Trophies Burgers Club
A retro-inspired burger joint is set to open on Fairfax this month from a team of industry vets. Trophies Burger Club, serving burgers, shakes and fries from chef-partner and burger aficionado Geo Delgado (Everson Royce Bar, Here & Now, Burgers 99) and owners Francis Miranda (Daybird, Pearl’s Finest Teas, Nightshade) and Robert Panlilio (streetwear brand Crooks & Castles), is slated to launch Sept. 15 and 16 with limited hours and hold its grand opening on Sept. 17. Every item on Trophies’ menu costs less than $10, as it aims to serve high-quality food and near fast-food pricing. The burgers can range in styles but all feature a custom blend of ground brisket, chuck and rib-eye. Off-menu specials will be posted to the restaurant’s Instagram account and collaborations with other chefs will periodically add other options; the first collaborative burger, made with “Top Chef’s” Mei Lin, is expected to drop in October. Regular Trophies Burgers Club hours will be noon to 9 p.m. Tuesday to Sunday.
519 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, trophiesburgerclub.com
Tet-a-Tet
Silver Lake’s All Day Baby has launched a restaurant within a restaurant, running All Day Baby’s usual breakfast and lunch operations from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Wednesday through Sunday), then flipping the concept to the Latin-tinged Vietnamese restaurant Tet-a-Tet from 6 to 10 p.m. (Wednesday through Saturday). An exploration of an annual pop-up from owners Lien Ta and Jonathan Whitener, wherein they celebrated Tet, Vietnamese Lunar New Year, the Tet-a-Tet menu offers blue crab fried rice, Jidori chicken imperial rolls, fried whole fish with fish sauce caramel, oxtail stew with salsa macha and more, and will run indefinitely. All Day Baby’s bar program will be available during Tet-a-Tet, as will new cocktails that incorporate Vietnamese and Mexican flavors such as jasmine-buttered Mexican whiskey and Japanese whiskey with Asian-pear cordial and pickled nanche.
3200 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, (323) 741-0082, tetatetla.com
Tet-a-Tet is a new dinner-only restaurant within All Day Baby, serving Vietnamese dishes with Latin inspiration. The initial concept began as a conversation between owners Lien Ta and Jonathan Whitener more than a decade ago.
(Andre Karimloo / Tet-a-Tet)
Den Mother: California Izakaya
Venice wellness center Den Mother now features an outdoor-only California-inspired Japanese lounge that serves plant-based small plates conceptualized by adjacent restaurant the Butcher’s Daughter, plus lattes, teas, sakes, craft beers and natural wines. California Izakaya’s food menu includes bites such as spicy jackfruit “crab” inari; Japanese curry-spiced fried chickpeas; chilled glass noodle salad; and edamame and tofu dip. Den Mother: California Izakaya is open 3 to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.
1209 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 310-8905, denmother.com
Pop-up Lowkey Burritos now serves its cheddar-wrapped, griddled breakfast burritos from a walk-up window in Hollywood.
(Stephanie Breijo/Los Angeles Times)
Lowkey Burritos
After four years as a roving pop-up, some of L.A.’s best breakfast burritos are getting a bricks-and-mortar home in Hollywood. Owner Matt Stevanus has opened Lowkey Burritos in the former Bestie’s space as a walk-up window for breakfast and lunch, serving packed burritos with the option of coating the exterior in griddled shredded cheese. The restaurant offers the same pop-up burrito flavors, plus new options such as $5 smaller burritos; savory breakfast bowls; and retooled pop-up specials, such as the crunchwrap, now sold as permanent items. Lowkey Burritos is open 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday, with daily operations planned for the future.
5940 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, instagram.com/lowkey_burritos
Shin Starry Kitchen
Lauded restaurant and former 101 List awardee Starry Kitchen stopped serving food within Button Mash in 2020 due to the pandemic, and while Nguyen Tran and Thi Tran’s operation hasn’t returned in any sort of restaurant-service capacity, the chefs and founders recently brought back one of Starry Kitchen’s signature items for home re-creation. Through Shin Starry Kitchen, the business’s latest iteration, the pop-up is selling frozen meal kits for the chefs’ acclaimed garlic noodles. Orders can be placed online; pickups are available in timed appointment slots at Little Fatty in Mar Vista on Saturdays and Crème Caramel in Sherman Oaks on Sundays.
Pan-Asian-inspired restaurant Starry Kitchen, formerly housed in Button Mash, is back with a new pickup operation that sells its acclaimed garlic noodles in frozen form.
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
