1 day Ago
The South Bay is a massive area incorporating Torrance, Gardena, Carson, Redondo Beach, El Segundo, Hawthorne, Manhattan Beach, San Pedro, and Lomita, among other municipalities. The part of town south of LAX and north of Long Beach feels like its own section of Los Angeles County , with a beachy vibe and cultural diversity apparent in its many neighborhoods. Formerly home to three Japanese car companies, the area still hosts a bevy of excellent Japanese restaurants, and Korean, Brazilian , Hawaiian, and even Oaxacan fare are now highlighted too.
These are the best restaurants to try in LA’s South Bay. For this update, we added Redondo Beach Chinese restaurant Dumpling Mix, new Torrance addition Pho Hue Oi, and Gardena’s excellent Korean barbecue Yellow Cow. Matthew Kang is a lifelong Angeleno who moved to Torrance in 2017.
Since then, he’s explored the entire area’s restaurants, including old-school Japanese restaurants, casual Korean spots, and beachside establishments near Redondo, Manhattan, and Hermosa. His favorite underrated ramen spot is Josui and his go-to Korean restaurant is Jang Su Jang. The Slice & Pint The South Bay has a lot of pizza shops, but New York City-style pizza fans might find the best version at this busy brewpub, where the kitchen is almost always busy stretching out thin pies loaded with pepperoni, sausage, cheese, and other toppings.
With a firm, gently crispy crust that holds its shape after folding, these slices will only taste better paired with a glass of El Segundo Brewing Co. craft beers. The pizzeria recently opened a larger outpost with the same array of craft beer and thin-crust New York City-style pizza in Redondo Beach along Pacific Coast Highway.
Also featured in: 15 Solid Places to Eat Around Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) 19 South Bay Restaurants to Explore While Social Distancing in LA Nando Trattoria Nando Trattoria in Manhattan Beach is the rare LA Italian restaurant that matches the local climate. Perched up on a hill a few hundred yards from the ocean, the salt air blows into this 50-seat dining room as soon as its door opens. Brothers Dario and Alessio Vullo, who hail from Sicily, brought their Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant from Chicago to ritzy Manhattan Beach in 2021 (they also opened in Champaign, Illinois).
The experience feels plucked right out of a busy street in Palermo, with pulsing house music, a CB2-style interior, and thick leather-bound menus. The tremendous cooking here defies the dated design and plating. Plush focaccia comes with fragrant Parmesan truffle fondue; wagyu beef tenderloin carpaccio gets a dusting of aged Parmesan and truffle vinaigrette; gemelli alla norcina sports a rich creamy sauce fused with more truffle.
Each instance uses just a whisper of the heady tuber, exuding elegance and finesse instead of excess. The off-menu chicken or veal Parmesan is portioned to serve a table of six, while the tonnarelli topped with langoustine and tiger shrimp can easily satisfy a trio. Nando hasn’t landed much recognition outside of the South Bay, but there’s no question that it serves some of the best Italian food in Los Angeles.
A second outpost is opening in Beverly Hills in 2025. Also featured in: The 38 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles The 20 Best LA Restaurants That Are Open on Monday Nights The Arthur J David LeFevre’s fancy steakhouse sports some serious retro vibes, sporting a midcentury modern ambience that would please even Don Draper. The steaks here rank among the best in Los Angeles, grilled over wood.
Those willing to share a massive chop should get the dry-aged prime T-Bone steak with a bit of New York Strip and tender filet mignon in one single plate. Exceptional sides like beef fat fries with malt vinegar or roasted cauliflower gratin separate this steakhouse from other Manhattan Beach restaurants. Pro tip: The Wednesday night veal parmesan, with a crispy veal cutlet and tomato sauce on the bottom , might be the best version in LA.
