How to celebrate Black History Month in Los Angeles, deliciously
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There are plenty of ways to celebrate Black History Month here in Los Angeles, whether you’re looking to honor jazz innovators like Miles Davis or recognize those who are making history now, including a Black woman-founded grocery store that provides organic vegan produce to South L.A. neighborhoods.
This year marks the centennial celebration of Black history across the United States — though that time frame spans only a fragment of how long African Americans have been contributing to this country.
In 1926, historian Carter G. Woodson and the Assn. for the Study of Negro Life and History spearheaded the first celebration of Negro History Week during the second week of February, overlapping with Frederick Douglass’ birthday on Feb. 14 — to encourage the study of African American history. President Gerald Ford officially designated February as Black History Month in 1976, during the U.S. Bicentennial.
The culinary achievements of Black Americans are countless, from the early cooks who codified the foundations of Southern cuisine to activists who launched affordable food hubs in underserved neighborhoods and restaurateurs helming some of the best restaurants in the country.
Here are 15 ways to celebrate Black History Month 2026 deliciously in Los Angeles.
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Alta Adams
West Adams Breakfast/Brunch Soul Food $$
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
A perpetual celebration of Black culture with its menu that blends soul food with the California influences that shaped chef-owner Keith Corbin, Alta Adams has a full slate of events planned throughout February, including its cinema supper club that celebrates iconic Black films with a rotating three-course menu every Sunday, with “Brown Sugar” screening on Feb. 8 and “Love Jones” on Feb. 18. The restaurant continues to host one of the best brunches in L.A. every weekend, with highlights like cornmeal pancakes and tamarind-lime mimosas and iconic Black film soundtracks playing in the background.
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BLK Events L.A.'s Hyde Park Community Walk
Hyde Park Grocery Store $
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Get to know the Black history of Hyde Park during a community walk led by Jocelyn Chambers, founder of BLK Events L.A., on Feb. 7. The leisurely stroll will begin at Süpermarkt, an all-organic vegan grocery store founded by Olympia Auset in 2016, where participants can fuel up with smoothies, juices and snacks or stock up on groceries. Register for the free, family-friendly walk on EventBrite and follow Chambers’ Instagram page to discover more events that spotlight Black L.A. during February and all year long.
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Bridgetown Roti
East Hollywood Caribbean $
(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)
The colorful Caribbean restaurant from chef Rashida Holmes is planning to release a couple menu specials during Black History Month, including a Guyanese-style pepperpot and oxtail plate. Bridgetown Roti will also be collaborating on a dinner hosted at Two Hommés in Inglewood on Feb. 17.
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Chef Marilyn's
Jefferson Park Soul Food $
(Juliana Yamada / Los Angeles Times)
Chef Marilyn Cole has been a pillar in the South L.A. food community for 37 years, serving comforting soul food staples out of her cafeteria-style restaurant on Crenshaw Boulevard. Like many chefs and restaurateurs in Los Angeles, Cole has experienced hardships over the last year, including a leaking roof, damaged equipment and a health scare. On Feb. 7 from 2 to 6 p.m. the chef is hosting a donation drive to cover essential costs so the restaurant can remain open, including a raffle and live music alongside her Southern menu.
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Dulan’s on Crenshaw
Hyde Park Southern $$
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
The Dulan family has had a restaurant presence along Crenshaw Boulevard for 50 years, beginning with Hamburger City founded by Adolf Dulan and continuing today with Dulan’s on Crenshaw helmed by Greg Dulan. Take in the Black history on the walls, including black-and-white photos of Dulan’s great-grandparents and celebrities and politicians who recognize the restaurant as an essential stop for Southern food in L.A. Dulan reopened the restaurant in early 2024 after a years-long renovation that added a front patio and an expanded dining room. The soul food institution is most lively on the weekends during lunch, when locals gather over shrimp and grits, fried chicken and peach cobbler in their Sunday best.
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Harold & Belle's
Jefferson Park Creole Cajun Soul Food $$
(Ron De Angelis / For The Times)
This jewel in Jefferson Park has been going strong since Harold Legaux Sr. and his wife, Mary Belle, first opened its doors in 1969. Today it’s operated by third-generation husband-and-wife team Ryan and Jessica Legaux, but you can still expect the same home-style Cajun cooking that put the restaurant on the map. The restaurant’s biggest event of the year, Mardi Gras, will be held on Feb. 17 and feature live bands and DJs, a costume contest and face painting alongside Louisiana-style catfish, fried oysters, po’boys and beignets, plus Big Easy-inspired cocktails including hurricanes and French 75s. The festivities will be free before 1 p.m. and $20 afterward, with seating available on a first-come, first-served basis and limited to two hours, though guests are welcome to remain in the bar or patio areas.
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Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen
View Park-Windsor Hills Coffee Breakfast/Lunch $
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
The original location of Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen is celebrating Black History Month with a “Jammin’ on the Hill” session honoring local Black musicians on Feb. 19. The event is free, but reservations are required and can be made online.
