The Only Keith Lee Approved Restaurants In Los Angeles
He's taking over the world by chilling in his car, eating local comfort food, and ranking it 1 through 10. But while that type of scenario could describe most of us at some point, former MMA fighter Keith Lee has made himself one of the most influential food critics slash disruptors on the culinary scene.
If you're thinking, "Who the heck is Keith Lee?" — you're not alone. You're also probably not one of his 15.4 million followers (and counting) on TikTok ... yet. Lee seemed to appear out of nowhere when he joined the platform in 2020. He then went viral for his short-form takeout-style reviews of restaurants around the country, all started by his wife Ronni Lee's pregnancy cravings. (Shoutout to pickles.)
Lee definitely plays favorites when it comes to his top spots for a nosh. And we're tapping the official Keith Lee Los Angeles Food Tour to reveal which of the city's 26,000 restaurants made the cut. Just a warning to all the Michelin and Zagat purists; you're about to see a whole lot of sad, untouched cloth napkins out there. Buckle your seatbelt, this is Keith Lee's (approved) Los Angeles.
Philly's Best
First up on the list of Keith Lee's favorite spots in Los Angeles is a Philadelphia original. (Hold on, what state are we eating in again?) Taking a beloved icon straight outta the City of Brotherly Love, Philly's Best serves up meaty cheese just like East Coasters love it. Keith Lee only confirms what SoCal locals have known for decades: This is a real deal Philly cheesesteak sandwich (which he rated an 8.9/10).
Any one of Philly's Best 19 outposts throughout California will do the job, but Lee sampled the offerings from the Burbank location during an appearance on "Access Hollywood." Praising the inimitable Philly-imported Amoroso roll, Lee gave the joint's classic Italian hoagie (shredded lettuce and all) an 8/10 overall. But the Taylor pork roll was in a class by itself.
"This is my favorite one," he declared, ranking it a solid 9/10. After tasting the sandwich on set, he took another one to go, and posted a second review to TikTok. "This is Taylor ham, sliced and grilled, with grilled onions, mustard, and I believe it has provolone cheese," he shared, adding, "I don't even know what Taylor ham is. It tastes like a mixture of salami and bologna. And for some odd reason, it works."
(818) 840-8700
1419 W Olive Ave., Burbank, California 91506
Easy Street Burgers
Have you sunk your teeth into a perfect 10? Well, according to Keith Lee, you have to taste the nearly see-through smash burger patties at Easy Street Burgers in Studio City, California, where you can treat yourself to the crispy, caramelized patty edges of your dreams.
"Double patty is the way to go," he advised in his TikTok review, holding up the world's thinnest burger patty remnant. "It's almost transparent ... That little piece of laciness got so much cheese on it, it don't make no sense." Lee's eyes rolled back into his head as he tasted the regular double cheeseburger; a Martin's potato roll, two patties, sauce, cheese, and pickles. "This is the best burger I've ever had ... This is an amazing burger."
He did admit that some people might think the burger seasoning is a little salty. But still, he was into it. The jalapeño burger turned up the heat, but Lee said the extra kick only distracted from that world class patty, earning it a 9.2/10. But, speaking of stealing the show, the double bacon cheeseburger did just that, thanks to a heaping helping of thick-cut smoked bacon and plenty of melted cheese. That's when Lee dropped the burger bomb, "It's two 10s in this conversation, and this is one of 'em." The other went to the original double cheeseburger, which earned the first 10/10 for Easy Street Burgers. We're drooling already.
(818) 966-3009
4143 Lankershim Blvd., Los Angeles, California 91602
Jazzy's Kitchen
Serving up a constantly changing menu of east coast Soul food favorites, owner Jasmine Lopez runs Jazzy's Kitchen out of a converted apartment in Hollywood, California (it still has the apartment kitchen, not an industrial cooking space). Here, the family-style, takeout-only situation was right up Keith Lee's alley. And as he says at the start of each of his TikTok reviews, "I got it, let's try it, and rate it 1 through 10."
Just a few bites in, Lee was already weak in the knees. "This is the best food I've had since I've been in LA." The salmon plate with gooey mac and cheese and fried cabbage earned a 9.6/10, just missing a perfect score because he thought the salmon needed a little more salt. "This is the best cabbage I've ever had in my life ... I don't know how they did it, but boy did they do it." The lamb chops, yams, and fried cabbage plate got a 9.7/10.
The "crispy, spicy, salty" catfish nuggets landed a 9/10, with the honey cornbread nabbing a 10/10. "I wouldn't fix nothin' on this cornbread," Lee said, passing the clamshell container to his mother sitting next to him in the car. Her thoughts? "This cornbread is bangin." Offering his musings on how the line of customers should be winding around the block, Lee went back in for more cornbread — and possibly another plate of his own — adding, "They can have all my money."
(323) 645-7072
1331 N Cahuenga Blvd., #12, Hollywood, California, 90028
Hart House
Founded by comedian Kevin Hart, the sustainability focused Hart House brings 100% plant-based fast food cuisine to Los Angeles. After a personal invitation from the actor himself, Keith Lee stopped by the newly-opened Hollywood location for a bite — even though he doesn't like vegan stuff.