Also featured in: The Best Steakhouses in Los Angeles, According to Eater Editors Eater 38 Restaurants That Are Still Open for Top-Notch Takeout and Delivery in LA Dumpling Mix Dumpling Mix, a newish Chinese restaurant in Redondo Beach, has a pleasant modern interior (think blond wood panels, mid-century modern chairs, woven lantern light fixtures) and a menu full of Chinese and Taiwanese favorites sure to please a crowd. The right thing to do here is to honor its namesake with mixed-and-matched dumplings — from classic wontons in chile oil to ones packed with steamed fish and fresh herbs. The corn and crab egg soup or braised beef noodle soup are salves for colder days; Taiwanese sausage-pocked fried rice feels similarly warming.
Head to Kirari West or Confections by Kirari West in the same complex after the meal for rice-flour-based breads, cakes, and cookies. — Nicole Adlman, cities manager Rex Steakhouse A flashy steakhouse that gets the basics right, the Rex in Redondo Beach serves very good wood-grilled steak and a wide set of thoughtful side dishes, such as sauteed mushrooms to smooth mashed potatoes. If looking for an ideal steak, pick the prime bone-in Kansas City steak, dressed with elegantly brunoised chives.
The somewhat Mastros-esque decor, sleek but not too stuffy, feels right for this beachside city. Don’t sleep on the pastas like the paccheri with lamb sugo, which would impress any Italiaphile. The Rex saves South Bay denizens from a trip to Beverly Hills for a proper steakhouse experience.
Sign up for our newsletter. Check your inbox for a welcome email. Oops.
Something went wrong. Please enter a valid email and try again. Fatto A Mano Handmade is literally the namesake of this tiny but mighty Redondo Beach Italian spot with chef Marco Pacelli making big restaurant-level plates of pasta.
First, pick a shape like pappardelle or spaghetti, then choose the sauce, such as carbonara, bolognese, or pomodoro. Though most of the food is optimized to take home, a few tables and counter seats make it possible to eat plates while they’re still piping hot. Pho Hue Oi Not all chains are created equal, like Pho Hue Oi, which has outlets in Fountain Valley and Redondo Beach but recently opened a shiny new restaurant in this semi-hidden strip mall.
The offerings are really great for the South Bay, with a deep umami-rich broth that stands above virtually every other Vietnamese restaurant in the area. Yes, (north) Redondo Beach isn’t that far from here, but the distance in traffic might dissuade a lot of diners coming from south Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, south Torrance, and even Palos Verdes. The banh mi are excellent too, sporting crisp but light baguettes.
Pho Hue Oi’s bánh bèo aren’t available yet, but once the restaurants add them to the menu, the delectable little rice and tapioca flour-filled cups topped with fried shrimp and drizzled with fish sauce will make for a a terrific appetizer. Quality Of Bombay An unsung restaurant tucked into a nondescript Lawndale strip mall, this completely ordinary-looking place might actually have some of the best Indian food in the South Bay. The butter chicken, palak paneer, dal makhani, and specialty fish curry with coconut milk and lemongrass are all very good to excellent, best paired with the fluffy steamed basmati rice or garlic naan.
Most people will want to take the food to go as the dining room is more functional than actually pleasant. But there are a smattering of tables who want their Indian food as fresh as possible. Also featured in: The 21 Best Indian and South Asian Restaurants in Los Angeles Lunasia Dim Sum House Torrance This location of SGV-based chain Lunasia is easily the smallest, even with the sizeable patio, so waits can add up on weekend afternoons.
Lunasia serves very solid renditions of dim sum favorites like har gow, shu mai, rolled rice noodles, and steamed chicken feet. The execution is a tad sharper here in Torrance — more balanced, better steamed, and just tighter than its sister locations. The Singapore-style curry noodles are blasted with MSG and white pepper, making them ultra-delicious.
The pineapple pork barbecue bao are crisp on the edges, the bun folding like soft tissues underneath. The only thing you won’t get in Torrance is the large dining room and big banquet tables, so try not to come with more than four people. Those willing to wait and dine in smaller groups will be rewarded with the South Bay’s best dim sum.
