The Best Places to Eat in Gardena, by the Record
The best places to eat in Gardena, by the professional record: Michelin Guide, Time Out, and Los Angeles Times have all weighed in, and their honors are what rank this list. Sushi Sonagi comes out on top.
Sweet Rice and Torimatsu hold the next two places. Michelin Guide shows up on more of this list than any other guide, with LAist next.
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Rank 1. Sushi Sonagi
Omakase Sushi
Eight seats, weekends only, two seatings a night: Sushi Sonagi runs on its own terms, and regulars plan weeks out to keep them. The omakase here comes from a second-generation sushi chef working a deeply personal menu, where female snow crab arrives in a stone pot, gets pressed into a crispy crust at the table, and then disappears fast. The Michelin Guide has had its eye on this Gardena counter, and the room fills accordingly.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Time Out #20 · The 40 best restaurants in Los Angeles you need to try right now
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Rank 2. Sweet Rice
Thai
A Thai breakfast and dessert shop tucked into the back corner of a strip mall in Gardena, where congee bubbles away in the kitchen while the rest of Los Angeles is still eating eggs. The jok, thick with pork meatballs and fresh ginger, is the right place to start. Mango sticky rice appears when it appears, and regulars know to order it before it's gone. Counter service, paper lanterns, turquoise accents, and no pretension whatsoever.
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Rank 3. Torimatsu
Japanese
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Rank 4. Otafuku Restaurant
Soba Japanese