2019re about participation. Throughout L.A., they\u2019ve become especially visible at breakfast counters and during limited food collaborations, like Jon & Vinny\u2019s serving Nike-sole waffles for its anniversary. The wait tends to form around caf\u00e9s, bakeries and restaurants that are deeply intentional about sourcing, craft and presentation.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWhy are people waiting, you know, an hour for a danish or whatever it is? I think it\u2019s because it\u2019s an affordable luxury,\u201d Fox said. \u201cYou\u2019re still spending under $50, and the line becomes part of the experience. It\u2019s almost like these lines are social spaces. You feel like you\u2019re part of something.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tHere, a look at notable restaurant openings in February.<\/p>\n

\t\tLielle <\/strong>
9575 West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles<\/a>, CA 90035\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Lielle\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLielle<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAndrea Jernmark\/Courtesy of Lielle<\/p>\n

\n\tOpened in early February in Beverlywood, Swedish-born chef Marcus Jernmark unveils a 42-seat U.S. debut, named after his daughter. With a Michelin three-star pedigree (Frantz\u00e9n, Z\u00e9n), Jernmark brings a relaxed \u201cCalifornia bistronomy\u201d approach to the restaurant\u2019s concise four-course menu. The subterranean, wine-cellar\u2013like space pairs European refinement with California ease, spotlighting seasonal produce through dishes like abalone BBQ and aged California squab.<\/p>\n

\n\tBaldi <\/strong>
9850 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90210 <\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tKim Fox<\/p>\n

\n\tOpening mid-February inside the Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, chef Edoardo \u201cEdo\u201d Baldi debuts a Tuscan steakhouse centered on heritage and precision. The menu features 14 cuts of steak, including domestic prime, American wagyu and select Japanese wagyu, grilled over olive wood. The space seats approximately 180 guests across indoor dining, outdoor seating and bar areas.<\/p>\n

\t\tLapaba <\/strong>
558 S Western Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90020\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tLapaba<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tEmily Ferretti<\/p>\n

\n\tA 37-seat Italian\u2013Korean pasta bar opened on Feb. 3, led by husband-and-wife team McKenna Lelah and Matthew Kim, who first met working under partner Nancy Silverton at Osteria Mozza. Kim\u2019s background includes Next (Alinea) and Pasjoli, while Lelah\u2019s spans Dialogue and her produce-driven company HandPicked. The evolving menu draws on Italian, French, California and Korean influences, balancing tradition with inventive technique and local sourcing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Los Angeles food scene has changed its rhythms. Scroll Instagram on any given day and you\u2019ll see…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":596342,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5123],"tags":[1582,276,990,2961,224,5337,150555,256241],"class_list":["post-596341","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-ca","tag-california","tag-food","tag-la","tag-los-angeles","tag-losangeles","tag-wwd-weekend","tag-wwd-weekend-lifestyle"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596341","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=596341"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/596341\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/596342"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=596341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=596341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=596341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}