A Los Angeles Mini Mall Is Home To A Must-Visit Hidden Gem For Italian Food

Los Angeles is full of incredible Italian restaurants, from high-end, buzzy spots that are impossible to get a reservation at to small, mom-and-pop delis and trattorias that welcome you with smiling faces. Like many amazing spots in the City of Angels, there are plenty of great restaurants that are discreetly tucked into strip malls that are ubiquitous in the urban sprawl. Included in those beloved strip mall neighborhood joints is a hidden gem located in the Los Feliz neighborhood (but despite its Spanish name, we Angelenos pronounce the name as los "FEE-lis", and no, we will not explain ourselves). 

La Pergoletta is a charming, rustic Italian trattoria complete with red checkered tablecloths, chalkboard menus, and a wild assortment of framed paintings and antique-looking knick-knacks on the walls. The menu is filled with all the Italian classic dishes you might expect to see, like an antipasto misto platter, caprese salad, and lasagna, but they also have a section dedicated to tagliata, sliced Italian beef or chicken breast served with pasta or arugula, with a few options for sauces and flavorings. In addition to the tagliata, the menu has a large array of mix and match fresh handmade pasta and sauces available, allowing diners a choose-your-own-adventure experience that has something for everyone, including vegetarians. 

In keeping with a neighborhood-friendly ethos, the restaurant offers lunch specials, along with desserts like tiramisu, cannoli, and, for a caffeinated treat, the trattoria serves the beloved affogato, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream drowning in a freshly pulled shot of Lavazza espresso. Most casual date nights or friendly group dinners aren't complete without a bottle of wine to share. La Pergoletta offers a selection of wine in addition to Italian and Mexican beers and sodas (this is still Los Angeles, where we love our Mexican Cokes), and the restaurant often uses the empty wine bottles as holders for tapered candles on the tables, adding to the old-school ambiance.

Located in a corner lot strip mall on popular Hillhurst Avenue, La Pergoletta is sandwiched between a Thai restaurant and a dimly lit, cash-only dive bar, making it quintessentially Los Angeles. Compared to many other Italian spots in the city, it still manages to fly slightly under the radar, especially considering the restaurant's reasonable prices in a very popular neighborhood. Surprisingly, the restaurant's origins stem back to an island off of southern Brazil in 1987, where Elia Seganti opened the original La Pergoletta with his brother Paolo, and now the brothers and their families still run the Los Feliz location to this day. If you're visiting Los Angeles, check out the rest of our best hidden-gem Italian restaurants in Los Angeles, most of which are likely tucked into a nondescript strip mall.