(Silvia Razgova / For The Times; Shelby Moore / For the Times; Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times; Camryn Brewer / Los Angeles Times)
Where we love to eat near SoFi Stadium
Maybe you’re holding on to the promise of Taylor Swift and Beyoncé’s career-culminating sold-out concert tours. Maybe you just touched down at LAX and are craving a taste of the city’s culinary flare. Or maybe you’re fighting to pierce through the heat mirage and keep your eye on the start of football season in September (Rams and Chargers fans: Play nice!). Whatever brings you to SoFi Stadium, you’ll find plenty of dining options in the surrounding neighborhoods of Inglewood, Hawthorne, El Segundo and beyond, drawing from the African American, Mexican and Central American, Caribbean and Japanese communities that have long called the Southwest L.A. region home. Whether you’re pining for a pre- or postgame meal or need to refuel after dancing it out with your fellow Swifties, here are the top options for where to eat near SoFi Stadium, compiled by The Times Food staff, editors and our local friends in the newsroom. — Camryn Brewer
From local breweries to wine bars, juice stands and coffee shops, here’s where to get a drink near Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium.
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(Camryn Brewer / Los Angeles Times)
American Deli
Inglewood Chicken Wings American $
As an Atlanta native searching for home in this sprawling city, I’ve finally found it at the Inglewood branch of the American Deli chain. Next door to a beauty supply store in a strip mall on Manchester Avenue is this homage to Atlanta wing culture that made it all the way from the Peach State to the Golden State. The lip-puckering sweet peach tea throws me back to summers spent sitting on my back porch sweating away the Southern heat. But the best part about this neighborhood staple are the sauces, which are closer to a thick glaze but still leave the wing underneath audibly crispy. The wet lemon pepper is a must-try, along with the “family gold,” a honey mustard sauce with a subtle citrus tang. If you want to pitch in to a rowdy Rams tailgate potluck, this is the spot — just be sure to order ahead. There’s no seating inside, but you’ll eat at least one wing before pulling out of the parking lot. The temptation is just too strong.
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(Camryn Brewer / Los Angeles Times)
Banadir Somali Restaurant
Inglewood Somali cuisine $
At the only self-proclaimed Somali restaurant in Los Angeles, owner Hussein Mohamud has curated a small menu of community favorites. Of the 10 items, the goat plate is a must. The meat is boiled for hours in a stew of garlic, tomato, and basil until it falls off the bone and then garnished with lime that ignites those aromas. Your drink will come to your table with a banana on the side. Traditionally, you are meant to slice up the banana, pick up your chosen meat and scoop up some rice, all with your right hand. Somali food lands on the milder side in terms of spice, but if you are looking for an extra kick, dip the fragrant morsel of food in basbaas, the green chile sauce made with cilantro, white vinegar and jalapeño that comes in a plastic cup on the side. Arrive around noon to catch the beginning of the dinner menu and end of the breakfast menu, on which you’ll find spice-coated chicken suqaar with anjero, a large fermented sorghum pancake similar to Ethiopian injera. The oval plates of food are longer than the average forearm, so come hungry and ready to take home leftovers.
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(Alice Short / Los Angeles Times)
Barsha
Hermosa Beach Tunisian Mediterranean
On a recent evening, diners filled Barsha’s outdoor seating area; inside, about half the tables — spaced far apart — were occupied. People lingered at their tables, ordering dish after dish from a menu that emphasizes Tunisian/Mediterranean flavors. Salads (house-made farmers cheese, heirloom tomatoes and beets, and “local kale” among them) make for a multitextured start. The small-bites list is vegetable-centric. Entrees include lamb meatballs on a bed of Tunisian couscous and Tabil Branzino. Did we reorder the stewed chickpeas after inhaling it the first time? We did.
