In our Dining Reports, we share a firsthand perspective of a recent restaurant visit, covering everything from the vibe to must-get dishes. See more in the Eater app.The diverse and expansive Persian/Iranian restaurant scene in Los Angeles comes as a direct result of political strife that emerged in Iran in the 1970s, fueled by American intervention that has come roaring back in recent weeks with a new regional war. In the decades since the Iranian Revolution, the Persian community has developed strong ties to Southern California areas like Glendale and Westwood.
In 2016, brother-and-sister duo Farbod and Farinaz Pirshirazi opened a casual restaurant, Chicken Chick, in Gardena, eventually expanding the menu with kebabs per customer wishes. In late 2019, they debuted Toranj in Westwood with a traditional approach to Persian cuisine, serving more blistered kebabs and homey stews in an upscale but slightly 1990s-coded dining room. They expanded Toranj to a modern-chic Manhattan Beach location in December 2025, and then opened something completely new with Perse in Brentwood in early February 2026. Occupying a sprawling third-floor space on San Vicente, Perse offers something not often seen in Southern California: refined Persian cuisine rooted in regional dishes.
Many immigrant-run restaurants in the U.S. adapt a set of dishes that cater to a Western palate; think bibimbap and japchae at Korean restaurants, ramen and sushi for Japanophiles, pupusas at Salvadoran restaurants, and Brazilian churrascarias. Iranian food spans centuries, even longer, with historic ties to the Levant, Mesopotamia, and Silk Road routes. The result, says Farinaz Pirshirazi, is a distinct cuisine that goes beyond the popular kebabs that tend to dominate Persian restaurant menus. Farinaz, who grew up in Iran and came stateside in the 2010s, has ventured across the country to taste regional flavors that highlight pomegranate-glazed steak pocked with chopped walnuts, smoked saffron tahdig studded with slivered almonds, and fish served with a Northern Iranian–style walnut-barberry sauce.
- Samosa cigars might feel lifted from an Indian menu, but the baked or fried (in this case, the latter) dish originated in Iran. Here, they’re filled with spiced potatoes and peppery serrano chiles and served with a tamarind-herb sauce. That punchy, tart elements of the sauce echo throughout the meal.
- Barbari bread baked on premises and shaped like phone-sized ovals is best scraped over cucumber yogurt or smeared with fluffy cultured butter.
- A whole smoked Japanese eggplant gained the heady aromas of garlic and herb oil, blistered and then sauced in contrasting colors.
- Tachin-e morgh comes plated like a golden brown aracini, shaped like a baseball, and filled with tender shredded chicken, eggplant, and barberry. Break it apart with a spoon and sop up some of the barberry jus underneath.
- The A5 Japanese wagyu kabab gets shaped into a skewer of cuboid chunks, a geometric marvel that interlaces chewy fat with melt-in-your-mouth beef. A heavily dressed herb salad and cooling yogurt add contrast.
- Chicken Chick’s “juicy chicken,” served also at Toranj, shines here as well, served on two metal skewers in three moist, generously seasoned chunks.
- Pan-seared sea bass topped with fresh herbs swims in a pool of yellow walnut-barberry sauce that hails from Northern Iran. Dotted with herb oil, it looks fancy enough for a Michelin-starred table.
- Tehranmisu, a pistachio-inflected play on the classic Italian dessert, acts as a decadent finish.
The vibe
Perse’s distinguishing feature is its sleek, minimalist aesthetic, punctuated by black-and-white photos and a striking bookshelf displaying Iranian memorabilia. A vibrant bar offers a place to sip on tangy Fall in Tehran, an Old Fashioned–like sipper with aged cognac or bourbon, pomegranate syrup, honeyed saffron, and bitters.
Insider tip
The banquettes can accommodate groups of six, so be sure to ask for those if you want to order enough food for a huge family. Skip the sour-marinated filet as it can come out a bit drier than expected. Prices here verge on fine dining; expect to pay around $75 or more a person before drinks, tax, and tip.
The takeaway
The Persian community has been gathering in light of the recent events in Iran, and Perse is one of those venues, though its place in Brentwood makes it a more white tablecloth situation. Still, the restaurant serves comfort in the form of plush barbari, smoky golden rice, and charcoal-grilled skewers with a regional flair. It’s ambitious, polished, and feels more timely than ever.
