Restaurants in El Monte

As sandy hardwood floors and a tropical mural conjure visions of sun-kissed shores, Kingston Café’s dining room fills with the spice-laden aroma of their kitchen’s colorful Jamaican dishes. Emerald fronds ring an airy space where Jamaica's national fruit, ackee, tempers the briny flavors of salted fish and house-made sangria or wine gurgles into glasses. Curry goat or jerk shrimp arrive with an entourage of toasted-coconut rice and plantains, played to their tables during weekly Saturday concerts featuring Caribbean Passion's reggae melodies or animatronic representations of famous steel-drum players.

Craig Gandolph entered the deli business on Long Island, making the sandwiches he’d always eaten growing up in New York. When love floated him to Salt Lake City, he missed the flavor of his hometown. So he opened the first Gandolfo’s New York Delicatessen and named his sandwiches after the Big Apple locales that he missed. Today, his little sandwich shop has grown to encompass dozens of franchises across the States, slinging sandwiches from both brick-and-mortar joints and gridlocked food trucks.

At the Pasadena location, a bold palette of red and black stretches from floor to ceiling. A strip of crimson marks the sandwich bar, where bread stackers display their handiwork. A flat-screen television flickers overhead, entertaining diners tired of starting conversations with brick walls.

While meandering the winding streets and hidden walkways of Paris in 1990, Mike Farwell stumbled across a small bar near the Louvre named Willi's Wine Bar and became enamored with its menu of seasonally inspired cuisine and thoughtful wine pairings. After years working with wine at restaurants and wine bars, he decided to import the concept, teaming up with chef Claud Beltran during their shared stint at Madeleine's Restaurant to create Noir Food & Wine. Farwell draws on his wine knowledge and Beltran on his culinary expertise to craft menus that work together beautifully, much like a straight-laced police officer and a loveable canine in witness protection. Farwell's constantly updating wine list features a stunning 600 bottles—of which nearly 150 are California pinot noir—43 different wine flights, and more than 50 vintages poured by the glass.

Beltran adds a Cajun twist to the Mediterranean-inspired cuisine to complement Farwell's wine selections, earning him praise from the Los Angeles Times in 2009 for "turning out some of the best cooking of his career." The menu features a rotating selection of seasonal dishes such as seared Hudson Valley foie gras with rosemary apricots and white-pepper honey as well as a selection of charcuterie and artisan cheese. The restaurant earned a "very good" to "excellent" Zagat rating for food quality and service as well as a place on its Best New Restaurant in LA survey.

A natural rock fountain quietly bubbles its wine suggestions to patrons as they clink their glasses together on the spacious outdoor patio. The cozier main dining area features rows of dark-wood tables covered in crisp, white cloths and a series of posters from Willi's Wine Bar on the chocolate-hued walls. Each Monday, the wine bar fills with enophiles for events including wine classes, winemaker dinners, and live entertainment.

Big Daddy's Fire Grill's cooks whip up cookout-quality burgers in a fast-food setting, and have earned praise from the Pasadena Sun for its homey flavors and remarkable value. This acclaim didn't surprise owner Dennis Constanzo, who told Pasadena Weekly, “my mission is to serve gourmet fast food at the most reasonable price in town.” To set his burger joint apart, the cooks sear each Angus chuck patty on a grill heated by smoldering oak wood and NASA's retired shuttle engines. They also make aioli and ketchup in-house and sizzle every batch of fries and tempura-style onion rings in molten peanut oil, which is free of MSG, preservatives, hydrogenated oil, and cholesterol. Behind the counter, taps dispense domestic and imported beers by the pint or the pitcher.

At Scarlet Tea Room and Fine Dining, the tea services represent both a treasured English tradition and a modern form of celebration. Here, groups gather beneath a chandelier flecked with vibrant red accents to indulge in five-course meals. Their loose-leaf steeped beverages—which range from a sweet and lemony French verveine to a smoky Chinese lapsang souchong—complement a selection of bite-size desserts and light sandwiches stuffed with savory fillings such as prosciutto, aged white cheddar, and sun-dried-tomato spread. The afternoon tea service also includes housemade scones and berries romanoff, a fruity dessert served in a dark-chocolate cup.

On Friday and Saturday evenings, the award-winning kitchen staff prepares small plates of shareable dinner fare such as grilled skirt steak with marinated mushrooms, sautéed gnocchi with walnut-arugula pesto, and Fijian kingfish crudo with grapefruit and green papaya. To celebrate special occasions, such as Valentine's Day or Father's Day, diners can order specialty cakes for pickup or visit the dining room for a romantic concert or saucy burlesque performance by Queen Elizabeth.

Cheese and chutney. Bangers and mash. Shepherd's Pie. At the BYOB Little Britain, UK faves slake stateside cravings with hearty helpings of potato, steak, and curry. Though the lunch and dinner menus are occasionally dotted with decidedly non-British dishes, such as Cajun fish spread and caprese salad, the majority of plates feature classically executed English flavors.

If requested, melty cheddar cheese, known in England as "cheese," will top the clouds of mashed potatoes that crown a chuck-steak-and-gravy-filled shepherd's pie. Sardines and tomato sauce are layered onto thick brioche before the open-faced sandwich is slid under a broiler, and curry cloaks chicken, samosas, vegetables, and fries—known here, of course, as chips.