Need some ideas for what to do in downtown LA?

Los Angeles is quite the “happening” city with lots of great new places to visit! Have you been lately? First of all, allow me suggest that you should call it DTLA and you will be popular with all the cool kids. Second, go hungry because there are so many great places to eat you will need to save room!

Craig and I had heard about the transformation of the Grand Central Market in to a food lover’s paradise and we finally took a couple of hours to go visit. Travel tip: If you can, go during the week and just before lunch to beat the crowds and the lines. There are many terrific restaurants where hungry eaters line up for quite a while!

A little history:

“Grand Central Market opened in 1917 and has been in continuous operation ever since. A hundred years ago, Broadway was the principal commerical and entertainment corridor of downtown Los Angeles. Bunker Hill, to the west, was covered with stately Victorian mansions, and the area’s stylish residents rode down on Angels Flight to shop for groceries in the Market’s open air arcade.”

“The Market provides Los Angeles with a national-caliber eating experience that showcases California’s best ingredients, chefs, and entrepreneurs. The 30,000 square-foot arcade encompasses a food emporium and retail marketplace and will continue to grow by offering downtown a shared gathering place and a dynamic hub for public programming and events.”

~ The Grand Central Market ~

The impressive small businesses in this Los Angeles landmark celebrate the cuisine and culture of the city. The four food groups are well represented along with many types of savory, ethnic, mouthwatering bites, as well as some sweet delights. It is impossible to give you every detail, but know that you can safely assume, the food, as well as the drink, is tasty, authentic and worth a trip very soon! GrandCentralMarket.com is very helpful and offers some great information about The Market.

However, the real truth is that we specifically wanted to go see Knead & Co Pasta Bar + Market recently opened by Chef Bruce Kalman and his partner Marie Petulla of Union Restaurant in Pasadena, CA. OMG they have done an amazing job! “They have taken the ethos of their neighborhood restaurant – seasonally Californian renditions of Northern Italian classics – to DTLA, this time making it more casual and accessible, but still maintaining their commitment to high quality, local ingredients.” The shop design is adorable, the pasta bar is happy-busy, the staff is super friendly and the food is D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S! As Pasadena residents and big fans of Union, we were thrilled to see the already very successful little restaurant in action!

Chef Bruce Kalman - Knead Pasta Bar + Market -what to do in downtown LA — Chef Bruce was making nettle lasagnette for a dish he was making for the upcoming Pebble Beach Food and Wine event. Handmade with patience and love.

Lunch!

Knead Pasta Bar: Porcini Lasagnette with wild mushrooms, garlic and herbs — Porcini Lasagnette with wild mushrooms, garlic and herbs

Baked Ziti with mozzarella and tomato sauce (half eaten, we couldn’t wait…)

If you are contemplating a field trip to DTLA and cannot decide where to go… make sure that you stop in at the Grand Central Market. You will feel the enthusiasm of the individual food shops and thoroughly enjoy tasting the vast varieties of tasty bites.

Craig and I grew up in Arcadia which is about 30 minutes from downtown and now that we live in Pasadena, it is only about 10-15 minutes away! Lucky us! Come join us for a bite.