![101 Best restaurants of Los Angeles]()
101 Best restaurants of Los Angeles
#35
This may sound like a very Venice thing to say, but: Remember to breathe at Gjusta. The lunchtime mobs can feel engulfing. Before ordering, while keeping an eye and ear out for your ticket number to come up, careen among the other would-be diners and take in the enormity of the deli-bakery-plus selections. What to choose? Maybe a slab of the pizza just pulled from the oven? A small heap or two of something green — perhaps chilled, garlicky broccolini or a meaty chopped salad? A plate of house-cured lox, pickled herring and smoked mackerel? Surely a sandwich: possibly the signature porchetta melt or the banh mi variant crammed with smoked brisket. Throw in the herbed rotisserie chicken to go, with sides of tzatziki, chimichurri and harissa, for dinner. Don’t forget a slice of carrot cake or fruit galette. Scramble to find a seat on the patio, where staffers will deliver your food. Depending on your decisions, it can feel like a picnic or a proper meal. How, given the volume, is everything so uniformly satisfying? The entrance, with its wood-framed screen door, remains unmarked. Too bad Gjusta is nobody’s secret.
Full bar. Street and limited lot parking. Credit cards accepted.
