“New, good restaurants in L.A. are few and far between,” the Los Feliz-based jewelry designer Sophie Buhai told me on a recent summer evening as we walked into Stir Crazy. Buhai, it soon became clear, was not alone in singling out the intimate wine bar, which co-owners Mackenzie Hoffman, Macklin Casnof, and Harley Wertheimer quietly opened on Melrose in May 2023; nearby, similarly discerning Angelenos—Grammy-winning producer Emile Haynie; Yola Mezcal founder Gina Correll Aglietti—were also delighting in the plates of chili-laced melon, romesco-roasted zucchini, and cherry blossom-topped crudo (paired, perhaps, with an off-menu bottle of Marioni rosé) that flowed from the open-format stainless steel kitchen. Which is all to say: with its casual, European cafe-esque ambience and refreshingly light, farmer’s market-driven fare, Stir Crazy’s arrival was well worth the wait. —Zoe Ruffner

Zoe Ruffner is the Editor of AIR SUPPLY, AIR MAIL’s online shop