Providence

"Verdict: One of the OG tasting menu restaurants in town and a place that put LA fine dining on the map. Almost two decades since it open, this fancy seafood spot remains the epitome of high-class, high-quality dining. Reservations can be made up to two months in advance, so we recommend booking a table online, then following up over the phone if you'd like to move it sooner. Day-of reservations are also occasionally available at the bar." - brant cox, sylvio martins

" Block off at least three hours in your schedule for a meal at this luxurious seafood spot with a seasonal tasting menu. There might be a server who prepares salt-baked Santa Barbara spot prawns tableside, or a cheese cart, and almost surely a packaged sweet brioche to take home for breakfast the next day. But Providence does event-eating in a way that avoids pretension. The food itself is imaginative and delicious—think halibut in clam bouillon and swordfish with lipstick peppers—and everyone who works here behaves like human beings rather than over-trained holograms. If you’re looking to throw down in a big way (a meal for two with wine can easily top $1K), Providence is the place." - brant cox

"Eating at Providence is an event—you’ll be there for at least three hours experiencing one of their multi-course tasting menus. There’s a man who will prepare your salt-baked Santa Barbara spot prawns tableside, a cheese cart, and a packaged sweet brioche to take home for breakfast the next day. But Providence does event eating in a way that doesn’t feel pretentious, and does feel like it’s worth the money. The food itself is imaginative and delicious, and can involve everything from abalone and geoduck to more familiar things like rockfish. If you’re looking to throw down for an incredible seafood meal, look no further than Providence." - brant cox, sylvio martins

"This tasting-menu seafood restaurant on Melrose is arguably the fanciest restaurant in all of Los Angeles. A blowout eight-course dinner here will cost you $300 per person at a minimum, and that's before any supplements or wine pairings. You're paying for many hours of ridiculously fresh, inventive fish, a visit from a roaming cheese cart, and a waitstaff that makes you feel like you’re in good hands from the second you walk through the door." - brant cox

"“Providence. Fancy schmancy. I think it’s the best seafood restaurant in California, if not the country. This is what fine dining is supposed to be, where every dish is a huge knockout. The service is beautiful, the room is beautiful, and the food is sublime. I take people here for very special occasions or if I want to blow them away with a high-end meal that never feels stuffy. Or at least it’s not stuffy like a four-star French dinner in New York. Everything here is just dialed in.”" - sylvio martins