Lee was immediately shocked at the price point. "Vegan food, on Sunset Boulevard, in California has to be crazy expensive," he worried. But he got his whole meal for the very LA-fordable price of $15. "I'm very picky with fries. Like, very picky. This a good-a** fry," Lee declared, as he threw back another perfectly-salted (8.9/10) French fry. Next up, the Deluxe Hot n Crispy Chick'n sandwich, which seemed to completely change his mind on vegan fast-casual. "I fully, fully, fully came into this thinking I was gonna hate this ... If you gave me that, and you didn't tell me it was vegan, I would have no idea." The crispy texture and perfect seasoning won him over, landing the sandwich a 9.3/10. Lee then clarified, "9.3 for a vegan chicken sandwich is nuts."
Buffalo dipping sauce got a lousy 2/10 for its overpowering vinegar flavor, Hart House dipping sauce got a 5.5/10, and the tater tots Lee used for dipping got a 6/10. By the end of the review, though, Lee was picking up that chicken sandwich once again, adding, "I don't finish nothing I don't like. I'm about to finish this whole sandwich. I don't give a damn who he [Kevin Hart] is, this a good a** chicken sandwich."
(213) 510-3200
6800 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, California 90028
Papi Tacos & Churros
Honestly, it didn't look too good for Papi Tacos & Churros from the jump. Keith Lee's review started off with, "I'm not a huge fan of the LA food scene. I ain't been able to find nothin'." Thankfully he found Papi Tacos on the west side of Los Angeles, in Santa Monica, California. And after that, his trip got all sorts of delicious.
Lee ordered two of each menu item for himself and his eight family members for $130. He then went straight for the chicken burrito, with a serving of piping hot consommé on the side. "I'm not even a burrito person, but that flavor is scrumptious," he noted, giving it an 8.5/10. The burrito plate with mulitas and tacos earned a 9.5/10. And the chicken quesadilla dunked in consommé scored a 9/10 from Lee, who added, "The char on that chicken ... damn."
Sadly, the churros were sold out at the time, so we're left to guess that they must be equally tasty — and that everyone had scooped them up before Lee could snag his own. Of course, now that Papi Tacos & Churros got the Keith Lee seal of approval, there's no way we're ever getting a churro before they sell out.
(424) 238-5029
313 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, California 90401
Wi Jammin Caribbean Cafe
Making a quick pit-stop in the Mid-Wilshire area of Los Angeles, Keith Lee and his wife Ronni Lee tasted the Jamaican island specialties from Wi Jammin Caribbean Cafe after getting their shop on at Tyler, the Creator's streetwear outpost Golf Wang. The couple were in town for the Camp Flog Gnaw Carnival (Tyler, the Creator's music festival), on the grounds of Dodger Stadium. As far as the meal was concerned, once Lee got past the extremely sweet French toast that came with the fried chicken tenders, it was game on for maximum succulentity. (It's a word now.)
The jerk chicken and rice bowl rendered Lee speechless (albeit temporarily), before he called it "fire," and ranked it a 9.2/10. He then described it as, "Extremely hot. Extremely hot. I didn't expect to get that hot. Extremely hot." For her part, his wife Ronni says she would have eaten the whole bowl.
While Lee didn't say for sure, we're guessing the French toast he sampled was coated in Wi Jammin's signature cereal crunch. And since the dish is also made with Hawaiian bread, which is typically on the sweeter side by itself, that's probably the reason he noted, "It's way too sweet for me."
Wi Jammin Caribbean Cafe
(323) 417-8615
1359 S Redondo Blvd., Los Angeles, California 90019
Burgers Never Say Die
You could argue that Keith Lee only visited Burgers Never Say Die because he ruined his previous favorite, Easy Street Burgers, by making the place so popular that the line was out the door when he tried to pop in. So, as an alternative, he hit up Burgers Never Say Die in Silver Lake. While option #2 didn't take the Keith Lee burger championship title, it came in as a ridiculously close second.
Thin, crispy smash burger patties strike again as the star component of the regular burger from Burgers Never Say Die. After one bite, Lee was already tripping down memory lane, explaining, "This reminds me of, like, what McDonald's burgers used to taste like as a kid ... It's nostalgic. It's salty, it's cheesy, it's crispy. This is a really good burger." Celebrating the beauty of humble tomatoes, pickles, mustard, ketchup, and cheese, he gave it a 9.2/10. The triple patty burger (just like the original, but with three smash patties) got a 9.4/10, even though Lee thought it could have used some bacon to send it over the top.
Fries wise, the spuds were comin' in hot and salty. Lee said, "It's that kind of salty where you keep eating them. I would get something to drink with these ... I feel like I'm eating a lot of these." A self-described fan of savory flavors over sweet ones, Lee awarded the French fries a nice 'n' crispy 9/10.
(323) 922-6161
2388 Glendale Blvd., Unit A, Los Angeles, California 90039