"Located inside DTLA’s Freehand Hotel, The Exchange wants you to know that she’s not like the other hotel restaurants. This corner diner has tall wooden ceilings with dangling plants, making it feel like someone’s private reading nook rather than a place in the middle of downtown. The menu is also super diverse, with most dishes having an Israeli spin to them to provide somewhat of a common theme. You’ll still find tons of non-Israeli dishes, like ceviche, a chicken banh mi, and a loaded breakfast burrito with chorizo next to salatim options and a Jerusalem bagel with za’atar-dusted soft scrambled eggs. Their spicy shakshuka divorciados is another example of the fusion on display here, which pays homage to LA’s Mexican and Middle Eastern communities. This baked egg dish comes with split sections of green and red salsa, each with a perfectly poached egg and a generous feta crumble. This non-traditional shakshuka still packs a healthy kick, but with the tangier flavors of tomatillo, chilis, and cilantro scattered throughout. Enjoy it with warm corn tortillas and their excellent za’atar flatbread because life’s too short to pick one over the other." - sylvio martins
