Besha Rodell Harold & Belle's in Jefferson Park is a neighborhood mainstay, having served Creole food to families and celebrities for 48 years. Third-generation owners Ryan and Jessica Legaux are avid eaters themselves, and they were kind enough to share their picks for Japanese, date night food and neighborhood favorites. Here are their five go-to restaurants in Los Angeles.
Sunny Blue; Credit: Courtesy Sunny Blue
5. Sunny Blue
“A few years ago we found the original Sunny Blue in Santa Monica, but now we usually go to their second location in Culver City. They serve omusubi, which is a Japanese street food — basically a rice ball stuffed with meat or seafood and wrapped in seaweed to be eaten by hand. We recommend the ginger curry pork and the mentaiko.” 12608 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City; (310) 751-6306, sunnyblueinc.com.
Shrimp bowl with Antiguan jerk sauce at Grilled Fraiche; Credit: Sarah Bennett
4. Grilled Fraiche
“We’ve been fans of the food truck for a couple of years, but now there's a brick-and-mortar location in our community on West Boulevard. The grilled shrimp and salmon with the jerk sauce is outstanding.” 5800 West Blvd., Hyde Park; (323) 389-8888.
Quality Seafood in Redondo Beach; Credit: Ellie L./yelp
3. Quality Seafood: Redondo Beach
“On nice days we love to go down to King's Harbor and the Redondo Pier for fresh seafood. Our favorite thing at Quality Seafood is picking out our own live Dungeness crab and having them steamed on the spot. While the crab is steaming, we start our meal with a pitcher of beer and some fried clams.” 130 International Boardwalk, Redondo Beach; (310) 374-2382, qualityseafood.net.
Hand roll at Irori Sushi; Credit: Courtesy Irori Sushi
2. Irori Sushi
“We go here for date nights when we're in the mood for sushi. It's a very low-key spot where you take your shoes off and sit on the floor. Our favorites there are the miso black cod, albacore special and the baked salmon roll.” 4371 Glencoe Ave., Marina Del Rey; (310) 822-3700, irorisushi.com.
BBQ ribs at Bandera; Credit: Bandera/yelp
1. Bandera
“We've been going here regularly for at least 12 years. Although this is part of a big restaurant group, it has the feel of an independent. We've taken our own staff members here to show them an example of excellent service. The BBQ ribs are fantastic and the Rutherford rib-eye will outshine most high-end steakhouses. Also, the cornbread cooked in the cast-iron skillet is some of the best I've had. It's very hard to choose wrong on this menu.” 11700 Wilshire Blvd., Sawtelle; (310) 477-3524, banderarestaurants.com.
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