Cento Pasta Bar

Tucked away in West Adams, this one-time pop-up gone brick-and-mortar from Chef Avner Levi feels timely but has a great laidback vibe. The courtyard, capped off by a large tree set with twinkling lights, is an absolute stunner.  
The menu leans Italian-contemporary, with selections including antipasti, mole-braised ossobuco made with yogurt-marinated lamb, but as the name suggests, pasta takes center stage. A gorgeous twirl of beet pasta in a beet and brown butter sauce with poppy seeds is finished with a quenelle of whipped ricotta for a dish that is both beautiful and delicious. Desserts are equally tempting. Try the Key lime pavlova, with a round meringue of lime curd and lime sorbet, for a refreshingly sweet-tart finish.