About this episode

Jessica Koslow discusses the evolution of Sqirl and its new dinner service.

On this episode of The LA Food Podcast, Luca sits down with Jessica Koslow , the chef and owner behind Sqirl , one of the most influential Los Angeles restaurants of the last 15 years. Koslow reflects on Sqirl’s unlikely evolution from a jam company into a defining all-day restaurant, the origins of dishes like the sorrel pesto rice bowl and ricotta toast, and why her background as a pastry cook and competitive figure skater still shapes the way she thinks about craft, repetition, and reinvention. The conversation also dives into Sqirl’s new dinner service, which Koslow describes as a full restaurant within a restaurant, with a completely different menu, atmosphere, staffing model, and hospitality approach. She talks about the dishes leading the charge at night, including the chicken liver, roast chicken, smoked pork collar, French toast, and the personal story behind the Bacchanalia chocolate cake. Luca and Jessica also discuss LA dining culture, the economics of running an ambitious independent restaurant, the joy of hidden restaurant “Easter eggs,” and what it means for Sqirl to keep evolving after a complicated public chapter. -- Please consider donating to Soccer Without…

People in this episode

Host: Luca

Guest: Jessica Koslow

Topics covered

• restaurant evolution
• dinner service
• LA dining culture
• independent restaurant economics
• culinary craft

Keywords

• Sqirl
• Jessica Koslow
• dinner service
• LA restaurants
• culinary craft
• chicken liver
• Bacchanalia chocolate cake

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Sqirl, Soccer Without Borders

More episodes of The LA Food Podcast

• How Bub and Grandma’s Took Over LA’s Bread Game · May 29, 2026 · 56 min
• The Rise of Rick Lox. Plus, LA Gets an Erewhon Knock-Off, Vermin Hit LA Icons & the NYT 100 Causes a Stir · May 15, 2026 · 1h 37m

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The LA Food Podcast podcast page.