Joy

101 Best restaurants of Los Angeles

@latimes

"#88 The Taiwanese menu at this Highland Park treasure is remarkable in its concision and its enormous appeal: a few soups and bowls of noodles, a handful of rice dishes, half a dozen riffs on sandwiches. Take a moment before ordering to study the cold appetizers in the case near the counter. You might see wood ear mushrooms, curled and inky; bamboo shoots, resembling a jumbled pile of woodwind reeds; pig ears, sliced into squiggles; and crunchy-soft braised peanuts. The changing array of salads has become a signature for owner Vivian Ku, who also runs Silver Lake's Pine & Crane. Follow them with something warming — shrimp wontons (the slippery wrappers giving way to firm minced seafood) swirling in chicken and pork stock, or lu rou fan, a dish of gently spiced pork sauce over rice — and Joy’s simple, wonderful dessert of mochi rolled in crushed peanut and black sesame, a Hakka specialty. With most dishes priced under $10 and a tirelessly cheerful staff, the place is a 2019 archetype of an open-hearted neighborhood restaurant. Wine, beer and sake. Street parking. Credit cards accepted."

In the Loup - a foodie's world map

@victoire_loup

Sean Glass

@sdotglass