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Joyce
Downtown L.A. Southern Seafood $$
(Stephanie Shih / For The Times)
The soulful seafood destination from Prince and Athena Riley has a full slate of events planned for Black History Month, with former Post & Beam chef-owner John Cleveland leading culinary moving forward. The restaurant will host a Fat Tuesday dinner with Dungeness crab gumbo and king cake led by chef Andra Harris on Feb. 17, and a collaborative dinner with Alta Adams chef-owner Keith Corbin on Feb. 23. This February, Joyce will also highlight Black-owned wines and craft cocktails inspired by Black history, with a portion of proceeds donated to Brotherhood Crusade.
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Linden
Hollywood Eclectic $$
(Linden)
The Black-owned and operated restaurant in Hollywood pulls inspiration from the cultures and communities that live, work and play along Linden Boulevard, where executive chef Jon Harris grew up. That means dishes such as curry corn ribs, Rhode Island-style calamari and jerk duck over coconut risotto. For Black History Month, the restaurant is collaborating on two back-to-back dinners with Two Hommés’ chefs and owners Abdoulaye Balde and Marcus Yaw Johnson. On Feb. 24, the pair of chefs will be cooking at Linden in Hollywood, and on Feb. 25, Harris will head to Inglewood to cook at Two Hommés. Both evenings will feature fan-favorite dishes from both restaurants alongside limited items.
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Lost
Downtown L.A. Mexican Cocktails $
(Jennifer Johnson)
The Mexico City-inspired rooftop from the hospitality group behind Somerville and Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen is launching the Diaspora Soundsystem, a music series exploring the Black diaspora through sound, movement and dance. Expect evenings dedicated to everything from Caribbean basslines to Chicago house, afrobeats, cumbia, hip-hop, R&B, disco, funk, Ethiopian jazz, all centering music as a site of joy shaped by migration and remix. The series begins with Currents, rooted in Caribbean lineages, on Feb. 7, followed by an all-female DJ night dubbed Gaylentine’s Day on Feb. 14, and a night dedicated to early ‘00s hip-hop on Feb. 22. The full cocktail menu will be available as well as the regular lineup of tacos, ceviche, quesadillas and churros.
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Lucia
Beverly Grove Caribbean $$
(Khai Nguyen)
The stylish Caribbean restaurant from restaurateur Sam Jordan is celebrating Black History Month with a four-week menu series from head chef Cleophus Hethington, with each week recognizing the traditions and foodways of a different region of the African Diaspora. Week 1 will introduce diners to the foundations of African cuisines with dishes such as confit duck egusi-ragu and tagliatelle and charcoal-roasted lamb with fermented sorghum and hibiscus, while Week 2 highlights the adaptability of Afro-Latin cuisines with Brazilian-inspired moqueca and anticucho-style beef with huancaína. Week 3 offers insight into the celebratory foods of the Caribbean, including fufu de plátano with pickled shrimp and coconut cream, and the series will conclude with a focus on Black American culinary traditions and history, including a fried green tomato dish inspired by Edna Lewis.
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Smorgasburg L.A.
Downtown L.A. Eclectic $$
(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
This February, the weekly food market that serves as an incubator for rising L.A. chefs will shine a spotlight on its Black vendors, which represent a larger portion of the stands this year than ever before. Dine through the diaspora every Sunday with Afro-Caribbean bites at With Bee, Jamaican jerk chicken at Backyard Jerk, a Southern fish fry at Hot Grease, globally-inspired wings at Melnificent Wingz, vegan corn dogs at Stick Talk, hip-hop-themed cinnamon rolls at All About the Cinnamon Baby and pucker-sweet lemonade from Queen Squeeze Lemonade. On Feb. 15, the open-air food fest will host a party for Mardi Gras, complete with po’boys from Hot Grease and a king cake bun from All About the Cinnamon Baby, plus a live brass band, mask making, bar specials and beads.
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Somerville
View Park-Windsor Hills New American Southern $$$
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
This February, the South L.A. restaurant that serves as a love letter to the Black history of South Central Avenue is hosting Lineage, a music series that traces the roots of jazz music and the Black changemakers who helped shape the genre, including odes to Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie on Feb. 8; Miles Davis and John Coltrane on Feb. 15; and living legacies on Feb. 22, complete with a live band for each session. The brunch menu with crab quiche and a smothered turkey sandwich will be available, alongside cocktails such as a champagne margarita and sangria with farmers market fruit.
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Two Hommés
Inglewood West African Southern $$
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
Two Hommés is an ongoing love letter to Black culture, with a menu that pulls from chefs and owners Abdoulaye Balde‘s and Marcus Yaw Johnson‘s experiences growing up in L.A. with African parents, resulting in dishes like lamb and white bean hummus, lamb dibi tacos and a Ghanaian jollof platter. For Black History Month, the restaurant is hosting a collaborative dinner series, with Bridgetown Roti chef Rashida Holmes appearing on Feb. 17 and Jon Harris of Linden on Feb. 25. Check the restaurant’s Instagram page for additional details.
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1010 Wine
Inglewood Wine Bars $$
(Andrea D’Agosto / For The Times)
Inglewood’s first and only wine bar from longtime locals and sisters LeAnn and Leslie Jones has an impressive collection of Black-owned wine labels and will be offering plenty of opportunities to get familiar with the inventory throughout February, including weekly meet-the-winemaker events. The wine bar hosts Taco Tuesday every week with creative tacos from Red Monkey Catering, craft cocktails and a live DJ, and is celebrating the Super Bowl with an HBCU-themed party on Feb. 8, including happy hour specials served all night long.
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