after all the hand-wringing, here they are, the 10 best new restaurants of 2019. 10. Gem Chef Viet Nguyen (The Vox Kitchen, Sūp Noodle Bar) has opened a sparkly jewel-box of a restaurant across the street from Mile Square Park. Nguyen draws inspiration
. 10836 Warner Ave., Fountain Valley, 714-516-8121, gemdining.com Gem restaurant in Fountain Valley. (Photo by Brad A. Johnson, Orange County Register/SCNG) 9. Omakase by Gino Chef Gino Choi offers a nightly omakase to no more than 10 people at a time
inventing an all-you-can-eat pho restaurant. It got the group not only a foothold in the business, but also the experience to start Vox. But both were warmups to its most ambitious venture yet: Gem Dining. Photo by Edwin Goei Though still in its soft-opening
phase, Gem Dining is already a game-changer in Little Saigon. As word spreads that it’s the new restaurant by the Vox geniuses, prime-time reservations are impossible to snag if you don’t plan two weeks ahead. And it’s not just the reputation that
The cart rolls up to the edge of my table at Gem in Fountain Valley, bringing with it a swoosh of air tinged with saline. “Can I offer you an oyster?” a young waitress asks, her voice filled with glee. “Tonight we’re featuring kumamoto and shigoku
cart at Gem in Fountain Valley (Photo by Brad A. Johnson, Orange County Register/SCNG) Moments later as I’m swallowing an icy oyster, another cart rolls up. “Would you care for tea tonight?” An enthusiastic young waiter performs his best Vanna White
Maneli’s menu, cooking fewer stews each day to avoid waste and tabling Yousefpour’s kubideh negini (diamond kabob), a Tehran specialty featuring ground beef studded with chicken breast gems. “They understand the situation,” Ghobadi says, referring to his
beverage director, Luis A. Del Pozo, who previously worked at Gracias Madre in Newport Beach. He has a way with mezcal. 31761 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano, 949-218-5140, mayfieldoc.com 3. Nếp Cafe Gem was one of the best new restaurants of 2019
. Now comes Nếp, the daytime counterpoint. They occupy the same address but embody completely different personas. Whereas Gem serves dinner only (and has been on pause since March, slated to reopen in November), Nep serves daily brunch on the sidewalk
mushrooms, caramelized onions, parmesan and herbs; and a particularly amazing riff of textures and flavors that combines spiced lamb, smooth labneh and green chile pickle. You want an order of the little gem herb salad on the side for lightness and contrast
chile pickle. Order a little gem salad with mint and basil on the side for lightness. Emily Efraimov, who runs the one-woman operation Little Dacha, photographed in Malibu in May 2021. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) Also on the menu: frozen pork
) Scanning Re7het Falasteen’s website, one rare gem leapt out. Jameed is a Bedouin method of preserving yogurt by drying it into pale spheres slightly larger than golf balls. I haven’t found jameed in Los Angeles (if anyone knows where to find it, let me know