Felix Trattoria

"There was a lot of handmade pasta in Los Angeles before Felix opened in Venice back in 2017, but a place fully committed to using just hand tools and rolling pins was fairly novel. Chef Evan Funke introduced this at his former restaurant Bucato in Culver City but mastered the entire restaurant package with Felix, earning it an Eater LA Restaurant of the Year award. Funke and partner Janet Zuccarini have crafted a charming dinner destination, starting with a gorgeous pink chicory salad and the now-famous round of sfincione focaccia. Meander through tagliatelle al ragù bolognese, orechiette with sausage sugo, and foglie di ulivo (with rapini pesto) before sharing a tagliata di manzo, or grilled ribeye cap." - Matthew Kang, Eater Staff

"This Venice pasta spot is one of the toughest reservations in town. But there’s a workaround: They keep some bar seats open for walk-ins, and if you show up when they open, you can just walk in and sit down. Strolling past all those people who booked a table months ago will make you feel like Henry Ford driving down the street when everyone else was still riding horses. And you’ll still feel like a genius when you sit down, and order some red wine and the rigatoni all’amatriciana. The hardest part of this night is deciding if you want the budino or the torta alla nonna for dessert. But don’t worry, there’s no wrong answer." - brett keating

"A Saturday night reservation at Felix used to be the second hardest thing to find in Los Angeles (second to maybe a dog without an Instagram). That may not be the case anymore, but Felix is just as good as ever. It's essentially a pasta church (from the same chef as Mother Wolf and Funke) where you can watch your orecchiette being handmade in a climate-controlled room in the middle of the restaurant. Get the rigatoni all’amatriciana and the pesto trofie, and as many orders of the sfincione as you deem acceptable. For us, that’s two." - brant cox, sylvio martins

"Restaurants don’t open all that often on Abbot Kinney. So the entire neighborhood was lined up in advance when Italian spot Felix showed up at the beach end of the street in 2017. Fast forward to now and Felix is still consistently packed and still very good. It’s essentially a temple of flour and water, complete with a climate-controlled pasta-making space in the middle of the dining room. This is pasta and focaccia worth crossing the city for. " - brant cox, sylvio martins, nikko duren

"Once the sun has set, head to Abbot Kinney to share some of the best pasta in LA. Felix is the kind of restaurant that works for most situations, including whatever number date you’re on. The dining room is usually packed (don’t come here without a reservation), but you can also hear the people across from you, the pasta is excellent, and the space is like a fancy beach house that happens to come with a refrigerated pasta-making room." - jess basser sanders, amy clark, brant cox