Union

Carb-loading has never been more gratifying. In Old Pasadena, this chef-driven restaurant continues to thrive with locally sourced ingredients and a dazzling selection of boldly prepared pastas, all of which are made in house. For sure, there is nothing timid about this cooking – and many dishes should probably be shared. Consider the stack of roasted market carrots set on smooth labneh and blanketed in Aleppo and honey or the fan favorite, platter-sized spaghetti and meatballs, which comes with garlic bread. Best of all might be the torchetti, a tangle of twisted noodles coated in a rich pork ragu and finished with creamy ricotta and fried rosemary. A golden hue cast from dangling Edison bulbs warms the boxy room stacked with exposed red brick.