One of LAs best Italian restaurants, Locanda Veneta aims to transport diners to Venice, where the freshest and most deceptively simple ingredients are combined and cooked into art.

The cozy room, often dotted with celebs, is elegant—but theres nothing fussy about the menu. Here are favorites such as a fresh-vegetable minestrone, wild-mushroom risotto, and spinach and ricotta cheese gnocchi. Garlic, fresh herbs and olive oil dress many of the pasta, meat and fish dishes; the veal scaloppini gets a different preparation every night. —Laurie Pike