Coachella just might be the best thing to happen to LA that isn’t even in LA. Why might this be you wonder. Well, let’s put it this way: when over half the town is in Indio watching the kid from Walmart yodel and Beyoncé bang out an amazing set, your chances of landing a table at Felix or scoring a brunch time seat at Gjusta exponentially shoot up. If you happen to have missed out on the tickets this year or if flower crowns just aren’t your thing, here are five best places to dine while the rest of LA is getting baked in a field.
Felix
If you want a table at Felix on any given night, you’ll either have to queue before opening for the limited walk-in spots or book online the moment reservations open up a month in advance. While neither is ideal, the restaurant really is amazing and were usually willing to put ourselves through such first-world hardships for some of Evan Funke’s incredible cacio e pepe. However, for those of you who despise waiting in line or planning dinner months in advance, Coachella weekends might just be the best opportunity to dine at arguably the best Italian restaurant in LA without inconveniencing yourselves too much.
Gjusta
We love Gjusta as y’all know by now, but even we don’t dare wander in at peak brunch hours on weekends. Thankfully placing an order and finding a seat at the haven for Instagram models and hungry hipsters is considerably easier once the big names are performing down in Indio.
Majordomo
Sure Jonathan Gold wasn’t the biggest fan, but a majority of people certainly seem to be liking David Chang’s first LA venture quite a bit. Online reservations for Majordomo are still practically impossible to get and a long line for walk-in spots is present every night. While we don’t expect wait times to have died down a ton during Coachella, it’s still the best opportunity to score some bing bread and APL-style short ribs without waiting for hours
Howlin’ Ray’s
Howlin’ Ray’s and line are pretty much synonymous at this point. Regardless of any external events, whether they be Coachella or an alien invasion, people will stand in line for Johnny Ray Zone’s Nashville-style hot chicken. The real question is how long will line be, and when it comes to Coachella, we are certain that the hot chicken line will be shorter than the usual weekend monstrosity.
This review was written by In The Loup contributor Ash Narayan