Best pasta in LA?

Uovo, Marina del Rey - the kind of place that makes you forget you’re in LA.

Tucked right beside the yacht-filled marina, Uovo doesn’t just serve Italian food — it offers a fleeting illusion that you’ve somehow slipped into a small coastal town in Italy. The ocean breeze, the soft clink of cutlery, and the occasional Italian spoken by the host — everything here seems lovingly out of place in the best way possible.

You can’t reserve a table here. Instead, you arrive, put your name down, and wait. Somehow, even the wait feels like part of the experience — a reminder to slow down, take in the boats, the light, the mood.

Though Uovo has several locations across Los Angeles, this one is our favorite. There’s something about it — maybe it’s the way the heavy wooden tables feel worn in all the right places. They’re made of real, dense wood — rare for LA — with soft dips in the grain where plates have lived their lives. It feels like history, like comfort, like you're somewhere far from city noise.

Though Uovo has several locations across Los Angeles, this one in Marina Del Rey is our favorite.

When you walk in, you’re greeted by a host who, I’m convinced, might also be the owner. He speaks Italian with ease and warmth, switching to it whenever he hears the familiar music of the language from guests. It's a small detail, but it sets the tone: slow, human, genuine.

The atmosphere is unhurried. Even though service is quick and professional, it never feels rushed. There’s a softness in the air — a European slowness that invites you to breathe.

As for the food — where do I begin?

Start with the Battuta di carne

It’s made with hand-chopped raw beef, touched with olive oil, lemon juice, cracked black pepper, and finished with shaved Parmigiano. There’s no egg yolk. No toast. And yet - it’s complete. It’s probably the freshest beef I’ve ever tasted. The kind of dish that makes you pause. Nothing feels missing, and everything is in balance. Somehow, if you added even a crumb of bread, it would feel like a distraction.

But the real masterpiece? The Ragù pasta

Ragu pasta - the dish that haunted me for a year. After tasting it, I became obsessed. I cooked. I studied. I enrolled in a culinary course where I learned to make a traditional ragù - and still, Uovo version stayed unmatched. Their ragù isn’t weighed down by tomatoes or overcooked vegetables. Instead, it tastes like they took everything unnecessary out and left only the essence: deep, savory meat, cooked slow until flavor concentrates into poetry.

You know a dish is special when a toddler defends it with his life.

Other favorites include the Ravioli di Carne, and Ravioli di Ricotta, and the fried Broccolini, which brings a gentle char and bitter green freshness that balances the richness of the mains.

And dessert? Tiramisù.

It comes in a glass - no perfect layers, no fancy garnish. Just spoonfuls of pure magic. Somehow lighter than expected, with familiar ingredients that taste completely new. It's inspired by Felice e Testaccio in Rome - and somehow, this version in Marina del Rey just… hits different.

But what truly sets Uovo apart are the details.

When I talk about restaurants I love, I look for the smallest signs - the quiet clues that tell you how much the people behind the place respect their guests.

At Uovo, you’ll find two kinds of soap in the restroom: One scentless — meant to be used before your meal, so it doesn’t interfere with the delicate aromas of sauces, pasta, wine. And one lightly perfumed — after your meal, a fragrant exhale that wraps up the experience, the way a final note closes a song.

That’s what Uovo is - a symphony for the senses.

Touch: the worn wooden tables, the cool weight of a dessert glass. Smell: the ocean breeze, the Parmigiano, the ragù. Taste: deep, bold, slow flavors. Sight: chefs at the open kitchen stirring, draining, finishing pastas in warm bowls, perfectly timed. Sound: clinking pans, waves, birds, the hum of conversations in Italian, English, Spanish, Hindi.

This is more than a meal. It’s a feeling. And it stays with you long after you’ve left your table by the sea.

Been to Uovo? Tell us your favorite dish. Haven’t been yet? You need to go. Try the ragù. Then come back and tell us everything.