Lunch in Los Angeles can be as simple as tacos eaten on the hood of your car, or as elaborate as a 14-course omakase at a celebrated sushi bar. “Let’s do lunch” is an invitation to explore the city’s diverse culinary landscape, regardless of the length of your lunch break.

These 20 recommendations were drawn from the most recent guide to the 101 Best Restaurants in Los Angeles, written by me and restaurant critic Bill Addison. Whether you’re ducking in for a quick bite or looking for somewhere to linger over a meeting, there’s something to fit nearly every occasion.

You’ll find a French restaurant in Hollywood with first-rate pastries alongside one of the city’s most decadent burgers, a full spread of vegetarian dishes in Koreatown, Laos crispy rice salads in Orange County and fried chicken, macaroni and cheese and collard greens from one of the country’s premier soul food destinations. — Jenn Harris