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(Ben Welsh / Los Angeles Times)
Brolly Hut
Inglewood Hamburger $
Roman Gabriel was under center for the Rams when this hamburger stand opened on Crenshaw Boulevard at the end of the 1960s. A circular building with a roof shaped like a broad, ornate umbrella, Brolly Hut is an enduring example of a midcentury fad in architecture — known as the Googie movement — that boomeranged bold shapes on structures from L.A. to Vegas and back. But don’t just go to gawk. Order a plate of burgers, a mess of fries and a heap of onion rings for a nostalgic feast of the classic fast food our forefathers designed to lure in drivers.
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(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
Coni’Seafood
Inglewood Mexican $$
It’s hard to think of a more celebratory feast than Coni’Seafood’s pescado zarandeado. It’s a whole snook split in half Nayarit-style, then grilled. You take a piece of the tender fish, put it on a warm tortilla and top it with marinated onions and a bit of salsa. Perfect. But it’s not all about the snook. Start your meal with a cold beer or icy lemonade and a plate of smoked marlin tacos. Your next move might be the aguachiles, made here with raw shrimp and a tart and spicy green sauce. Of course, there are more than a dozen other shrimp dishes here, and several ceviche variations too. But whatever you do, leave room for snook.
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(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)
Dulan’s Soul Food Kitchen
Inglewood Southern $$
At this institution started by Adolf Dulan — who moved to Los Angeles as part of the second wave of African Americans’ Great Migration out of the South, and whose family carries on his legacy — the cooking remains bedrock sustenance for L.A. Savor the goodness of a plate of fried chicken, near-molten mac and cheese and vinegary collard greens with a cornbread muffin propped on the side. Even more of a treat: long-simmered oxtails in gravy, the meat barely cleaving to the bone. Order a slice of sweet potato pie, even if you end up saving it for later. There will likely be a line trailing outside the restaurant. It moves quickly.
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(Bill Addison / Los Angeles Times)
Little Belize
Inglewood Belizean $$
Belize — located on the eastern shore of Central America, neighboring Guatemala and Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula — has cultural ties to Caribbean nations that show through in the cuisine, a collage of Indigenous, African, Spanish and British influences. At this bright, busy Inglewood restaurant, begin with fish- or bean-filled panades made from masa and ducunu, the Belizean style of tamales sweetened with coconut milk. Vinegar offsets the rich spices in the stewed chicken; fried whole snapper in a light onion sauce is ideal for a group. Call ahead on Saturdays to check the availability of boil up, often considered the Belizean national dish, which includes a weekly selection of fish, meaty pig’s tail and the dumplings called boil cake.
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(Alice Short / Los Angeles Times)
Otafuku Noodle House
Gardena Japanese $$
The extensive menu at Otafuku Noodle House includes deep-fried jidori chicken, shrimp and vegetable tempura, deep-fried shrimp egg rolls, assorted sashimi and grilled fish — but it’s the handmade noodles that inspire so many diners to post their praise. Order the white Seiro Soba or the nutty Kikouchi Soba (100% buckwheat), add some tempura crumbs and spinach or deep-fried mochi and the words “springy,” “chewy” and “silky” will come to mind. Otafuku could become a habit.
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(Christina House / Los Angeles Times)
Post & Beam
Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw American $$$
At Baldwin Hills Crenshaw’s crown-jewel restaurant, John and Roni Cleveland serve beautifully made versions of feel-good favorites: shrimp and grits deepened with shrimp butter and beef bacon, short ribs under a flurry of fresh horseradish, jerk-seasoned catfish over dirty rice and a fantastic grilled cheese rich with oxtail meat and smoked mozzarella. For brunch, home in on pecan-pie-inspired French toast and chicken over a buttermilk waffle. Since the restaurant’s inception a decade ago, part of Post & Beam’s mission has been to nurture Black culinary talent. To that end, the Clevelands brought on Martin Draluck as chef de cuisine and have been regularly hosting the Hemings & Hercules dinners he co-created, which were featured on the Netflix series “High on the Hog.”
