Where we love to eat around SoFi Stadium

As most of the known universe is aware, Super Bowl LVI takes place this weekend. The match between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals will be held at 2-year-old SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

We have restaurant suggestions.

This week The Times published a list, compiled by the Food team and some friends in other newsroom departments, naming dining favorites we recommend from recent meals. The gamut of cuisines is reflective of L.A.’s sweeping pluralism but also highlights the long-established communities in Inglewood and surrounding areas.

We extol the shrimp and grits from Baldwin Hills Crenshaw’s crown-jewel restaurant and, in the same shopping complex, Nashville-style hot chicken from the family credited with its creation. There is Nayarit-style grilled snook paired with warm tortillas and “drowned torta,” a Guadalajara specialty involving carnitas stuffed in a sourdough roll all saturated in chile-laced tomato sauce. Seek out rigatoni alla vodka, jollof rice, Trinidadian or Belizean oxtail stew, fried chicken with collards, and fries loaded with lemon garlic crab and shrimp. Or burgers and onion rings served in a shining example of Googie architecture.

Football game or not, use the guide as an entry into exploring the area’s culinary treasures.

Here are a few more ideas if you’re in the vicinity:

Jerusalem Chicken, a fast-casual Palestinian restaurant in View Park-Windsor Hills that opened last year, is excellent for takeout. Look for emsakhan, more commonly Anglicized as musakhan — spice-dusted roast chicken set over pita and smothered in onions stained purple from sumac. The flavors are sunny and lemony. “Sita’s original chicken” comes on a bed of hashweh, rice with ground beef, mushrooms and baharat (a spice blend that includes cumin, cardamom and black pepper). Condiments here are critical, especially shatta (red or green chile sauces) and thick yogurt.

A plate of tonnarelli cacio e pepe at Jame Enoteca in El Segundo.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

If you’re near the airport and hungry for pasta, consider Jame Enoteca nestled in an El Segundo strip mall. Among the cacio e pepe, mushroom lasagna and kerchief-like madilli with kale pesto, look for Jackson Kalb’s Bolognese “Hollywood-style.” Its addition of puréed avocado takes the “Cal” in Cal-Ital to another level. My favorite of Kalb’s pastas is capellini in tomato sauce that simmers for 36 hours. A licorice whiff of basil, a flurry of Parm; simplicity can be sublime. The restaurant is also offering Super Bowl-themed takeout, including wings and spinach-artichoke dip.

On Sunday I’ll likely be standing in line for smoked brisket, sausages and sides from Moo’s Craft Barbecue to take to a Super Bowl party. Closer to SoFi Stadium, our list suggests Woody’s Bar-B-Q, and slightly farther afield there is Maple Block Meat Co. in Culver City. Go for the brisket, pulled pork, meaty pintos and vinegary slaw — and also throw in a side of buttermilk biscuits, which rewarm nicely for breakfast the next day.

More thirsty than hungry? We have suggestions for places to drink in the area too.

Other stories

If you’re staying home to watch the Super Bowl, Ben Mims has all the recipes for dips. He also reveals his partner’s recipe for extra limey guacamole.

Speaking of guacamole, Daniel Hernandez goes deep on the subject of avocados and the 10,000-year history of our favorite Super Bowl dip.

And what’s the best grocery-store guac in Los Angeles? Ben and Daniel have thoughts.

Valentine’s Day is Monday. If the Super Bowl eclipsed your thoughts of romance, Jenn Harris has suggestions for last-minute lovers.

Eminem’s restaurant, Mom’s Spaghetti, pops up in L.A. this weekend. Stephanie Breijo has that story, plus the heads-up on Kato’s new Arts District location and other news.

My review this week looks at Bacetti in Echo Park. How does it set itself apart from the countless other Italian restaurants in Los Angeles? A stunning design and a Roman lilt to the menu, for starters.

One of the dining areas at Bacetti in Echo Park.

(Mariah Tauger / Los Angeles Times)