(Pro tip: Put your name in line on the Yelp app.) Madre! Oaxacan Restaurant and Mezcaleria Ivan Vasquez took his Palms restaurant and planted a massive flagship in Old Torrance, serving his mother’s favorite mole and other Oaxacan dishes with a huge list of mezcales. The locals have figured it out, turning Madre into one of the most reliable Mexican restaurants in the city.
Start with the queso fundido, alambres (a stir-fry of sliced marinated pork and vegetables), or memelas (fried masa cakes with beans, cheese, and salsa) before venturing to the shareable tlayuda (a wide, thin corn tortilla grilled over wood-fire and topped with lard, beans, cabbage, cheese, and either tasajo, chorizo, or cecina. As one would expect from a Oaxacan restaurant, the moles are also fantastic, like mole negro spread over grilled chicken or a pork chop. Also featured in: Where to Eat the Best Oaxacan Food in Los Angeles 19 Feast-Worthy Los Angeles Restaurants for Thanksgiving Izakaya Hachi Torrance has plenty of izakayas and drink-friendly Japanese restaurants, including Ojiya and Torihei, but the best overall one has to be Hachi, which gets filled with salary folks spilling out of local offices and the nearby Honda Motor Co.
headquarters. The weathered wooden tables and traditional Japanese decor makes Hachi fill like a true suburban Tokyo hangout. In terms of izakaya menus, Hachi’s offerings are fairly focused, keeping to Japanese drinking dishes like pressed saba sushi and grilled chicken skewers.
Adventurous types should definitely order the motsu nabe, a shareable hot pot of beef intestines and cabbage simmering with a soy dashi broth. Also featured in: The South Bay’s 17 Finest Japanese Restaurants Meat on a Stick Always Wins at LA’s Best Yakitori Spots Busy Bee Market There’s almost always a line at this busy sandwich shop in San Pedro, which makes its adorable name and logo fitting. While pretty much everything is impressive, the layered pastrami, Italian torpedoes, and dipped beef sandwiches are some of the shop’s more popular orders.
The hardest part is trying to snake through the store without picking up one of Busy Bee’s vast selections of potato chips. Also featured in: Where to Find Heart-Stopping Heaps of Pastrami in Los Angeles, Updated Torimatsu This tiny Gardena yakitori restaurant serves the Japanese American community with some of the finest grilled chicken skewers in the South Bay. Most of the diners here will be speaking Japanese, a testament to its popularity with locals.
Billowing smoke flows out of the binchotan grill while the chef dips skewers into a tare, or soy-based marinade, that’s been developing and aging for literal decades. The best part is that most set courses are moderately priced. Just expect to wait during busy meal times.
Also featured in: The South Bay’s 17 Finest Japanese Restaurants Colossus Bread This tiny but mighty bakery in San Pedro makes some of the top laminated pastries, cookies, and bread in the South Bay tucked away in a local neighborhood. The array of baked goods every morning can sell out most weekends, but will often include croissants, pan au chocolat, kouign amanns, and twice-baked almond croissants. The sourdough country loaves are nourishing and satisfying while the olive and cumin loaf brings in something head baker Kristen Rodriguez brought to LA after first serving it up from the Bay Area.
Another commendable aspect of Colossus is its transparent labor model, listed in detail on its website, which shares wage structure, its gratuity-included policy, and community-minded hospitality. The bakery has since expanded to Long Beach and a full-service diner in San Pedro with breakfast through dinner. Gardena Bowl Coffee Shop The longtime Gardena Bowl coffee shop has been a neighborhood destination for breakfast foods and Hawaiian-inflected dishes like wonton saimin and a Royal fried rice plate topped with roast pork.
Located next to one of the South Bay’s most beloved bowling alleys, the place fills up every day of the week with bowling regulars, grizzled locals, and first-time fans who saw it pop up on their TikTok feeds. Think of Gardena Bowl coffee shop as a bustling Hawaiian diner plucked out of the islands and dropped right into an LA suburb. Also featured in: The Best Hawaiian Restaurants to Try in Los Angeles.
