Downtown Los Angeles has gone from derelict to destination – here’s what to see and where to be seen
From top taquerias and fine-dining restaurants to cultural destinations and the hottest fashion, a revitalised LA core’s top features are within walking distance of your hip or heritage hotel
Even 10 years ago, tourists visiting Los Angeles would have given the downtown area a wide berth; it was grubby, mostly derelict and dangerous.
Today, Downtown Los Angeles (or DTLA as it is commonly written) is an area transformed. While it remains an epicentre of America’s homelessness crisis, there is new construction happening everywhere and once-abandoned historic buildings – often exquisite examples of turn-of-the-century architecture – are being turned into lofts at a blistering pace to house the young creatives who are flocking to the area.
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In a few short years, downtown has become home to the city’s most exciting restaurants, hottest clubs and most swaggy local fashion labels. Visitors will find all of this within a short stroll of their hotels – a privilege almost unheard-of in car-obsessed Greater Los Angeles.
Once a food desert, DTLA is now a fine-dining destination. Husband-and-wife chef team Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis opened the Italian powerhouse Bestia in downtown’s arts district and followed it up this year with the Middle Eastern-inspired Bavel, which quickly became the hottest reservation in town.
“The area just felt right to us,” Gergis said. “We love the history of DTLA, the fact that it does not feel manufactured and there are a lot of fellow creatives and artists in the area that we run into on a daily basis.”
Los Angeles is a home of Latin food, especially Mexican, and its most modern, elevated iteration is at Chef Ray Garcia’s sophisticated Broken Spanish. Here, the chicharon (fried pork rinds) come served with elephant garlic mojo, radish sprouts, and herbs.
