An L.A. hot spot, Joan's on Third, where the rich and famous go to grab lunch

LOS ANGELES — The crowd is shoulder to shoulder at Joan’s on Third. Power couples buy their toddlers “babyccinos” (steamed milk sprinkled with cocoa), and lithe women with “it” bags poise their forks over Chinese chicken salads. A voice from a loudspeaker interrupts the thrum: “If you are driving a white Jaguar parked in the back behind another car, please move your vehicle.” Just another morning at Joan’s. What started as a tiny catering kitchen on Third Street, is, 14 years later, an L.A. institution. Former Gourmet editor Ruth Reichl breakfasts here when she’s in town. So does Vogue’s Andre Leon Talley. Actor Alexander Skarsgard reportedly comes for the meat loaf sandwiches and Kate Bosworth for the salads.