The 38 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles | Eater LA
"While the San Gabriel Valley has plenty of impressive Chinese restaurants specializing in everything from Sichuan cuisine to Cantonese classics, Bistro Na’s is in a category all its own. At the restaurant, chef Tian Yong prepares imperial Manchu cuisine rooted in the Qing dynasty’s (1644 to 1912) royal courts alongside what is probably one of the best Beijing (also referred to as Peking) ducks in the U.S. The Peking duck, which requires advanced reservation weeks to months in advance, is brought out whole before being carved to emphasize golden crispy pieces of skin meant to be dunked in granulated sugar and sauce, or wrapped in paper-thin pancakes. The rest of the menu is equally impressive, like Na’s Angus rib, which is served on the bone, and the Shaoxing wine-seasoned drunken chicken. While dessert may not be the first thing that comes to mind in most Chinese restaurants, Bistro Na’s gives as much attention to sweets as it does to the savory side of its menu. End the meal with a sweet fried rice cake or the lucky koi milk pudding served in the shape of a koi fish. It’s easy to forget the restaurant is part of a Temple City shopping center thanks to tall interior ceilings, intricate wood decorations, and framed instruments on the wall. While Los Angeles’s upscale Chinese scene has grown since Bistro Na’s opened, the restaurant still holds its throne as one of the city’s most distinctive dining destinations. — Rebecca Roland, editor, Eater Southern California/Southwest Know before you go: Call to reserve a duck if planning to order one, since it can sell out weeks to months in advance. If there’s no parking on the surface level, head to the back of the shopping center to find more spots underground." - Mona Holmes
