Summer in the City: Restaurant Roundup in NYC, LA, & London

A summer dining guide to the best restaurants in Los Angeles, New York, and London, featuring iconic spots and unforgettable meals worth chasing this season.

This story originally appeared in Boardroom’s Summer Issue print magazine and has been adapted for online publication.

Summer is upon us, which means different things for different people. For some, it’s “summer Fridays,” weekends away, and family trips. For others, the kids are off to camp, and it’s time to be free for a bit. Although many people see this as the time to get ready for bathing suit season, for me, summer is the prime window to hit some of my favorite restaurants in a few different cities.

Los Angeles

As L.A. is my home city, here is where you need to go if you make it to the City of Angels this summer. Whether you live here or are visiting, this is the ideal season to check out some of my favorites that are a little out of the city center and aren’t overhyped online. Summertime usually means lighter fare for some, but I will never allow that to get in the way of quality food, so here is your guide for where to go in L.A.

Anajak Thai

If you are lucky enough to be in L.A. on a Tuesday night, hit up Anajak Thai for their famous Thai Taco Tuesday. This is one of the most unusual dining experiences in L.A., or anywhere for that matter. The special menu [for Taco Night] is one of a kind. And when you combine that with dining in an alleyway outside, with an open fire being manned by one of L.A.’s best chefs, it’s just perfect. Not to mention, they have one of the best wine lists in the city.

Dunsmoor

A little off the beaten path, this restaurant in the Eagle Rock area is one of L.A.’s finest. Brian Dunsmoor is doing something unique here by bringing southern fare to L.A. The menu features dishes such as baby albacore, pork and green chili stew, sour-milk cornbread, and mushroom-crusted pork chops. The sticky date pudding is about as good a dessert as you can get. If you really want the full experience, stop by the bar 30 minutes before dinner and share a burger with your crew. Side note: Dunsmoor is arguably the most tattooed chef in America.

Kato

Jon Yao, one of the youngest chefs to receive a Michelin star, has taken Taiwanese food, added his flair to it, and elevated it to another level. His savory sea urchin doughnut topped with caviar might be the best dish in L.A. Impeccable service and a great wine list and drink program round out the amazing food. Kato gets another point for the fact that it’s located at The Row—which feels like another city despite being in DTLA, and in the summer it can feel like taking a road trip, even when it takes you only 20 minutes to get home.

The Benjamin Hollywood

Ben Hundreds’ American spot on Melrose has filled a void that was missing in L.A. for a very long time: the classic yet upscale bistro. This is a place where you can get a martini, a burger, a steak, and a wedge salad, and do it all in a classy room with great music. It also has Bar Benjamin upstairs, which is one of the city’s few true cocktail bars. If you want a great drink and a cool vibe, this is it. Thursday is “Vinyl Night,” which is great to pair with dinner. It just opened the patio for the summer, so there is an entirely new vibe to experience. And don’t sleep on its deviled eggs.

Clark’s Oyster Bar

Malibu has slowly come back after the fires, thanks in part to the restaurants and stores that have continued to open there. Nobu Malibu, which is eternally impossible to get into and, with its Pacific Ocean views, one of the most beautiful places to have a meal anywhere in the world, drives a lot of the demand. But between Lucky’s, Broad Street, and Malibu Seafood, plenty of people make the pilgrimage out there for a beach walk and a meal. Clark’s is the newest spot to enter the game out there, and it’s serving up some tasty food. Originally from Austin, Texas (but really made famous in Aspen, Colorado), Clark’s is doing its thing at a new real estate development, Cross Creek Ranch, which also has Kith and Pura Vida.

New York

Next up is my second home. I know summer in New York for some people means either the Hamptons, Hudson Valley, Fire Island, or the Jersey Shore—but for me, it’s the best time to eat at some of the city’s greatest restaurants with fewer crowds and beautiful weather. There are so many excellent spots in NYC that choosing where to go feels like an impossible task. I am going to lean on places that have outdoor dining, because if it’s New York in the summer, you want to be eating on a sidewalk with people walking by, cars honking, police sirens, music blasting, and those beautiful/awful NYC sounds.

Altro Paradiso

Ignacio Mattos is one of the best chefs in the city right now. There are a ton of great NYC chefs, but what makes his places (specifically Altro Paradiso) so special is how perfectly curated the experience is from top to bottom. Even at the best places to eat, the average diner can be scratching his head over what to order. Some things, such as fennel salad or puntarelle, might be a bit outside your comfort zone, but trust Mattos—if it is on the menu, you are going to love it. For lunch, don’t skip the burger, and for lunch or dinner, get the cacio e pepe. (Damn you, NYC, for keeping this guy out of L.A.) But in addition to the food, the service is great, the atmosphere is great, it all just works. And if you have the time, hit up his other restaurant, Estela, as well.

Yi Ji Shi Mo

OK, this one is a little out of the box (and maybe a little intimidating), but I genuinely believe this is the best bite of food in NYC. It is not really a restaurant per se. I guess it can be classified as a “hole in the wall.” It serves one thing and one thing only: rice rolls, a very traditional Cantonese dish that no one in the world does better. (I lived in Hong Kong for six months, so although no one can really proclaim that statement definitively, I at least have some actual knowledge.) This is the ideal place to grab a snack—maybe you are on your way to the airport, heading out of the city near the Manhattan Bridge, or just taking friends from out of town on a tour of downtown. In any case, call ahead and order in advance—the wait can be up to an hour or longer at peak times. Get the No. 1 special, and a No. 13 with shrimp. It doesn’t have outdoor seating (or any seating at all)—so you have to stand outside or sit in your car to eat. I realize this isn’t the glamorous dining experience some of you may be used to, but trust me: The food is worth it.

