A PCH

An Orange County restaurant group has expanded to L.A. with A PCH, a modern-American restaurant with bay views, house-made pasta, Wagyu-topped pizza, caviar service on fresh-corn blinis, oysters, and more spread across 5,400 square feet. A PCH, located within Long Beach’s 2nd & PCH mixed-use complex, is the latest project by River Jetty Restaurant Group from restaurateur Jordan Otterbein and film director Joseph “McG” Nichol, which operates A Crystal Cover in Newport Cove and CdM in Corona del Mar, among others. Executive chef Louis Capiz, formerly of A Crystal Cove, is heading up a menu of some of the hospitality group’s most popular items, including the Fancy Pizza with Wagyu hanger steak, curry, roasted pineapple, Calabrese aioli and Fresno chiles, and the Dirty Pasta with ground duck and ricotta salata. Brunch service involves horchata-inspired pancakes, breakfast pizza, duck-confit sopes with Wagyu-lace refried beans, and filet-and-crab Benedict. A forthcoming restaurant, A Sunset, is slated for the city of L.A. A PCH is open Monday to Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; and Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Expect programming such as DJ sets Thursday to Saturday.

6460 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Suite D200, Long Beach, (562) 431-4949, riverjettyrg.com/a-pch  Cue Santa Monica Legendary L.A. pitmaster Kevin Bludso has expanded his barbecue empire to the Westside with a new location in Santa Monica. The newest Bludso’s Bar & Cue marks the chef-owner and TV personality’s first full restaurant opening in a decade and serves his signature blend of Texas-by-way-of-Compton flavor in the former Truxton’s space. Bludso recently won a James Beard Foundation award for his cookbook — named by L.A. Times as one of the best of 2022 — and is serving all his iconic dishes also found on La Brea, including his award-winning family-style meats smoked on-site: beef ribs, brisket, pulled pork, rib tips, sausage links and even vegan jackfruit, plus newer items like fried okra and smoked turkey. Sides include baked beans, mac ‘n’ cheese, Texas caviar, collards, cornbread, and more. The new location features TVs and a full bar, which offers options such as the “pitmaster’s punch” with pineapple, ginger, and vodka, and the bourbon-spiked sweet tea with rhubarb and peach. Bludso’s Santa Monica is open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

1329 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica, (310) 310-2775, bludsosbbq.com

Crazy Thai Burger

At Crazy Thai Burger, from the team behind Thaitown’s Radna Silom, the focus is on Thai fusion burgers such as a larb patty with rice in lieu of a bun.

(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)

The family behind one of Thai Town’s most beloved sidewalk stalls just launched a quick and casual fusion concept with a bricks-and-mortar in Koreatown. At the new Crazy Thai Burger, the Sathirathiwats are shifting their noodle focus found at Radna Silom — where pad Thai, rad na and other wok’d dishes are fried and simmered freshly in front of Silom Supermarket — and instead are offering a handful of Thai-inspired burgers, such as a krapow variety and a larb iteration, both served between rice patties and with a sweet and sour house-made roasted Thai chile sauce. There are rice bowls, too, as well as boba Thai iced teas, slushies made from freshly squeezed orange juice, and a tom yum-spiced spaghetti with shrimp and fried basil that uses custom Thai seasonings. “We tried the other companies in the U.S., but it tastes different,” said partner Kaenipa Lantomrattana. “We found someone to make it in Thailand and then [import] it.” More offerings are in the works. Crazy Thai Burger is open daily from 11 a.m. to midnight.

4008 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles, (323) 925-5652, instagram.com/crazythaiburger

The new casual, East Hollywood sibling concept to Gingergrass serves a range of Vietnamese and pan-Asian products as well as dishes such as dan dan noodles and popcorn chicken.

