Where To Have A Classy Dinner In LA, According To Mr Chow
photo credit: Courtesy of HBO
TMZ still regularly waits outside of Mr Chow…50-plus years after its first location opened. The Beatles ate there religiously. The Biebers, Jessica Alba, Adele, and Bella Hadid have all enjoyed the nightly noodle show. And if you’re into getting dressed up and eating Beijing duck, you might have too.
It takes a special type of restaurateur to attract such a crowd across so many cities and decades, and funnily enough, Michael “M” Chow told us he never really wanted to be a restaurateur. He wanted to be an artist——not an easy feat for a young Shanghai immigrant fleeing Mao’s communist rule. So instead of pursuing painting, he opened the first Mr Chow in London and found a way to bring theater to dinner.
Then he opened another restaurant, and another one, and, today, we have Mr Chows across London, New York, Miami, Las Vegas, and LA, and one very eccentric Michael Chow. The documentary AKA Mr Chow, now available on Max, explores the restaurateur’s upbringing, restaurants, and his inner artist. We, on the other hand, explored his go-to classy restaurants in Los Angeles.
“That’s an incredible sushi restaurant Downtown—the food is just incredibly good, honest, and always fresh.”
photo credit: Jakob Layman
“Another sushi one is Matsuhisa’s bar. It's to do with the fact that Matsuhisa was the origin of the Nobu restaurants opened by chef Nobu. I like the setup of the restaurant. For instance, the idea of the six chairs at the counter. Moreover, it's particularly to do with chef Yasu there behind the omakase counter. Chef Yasu is always focused, and his food is always honest and authentic and magical. For a restaurant, it's important that the food is truthful. As long as that is right, the rest will follow, since the food is the heart of the restaurant. My favorite dish at Matsuhisa is their Chawanmushi.”
“The third one is another Japanese pick! The Japanese garden originated by two Americans on a mountain Downtown, I think 50 or 60 years ago with authentic imports from Japan into a very interesting space. The view is gorgeous and the restaurant has been a landmark. Also, the food has been good. Therefore it's always a nice place to visit.”
“Another restaurant which I’m always looking for is a Shanghainese restaurant, which is my hometown and I miss very much. It’s in the San Gabriel area. I think their chefs are directly from China. Therefore the cooking and the food are ‘pure.’ They serve all the classic Chinese dishes, my childhood dishes. Comfort food, but with great skill and authenticity.”
“E. Baldi in Beverly Hills only opens when the chef Edoardo is cooking. He came from a fantastic culinary family. The food is very personal, original and amazing. To me, that's the best Italian restaurant in town. It has nothing to do with money, and it's just rare to find a restaurant like this.”
