Phil Rosenthal's Los Angeles
Phil Rosenthal is a writer and director who is best known as the creator of the Emmy Award-winning CBS comedy, Everybody Loves Raymond. Rosenthal is the host of I’ll Have What Phil’s Having, a food and travel show on PBS. The Los Angeles episode airs Monday, Nov. 2, 2015 at 10/9 Central (8 p.m. N.Y. / WNET). Read on for Rosenthal’s thoughts on the L.A. dining spots he visits on the show.
There are cities that have a few go-to cuisines, but L.A., at the moment, has more than any. That’s why I think it is the best food city in America right now. It’s our cultural diversity that's our strength. And the strength is in the sheer numbers: we have the biggest population of Chinese people in the world outside of China. Also, the Korean population, Mexicans, Thai, Armenians... We could keep going. They've brought their cultures and cuisines into this massive expanse, and if you're playing the odds of hitting a great place to eat in L.A., you're going to win more times here than anywhere else.
The Original Farmers Market
This is the place that makes L.A. feel like a small town. It's outdoors, so it takes advantage of our year round warm weather, it's got character, history, charm, it's food-centric and people-centric. In fact, it's a place where you actually see people, from all over the world, actually walking around in L.A.
Petit Trois - Hollywood
A beautiful atrium atop a hotel in Koreatown from Chef Roy Choi. His take on classic American dishes, using the best of California's produce.
Huckleberry Cafe & Restaurant
If a bakery can be a work of genius, this is it. From Zoe Nathan, an American treasure, she has the gift of the delicious touch.
Malibu Kitchen
You go into what looks like a Vermont country store, get fantastic New York deli, and eat it outside, where it’s Malibu. Maybe the best sandwiches in L.A.
Grand Central Market
A microcosm of the melting pot that is L.A., and a show of power and strength in claiming the title of the best food city in America right now. Old and new, hip and traditional, many cultures and cuisines, side by side in a hundred year old building.
Guerrilla Tacos
Gourmet tacos from an Alain Ducasse trained chef, Wes Avila, who came home to make tacos for the people. We win again.
Langer's Deli
I didn't say it, The New Yorker magazine said it: the best pastrami sandwich in America. They're right. Just remember this number: 19.
Homeboy Industries
A giant step in the right direction. Father Greg Boyle's vision - to rehabilitate and help at-risk youth. They bake bread, run a cafe, make their lives better, and make the world better through their work, which just happens to be delicious.