6 Neighborhood Restaurants In Mid City/West Adams Where I Send My Guests
As an owner of monthly furnished rentals in West Adams and Mid City area of Los Angeles, many of guests aren’t in LA for a typical vacation. Some are relocating and trying to decide where they want to live. Others are here for a work assignment that may last several weeks or months. I also host guests from outside the country who are learning the city one neighborhood at a time.
When people first arrive, they usually ask the practical questions. Where is the closest grocery store? How bad is the traffic? Where can I get a good breakfast? Then, after they settle in, they ask where I like to eat.
I send them to places my own family visits. These are restaurants connected to family breakfasts, birthday parties and regular dinner orders. Together, they offer a useful introduction to West Adams and Mid-City as places where people live, work and become regulars.
Stevie’s Creole Café
The restaurant has been serving New Orleans cooking in Los Angeles in one form or another since 1986. The menu includes gumbo, jambalaya, étouffée, fried chicken, catfish, red beans and plenty of sides.
Start with the gumbo. I can personally vouch for it, perhaps more than I should. During Covid, I ordered a bowl to go with the intention of sharing it with my husband. By the time I finished, there was nothing left to share. I ate the entire thing myself.
The dark roux is rich and deeply seasoned, with enough seafood, rice and spice to turn one bowl into dinner. I would like to say that I regretted not saving any for my husband, but the truth is that I mostly regretted not ordering two.
Stevie’s also smokes its chicken before frying it. The chopped chicken special is served over rice and gravy, and the jambalaya comes with smoked chicken, andouille sausage and shrimp. This is the place for a substantial meal, especially when you want food that tastes as though someone took their time making it.
5545 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles
Wi Jammin Caribbean Cafe
I am biased when it comes to Jamaican food. I grew up in New York, where good Jamaican cooking was never difficult to find. That gave me strong opinions about jerk chicken, curry goat, oxtails and rice and peas. Wi Jammin fits the bill.
The jerk chicken has the smoke and heat I look for. The brown stew chicken comes in a dark gravy that belongs over rice and peas. The curry goat is rich and tender, but the oxtails have an especially loyal following.
One of my girlfriends drives from the Westside once a month to treat herself to the oxtail dish. Anyone familiar with Los Angeles traffic understands the significance of that statement. People do not make a monthly drive across town for food they merely like.
The oxtails are tender and covered in deeply seasoned gravy that works its way into the rice. The kitchen also serves escovitch snapper, beef patties, cow foot and seafood specials.
I recommend Wi Jammin to guests who are staying long enough to get tired of polished restaurant suggestions. It feels like a neighborhood place because it is one.
Vee’s Cafe
Vee’s Cafe is one of the first breakfast places I mention to guests, especially those who are working remotely or staying with children.
It is also a family favorite. I go there with my two sons for breakfast, and we can usually order without a long debate. The menu is broad enough to solve the problem of three people wanting three completely different meals.
There are pancakes, waffles, French toast, omelets, breakfast burritos, paninis and chilaquiles. You can order a traditional plate with eggs, bacon and potatoes, or keep breakfast lighter with fruit, coffee and a smoothie.
The outdoor garden patio is a big part of why we return. On a warm morning, which describes most mornings in Los Angeles, we can sit outside and take our time. My sons have a little more room, and I can finish my latte without feeling that we need to rush out.
Vee’s is casual, dependable and comfortable enough to become part of a weekly routine.
5418 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles
Mian West Adams
Mian West Adams is an easy recommendation because my entire family loves going there.
We order dumplings for the table, and they rarely last long. The menu has pan-fried and steamed versions, as well as chili oil chao shou for anyone who wants more heat. Ordering a second plate from the beginning is usually the sensible choice.
My personal order is the spicy beef rib soup noodles. A large beef rib sits in a red Sichuan broth with noodles, green onions and cilantro. The broth is spicy, rich and numbing from the Sichuan peppercorns. It is the kind of soup that forces you to slow down, even when you think you are in a hurry.
Guests sometimes tell me they need a restaurant that works for the whole family but is more interesting than the usual group dinner options. Mian handles that assignment well. The dumplings are easy to share, noodle dishes range from mild to properly spicy and there are enough small plates to build a meal around the table.
It is also a good choice for solo diners. A bowl of noodles and an order of dumplings make a complete dinner without requiring an occasion or a group reservation.
5263 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles
Delicious Pizza
Delicious Pizza is not simply a place I recommend to guests, it’s our family and friends meeting spot.
We even held our son’s birthday party at the West Adams location. It has remained one of our dependable family choices, whether we need a quick slice or want to sit down with a few pizzas for the table.
The restaurant has ties to Delicious Vinyl, the independent Los Angeles record label associated with Tone Lōc, Young MC and The Pharcyde. Hip-hop memorabilia covers the walls, and the music gives the dining room a personality that visitors remember.
The pizza names continue the theme. The Wild Thing comes with pepperoni, soppressata and mushrooms. Other pies include the Soul Flower, California Love, Cheeba Cheeba and Varry White. There are also straightforward cheese and pepperoni pizzas for anyone who prefers the classics.
Happy hour is one of the best times to go. From 4 to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday, dine-in pizzas are half off. Specials can change, so check before visiting, but it is an excellent family dinner deal when available.
Delicious Pizza is especially useful for guests who have just moved into the neighborhood and want an easy place to meet new coworkers or invite friends. There are full pies, individual slices, wings, pasta, sandwiches and salads. The outdoor space works well for families and casual groups.
5419 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles
Taqueria Los Anaya
Taqueria Los Anaya is one of the restaurants that makes a new neighborhood begin to feel familiar.
I go there with my two sons for both breakfast and dinner. The staff seems to know everyone. After you have visited a few times, they know you too. For someone relocating to Los Angeles or staying here for several months, that kind of recognition matters. It is one of the small ways an unfamiliar city starts to feel like home.
The Anaya brothers came from Guadalajara and built a menu that goes well beyond tacos. There are chilaquiles and egg plates at breakfast, followed later by sopes, tortas, burritos, enchiladas and seafood dishes.
The tacos come on house-made tortillas with fillings such as carnitas, al pastor, lengua, barbacoa and pollo mole. Onions, cilantro and salsa are all they need. The pollo mole is also worth ordering as a full plate, especially if you want to venture beyond carne asada.
I recommend Los Anaya when guests ask for a relaxed family dinner, a filling breakfast or a place they can return to regularly without making plans days in advance. It works for all three.
4651 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles
Eating Like You Live Here
There are many more restaurants in our neighborhood I would like to feature. These are the first few I highly recommend to my furnished monthtly guests.
Written by Mattaniah Yip, owner and local host of HomeBase Stays, I help relocating families, traveling professionals and international guests settle into furnished stays in Los Angeles and Detroit.
