When conjuring up images of body-conscious LA, huge slabs of beef might not be the first thing that comes to mind, but the city is home to a bevy of meat-centric restaurants where in-house bespoke butchering, curing and high-tech storage chambers are the order of the day. From Michelin-starred outfits to more commercial enterprises, such as Meat on Ocean in Santa Monica with its massive meat locker on display for customers watching the sunset, tinseltown has turned carnivore.
If you want to learn more, chef David LeFevre, at the Arthur J in Manhattan Beach, offers a class on grade, cuts, ageing, seasoning, temperatures, resting and basic butchery, followed by a tasting of 10-12 steaks. Here are a handful of fresh offerings in LA where the chef is doing double-time as the butcher, often with the choice cuts on full display.
APL Restaurant
Adam Perry Lang’s steakhouse has an underground chamber that takes the art of curing and dry-ageing meat under controlled humidity and temperature to a new level. Lang (pictured above) butchers all the meat and even hand-forges steel knives for precision cutting.
Gwen
Gwen’s storefront case displays everything from boar prosciutto and aged culatello to venison and antelope. Nearby, carcasses hang from hooks in a locker, and you might find chef Curtis Stone or head butcher Andrew Sutton in an ageing room carving up a hazelnut-fattened pig.
Tesse
At Tesse (short for delicatessen), 18 charcuterie varieties are on display in an ageing and curing refrigeration system behind the bar. There is also a stuffing and casing machine, and an area where sausages are salt cured and hung until ready for wood smoking.
Rossoblu
Rossoblu has a temperature-controlled butcher box room where all meats are on show for private dining guests via a glass window. Chef Steve Samson is hands on when breaking down a whole pig or wood-firing a mixed grill with tomahawk pork chops and house sausages.
As originally featured in the October 2018 issue of Wallpaper* (W*235)
-
Japan in Milan! See the highlights of Japanese design at Milan Design Week 2025At Milan Design Week 2025 Japanese craftsmanship was a front runner with an array of projects in the spotlight. Here are some of our highlights
-
Tour the best contemporary tea houses around the worldCelebrate the world’s most unique tea houses, from Melbourne to Stockholm, with a new book by Wallpaper’s Léa Teuscher
-
‘Humour is foundational’: artist Ella Kruglyanskaya on painting as a ‘highly questionable’ pursuitElla Kruglyanskaya’s exhibition, ‘Shadows’ at Thomas Dane Gallery, is the first in a series of three this year, with openings in Basel and New York to follow
-
Tour the best contemporary tea houses around the world
Celebrate the world’s most unique tea houses, from Melbourne to Stockholm, with a new book by Wallpaper’s Léa Teuscher
-
Seven things not to miss on your sunny escape to Palm SpringsIt’s a prime time for Angelenos, and others, to head out to Palm Springs; here’s where to have fun on your getaway
-
At Linden Los Angeles, classic New York comfort food gets its dueThe restaurant, inspired by a stretch of boulevard bridging Brooklyn and Queens, honors legacy, community and pleasure
-
This atmospheric New York restaurant was designed to be a ‘beautiful ruin’At Leon’s, classic Italian fare comes with a North African accent and with a side of family history
-
Is a tiny tattoo the best holiday souvenir? Kimpton Hotels think soIn partnership with Tiny Zaps, Kimpton Hotels is bringing city-inspired tattoo pop-ups to five U.S. locations
-
Alba Los Angeles is an Italian vacation disguised as a restaurantThis buzzy NYC import brings a slice of la dolce vita to West Hollywood
-
At Bar Etoile, Scandi-chic meets leisurely Los AngelesThis new Melrose Park joint mixes art-world references, French bistro vibes and an out-of-this-world martini
-
The world's most heavenly destinations for astrotourism in 2025We're in for a big year for celestial events. These are the world's best hotels to see the cosmos as you've never seen it before
