As fans of cronuts and cake pops can attest, food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending at this very moment?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to analyze which restaurants have been getting outsized notice this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at Los Angeles businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on the number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month and tracked businesses that consistently increase their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots have the momentum heading into springtime.
Black Sheep Burgers
This burger spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Burgers" on Yelp.
Citywide, burger spots saw new reviews increase by a median of two percent over the past month, but Black Sheep Burgers saw an 87.5 percent increase, with a slight downward trend from a five-star rating a month ago to 4.5 stars today.
Located at 11313 Mississippi Ave. in Sawtelle, Black Sheep Burgers offers hamburgers such as the Black Sheep with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, mayonnaise and 1000 Island dressing, and the Date Burger with dates, bacon, almond-encrusted goat cheese, honey, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise.
Ramen Izakaya
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Valley Glen's Ramen Izakaya, the izakaya, which offers ramen and more, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Ramen" on Yelp increased their review count by a median of 3.1 percent over the past month, Ramen Izakaya bagged a formidable 138.7 percent increase in new reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a convincing 4.5-star rating.
Open at 13727 Victory Blvd., Ramen Izakaya offers original tonkotsu pork broth ramen, as well as ramens with red miso, with spicy miso and with lime chili. It also serves vegetarian ramen and vegan ramen with lemongrass chili broth.
The Red Chickz
Downtown Los Angeles's The Red Chickz is also making waves. Open at 557 S. Spring St., the chicken shop and Southern spot, which offers chicken wings and more, has seen a considerable 142.2 percent bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 4.1 percent for all businesses tagged "Southern" on Yelp.
The Red Chickz offers chicken fingers, chicken tenders, chicken sandwiches and jumbo shrimp. Diners choose their preferred level of heat, from cool to inferno. Over the past month, it's maintained a convincing four-star rating among Yelpers.
El Rincon Maya
Tarzana's El Rincon Maya is the city's buzziest Mexican spot by the numbers.
The Mexican spot, which opened at 18612 Ventura Blvd., increased its review count by 65.6 percent over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median review increase of 2.1 percent for the Yelp category "Mexican."
El Rincon Maya offers tacos, burritos, quesadillas, tortas, panuchos and salbutes. It also serves Mayan specialties, such as thinly sliced marinated grilled pork loin, beef shank and butterflied trout fish.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
