Encino

Los Angeles has many valleys, but only one is the Valley. You know it as soon as you crest over the 101, 405, 170 or 5 freeways, its bordering hills verdant or golden depending on the time of year. Pull off almost any exit and you’ll immediately be greeted by shopping centers, strip malls, mom-and-pop markets and fine-dining dens serving up some of the city’s most ambitious and heartfelt meals.

Bounded by mountains on all sides, the San Fernando Valley spans 260 square miles and is home to nearly half of L.A.’s population, around 1.8 million people. Across its expanse, it assumes many identities.

Our favorite places to eat and drink in the 818. From high-end sushi to burger shacks, tiki bars, dives and more.

Long before its peaks and basins were crisscrossed with highways and miles-long boulevards, the Tongva people lived along the water-rich and wooded areas of the Valley for more than 7,000 years. In the late 18th century, Spanish settlers by way of Mexico traversed over the Santa Monica Mountains into what is now known as Encino.

More than a century ago, the citrus orchards began to give way as Warner Bros., Walt Disney and Universal studios built out their filming lots. A tinge of Tinseltown and tourism followed, while room to grow brought a midcentury housing boom to the region. Themed restaurants and tiki haunts popped up to keep diners entertained. Now, it’s difficult to find a Valley establishment that hasn’t made a TV or film appearance.

As Valley dwellers began settling in — immigrants, suburban families, celebrities — its food scene flourished in step.

On Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks, you’ll find Casa Vega, its dim interior practically untouched since Rafael “Ray” Vega first founded it in 1956. The son of Tijuana-born immigrants who ran popular Cafe Caliente on Olvera Street beginning in the 1930s, Vega introduced many Valley diners — including a flock of silver screen regulars — to Mexican-American staples such as fajitas and enchiladas.

Farther south in Studio City, take your pick from a parade of Japanese restaurants along Sushi Row. The stretch of Ventura Boulevard became a hub for high-end Japanese cuisine after pioneering chef Kazunori Nozawa opened his Edo-style sushi restaurant Nozawa in 1987. Though that location has since closed, Nozawa has spawned a global restaurant empire with his KazuNori, Nozawa Bar and Sugarfish chains.

Pull off the main drag and you’ll find hidden gem burger shacks, taquerias, hot dog joints, kebab shops and neighborhood delis. Meanwhile, Valley residents are spearheading new concepts.

“We’re born and bred Valley kids, so we had to do it in the Valley,” said Marissa Shammas on opening Yala Coffee, a Middle Eastern-inspired cafe, with her husband Zain Shammas in Studio City. “[People] commonly think [the Valley] is where things go to die — and we think that that’s where things go to be more.”

There’s more to discover than ever when it comes to dining in the 818 (or 747). Eight Times food writers spent months exploring the Valley in search of the best for this guide, reconnecting with old favorites and finding new surprises.

For me, it was also an exercise in nostalgia. Old shortcuts returned like muscle memory as I reacquainted myself with the Woodland Hills blocks where I navigated young adulthood. In North Hollywood, my home for several years into my early 30s, former standbys suddenly returned to the forefront of my mind: The tiki bar across the street from my old apartment, a hole-in-the-wall Puerto Rican restaurant where salsa music draws you in, a vibrant Jamaican bistro that now sits in Sherman Oaks. I found myself wishing I could linger in the Valley longer.

Here are our favorites, spanning Filipino-Mexican fusion in a Northridge car wash-turned-restaurant, a DMV-adjacent street-stand for lamb barbacoa in Arleta and a fast-growing mini chain of Sephardic pastries. It’s time to dig into the Valley.
— Danielle Dorsey

Veteran music supervisor Robin Kaye, best known for her lengthy tenure on “American Idol,” leaves behind a legacy of “light, kindness, and joy.”

Singer-songwriter and former “Idol” contestant Didi Benami in a Tuesday Instagram story praised Kaye as “one of the kindest souls I’ve ever had the privilege of working with” as she mourned the executive’s death. Kaye and her husband Tom Deluca are the victims of a double homicide that occurred in their Encino home, Los Angeles police announced Tuesday. They both died at age 70.