Ambassadors Clubhouse

NYC has some solid Indian food, but any time one of the best restaurateurs opens up in your city, you’ve got to celebrate it, and that is the story here. The team behind Gymkhana in London opened Ambassadors in February of this year and added to its Indian food empire. A slightly less formal version of Gymkhana serving Punjabi food is just what the city ordered. It is also located in a bit of a no-man’s-land for food, which makes it even better. You can hit this pre-theater, or pre-Madison Square Garden.

Quique Crudo

Another chef NYC should be celebrating: Cosme Aguilar. This counter-only spot in the West Village is another one of those perfect restaurants with a menu where you want everything on it, especially in the summer. The chef got his fame from Casa Enrique and then opened this spot in December 2023. It takes reservations now, which is a big plus. Go early right after work, or late after a movie or the theater. It’s a great experience and even better food.

Dimes Square

This isn’t a restaurant, but on a nice summer night in NYC, there isn’t really any better place to be. The Kiki’s, Cervo’s, and Sunn’s trifecta in the neighborhood is awesome and transports you to another world. All the restaurants are great, and Kiki’s takes over the streets, with people spilling out of the restaurant. You can also catch a movie pre- or post-dinner at Metrograph.

Ha’s Snack Bar and Bistro

I went to Ha’s Snack Bar and was beyond pleased. It is just one of those perfectly New York spots (on the Lower East Side and hidden enough that you would barely know it was there). Another hard reservation to snag, but this is also a great place to walk in late. This team started as a pop-up, then opened the Snack Bar and now the Bistrot.

London

OK, yes, I am L.A.’s biggest champion. And yes, NYC is my hometown. But to be honest, there is no place I want to be more than London in the last week of June and first week of July. Hyde Park concerts, 10 p.m. sunsets, warm weather, Wimbledon, the West End, and Bad Bunny—come on, what else do you need? Did I mention Bad Bunny is playing at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this summer? But the other reason I love London now is that the dining scene is firing on all cylinders. Indian food is one of the things London is best known for (curry is essentially the national dish) but the city pretty much has every other cuisine dialed in now. It’s hard for me to try new spots because I only get one or two trips a year, and I always want to go back to my favorites. But inevitably every time I’m there, I add one new place to my list of musts, and my last trip was no different. If I were over there for a few days, here is what I would hit.

Kiln

This is always the No. 1 stop for me. I love Thai food, and it is doing something very special. In some ways, it is reminiscent of Anajak Thai in L.A., but it’s unique in its own right. It has Thai street food in the heart of Soho with an open fire, making pure deliciousness. The one note about this place (beyond the caveat that it is always slammed, especially pre-theater) is that you really only want to go with one other person. They have tables for four, but you want to be seated at the counter right in front of the chefs doing their thing.

The Devonshire

At this point, if you’ve been to London and haven’t been to The Devonshire, I’m not sure what you are doing. Curry may be the national dish, but there is nothing more English than a pub. At its core, The Devonshire is just a great pub serving the best Guinness in London (they use a very special process to serve that is usually only done in Ireland) alongside some of the best food. The first floor is reserved for drinking, primarily Guinness. The outside is packed with people post-work having a pint, but the second and third floors are reserved for sit-down dining that’s to die for. The place is meat-heavy, but it also has one of the best green salads you will ever taste. The second floor lets you see the open fire, while the third floor feels like a really classy dining room that still retains the pub vibe. The whole place is accessible and has a welcoming charm. Don’t tell anyone, but there is a speakeasy in the back for special guests only. I still don’t know how they decide who gets in, but if you happen to be one of the lucky ones on a night when one of their amazing bands is performing, you won’t know what hit you.

The Tamil Prince (and Tamil Crown)

It is really hard to single out one Indian restaurant in London. Between Gymkhana, Amaya, Dishoom, and Ambassadors Clubhouse, you are really splitting hairs. What I can say is that The Tamil Prince has a totally different vibe than the rest of the bunch. Sticking with the pub feel, the original location in the north is basically some of the best Indian food in London served in a regular old pub— a kitchen that is smaller than yours at home—and it is pumping out food that will blow your mind. This is a place where you really want a minimum of four people so you can order the whole menu. It is that good. I like the masala dosa, robata lamb chops, and channa bhatura—but try it all.

River Café

All right, this is anything but new, but if it is summer in London, it is hard to find a better place for lunch. It has been cooking at a level of excellence that few restaurants can compete with, using some of the freshest ingredients in a setting that is hard to find in London—outside and on the water. The room is not flashy, but it is simple and beautiful. If you haven’t been in a while, or have never been, go.

Em Sherif at Harrods

Lebanese food is making itself known in London, and Em Sherif at Harrods is right at the top. For those on a summer trip, the great part about this one is that it sits right in the middle of the world-famous Harrods—so if you have a few extra minutes, you can sit down and have a delicious meal before, after, or between shopping. Every dish is great here, but the one that stands out as something you will never forget is the rice pudding. Now, rice pudding is not something I typically seek out, but this one is mind-blowing — topped with a Rice Krispies-like crumble, it is pure bliss. You can also head down to the food hall and take some to go if you want to treat your friends. Please do not skip Em Sherif. I dream about this place.

There are so many other places to eat in these cities and other spots all around the world. I have spent years, through my travels as a producer and through conversations with my foodie crew over at Jamie’s List, pulling together the best restaurants in the world. Not from reviewers, newspapers, or guidebooks, but from real people eating the food themselves, with their friends and family, and then reporting back to me. If you want more places to go, sign up to be a subscriber at Jamie’s List, and you too can have “No More Bad Meals.”