head chef, one-star Pasta|Bar (Encino) · 8 picks
DJ Nelson is the head chef at Pasta|Bar in Encino, the twelve-seat counter from the Scratch Restaurants group that holds one MICHELIN star in the 2026 Guide for its pasta-led tasting menu. He also appears in Apple TV’s Knife Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars. This is where he eats when he is not behind that counter, and the range is the point: a $20-a-head Peruvian dining room in Van Nuys, a smash-burger counter, a downtown bar that distils its own liquor.
Peruvian spot. You go there for like 20 bucks a person, you'll just be stuffed.
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Best burger in LA, Heavy Handed. They're smash. Fire burger.
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order: smash burger
Anajak Thai down the street. They rip it out of the park like every single time I go there.
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Best coffee spot, Ideology. They do a chagachino - chaga mushrooms, nourishing the brain whilst also giving it a good kick.
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order: chagachino
The Obscure. They make all their own liquor - the only spot in LA that has a license to do that.
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Published 2026-09-23