A modern-izakaya pop-up star goes permanent in East Hollywood
Budonoki
With pressed sushi, yakiniku, seafood pancakes, sake and freshly spinning house-made soft serve, a globally inspired izakaya pop-up lands in a permanent home in Virgil Village.
Founders Eric Bedroussian and Josh Hartley laid the foundation for Budonoki as a weekly dinner party during college, but it wasn’t until a few years later, when they teamed up with chef Dan Rabilwongse, (Tartine, Tsubaki, Urasawa, Bouchon) that the pop-up went official, appearing around L.A. venues like Ototo, Melody, Employees Only and Thunderbolt with grilled skewers and other Japanese-leaning small plates.
While Rabilwongse is executive chef, the menu is a collaboration of the trio and chef de cuisine Justin Vu (formerly of Morihiro), that involves Thai, Vietnamese and other international flavors.
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“Whatever tastes good is gonna go on the menu,” said Rabilwongse. “We are at base a Japanese izakaya in the sense that we are a place to eat and drink, but we’re by no means fully dedicated to being a Japanese restaurant. We’re gonna pick flavors from wherever we think makes sense, pulling from different techniques and backgrounds.”
Signatures from the pop-up include negima, or chicken-and-onion yakitori, and shrimp-and-scallop katsu patty, which arrives with a sweet-spicy habanero sauce. The naem, a nod to Rabilwongse’s mother’s recipe, is a Thai house-made pork-loin sausage that incorporates makrut lime leaves and red curry paste and requires a week of fermentation; it comes served with fried crispy rice balls and an herbaceous salad.
A sake-forward beverage program features tropical fortified-wine-based cocktails such as a lychee frozen concoction with shochu, Calpico and Cappelletti Aperitivo. Soft-serve flavors might be coconut pandan or a koji-laced take on the classic pineapple Dole Whip, churning fresh in a machine next to the kitchen window and a neon soft-serve sign. Eight stools wrap around a large wooden bar, while banquettes provide much of the seating in the dining room. Eventually, the team plans to expand both the menu and the space with new items and a side patio.
Thanks to a Philippines-Mexico connection, coconut shows up in sweet and savory recipes: ceviche with poached shrimp, coconut limonada and coconut raspado with jammy plums.
For Rabilwongse, it marks a new chapter in his cooking career — his first time leading a kitchen of his own — and a sort of homecoming, opening Budonoki three minutes from his family’s home, where he was raised.
“We worked hard; we’re having fun with cool flavors, nothing serious,” he said. “We just want to make good food and create a good vibe. We turned a little concrete box at the corner of Virgil and Melrose into this cool spot. I think it’s gonna be great. I hope it’s gonna be great.”
654 N. Virgil Ave., Los Angeles, (323) 928-2320, budonoki.la
Uoichiba Sherman Oaks
A unique Culver City temaki spot recently expanded to the Valley, bringing hand rolls stuffed with dry-aged fish and other specialties to Sherman Oaks. Fishmonger Liwei Liao, who’s been helping to popularize dry-aged seafood in L.A. and beyond — launched Uoichiba within Citizen Public Market food hall earlier this year to serve the fish he dry ages in his seafood market and cafe, the Joint. Now he’s opened an outpost of Uoichiba in his market, offering the same Uoichiba menu of temaki in three- to six-roll tasting sets with bites such as fatty tuna; steelhead with dehydrated shiso; and ginger-marinated prawns; plus bone-stock miso soup; furikake edamame; and daily specials across 16 seats for dinner only. Uoichiba is open in Sherman Oaks Wednesday to Sunday from 5 to 8:30 p.m., with extended hours and additional to-go items planned.
13720 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, (818) 510-0626, instagram.com/uoichiba.la
Mamma Gela
A new Italian restaurant on Melrose is serving pasta, Sicilian specialties, grilled meats, brunch and desserts such as panettone French toast in homage to the chef’s late mother. Mamma Gela, from husband-and-wife team François and Margaux Trifaro, is the first restaurant for the couple, who weave in their French heritage and upbringing as well, though the menu primarily reflects François’ parents: his mother — the restaurant’s namesake, Angela, from Sicily and his father from Calabria. “Once she passed away he always wanted to do something for her,” said Margaux Trifaro, who runs the front-of-house operations. “Being in Los Angeles was also his dream, so we’re here to pay her a kind of tribute.”
François Trifaro, who helped run catering operations in France, is relying on his family recipes for items such as “Sicilian barbecue,” or stuffed-then-grilled meats and vegetables such as thinly sliced lamb filled with salami, pesto and mozzarella, along with arancini, a range of pastas, risotto, fried burrata and bruschetta. Modern interpretations of Italian ingredients dot the menu as well — such as the “Sicilian tacos,” which use griddled Parmesan as a kind of tortilla for a filling of ricotta, pesto, tomato and grilled speck — especially on the brunch menu. For drinks: wine-based cocktails and spritzes, a rotation of fresh lemonades and imported beers. The space — adorned with bundles of dried wheat hanging from the ceiling — seats 60 and features an indoor grill in one dining room, plus a back patio. Mamma Gela is open Tuesday to Friday from 5 to 10 p.m.; Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 to 10 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
7274 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (323) 388-1250, mammagela.com
Cofax Culver City
The anticipated second location of popular cafe Cofax is now open in Culver City for burritos, breakfast sandwiches, coffee, pastries and eventually dinner. The longtime daytime operation from founders Nick Starr and Jason Bernstein launched on Fairfax in 2014, and in its new outpost, the team is offering the same menu found in the original, including its beloved breakfast burritos — some of the best in L.A. The additional kitchen space will allow the team to offer the menu of a former sibling restaurant, the now-closed Golden State, from noon to 9 p.m. For now, Cofax is open in Culver City Monday to Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and Friday to Sunday from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
10868 Washington Blvd., Culver City, cofaxcoffee.com
Family Style Food Festival
L.A.’s annual, sprawling festival at the intersection of streetwear and food is back this weekend, offering one-day-only and otherwise limited collabs between fashion designers and some of the city’s biggest chefs. Family Style, the massive event organized and curated by streetwear brand the Hundreds, is celebrating its fifth year with roughly three dozen restaurants, coffee shops and beyond. Food and drink are available for purchase from Kato, Funke, Park’s BBQ, El Ruso, Cobi’s, Dulan’s, Ggiata, Holbox, Helen’s Wines and more L.A. standouts, plus San Francisco’s Swan Oyster Depot and New York City’s Katz’s Delicatessen. Participating designers, who team up to drop special restaurant merch and other items, will include Blondie Beach, Anti Social Social Club, Market, Carrots, Pokemon, the Hundreds and more. Family Style takes over CBS Television City in Fairfax on Sunday, Oct. 8, from noon to 8 p.m., with general admission $60; children 12 and under are free. VIP entry costs $250 per person and includes separate entrance, a fast-track line for the merch booth, a Family Style tote bag, T-shirt and hat, access to a VIP section and open natural-wine bar, plus free food from Evan Funke and dessert, coffee and more.
130 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, familystylefest.com
DineL.A.
The semiannual, county-spanning celebration of L.A. restaurants is back, and this fall’s dineL.A. involves nearly 400 local restaurants offering specials and prix fixe menus for the occasion. Running Oct. 6-20 and in its 15th year, the two-week culinary event will feature 45 Michelin-recognized restaurants — the highest number participating yet — such as one-star-rated Citrin in Santa Monica and Pasta Bar in Encino. New participants include Baar Baar in downtown, Durango Cantina in Fairfax and Dal Milanese in Los Feliz, with most dineL.A. menus costing between $15 and $65 per person.
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