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(Lauren Von Der Pool)
Stuff I Eat
Inglewood Vegan $$
When Stuff I Eat opened on Market Street in 2008, it was the first of its kind in Inglewood: a Black-owned plant-based cafe offering big, colorful plates of mostly organic food. The restaurant lured vegans and omnivores alike with its soul food sampler and enchilada pie — plus the warm energy of its co-owner and head chef, Babette Davis, a health and wellness micro-celebrity. “That’s what I think we brought to the community,” Davis says, “an opportunity to see that there’s lots of food to eat, and it doesn’t have to come out of a package or a box.” These days, Stuff I Eat is doing takeout and delivery only. Pick up one of Davis’ underrated favorites: a quinoa bowl, topped with a carrot and raisin slaw, black beans and veggies. Or opt for a fan favorite with the nut burger, which includes a house-made walnut, cashew and mushroom patty.
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(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Sunday Gravy
Inglewood Italian
If the classic Italian American plates from Sunday Gravy feel like they’re made lovingly by family, it’s because they are: Brother-and-sister duo Sol and Ghazi Bashirian reimagined the space of their father’s former restaurant, Jino’s Pizza, and while they’re not offering pizza like their dad did, they are serving an excellent menu of antipasti, salads, sandwiches, pastas made using fresh noodles from the nearby Florentyna’s Fresh Pasta Factory, and wine and beer. The rigatoni alla vodka is a must.
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(Stephanie Breijo / Los Angeles Times)
Tal’s Cafe
Hyde Park American $
Serving classic, no-frills diner fare and hits-the-spot soul food breakfast and lunch, Tal’s is a homey diner full of 1940s charm. There’s a curved counter with swivel seats overlooking the vintage fridge and the griddle, and in the back the booths each feature a carved wooden number and a small vase of silk flowers. The hotcakes and waffles are its signature items, but the more savory fare — such as salmon croquettes with grits or the fried catfish — is worth sampling too. Note: This spot is cash-only.
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(Daniel Hernandez / Los Angeles Times)
The Sammiche Shoppe
Inglewood Sandwich Shop $
Around the corner from a bunch of far better known quick-stop establishments in Inglewood, this unassuming deli on Regent Street has a high-quality, super-affordable spicy chicken sandwich that I find myself turning to for lunch several times a month. The Sammiche Shoppe also makes a vegan chili that could go toe-to-toe with any other. I get mine topped with diced raw onion and shredded cheddar cheese. Also, don’t sleep on the hot links.
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(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)
The Serving Spoon
Inglewood Southern $
For more than 35 years, this restaurant has been not only a place to sit down and get a bite but a spot for families to gather, neighbors to converse and strangers to connect over a plate of fried catfish, or grits and eggs. The aforementioned plate is a must, as are pancakes and the meatloaf. Check the menu for daily specials (there are oxtails on Wednesdays!).
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(Daniel Hernandez / Los Angeles Times)
Tortuga Bay
Inglewood Mexican $
Next to a nail salon and a smoke shop, this no-nonsense Mexican deli and grill gets crowded with Inglewood High kids during the weekday (it’s across the street), which is usually around the time I’ll drop in for a torta ahogada, the Tortuga Bay specialty. Made with a perfectly rendered sourdough, sometimes called telera or birote salado, the “drowned torta” is a Guadalajara specialty involving carnitas drenched in a deep-red tomato sauce and a chile sauce to taste. The torta is stuffed with added beans and pickled onions. Use the lime wedge served on the side for a final touch. Tortuga Bay also offers hamburgers, tacos, burritos, sopes, mariscos and taquitos.
