The Koreatown community is getting more and more diverse as there are now a lot more choices to choose from for dining with the variety of new restaurants that are appearing in town.
Many authentic Italian restaurants in the Los Angeles County are either in Beverly Hills or West Hollywood. However, there is now an authentic Italian restaurant in Koreatown! “Ca’Brea”, which was originally located on La Brea Ave. in Hancock Park, is now over at Wilshire Blvd. at the Ramada Hotel.
It’s been 10 years working at the restaurant for chef and owner George Sarkis. He first started out as the chef until his family later bought the Ca’Brea where he transitioned into both a chef and owner. Sarkis first started cooking at age 4 when he used to cook for his brother. He learned Italian cooking from his father and his father’s friend who owns many Italian restaurants in Los Angeles.
Sarkis proudly spoke about their most popular dishes, one of which is a whole chicken that they debone and cook with 50 pounds of pressure to make the chicken thin. Their seafood pasta is also one of their signature dishes. Ca’Brea’s most popular dish from their lunch menu is the Ossobuco Panino while the Italiano Benedito with blu-rice cake is the recommended dish for breakfast by Sarkis.
Ca’Brea has a lot of seafood dishes on their menu. Since it is northern Venetian cuisine, they concentrate a lot on seafood. It is also one of the reasons Sarkis wanted to come to Koreatown for his next venue location because he knows that Korean people loves seafood and garlic. Although there are a lot of Italian fusion restaurants in Koreatown, Sarkis wants to stay true to his roots and wants to only serve authentic food.
As it has only been a few weeks since the restaurant has re-opened in its new location, Sarkis explained that there were a lot of things that are not finished yet. He expressed that he cares about every little thing in detail of his restaurant from the food to the décor. He mentioned that even the gelato, flowers and water are from Italy.
Although Sarkis was born in the states, his dad was raised in Italy so he visits there often. He also travels to create new menu ideas as well. Besides the Ca’Brea, Sarkis owns another restaurant called the Kahuna Tiki. This particular restaurant is a Hawaiian and Japanese tiki restaurant located in North Hollywood. He has a goal in mind where he would like to open another restaurant, but informed us that he cannot disclose any specific information.
Ca’Brea is definitely worth a visit as it is the only authentic Italian restaurant in Koreatown. Their ‘Happy Hour’ menu is also very appealing as appetizers, house wine and beer all range under $10. The ‘Happy Hour’ hours are from 5:00PM to 10:00PM.
Ca’ Brea
3900 Wilshire Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90010
323-938-2863
Open 7Days Mon-Thu 7:30AM-10:00PM
Fri-Sat 7:30AM-11:00PM
Sun 7:30AM-9:30PM
