The Best Dishes on Toast in Los Angeles
The greatest thing since sliced bread? Has to be toast. Luckily, Los Angeles has no shortage of restaurant dishes that include this humble yet delicious flavor-delivery vehicle. And with the rise of plant-based diets, health-conscious diners will be pleased to find so many options that are also vegetarian- and vegan-friendly to boot. Whether sweet or savory, simple or complex, here’s (ahem) a toast to 10 of our favorite veggie treats on toast.
1. A.O.C.
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| A.O.C. |
Now well settled into its new(ish) home about a mile west of its former location, A.O.C. continues to highlight the local, seasonal, small-plate dishes that chef Suzanne Goin has become known for. The Farmer’s Plate does involve a little more work than the other dishes on our list - you have to actually put the items on the toast yourself (oh, the humanity!). But it’s totally worth it, especially since the bread is from one of Goin’s sister businesses, Larder Baking Company. The toppings of choice can - and do - change with the seasons, but a mix of roasted late-winter vegetables, muhammara, chickpea puree, and burrata is what’s available at the time of this posting. Though an incarnation of the dish from last year, made with spring veggies, carrot puree, fava bean puree, and burrata, sounds pretty divine too.
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| The Bazaar by Jose Andres |
For a chef known for his modern and unconventional twists on classic Spanish cuisine, it’s refreshing to find a few delightfully simple and straightforward representations of classic tapas in this wildly designed restaurant, located within the swanky SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. The Catalan-style pa'amb tomaquet is one such dish, marrying thin, toasted bread with a topping of raw crushed tomato, olive oil, salt, and Manchego cheese. No liquid nitrogen. No spherification. Just a little toast with a few great ingredients, patiently waiting to feed your soul.
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| Bld Restaurant |
A champion of breakfast, chef Neal Fraser’s famed breakfast/lunch/dinner (hence the name) spot also serves the most important meal of the day until 3:00 p.m., for which we salute him. On the menu, you’ll find six(!) different versions of eggs Benedict, including a vegan Benedict that is deliciously rich, not to mention decidedly inventive. A house-made English muffin is topped with thick slices of smoked tofu “bacon,” wilted arugula, a veggie patty made with black beans and quinoa, and a creamy mock Hollandaise - made from soft tofu blended with yellow peppers - that’s as surprising as it is flavorful. Another veggie option (albeit not vegan) is the Florentine Benedict, made with wilted baby spinach, tomatoes, and traditional hollandaise.
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| Hinoki & The Bird |
Playing off of Eastern and Western culinary pedigrees is the inspiration behind chef/owner David Myers’ and executive chef Kuniko Yagi’s menu at this award-winning Century City eatery. The pumpkin toast - available on both the lunch and dinner menus - is an excellent example, elegantly weaving together warm, creamy steamed kabocha squash with tangy goat cheese, salty-sweet miso jam, and crunchy pumpkin seeds.
5. Little Dom's
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| Little Dom's |
Chef Brandon Boudet’s Italian-American restaurant/deli is impressive for many reasons, but diners especially love that the breakfast menu is available until 3:00 p.m. seven days a week. The scrambled egg bruschetta pairs grilled baguette with wood oven-roasted tomatoes, piles of wonderfully fluffy scrambled eggs, and a bright, festive pesto. Make sure you get a little bit of everything in each bite; the whole really is greater than the sum of its parts in this beautifully restrained variation.
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| M café – Brentwood |
This health-focused macrobiotic restaurant is getting into the toast game with its open-faced eggless spring scramble, featuring gluten-free toast topped with scrambled organic tofu, spring peas, avocado, crumbled tempeh “bacon,” and fresh pea shoots. They’ve also got an excellent vegan Benedict that’s right up there with BLD’s, made with smoky tempeh bacon, the aforementioned tofu scramble, sliced tomato, and steamed kale on grilled ciabatta, topped with soy Hollandaise and chives.
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| Mud Hen Tavern |
Executive chef Kajsa Alger says that kaya toast - a traditional Singaporean breakfast snack that conveniently doubles as a hangover cure - was the first dish that she and fellow chef/business partner Susan Feniger decided to put on the menu when they opened the restaurant formerly known as STREET. Though Feniger and Alger have since overhauled the space to create Mud Hen Tavern, thankfully their kaya toast - toasted white bread topped with house-made coconut jam that’s flavored with pandan leaves, a sunny-side-up fried egg, and dark soy sauce - is still available anytime. Mud Hen also offers a whole toast menu featuring dishes like espresso-maple toast with tangerine marmalade during their weekend brunch service.
8. SQIRL
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| SQIRL |
The unassuming sandwich board sign outside reads Toast & Coffee, but the usual line out the door at chef-owner Jessica Koslow’s culinary mecca in Virgil Village tells you immediately that you’re in for something special. While their brioche - made at Proof Bakery in nearby Atwater Village - can be topped with any number of things, it’s the brioche with freshly milled almond-hazelnut butter and jam that will get you every time. The burnt brioche toast with housemade ricotta and seasonal jam is another winning selection, but if you’re craving something savory, try the brioche toast with kale, tomatillo puree, lacto-fermented hot sauce, and fried egg.
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| The Sycamore Kitchen |
Karen and Quinn Hatfield’s celebrated bakery/café in the Fairfax district offers several crispy tartines on its lunch menu, including the toast with housemade ricotta, stewed citrus, shaved fennel, mint, and hazelnuts. The delectable bread, also made in-house, proves to be a perfect tool to deliver the bright and tart—yet slightly sweet—toppings. It’s also served with a side of lightly dressed mixed greens, perfect for a light lunch.
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| Stamp Proper Foods |
Health nuts rejoice: this new Los Feliz restaurant and marketplace - located behind MessHall Kitchen - is a welcome haven of better-for-you burgers, sandwiches, soups, salads and the like. They’ve also got a nice breakfast lineup, including their take on avocado toast. This open-faced vegan feast starts with a hearty house-made sprouted grain bagel that’s split and toasted, then topped with smashed avocado, tomato, sprouts, cracked lemon pepper, and fresh herbs. And the salsa verde served on the side perks it up nicely.