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TriniStyle Cuisine
Gramercy Park Trinidadian $
The cooking of Trinidad & Tobago can be hard to find in Los Angeles. Enjoying it consistently has become easier since Merlin Garcia and her daughter, Latoya, parked their food truck at a strip mall in Gramercy Park and began serving favorites of the islands’ cuisines out of a storefront three days a week. The menu shifts slightly each day. Fridays focus on doubles (two rounds of fried dough, called bara, cradling curried chickpeas) and bake and shark, a sandwich of fried shark meat. Saturdays highlight stewed oxtails and roti made with dalpuri (a flatbread that’s pleasantly gritty from ground split peas) and filled with curried chicken, shrimp or (my favorite) goat. Sunday brunch means macaroni pie with the greens known as callaloo and stewed chicken or oxtails. There’s no wrong day to visit.
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(Camryn Brewer / Los Angeles Times)
Two Hommés
Inglewood West African Southern $$
From the culinary minds of Chef Mando and Chef AB blooms Two Hommés, a true fusion restaurant at its core. These two lifelong friends teamed up in the kitchen in 2020, wanting to intertwine their West African and West Coast roots. Framed records by Kendrick Lamar, Lauryn Hill and Beyoncé dot the brick walls of this restaurant where servers and diners alike sing to soulful R&B playing from the speakers. For dinner, start with the passion fruit shrimp ceviche garnished with fresh cucumber slices and bright pink pickled onions. If you’re looking for something hearty, opt for the root beer braised short rib that’s braised for eight to 10 hours in red wine and dark root beer. Pair your meal with the tropical lemonade of the day — the last time I went, it was a tart watermelon guava. Ask your server what sweets are available that day, and if you’re lucky they’ll be serving the pillowy beignets drizzled with golden-brown caramel sauce.
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(Camryn Brewer / Los Angeles Times)
Veronica's Kitchen
Inglewood Nigerian $$
The hand-painted sign at Veronica Ogbeide Shoyinka’s Nigerian restaurant in Inglewood reads “Fufu Land.” Dining within this cozy place’s warm auburn walls feels more like sharing a meal in someone’s living room. What started with Shoyinka selling plates of food at LAX has become a pillar of Inglewood’s rich West African culinary community since she opened her bricks-and-mortar in the early ’90s. Fufu, a mainstay of West African food that consists of boiled and pounded starches like cassava or yams and doubles as a utensil and a buttery side item, anchors this simple, traditional menu. The staff suggests starting with egusi, a thick peppery stew made from oil-rich melon seeds and served with pounded yam fufu. Add in the jollof rice stewed with thyme, tomato and palm oil that comes dressed with a side of caramelized plantains called dodo.
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(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)
Woody’s Bar-B-Que
Inglewood Barbecue $
This is the spot for perfectly domed, golden cornbread muffins, beautifully marbled beef ribs, pork ribs coated in tangy barbecue sauce and chicken links with a good snap. The lunch specials are hard to beat and can easily feed two people for less than $10. There will most definitely be a line, but it’s worth the wait.
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(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)
Zacatecas Restaurant
Del Aire Mexican $
Think carefully before you order from Zacatecas, which occupies a corner storefront in Hawthorne. Think about the time of day and how much you need to accomplish after your meal. If you opt for a burrito — especially Tom’s Burrito, magnificently stuffed with carne asada, beans, guacamole, sour cream, onions and cheese and topped with a green sauce and more cheese — there are a few things to consider. It’s a dish that could serve three people, assuming you’ve also ordered rice and beans. And consumption might be followed by an urge to nap, so plan accordingly. (Many of the other burritos on the menu are large enough to be associated with a food coma.) If you’re hoping for a few more productive hours, try the chile verde or a couple of carne asada tacos.
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Updates:
12:40 p.m. Aug. 4, 2023: This guide has been updated from a previous version published on Feb. 7, 2022. Several restaurants featured on the original guide, including Hotville Chicken, Aduke Nigerian Cuisine, the Mr. Fries Man location on Florence Avenue and Skinny Dave’s, have closed and been removed from the updated version of this list. American Deli, Veronica’s Kitchen, Two Hommés and Banadir Somali Restaurant have been added to the updated version.
