los angeles

It’s all too easy to overlook the grilled cheese sandwich when ordering at a restaurant. It can feel like something that is best reserved for picky eaters and the kids menu. But a great version is so much more than bread sealed together with a generous layer of cheese — everything must work harmoniously together. When something is this simple in construction, each ingredient really matters, from the type of bread to the selection of cheese to any additional toppings.

Luckily, restaurants around Los Angeles are taking the grilled cheese seriously, whether leaning into nostalgic versions with American cheese and sourdough bread or experimenting with unexpected ingredients like spicy labneh and caramelized onions. The results are delicious and comforting. Here are nine of the best grilled cheese sandwiches to try in L.A.:

Los Angeles didn’t get many April showers, but May flowers are blooming just the same, leaving a lingering scent of jasmine as the star-shaped flower blossoms across the city. Jacaranda trees will soon follow suit, turning the skyline of entire neighborhoods lavender as spring stretches into summer.

Marine layer aside, this season invites us to get outside and make the most of living in L.A. The Metro will soon open the expansion of its D Line, making it convenient to peruse Museum Row, the Grove and bars and restaurants along Fairfax and in Beverly Hills without a car. Local farmers markets are more abundant than ever, with rainbow assortments of stone fruits and tomatoes.

And there are plenty of patios and rooftops for enjoying sunny evenings and taking in city views. Keep reading if you need dining inspiration this month, like exploring a new hand roll counter in downtown L.A., a buzzy Larchmont diner that lives up to the hype and a pan-African destination for customizable “slop bowls” in Gardena.

When Juan Antonio moved to Los Angeles from his hometown of Puebla, the capital city of the Mexican state by the same name, he got straight to work doing what he knew best: baking cemita bread.

Antonio started baking at a panadería in Lincoln Heights in about 1996, churning out dozens of fresh cemitas daily and selling them door to door. At the time, there were few places selling the bread, and the community recognized him as “el cemitero.”

The cemita sandwich is a staple in Puebla, a gastronomically rich region in East-Central Mexico with Indigenous, Spanish and Middle Eastern roots. Alongside cemitas, Puebla is known for traditional dishes such as mole poblano (the sauce complex with chocolate and chiles), chiles en nogada (stuffed Poblano chiles drenched in a walnut cream sauce) and tacos arabe (tacos with spit-roasted pork, wrapped in pita bread).

Cemita bread, speckled with sesame seeds and crisp on the outside with a soft, fluffy interior, is believed to have originated in 16th century Puebla, brought to Mexico by Spanish conquistadors and later developed with French baking techniques.

Due to its long preservation period, the bread was commonly found on ships with long voyages, and some believe it was offered as a tribute to the Spanish crown.

The sandwich started with simple fillings like beans and cheese and gradually became more layered over time. Now, cemita sandwiches typically consist of the titular, toasted sesame seed bread; a heap of stringy, salty Oaxacan cheese; avocado; jalapeño or chipotle peppers; pápalo, an herb with a cilantro-minty taste; and some choice of meat, with milanesa — a breaded chicken or steak cutlet — being the most popular options.

Cemitas, often wrapped in crinkly yellow paper and eaten on the go, have grown a steady presence in L.A. since Antonio first started selling them in East L.A. almost 30 years ago. Today, he continues to bake cemitas at El Cemitero Poblano, his family restaurant in Boyle Heights, and is joined by food trucks, street vendors and other sit-down restaurants offering traditional and creative takes on the iconic Poblano dish that’s usually priced between $10 and $20.

In Puebla, thousands gather for the annual Festival de la Cemita Poblana, a celebration that takes place around Cinco de Mayo and features dozens of cemita vendors.

Though commonly misunderstood as Mexico’s Independence Day, Cinco de Mayo is a holiday with special significance to Puebla, as it recognizes the Mexican army’s victory over France at the historic Battle of Puebla in 1862. In L.A., the holiday is often celebrated with mariachi bands, free-flowing margaritas and tacos, but if you’re looking for ways to tie in Poblano traditions, consider stopping by one of L.A.’s top spots for cemitas, from classic East L.A. stands to places in La Puente, Mid-City and Van Nuys.

Kosha is a boutique spa in Sherman Oaks offering skincare and massages. One of its signature offerings is the “buccal facial,” which is actually more of a face and jaw area massage as opposed to a facial involving exfoliating, steaming and pore extraction.

The 55-minute treatment promises to improve circulation and relax muscles, helping to plump the skin while lifting and firming, “giving it a more contoured appearance,” Kosha owner Anastasia Talan told me.

It starts with a short grounding meditation before a cleansing of the skin and a light scalp massage. It then transitions into a wonderfully relaxing neck, shoulder and face massage, with an emphasis on the face. (The actual “buccal massage” part comes later.) Talan said the overall treatment blends multiple types of massage, including European “contouring and lifting massage,” lymphatic drainage, acupressure and myofascial release as well as light stretching.

As she worked on my face, Talan applied pressure while stroking under my cheek bones, along my sinuses and up, down and around my cheeks and jaw area.

The “buccal massage” portion was about 15 minutes. It’s also called “intraoral massage” because it takes place inside of the mouth. Talan donned blue plastic gloves and then pulled my lips apart, massaging the inside of my cheeks, lips and around my jawbone and temporomandibular joint. Relieving tension there is helpful in aiding TMJ and other temporomandibular joint disorders. Another benefit, says Talan: clenching the jaw, a stress reaction, can enlarge the masseter muscles on the jaw, leading to the lower part of the face looking heavy. Relaxing those muscles could preserve slimness of the face.

But go for the sheer relaxation of it. Once the (admittedly awkward) intraoral massage part was over, Talan spent a few more minutes massaging the outside of my face and neck. The treatment was so dreamy, I nearly drooled while fighting off sleep.

Treatment name: The Buccal Facial

Price: 55 minutes, $195