How the husband and wife duo behind Bestia created their DTLA restaurant

Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis opened Bestia in 2012 in the Arts District, which was an unknown neighborhood at the time. They invested all their money into it. They were self-taught chefs. Genevieve had never even worked in a professional kitchen before. The day of the opening, they had a few dozen customers. Now six years and another hit restaurant later, they’ve compiled some of their menu favorites into a new cookbook. It’s called “Bestia: Italian Recipes Created in the Heart of LA.”