Good Clean Fun

On our lists of the best wine bars and special-occasion restaurants in Los Angeles.

Set inside what used to be Cognoscenti Coffee on Olive Street, the day runs long here: espresso and pastries each morning, a lunch menu of sandwiches and personal pizzas, then a full dinner list by evening under chef Jesus Ramirez-Arteaga. Bucatini comes in a half-dozen versions, and a daily happy-hour special turns raw oysters into a standing ritual. Most of the seating is outdoors.