Kuya Lord

Kuya Lord
Interactive map of Kuya Lord
Restaurant information
Established2022
OwnerLord Maynard Llera
Food typeFilipino
Dress codeCasual
Location5003 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, California, United States
Coordinates34°5′0.67″N 118°18′34.2″W / 34.0835194°N 118.309500°W / 34.0835194; -118.309500
Websitewww.kuyalord.com

Kuya Lord is a restaurant in Los Angeles, California specializing in Filipino cuisine. Opened in 2022, it is located at 5003 Melrose Avenue in the southeast corner of Hollywood, close to the intersection with Western Avenue and the border with the adjacent Melrose Hill, Larchmont and Wilshire Center neighborhoods.

History

Kuya Lord first began as a pop-up restaurant in 2020, operating from the home kitchen of local chef Lord Maynard Llera in La Cañada Flintridge during the COVID-19 pandemic. Llera initially operated the pop-up on weekends as a research and development project for a future permanent restaurant, in planning for over 20 years and which he hoped to open once the pandemic, which had severely affected the restaurant industry, subsided.

In May 2022, Llera announced that he had secured a space along Melrose Avenue to open his restaurant, sharing a building with other restaurants where the landlord was keen to expand the local community's access to varied dining options. Kuya Lord then opened the following month.

Two years later, Llera was awarded a James Beard Foundation Award for his restaurant, being named best chef in California in the award's 2024 edition.

Location and concept

A plate of lucenachon, Kuya Lord's signature dish

Kuya Lord occupies a small space, initially with a seating capacity of 18 persons, but since expanded to 28. Diners eating at the restaurant sit on repurposed wooden tables best suited for communal meals. The restaurant also employs an open kitchen concept where diners can see their meals being prepared in the open, while a corner hosts various restaurant merchandise and condiments like chili crisp available for purchase.

The restaurant's menu is inspired by Llera's upbringing in Lucena, Quezon, reinterpreting and enhancing his favorite dishes using classic cooking techniques. Various rice bowls dominate the restaurant's offerings, although Kuya Lord also serves sharing trays which includes dishes such as pancit and chicken inasal. Llera's take on lechon and porchetta, called the lucenachon, is the restaurant's signature dish.

Awards and accolades

Since its opening, Kuya Lord has been included in various best restaurant lists. The Infatuation included Kuya Lord in its list of best new restaurants in Los Angeles for 2022, while Bon Appétit named it in 2023 as one of its 24 best new restaurants in the United States. The Los Angeles Times, meanwhile, has included the restaurant in its list of the 101 best restaurants in Los Angeles in 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025. In 2025, Time Out Los Angeles also named Kuya Lord as the city's best Filipino restaurant, being the only one listed to receive five stars, and in 2026 the singer H.E.R., who is of Filipino descent, named Kuya Lord as her favorite Filipino restaurant in Los Angeles.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Meet Lord Maynard Llera of Kuya Lord in La Canada Flintridge". VoyageLA. August 19, 2020. Archived from the original on September 20, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  2. 1 2 Addison, Bill (February 3, 2021). "Kuya Lord's Filipino feast is food of power, finesse and delight". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on April 25, 2021. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Elliott, Farley (May 6, 2022). "Underground Filipino Hit Kuya Lord Brings Lechon and Pancit to Melrose". Eater Los Angeles. Archived from the original on July 25, 2025. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 Elliott, Farley (June 9, 2022). "LA's Hottest New Filipino Restaurant Fries Up Pounds of Pork Belly on Melrose". Eater Los Angeles. Archived from the original on September 20, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  5. ↑ Baes, Patricia (June 11, 2024). "Filipino-American Chef Lord Maynard Llera Bags James Beard Best Chef Award 2024". Spot.PH. Summit Media. Archived from the original on June 13, 2024. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 Addison, Bill (October 27, 2022). "Kuya Lord brings a bright new era of modern Filipino cooking to Hollywood". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on September 21, 2026. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
  7. ↑ Arnaldo, Steph (June 14, 2024). "How Filipino-American chef Lord Maynard Llera won James Beard 'Best Chef' award". Rappler. Archived from the original on September 20, 2026. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
  8. ↑ Cox, Brant; Duren, Nikko; Martins, Sylvio; Snyder, Garrett (December 7, 2022). "LA's Best New Restaurants Of 2022". The Infatuation. Archived from the original on September 27, 2026. Retrieved September 19, 2026.
  9. ↑ Sontag, Elazar. "The 24 Best New Restaurants of 2023". Bon Appétit. Archived from the original on September 10, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  10. ↑ "L.A. Times Celebrates 101 Best Restaurants of 2022 with Launch Party on Dec. 6". November 15, 2022. Archived from the original on September 20, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  11. ↑ Addison, Bill (December 5, 2023). "These are the 101 best restaurants in Los Angeles of 2023". Archived from the original on September 20, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  12. ↑ Addison, Bill; Harris, Jenn (March 17, 2025). "20 stellar lunch spots from the 2024 101 Best Restaurants guide". Archived from the original on September 10, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  13. ↑ Addison, Bill; Harris, Jenn (May 6, 2026). "20 Asian-owned restaurants from the 101 Best Restaurants list". Archived from the original on August 29, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  14. ↑ Yeo, Patricia Kelly (July 12, 2025). "The best Filipino restaurants in Los Angeles". Time Out Los Angeles. Archived from the original on September 20, 2026. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  15. ↑ Henderson, Taylor (May 30, 2026). "H.E.R. named this Melrose Avenue spot as her favorite Filipino restaurant in L.A. — and it's about to launch a communal summer series". Secret Los Angeles. Archived from the original on September 20, 2026. Retrieved September 17, 2026.