Animal

LA Times food writer Jonathan Gold ranked Animal number 12 in his list of 100 Best LA Restaurants for 2016 and it is easy to see why. The James Beard Foundation named Chef Owners Vinny Dotolo and Jon Shook best Chef West in 2016 as well. They opened Animal with the notion of being very non-kosher in an otherwise Kosher neighborhood and with no sign to illustrate their hipness.  The restaurant uses rarely seen meats and cuts prepared in a thoughtful and artful way.  From pig's ears with chile to veal tongue with pickle and apple to poutine with oxtail gravy, there are endless surprises on the menu to excite the palate.

Reservations are challenging to come by in this 20 seat restaurant but definitely worth the visit.  We visited on a Sunday for brunch and this was one of the top dining experiences we had in the city from food to service. I almost died when they had a Foie Gras Biscuit topped with 4 ounces of Foie Gras floating in a Maple Sausage Gravy - WOW.