Those lowest on the totem poll can make a meteoric rise -- many big swinging Hollywood types started out in the mail room, while many big swinging San Fernando Valley types started out in the male room. For an underdog story you can sink your teeth into, hit up Ofrenda.

A 50-plus seat cocina Mexicana made comfy with earth-toned walls, a wooden bar, custom copper lights, and traditional art from south of the border, Ofrenda's authentic home-style vittles mirror those the chef-partner grew up eating in Mexico prior to laboring as a dishwasher at Carmine's, eventually studying at Cordon Bleu in Paris and picking up gigs at famed taco joints like...Bouley and Union Square Cafe. Dinner kick-offs include chimichangas with crab or pigs feet, sherry & garlic shrimp, and boquerones w/ warm potatoes, while mains range from chicken mole w/ ancho/mulato/pasilla chiles, to rack of lamb with poblano-radish sauce, to battered cauliflower-abetted shrimp balls, which you'll presumably have to eat by the thousands to get full. Sangria, Mexican suds, and wine're all present, but the standout's an agave spirit-heavy cocktail list that includes the jalapeno tequila/lime/cilantro Watermelon Tanteador, the mango-fied Ofrenda Mangorita (tropical tequila/Cointreau/agave), the Cerveza Azteca (ginger beer with mezcal & lime), plus non-Mexican action like the gin/apple cider/creme de cassis "Sargento Pepper", for when getting by requires more than a little help from your friends.

Early grubbing includes huevos-fueled breakfast, weekend brunch, and a lunch menu with everything from cemitas sandwiches stuffed with portobello, pulled pork, or grilled chicken, to a hamburgeusa topped with serrano ham, pepper jack, jalapeno strips, and chipotle aioli, all of which will contribute to your meteoric thighs.