Restaurant in Los Angeles, United States
Walk in, sit down, no reservation needed.
Du-par's is a no-reservations American coffee shop inside the Original Farmers Market at 3rd and Fairfax, recognised by Opinionated About Dining's Cheap Eats list two years running and holding a 4.3 across nearly 3,000 Google reviews. Come for breakfast or lunch rather than dinner. Walk in, no planning required.
Getting a table at Du-par's requires no advance planning whatsoever. This is a walk-in diner in the truest sense: you show up, you sit down, and you order. On that level, it immediately outperforms half the Los Angeles restaurant scene before a single plate arrives. The real question is whether the experience delivers once you're in the room.
Du-par's sits inside the Original Farmers Market at 6333 W 3rd St, one of the more distinctive dining settings in the city. The layout is counter-and-booth classic, the kind of space that makes no effort to signal its own importance. If you're arriving from a world of reservation apps and tasting menus, the absence of friction is itself noteworthy. Seating is casual, the room is well-worn, and that's the point. For food enthusiasts who travel to eat, the Farmers Market context adds a layer of local history that most new openings in Los Angeles simply can't manufacture.
This is where the decision gets specific. Du-par's opens at 6 am daily, which makes it a serious breakfast and lunch contender. The weekday window runs through 9 pm, with Friday and Saturday extended to 10 pm, so dinner is technically on the table. But a coffee shop of this type earns its reputation through its daytime performance. Lunch here, particularly on a weekday, gives you the full experience at a comfortable pace: the room is animated without being chaotic, the Farmers Market surrounding is at its most walkable, and the value proposition of a no-reservations diner is easiest to appreciate in daylight. Dinner is fine if you're already in the area, but it's not the reason to make a special trip. For explorer-minded visitors doing a proper Los Angeles eating day, arriving for a late breakfast or an early lunch and then walking the market before heading somewhere like Holbox for dinner is a more satisfying arc than reversing the order.
Du-par's holds a spot on the Opinionated About Dining Cheap Eats in North America list, ranked #498 in 2024 and Recommended in 2023. OAD's Cheap Eats list is notable because it pulls from a community of serious eaters rather than a single critic's palate, which makes the recognition a reasonable signal of consistent quality rather than a one-time review spike. For context, OAD Cheap Eats recognition puts Du-par's in a category alongside places that food-focused travelers genuinely return to. It is not a Michelin star, and it is not trying to be. Google's 4.3 rating across 2,847 reviews confirms the consistency independently. That volume of reviews at that score is a reasonable indicator that the kitchen performs reliably across service periods, not just on strong nights.
If your Los Angeles itinerary includes higher-commitment bookings such as Kato or an evening at Providence, Du-par's works well as the informal anchor at the other end of the day. It handles the morning or midday slot without requiring any logistical effort, which is exactly what you want from a casual stop between more demanding meals. For solo diners, the counter seating makes it one of the more comfortable options in the city at this price tier. For groups, the booth configuration works, though this is not a venue for large parties expecting coordinated service. Think four people maximum for a relaxed experience.
Peers in the Los Angeles casual register worth knowing: Cora's Coffee Shoppe in Santa Monica is the closer design-forward comparison, Pie 'n Burger in Pasadena leans harder into the classic American diner format, and The Griddle Cafe in West Hollywood operates at a higher noise level with a more tourist-skewed crowd. Du-par's, by comparison, benefits from its Farmers Market anchor, which draws a broader local mix. For coffee-shop benchmarks from outside Los Angeles, La Cabra Coffee Roasters in Aarhus and Devoción in New York City represent the specialty-focused end of the category, a different proposition but useful contrast if coffee quality is the deciding factor for your visit.
Du-par's does not require a reservation. Walk in any day between 6 am and 9 pm (10 pm Friday and Saturday). There is no dress code. The price tier sits firmly in the affordable range for Los Angeles, consistent with OAD Cheap Eats positioning. For solo travelers in particular, the counter is a comfortable, low-pressure option. If you're building a wider Los Angeles itinerary, Pearl's guides to Los Angeles restaurants, Los Angeles hotels, Los Angeles bars, Los Angeles wineries, and Los Angeles experiences cover the full picture. For comparison elsewhere in the US, the kind of all-day institution Du-par's represents has counterparts in places like Emeril's in New Orleans at the higher end, or you can contrast the low-friction format against the full commitment required at The French Laundry in Napa, Le Bernardin in New York City, Lazy Bear in San Francisco, Single Thread Farm in Healdsburg, or Smyth in Chicago to understand where Du-par's sits on the effort-to-reward spectrum.
Book Du-par's for breakfast or lunch, walk in without a plan, and keep your expectations calibrated to what it actually is: an OAD-recognised American coffee shop inside one of Los Angeles's most storied market settings. It earns the visit on its own terms. Just don't make dinner the primary reason to come.
You don't need to book at all. Du-par's is a walk-in operation with no reservation system. It's one of the easiest tables in Los Angeles to get, which is part of its appeal for visitors building a full itinerary around trickier bookings.
Counter seating is available and works well, particularly for solo diners. It's a classic diner-style counter, comfortable for a single person eating at their own pace without needing to manage a full table.
It's an American coffee shop inside the Original Farmers Market at 3rd and Fairfax, so arriving on foot from the parking structure and walking the market before or after your meal is the natural way to experience it. OAD has recognised it on its Cheap Eats North America list two years running, which sets expectations correctly: this is consistent, affordable, no-frills American diner food done well, not a fine dining destination.
Lunch is the better call. The Farmers Market setting is most active during the day, the room feels right at midday, and the daytime hours (open from 6 am) let you build a proper eating itinerary around it. Dinner is fine on a Friday or Saturday when hours extend to 10 pm, but it's not the sitting that makes Du-par's worth visiting specifically.
There is no dress code. This is a casual diner, and anything from market-walk clothes to smart casual is fine. Nobody will notice either way.
Yes, and it's one of the better solo options in Los Angeles at this price point. The counter seating handles single diners naturally, there's no awkwardness around table allocation, and the walk-in format means no planning overhead. If you're eating alone between more involved meals, this is a low-friction stop.
Small groups up to four are comfortable in the booth seating. For larger parties, the space and service format is better suited to splitting into smaller tables rather than expecting coordinated group service. This is not a venue for a large organised gathering.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Du-par’s | Easy | — | |
| Kato | $$$$ | Unknown | — |
| Hayato | $$$$ | Unknown | — |
| Vespertine | $$$$ | Unknown | — |
| Holbox | $$ | Unknown | — |
| Sushi Kaneyoshi | $$$$ | Unknown | — |
Side-by-side comparison to help you decide where to book.
You do not need to book at all. Du-par's operates as a walk-in diner, open from 6am every day of the week. Show up, find a seat, and order. No reservation system is in place.
Seating specifics are not documented in the available venue record, but as an American diner format at Farmers Market, counter seating is typically part of the layout. Arriving early in the morning keeps your options open regardless of where you prefer to sit.
Du-par's is an OAD Cheap Eats-listed American coffee shop at 6333 W 3rd St inside the Farmers Market complex. It runs from 6am daily, so it works best as a breakfast or lunch stop rather than a dinner destination. Keep expectations calibrated to the format: this is a casual, affordable diner with a track record, not a tasting-menu experience.
Breakfast or lunch is the stronger case. Du-par's opens at 6am and the diner format fits the morning and midday window better than an evening meal. Friday and Saturday closing time extends to 10pm if dinner is your only option, but other LA venues make a stronger case for a dinner slot.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