(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)

Gingergrass Mini Mart

Silver Lake Vietnamese spot Gingergrass now has a sibling mini mart in East Hollywood selling Vietnamese pantry items, pan-Asian noodle bowls, coffee and more in the former Square One Tacos space. Co-owner John Himmelstein asked himself what the next generation of Gingergrass might look like as a market and tapped chef Andrew Lo to help envision it. Lo’s menu is inspired by Vietnamese, Cantonese, Thai and Indonesian flavors and involves dan dan noodles with herbs, lime-dressed cucumbers and turmeric-pickled mustard greens; a rice paper crepe dressed with egg batter and topped with lemongrass pork; coconut curry noodles with shallot-oil-poached shrimp; mushroom noodles with miso butter and garlic panko; and grab-and-go fridge items like corn salad in shrimp butter and Vietnamese chicken salad with coconut nuoc cham. Himmelstein’s partner, D’nell Larson, is heading up much of the retail curation with Vietnamese pantry and small-batch items such as gourmet fish sauce, pho-flavored beef jerky, canned coconut milk, imported potato chips, pho kits, and all the accoutrements to make Vietnamese coffee at home. Gingergrass Mini Mart is open Wednesday to Sunday from 4:30 to 9 p.m., with lunch hours to follow. In Silver Lake, the restaurant recently launched a weekend-only program for sidewalk-grilled Vietnamese street foods.

4850 Fountain Ave., Los Angeles, gingergrass.com

Granville has expanded to North Hollywood with a new two-floor space and a number of murals by local artists.

(Christopher Zsarnay / Granville)

Granville North Hollywood

A popular local chain for sustainability-minded modern-American fare recently expanded to North Hollywood, opening in the former Renegade space in the NoHo Arts District. It marks the fifth location for Granville, which also maintains outposts in West Hollywood, Burbank, Studio City and Pasadena. Chefs Glenda Galvan-Garcia and Marc Dix and serving signature Granville items such as “uptown” mac ‘n’ cheese with cheddar, Gruyère, asparagus, peas and humanely raised chicken; Thai soba salad with candied ginger; Wagyu stroganoff; sustainable, Cajun-spice-rubbed pork chop with spinach and potatoes; and cocktails that riff on classics such as a chamomile take on the sour and a kaffir-tinged paloma. The two-story restaurant features a central bar and a communal table, as well as murals and other art by local makers. Granville North Hollywood is open Monday to Wednesday from noon to 9 p.m., Thursday from noon to 10 p.m., Friday from noon to 11 p.m., Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

11136 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood, (818) 962-0858, granvillerestaurants.com Arroz and Fun pop-ups In celebration of Arroz and Fun’s new series of second-floor events, the cafe is serving Arroz Veloria: a Filipino chicken congee inspired by the home recipe of vintage curator and shop owner Brandon Veloria Giordano.

(Humberto Leon / Arroz and Fun)

Five months after its debut in Lincoln Heights, cross-cultural cafe Arroz and Fun is opening its second floor and launching a series of pop-ups, collabs and gallery shows with special menu items. The coffee shop comes from the Leon and Liu families, who also operate Chifa and Monarch, and serves items that blend Latin, Chinese, Peruvian and Taiwanese influence such as bolo-bao sandwiches, pollo guisado, an aji-sauced smashburger, egg rolls and fish-ball curry. The inaugural pop-up is a vintage market curated by New York City shop James Veloria, running now through Aug. 15; in honor of the Filipino heritage of Brandon Veloria Giordano — one of the vintage collective’s owners — Arroz and Fun is serving a Filipino congee, plus an Aperol spritz tinged with Tang.

A photo exhibition beginning Sept. 1 will center on director Spike Jonze’s collaborative work and friendship with Bjork, with photos from Jonze’s personal collection curated by Arroz and Fun co-owner and fashion designer Humberto Leon.

“It’s basically a surprise exhibition because he doesn’t know exactly which photos I’m choosing,” Leon said. The exhibition is set to run for three months and also offers corresponding dishes and drinks. Eventually, Leon says, the cafe’s ownership hopes to launch a grant program that helps members of the Lincoln Heights community access arts classes and other creative programs.  — : Source: Los Angeles Times.