“Still in disbelief and trying to make sense of it all. My heart is broken. Some souls leave a light behind even after they’re gone,” Benami wrote in another Instagram post shared Wednesday. “Robin, you are so loved. Always will be. Honoring the light, kindness, and joy you brought into this world. May your memory— and the love you gave —never be forgotten.”

Vocal coach Benami, who competed on Season 9 of “Idol,” was among the musicians and music industry figures paying tribute on social media to Kaye and her contributions. Kaye served as a music supervisor on “American Idol” from 2009 to 2023 and contributed to nearly 300 episodes during her tenure.

In a statement shared with The Times on Tuesday, a spokesperson for “American Idol” described Kaye as a “cornerstone of the ‘Idol’ family” and said the production was “devastated” by news of her and Deluca’s deaths. “She was truly loved and respected by all who came in contact with her,” the statement added.

Randy Jackson, one of “American Idol’s” original trio of judges, echoed those sentiments on Instagram, writing on Tuesday that Kaye was a “dear friend to me and so many — judges, executives, contestants, publishers, writers, producers, and artists alike.” He posted a photo of himself with Kaye, noting in his caption that she “consistently went the extra mile, meticulously ensuring songs were placed and cleared for the show.”

“She was truly one of a kind,” he said.

In a call with The Times on Wednesday, longtime “Idol” music provider Brad Segal highlighted Kaye’s sympathetic nature, loyalty and her dedicated work ethic. “We all hope for that when you meet somebody,” he said. Segal said he met Kaye in the early aughts and had crossed paths with her over the years at other TV productions.

He praised Kaye’s wealth of “knowledge of all types of music” and he said she provided a comfortable working experience that helped set the foundation of their years-long collaborations on “Idol.” Segal told The Times that Kaye was accommodating to her collaborators, ranging from him to the contestants she worked with. Simply, “she cared.”

“She cared about what she did. She cared about being fair,” Segal said.

Kaye and Deluca are believed to have been killed after walking in on a burglary suspect inside their $4.5-million home Thursday, according to LAPD. The suspect — identified by homicide investigators as 22-year-old Encino resident Raymond Boodarian — is believed to have entered the heavily secured home through an unlocked door, police said. After the couple returned home, “a confrontation ensued, which resulted in the suspect taking their lives,” police said.

Their bodies were not discovered until officers responded Monday around 2:30 p.m. to a welfare check in the 4700 block of White Oak Avenue, where they discovered two people inside the home, LAPD Det. Meghan Aguilar said early Tuesday. Paramedics responded and declared the pair dead at the scene.

Boodarian was apprehended Tuesday without incident by LAPD and FBI task force officers, Los Angeles Police Lt. Guy Golan, said. The killings appeared to be random, Golan said, but investigators were looking for any connection between the suspect and Deluca and Kaye.

Times staff writer Richard Winton and deputy editor Joe Serna contributed to this report.

There are many factors that led Taylor Jenkins Reid to choose space as the backdrop of her new novel, “Atmosphere,” a thrilling love story set at NASA in the 1980s.

One may very well have been her L.A. commute.

In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go, what to eat and how to enjoy life on the weekends.

Specifically, her journey along the Dr. Sally Ride Memorial Highway, a portion of the 101 Freeway in Encino. “I am sure that it worked its way into my subconscious,” Reid says. “It was there waiting for me because I’ve driven by that sign so many times.”

So much of Encino and the Valley inspires Reid, the author of a shining repertoire of bestselling novels including “Daisy Jones & the Six” and “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.” She talks about the hikes, the views and the charming restaurants that have stood for generations. Here’s how she’d spend a perfect day in L.A. with her husband, Alex Jenkins Reid, and their 8-year-old daughter, Lilah.

8 a.m. Wake up and grab a book
Everybody in my house is reading in bed. I am reading “Harlem Rhapsody” by Victoria Christopher Murray. I have been late multiple mornings now because of how much I’m enjoying it. It’s like, “Oh, sorry, I was reading.” My kid does the same thing. She and I will both be like, “Wait, it’s already 7:40? You’re supposed to be in school!” But both of us are reading.

