Nancy Silverton Backs Koreatown Pasta Bar Blending Italian Technique With Korean Flavors

A 37-seat Italian-Korean pasta bar opened on Feb. 3 at the corner of 6th and Western in Koreatown, led by husband-and-wife culinary directors McKenna Lelah and Matthew Kim. The restaurant is called Lapaba, a portmanteau of "La Pasta Bar," and it arrived with a partner list that immediately raised the stakes: Lelah and Matthew "Matt" Kim were enlisted by investors Tanya and Joe Bastianich, Nancy Silverton, and Robert Kim, who also operates Lapaba neighbors Norikaya, Mama Lion, and All'Antico Vinaio.

The concept is the brainchild of owner Robert Kim, who was inspired by Korean café culture and Italian pasta bars. Kim had help from the "Queen of Pasta" Nancy Silverton, of Michelin-starred Osteria Mozza and Pizzeria Mozza fame, who worked as a consultant on the project. Kim secured the location in 2021 and oversaw the transformation of a long-abandoned building. George Kelly, founder of Kelly Architects, began working on the project with Robert Kim in 2021, following his first visit to the abandoned historic building.

Lelah and Matt Kim first met in 2014 while working at Osteria Mozza under chef Nancy Silverton, and that experience continues to shape their approach as they draw on Italian foundations while incorporating Korean flavors. They went on to work both separately and together with chefs like Grant Achatz at Next and Dave Beran at Dialogue and Pasjoli, and Lapaba is their first concept created together.

The menu is where the philosophy gets tested. While developing the Lapaba menu, Lelah and Matt were intent on developing "very regionally Italian focused" pasta dishes, and the addition of Korean ingredients had to make sense and be intentional. "We weren't just like, 'Oh, let's just put gochujang in this and then it'll be Korean," Lelah explains. "Korean food has an inherent sweetness to it, and that does not play well with Italian pasta." The original ratios of soy sauce and gochujang for flavoring and red wine for the beef braise proved to be too sweet; the next try had too much tomato. "It was just constant refinement until we found a happy medium," Matt says.

The results land convincingly. Each night, the kitchen sends out at least 50 plates of deep-fried supplì, crisp risotto balls stuffed with molten mozzarella and cubes of Spam, and that opening salvo sets the tone for everything that follows. The menu showcases the power of traditional Italian dishes invigorated by Korean ingredients, with flavor bombs like bulgogi meatballs with milk bread and truffle tomato sauce, and orecchiette and fennel pork sausage with Bloomsdale spinach and gochugaru. Cappelletti in galbi brodo with mandu filling, campanella with a fusion of basil and perilla pesto, bucatini with jjajang, and tonnarelli featuring clams, garlic, and braised kombu round out a pasta list that keeps one foot firmly in Italy. Diners can also elevate dishes with an Orra caviar supplement of sustainably sourced Siberian sturgeon.

There is also the fried chicken, made with Calabrian chili and paired with yuzu ranch and diced kohlrabi. Lelah's goal for that dish is candid: "At the end of the day, the food, it has to be craveable," she says. To finish, opt for the black truffle soft serve or a line-up of soju-matcha cocktails, options that demonstrate Lapaba's irreverent blend of precision and playfulness.

Inside, a curved stone bar leads toward a semi-open kitchen where diners can watch chefs fold, fry, and twirl fresh pasta in real time, with fresh pasta produced on-site in a dedicated pasta room. The couple lives in Koreatown, so Lelah said they are working hard to create a concept that really speaks to LA, a mecca for both Italian and Korean food.

Lapaba was listed among the newcomers at LA Magazine's Best New Restaurants 2026 celebration, a night of bites and immersive dining at The Sun Rose West Hollywood on February 23. Lapaba is located at 558 S. Western Ave. in Los Angeles, open Wednesday through Saturday from 5 to 9:30 p.m. and Sunday from 5 to 9 p.m.