In 2021, Juneteenth became a federal holiday, commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans in the United States: June 19 marks the date news reached enslaved Black Americans in Galveston, Texas, two years after President Abraham Lincoln
signed the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation, an executive order declaring that all enslaved people in the rebelling Confederate states “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”
When I think about Juneteenth in 2026, my sights always go to the achievements of Black Los Angeles residents and restaurants. I grew up in Northeast Los Angeles and am a lifelong city wanderer, especially when dining out. Owning a restaurant remains the ultimate challenge with a failure rate that tops most industries, so when a beloved spot like Inglewood’s the Serving Spoon, which opened in 1982, received the James Beard Foundation’s 2026 America’s Classics award, it makes me beam. The restaurants that stand out to me have built a supportive anchor for their surrounding community through their food and service.
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Throughout the history of Los Angeles, Black-owned restaurants have kept Angelenos fed and satisfied, welcoming guests into dining rooms that emanate warmth and inclusion. You can see this in action at the Serving Spoon, which has waffles, grits, and fried catfish, as well as servers who remind me of family, neighbors, or friends. This feeling also persists at the 42-year-old Simply Wholesome, where visitors can hop into the health food section, but not before finishing a mango-jalapeño salmon platter washed down with ginger lemonade.
Though Woody Phillips, Los Angeles’s patriarch of Southern barbecue, died in 2020, Woody’s Bar-B-Que still operates three Southland locations. Just look for the white smoke signals flowing from each building, and a blackened hot link sausage or meaty rib tips will be in your future. I’ve been taking my mother to the family-owned Harold & Belle’s for many years because she loves the seafood gumbo. The Jefferson Park restaurant opened in 1969, where Creole and Cajun specialties are served in a charming dining room.
Slightly north in Mid-City sits the compelling Stevie’s Creole Cafe. Stevie’s roux remains phenomenal; the gumbo comes packed with Andouille sausage, chicken, and crab. Go with a group and cover the table with gumbo, étouffée, blackened red snapper, or fried chicken. I always end up at Dulan’s Soul Food Kitchen on Manchester when visiting a friend who lives close by — it’s a good idea to stop here before heading to SoFi Stadium for provisions before a game or concert. All three locations are owned by the Dulan brothers, a family name that’s been in operation since the 1990s.
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I will always give the oldest restaurants as much love as possible for their indelible mark on Los Angeles. Every time I pick up a pie from 27th Street Bakery, I marvel at how owners (and sisters) Denise Cravin-Paschal and Jeanette Bolden-Pickens and her husband, Al Pickens, managed to become the West Coast’s largest manufacturer of sweet potato pies. Grab a whole pie or a slice from this 70-year-old bakery and prepare to impress friends and family. For the savory side, Hawkins House of Burgers opened in 1939. This community gathering place has seen ample change throughout the years, from gentrification to the Los Angeles Uprising in 1992, the 1984 Olympics, and the Watts Riots. I have never attempted the Leaning Tower of Watts burger with three half-pound patties, eggs, chili, bacon, pastrami, and a hot link, but I might one day when feeling adventurous.
Juneteenth events are happening throughout the region, like LACMA’s Juneteenth quilt patch exhibit and a weekend full of events at the California African American Museum. In sunny Palm Springs, the Palm Springs Surf Club will turn into the Ebony Beach Club for Juneteenth. Of course, dining out at longstanding Black-owned restaurants and others around the Southland is another way to celebrate the holiday and the resilience of the Black community — and any day, for that matter.
More for the table:
- As summer approaches, it’s time to start thinking about barbecue. Back in 2021, my team produced a killer package that talks about meat over fire that’s worth revisiting. There have been hints that Ribtown is making a return, something the owner alluded to earlier this year.
- I always stop at Sky’s Gourmet Tacos when stuck in traffic, but it’s worth visiting any time for her buttery lobster taco.
- In case you missed it last week, the region’s Caribbean scene has expanded in the best ways. Tucked inside the story are other longstanding Black-owned restaurants, including Coley’s Original and Tracey’s Belizean.
