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The Ultimate List Of 'Bang For Your Buck' Los Angeles Restaurants
Kogi has the distinction of being both really cheap and really delicious (Photo by Christine via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
Somewhere between dirt cheap eats and once-in-a splurging there's a sweet spot where the quality and quantity of the food match the amount of money you're spending. It's the place where $2.50 gets you life-changing dumplings but also where an $80 prix fixe meal offers you a spread of food from one of the best chefs in town. That's where you get the most bang for your buck, so to speak, or where you're getting the most for your money.
To find this sweet spot, we came up with a mash-up of lists with the best eats and the best cheap eats around town, while taking into account the price of an average meal. Here's how map-making whiz Steven Melendez came up with the rankings:
One point each was awarded for:
- Zagat 2014 food score (a maximum of 30) divided by 15
- Jonathan Gold's list from 2013 and 2014
- Los Angeles Times 10 Places To Eat For Under $10
- Eater LA's 38 Essential Los Angeles Restaurants
- LA Weekly's Best of 2013
- LA Weekly's 99 Essential Restaurants for 2014 and 2013
- Time Out Los Angeles' Best Restaurants and Best bang-for-your-buck meals for $20 or less
- The Thrillist 47
- Los Angeles Magazine's 10 Best New Restaurants for 2013 and 2012
- LAist's 10 Best Bites of 2013 and The Best Cheap Eats
- KCET's 14 Greatest Cheap Eats in Los Angeles
- Food & Wine's Best Los Angeles Restaurants
- Daily Candy's Best Restaurants in Los Angeles
The resulting number was then divided by the cost of an average meal and drink, either as listed in Zagat or as computed from the restaurant's online menu.
Below, LAist's roundup of where to get the most bang for your buck and why you should be eating there.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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