Kuya Lord. Kuya Lord began as a pop-up in 2019, serving Filipino street food at bars and breweries around L.A. During the pandemic, chef Lord Maynard Llera, once the sous chef at Bestia, began cooking in his garage in La Cañada Flintridge, and word spread quickly that his dishes were available for weekly pickups. Today, his extremely popular food has a home in a small storefront in East Hollywood. There are 21 seats for dining in, though Llera’s take-out business is hopping. The shareable trays are a great way to experience a selection of proteins—sweet or savory sausage, grilled Caledonia blue prawns in garlic crab sauce, or Llera’s famous lucenachon (crispy roasted pork belly)—all while sampling glistening chami noodles, tomato-cucumber salad, and wonderfully bright and vinegary pickled green papaya. Finish a meal here with tangy and sweet Filipino Calamansi key lime pie with pandan whipped cream. Though this brick-and-mortar has been a long time coming for Llera, who had been planning to open a Filipino restaurant since leaving Bestia in 2016, it is, in many ways, just the beginning. We can’t wait to see what he does next.⁠ ⁠ 5003 Melrose Ave., @kuyalord_la 💰💰💰