From century-old culinary landmarks to innovative new restaurants, we have carefully selected five renowned and distinctive food destinations to take you on a culinary journey through Southern California.

1. Market Cuisine: Grand Central Market
Address: 317 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA
Opening Hours: 8:00 - 22:00 daily
This culinary mecca, established in 1917, remains the most vibrant "urban kitchen" in the hearts of locals. It is recommended to stop by the wooden counter of Belcampo Meat Co. and order a smoked brisket sandwich made from beef directly sourced from the ranch. Pair it with a glass of freshly squeezed prickly pear juice, and let the rich and refreshing flavors collide in your mouth, evoking the warmth of the California sun.

 

2. Chinese Cuisine: Mei Zhou Dong Po
Address: 15363 Culver Dr, Irvine, CA
Opening Hours: 11:00 - 21:30
When your Chinese taste buds start to yearn for the flavors of home, the Smoked Tea Duck at this Michelin Guide-recommended restaurant always soothes the soul. Cherry Valley ducks are smoked with jasmine tea for six hours, resulting in a skin that glows with an amber sheen. When you touch it with a knife and fork, you can hear the crisp sound of it breaking. The accompanying lotus leaf buns are as thin as cicada wings. Wrap them with scallion shreds, cucumber strips, and sweet bean sauce, and you'll feel as if you've been transported back to the hutongs of Beijing.

3. Cuban Bakery: Porto’s Bakery & Cafe
Address: 3405 W Olive Ave, Burbank, CA
Opening Hours: 6:30 - 20:00
This Cuban-American family-owned bakery has spent 50 years turning the Cheese Roll into a sweet symbol of Los Angeles. In front of the glass display case at seven in the morning, the freshly baked puff pastry wraps around the flowing cheese filling, and the granulated sugar on the surface sparkles like stars in the morning light. Pair it with a cup of Cortadito, and let the bitterness of the espresso and the sweetness of the condensed milk do a tango on your tongue.

4. Japanese Izakaya: Hatch Yakitori & Bar
Address: 4250 Barranca Pkwy, Irvine, CA
Opening Hours: 17:00 - 22:00 (Closed on Mondays)
In the tech-savvy buildings of Irvine, this izakaya specializing in Japanese yakitori stands out as a warm exception. Behind the cypress wood counter, the chef stirs the binchotan charcoal to create tiny sparks. The chicken neck meat and chicken heart trimmings curl up into small golden-brown pieces in the firelight. It is recommended to try the Chochin - a semi-cooked egg yolk wrapped in the chicken fallopian tube. The moment it bursts in your mouth, the rich egg yolk with the aroma of charcoal reaches your throat directly.

5. Ice Cream Shop: Somi Somi
Address: 2710 Alton Pkwy #361, Irvine, CA
Opening Hours: 12:30 - 22:00
The 奇妙 combination of Korean taiyaki and Japanese soft serve ice cream has made this pink-themed shop a popular afternoon tea spot for moms. The freshly baked fish-shaped cake shells are steaming hot. After filling them with vanilla ice cream and drizzling with honeycomb syrup, the guilty pleasure of the combination of hot and cold always makes people can't help but take out their phones to take pictures. Children are obsessed with the DIY rainbow mochi cups, and their creativity is stronger than their appetite at this moment.

6. Seafood Western Cuisine: Water Grill South Coast Plaza
Address: 3303 Bristol St, Costa Mesa, CA
Opening Hours: 11:30 - 21:30
If you want to savor the generous gifts of the Pacific Ocean, a short 8-minute drive will take you to this restaurant located at the Irvine Spectrum Center, which has been recommended by the Michelin Guide for ten consecutive years. The chef's special Pacific Dungeness Crab Bisque features crab meat grilled with brandy floating in a creamy base. Paired with freshly baked sourdough bread, it evokes the memory of the salty sea breeze blowing through the Santa Monica Pier.

7. Mexican Cuisine: Chaak Kitchen
Address: 18555 Jamboree Rd, Tustin, CA
Opening Hours: 11:00 - 22:00
If you want to experience the lively atmosphere of a Mexican market, in the open kitchen of the Old Town Irvine, chefs wearing wide-brimmed hats are grilling prickly pear leaves on volcanic stones. The goat cheese with a burnt aroma is stuffed into freshly pressed tortillas and served with a devil's sauce made from twenty kinds of chili peppers. On Friday nights, during the "Day of the Dead Themed Dinner," the waiters will dress up as characters from Coco and serve oxtail stewed in chocolate chili sauce in skull-shaped pottery to the guests.