9:30 a.m.: A place where everybody knows your name
My family and I love to go to this small diner in the Valley called Millie’s. It’s a no-frills place, but the food is so good and my husband’s family has been going there for at least 30 years. The server always remembers my husband’s grandpa and asks how his grandma’s doing and how his mom is doing and his brothers are doing. It has such a lovely small-town feel to it. Also, the tortilla soup is incredibly good. It’s, like, one of my favorite things

10:30 a.m.: Hit the trail
After that, I inevitably will try to bribe my daughter into a hike. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. The thing is, she actually does love to hike and just forgets that she does. Where I love to go — and I have not been able to because of the fires — is the Upper Canyonback Trailhead [temporarily closed] in Encino Hills. There are two ways you can go. If you go to the left, there’s a really great view of the city. You can see down to Century City and even downtown on a clear day. And the hills are gorgeous. But if you go to the right, you can see the Encino Reservoir and eventually you get to a decommissioned Nike missile silo. We make a game-time decision.

Noon: A bookstore afternoon
Then I have to make good on the way that I bribed my kid and one of her favorite things to do is go to Vroman’s in Pasadena. It has one of the best children’s book sections in Los Angeles — it takes up half of their second floor. She’ll grab a bunch of books, I will have grabbed books from downstairs and we’ll be sitting on a bench reading them. And you know, my husband’s like, “Dude, would you like to leave and actually pay for these?”

2 p.m.: Hop around Old Town Pasadena
Not that far from Vroman’s, there’s this intersection that has so many things that all of us like. Motto Tea Cafe serves Japanese soufflé-style pancakes. They’re so fluffy! My daughter normally gets the plain ones with the Nutella cream on top. This place is often quite packed, so we order in advance. Then there’s this ice cream place called Kinrose Creamery that is unbelievable. They indulged me by letting me try basically every flavor. They have a sour cherry with candy floss that is unlike anything I’ve ever had. And there’s a park near there, Central Park, that is really beautiful and has a very expansive playground area. And so my kid will go play for a little while.

3:30 p.m.: Indulge an obsession
On the walk back to our car, I will go to Farrow & Ball and just look at paint colors. I’m completely obsessed with paint colors, so I make my family go pretty often. I never have a reason to be there. When the person is like, “How can I help you? Are you looking to paint something?” I’m like, “No, I just want to look at paint colors.” They’ve got great names for all their paint — I could probably name them all for you, literally. The ones I have in my house: Dead Salmon, Skimming Stone, Wimborne White. My daughter and I have become obsessed with a very pretty coral-y orange called Naperon. Both of us are like, “We have to paint something Naperon!”

There’s a woman who is the color curator for Farrow & Ball and her name is Joa Studholme. She’s the only person that is famous to me and my daughter. She makes these videos where she’s talking about why they came up with a paint color and my kid and I will just watch them four different times.

5:30 p.m.: Best pasta ever
Every Sunday night, we eat takeout from Lido Pizza. Doesn’t matter the fanciest place I’ve ever been to — this is the best pasta. I love it so much. And there’s something about their salad dressing that is exactly what my taste buds want in a salad dressing. I have gone so far as to order a full jug of it for my house.

It’s such a humble, unassuming place. We’ve been taking my daughter there since she was a baby. When the movie “Booksmart” came out, we were watching it and saw that a whole scene takes place in the Lido parking lot. We eat there every single Sunday night, and at this point, they have to just know the call is coming sometime around 5:30.

7:45 p.m.: The “Goodnight Special”
My daughter gets into bed and reads for an hour. During that time, my husband and I will watch an episode of something — lately, we’ve been watching “The Studio.” Then when it’s time to go to bed, she comes out of her bedroom and asks for the “Goodnight Special.” It’s when I hold her for a minute and sing to her. She called it that just one day. She was like, “I need the ‘Goodnight Special.’” I was like, “I think I know what you mean by that.” And then my husband and I will go to bed around 10:30.