New Japanese restaurant in WeHo

The former Rivabella space on Sunset Boulevard now houses the Innovative Dining Group’s newest restaurant, ROKU. The 8,000-square-foot contemporary space merges traditional sushi and teppanyaki. Guests are entertained by a lively, up-close-and-personal teppanyaki experience. From the freshest sushi to robatayaki, the entrées include Southeast Asian and Korean influences such as kobacha and butternut squash, and grilled octopus with kimchee vinaigrette. Pickled vegetables and toro tartare are theatrically prepared tableside. ROKU offers an extensive selection of Japanese whiskeys including rare pours. Creative cocktails include the Matcha Mule with green tea infused vodka, ginger root, fresh lemon and honey. Happy hour is Monday through Friday from 5 to 7 p.m. 9201 W. Sunset Blvd., (310)278-2060.

Mexican coffee at CB&TL

Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is serving Mexican hot chocolate beverages, lattes and ice blended drinks through March 6, combining chocolate, cinnamon and espresso. They have revamped the classic Americano with new customizable flavors including hazelnut, vanilla and mocha. On Thursday, Jan. 14 from 2 to 6 p.m., guests can try winter favorites like the Mexican chocolate lattes, Mexican chocolate ice blended drinks, Mexican hot chocolates, hazelnut Americanos and iced hazelnut Americanos for only $2. 5115 Wilshire Blvd., (323)879-8055; 8735 Santa Monica Blvd., (310)659-8207; 7915 Sunset Blvd., (323)851-8392; 8793 Beverly Blvd., (310)659-4592.

New Obicà Mozzarella Bar Pizza e Cucina

The new Obicà opens on Monday, Jan. 11 in the former Hostaria del Piccolo space in Santa Monica. The menu and beverages are inspired by the trendy flagship restaurant that opened in July 2014 in the Flatiron District in New York City. Obicà means “here it is” in the Neapolitan dialect. The restaurant features an Italian menu in a sleek, contemporary space and showcases authentic dishes from different Italian regions. The wine list includes more than 160 wines and 70 grape varieties grown and produced throughout Italy’s diverse territory. Obicà is the only restaurant in Los Angeles to directly import mozzarella di bufala twice a week from cheese makers in Campania, Southern Italy, ensuring the utmost freshness and quality. Obicà offers four kinds of mozzarella: traditional bufala classica; bufala affumicata, which is smoked on iron nets over a hay fire; burrata, which is sweet and creamy; and burrata al tartufo made with black truffle. Obicà also serves its signature pizza prepared with a blend of stone-ground white flour and whole wheat organic flour, and cooked in their stone pizza oven. Obicà’s pizza dough is left to rise for a minimum of 48 hours and contains no chemical yeasts, resulting in an airy and light texture. 606 Broadway, Santa Monica, (310)393-6633.

dineL.A. Restaurant Week 2016

Start 2016 by dining at one or more of the 300 restaurants throughout Los Angeles County participating in dineL.A. Restaurant Week. Each participating restaurant offers specially priced lunch and dinner menus from Monday, Jan. 18 through Sunday, Jan. 31. This year, dineL.A. is partnering with OpenTable to donate $1 of every reservation to The Midnight Mission, a nonprofit organization providing food, shelter and essential aid to people experiencing homelessness. The Dine.Snap.Win contest offers diners a chance to win 250,000 American Airline AA Advantage miles by dining, snapping a photo and posting it with #dineLA and #contest for a chance to win. Follow dineL.A. on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. www.discoverlosangeles.com/dinela-los-angeles-restaurant-week.

Fig & Olive dineLA menu

During dineLA 2016, the French Riviera-style restaurant Fig & Olive Melrose Place is serving four-course prix fixe menus priced at $25 for lunch and $39 for dinner. The winter-inspired menus include standout dishes like the silky butternut squash soup accompanied by shaved chestnuts, onions, toasted squash seeds and a drizzle of arbequina olive oil. The winter vegetables linguini is made with house-rolled pasta tossed with artichokes, sautéed cremini mushrooms, radicchio, red onions, pine nuts, parmesan, lemon zest and artichoke cremini mushroom purée. Finish with chestnut mousse with Amarena cherry sorbet, Amarena cherry coulis and mint. 8490 Melrose Place, (310)360-9100.

Lyftie Awards at The Abbey

Lyft has announced that The Abbey Food & Bar is the number one bar/nightlife drop-off destination in the United States. To celebrate, Lyft and The Abbey will co-host the first Lyftie awards party at The Abbey on Jan. 28. Lyft will honor more than 60 restaurants, bars, event venues, transit stops and local attractions based on destination data from 2015. Awards are given to destinations in cities throughout the United States including Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Washington D.C., Boston, Seattle, Austin, Nashville and Miami. Winners will receive Lyftie Awards stickers to display. National winners will also receive a customized Lyftie trophy. 692 N. Robertson Blvd., (310)289-8410.

Grimaldi’s seasonal dishes

Start the year off right at Grimaldi’s with delicious pairings and new seasonal selections. Throughout January, the South Bay eatery is inviting guests to try The Don, a signature traditional pizza topped with Italian sausage, meatballs and pepperoni, and paired with Lagunitas IPA. For dessert, Grimaldi’s is offering amaretto cheesecake made with a splash of Amaretto Disaronno and a toasted almond sugar cookie crust. 2121 Rosecrans Ave., (310)648-7503.

New chef at La Dolce Vita

La Dolce Vita, the treasured 50-year-old Beverly Hills restaurant with plush red booths, now has executive chef Alejandro Galan in the kitchen. Dinner is served nightly at 5 p.m. Live music is offered every Tuesday from 7 to 10 p.m., along with an all-night happy hour. Happy hour runs Monday through Friday from 5 to 7 p.m. 9785 Santa Monica Blvd., (310)278-1845.

California Restaurant Month promotes Eat Well Week

Santa Monica Travel & Tourism’s annual Eat Well Week runs from Jan. 11-17 and promotes healthy eating after the holidays. In conjunction with California Restaurant Month, participating Santa Monica restaurants will offer specially-crafted dishes highlighting California’s native vegetable – the artichoke, which provides immune support, protection against heart disease and high amounts of antioxidants, fiber, magnesium and Vitamin C. Participating Santa Monica restaurants will prepare artichokes grilled and fire roasted, with ceviche, risotto and as puree. Enjoy artichoke dishes at The Albright, Border Grill, Capo, Del Frisco’s Grille, eLOVate, FIG, RawVolution, Locanda Del Lago, Perry’s On The Beach, Pono Burger, Sushi Roku and Upper West. Consumers can vote for their favorite artichoke dish throughout the week using social media for a chance to win prizes. The chef whose Eat Well Week artichoke dish garners the most votes will also be rewarded. For a list of participating restaurants and menu items, visit www.santamonica.com/eatwell.