Monthly Archives: August 2026

LARACLETTE Bringing Melty Cheese To Westwood Village

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After years of sputtering, the dining scene in Westwood Village appears to be roaring back to life. A sharp-eyed reader wrote to tell me about the recent ABC application that went up on the front of the space at 1061 Broxton Ave, most recently home to Happy Panda Kitchen Chinese Hot Pot. The new restaurant, LARACLETTE, is reported to be an Alpine concept with a focus on the famous Swiss melty cheese raclette. The restaurateur behind the project is Domenico Frasca, and you can read more about this exciting venture in this informative article on hoodline.

(Thanks Barry!)

Pura Vida Miami Coming To Century City

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A new, healthy lifestyle choice is landing on the first floor of the Westfield Century City Shopping Center. Plywood is up announcing the arrival of Pura Vida Miami. With 57 locations, including 5 in California, Pura Vida Miami is a stylish “premier wellness and lifestyle brand” with a chic and breezy vibe that focuses on high-quality ingredients and sustainability.

HomeState Bringing Breakfast Tacos To El Segundo

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A new taco joint is coming to The Point, the shopping complex on the corner of Rosecrans and Sepulveda in El Segundo. Plywood is up announcing the arrival of “Texas Kitchen” HomeState. HomeState has eight other locations around SoCal and is known for breakfast tacos, migas, Frito pie, house-made flour tortillas, and margaritas. They are planning on opening next month.

New India’s Oven Set To Move Locations In MDR

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Marina del Rey’s beloved New India’s Oven is set to move locations. A Rep confirmed that they will be vacating their longtime location at 13444 Maxella Ave (in the Villa Marina Marketplace shopping center) and moving to a new space in the Marina Collection shopping center at 13400 Washington Blvd. Expect the same extensive and authentic menu that has long served as a local favorite for lunch and take-away.

LUNA Bistro & Cafe Coming To MDR

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There’s a large banner hanging on the front of the space at 1181 Mindanao Way in Marina del Rey, once home to legendary Jerry’s Deli, and most recently Kalaveras. The banner lets us know that LUNA Bistro & Cafe are setting up housekeeping at the once illustrious address. LUNA Bistro & Cafe hails from Bakersfield, and according to What Now, who has the whole skinny here, we are promised a “fusion menu [that] features pasta, burgers, sandwiches, tacos, coffee, and Mexican classics such as carnitas”.

Ghost Sando Shop Replacing Pret A Manger In Westwood

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It looks like Westwood Village is getting a new sandwich shop. There’s window paper up at 901 Westwood Blvd in Westwood Village, formerly home to the UK grab-and-go sandwich chain Pret A Manger, announcing the arrival of Ghost Sando Shop. Ghost Sando Shop has a smattering of locations around LA (and one in Idaho) and offers a menu of proprietary sandwiches made with house-made specialty sauces.

(Photo credit: Barry Nelson Brams)

Hey Tea Coming To Century City

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Yet another addition to the Westfield Century City Shopping Center food scene. There’s plywood up on a second floor space announcing the arrival of Hey Tea. Hey Tea began life in 2012 in Guangdong, China and offers a proprietary “New Style” of tea that uses “real milk, real fruits, real premium tea, and real cane sugar” with intriguing flavors such as “Longjing cheese milk tea“, “crisp grape boom“, and “supreme brown sugar bobo milk tea“.

BROT Doner Cafe Bakery Coming To Downtown Santa Monica

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There’s new window paper up on the space at 1348 3rd Street Promenade, previously home to a convenience store and Trimana before that. The new resident is BROT Doner Cafe Bakery. While I don’t yet have confirmation, there is another BROT in LA, on Hollywood Blvd., and I’m assuming that the two are related. The Hollywood BROT prides itself on the “authentic taste of Berlin street food”, and you can check out their menu here. This should be a welcome addition to Downtown Santa Monica’s rapidly evolving entertainment zone.