And while we’re on the subject of openings… Ever since I first told you about popular salad chain Sweetgreen‘s expansion to Montana Ave. in Santa Monica back in July, a great many of you have been checking for updates. So here ya go: Sweetgreen officially throws open its doors today (Friday Feb. 22) at 1517 Montana Ave. You’re welcome.
I first reported on the new Tocaya Organica moving into the space at 1140 Gayley Ave. back in June of 2017. I’m not sure what happened, but it’s taken a long time to open. Tocaya will begin dishing healthy Mexican to the good people of Westwood this Friday, February 22nd.
Pizza competition is stiff in student overrun Westwood. It’s the ideal grab-and-go for the academic set and bolthole pizza restaurants abound. A large for lease sign on the front lets us know that one casualty is Extreme Pizza at 1067 Glendon Ave. Not sure what happened, but I’ll keep watching to see what may move in.
I love good detective work… A reader (Thanks SK!) sent me a pdf of a recent Downtown Santa Monica Market Report, which, on face value isn’t that riveting. But if you scroll down to page 11, the document lists upcoming restaurants slated to open in Downtown. Many I’ve already reported, but here are the ones I didn’t know about: Halo Top Scoop Shop (304 Santa Monica Blvd.), La Colombe (604 Santa Monica Blvd.), Fresh Corn Grill (720 Wilshire), and Gyu-Kaku (231 Arizona Ave).
Well that didn’t take long… It was only back in January when I told you about short-lived Samosa House’s disappearance from the back development of Plaza El Segundo, on the corner of Rosecrans and Sepulveda in El Segundo. Now another courageous restaurant is giving the tricky location a go. It looks like rapidly expanding healthy Mediterranean eatery Soom Soom Fresh Mediterranean is moving in. They appear to be living up to their mission to bring falafel, shawarma, and hummus “across Los Angeles and beyond”.
Update: I heard from a company rep who told me they’re shooting for an April opening.
It looks like the poke craze isn’t over yet… I’ve been watching the ground floor of the new development on the corner of Overland and Washington in Culver City. Starbucks and Jimmy John’s have already moved in, but here are still many vacant storefronts. There’s soon to be one less. A banner is up on the space just to the left of Jimmy John’s announcing an upcoming branch of LemonShark Poké. With a smattering of locations across the US, expect build-your-own and signature bowls, Hawaiian katsu grill bowls, and various sides and salads.
I recently noticed papered over windows at 733 Douglas, at the front of the still-developing Elevon complex in El Segundo, announcing that a new restaurant, Fantastic, will soon be joining the other eateries. I was curious if it’s the same Fantastic as the Fantastic Café on Main St., so I called the café. According to a spokesperson, Fantastic is a franchise, and the two are (confusingly) not related, except for the shared name. According to the paper on the window, expect a menu of “breakfast, burgers, tenders, salads, shakes”. If you have any more information on this, let me know…
The diminutive space at 725 Broadway is hard pressed to keep a tenant. In the distant past it was Bowl of Heaven, followed by Enso Tea/Acai. But the acai craze is beginning to look a little tired lately, and Enso has vacated the location. I’ll keep watching the troubled spot to see what may develop.
I had assumed that everyone knew about Trader Joe’s impending arrival to the new development on the corner of Wilshire and 23rd in Santa Monica, so I didn’t bother to write about it. But a surprising number of you continue to ask me, so here you go… A recently posted ABC application confirms that Santa Monica’s second Trader Joe’s will soon set up shop at 2300 Wilshire Blvd., unit 101.
It looks like Santa Monica kale and kabob expert Crimson Mediterranean Cookhouse is expanding westward. An ABC application pasted on the front of the erstwhile Inotheke space, at 606 Broadway suite 101, spills the beans. The name on the application, well-known restaurateur Eiman Shekarchi, confirms that this is an offshoot of the Crimson on Ocean Park. As for Inotheke, a gracious note on the door says that they plan on relocating.
I wouldn’t necessarily expect this type of response… My inbox has been flooded recently with people who are losing their sh*t over the sudden and mysterious disappearance of Santa Monica’s branch of burger chain Fuddruckers on the corner of Wilshire and 20th. Popular with the weekday professional lunch crowd and families on weekends, the closure caught many by surprise. I don’t have any information on what happened, but I’ll monitor the situation to see what develops.
With the surprising closure of their flagship Westwood outpost in mind, this doesn’t portend well… A sign on the front of the recently darkened 800 Degrees on the corner of Wilshire and 2nd announces that they have closed due to a ventilation issue. They appear to have closed on Thursday of last week, and since then, the place looks lifeless. Let’s hope that the sign is correct and that they fix their problem soon… I’ll keep watching.
Update 03/15/19: 800 Degrees appears to have reopened after all.
With competition in El Segundo/Manhattan Beach stiff, the restaurant scene in the back development of Plaza El Segundo is fighting for life. In 2017, an outpost of Samosa House took over The Counter space at the front of the mall. But now, it appears, they have given up the ghost as evidenced by the papered-over windows. That leaves only three eateries left, including an increasingly isolated Veggie Grill.
When you consider how much energy, expense, and talent goes into the opening of a restaurant, any closure is a sad event, but this is truly sad… Retro-themed ice cream shop Beach City Creamery (formerly Beachy Cream) has finally closed its doors at 1209 Wilshire in Santa Monica. They had made a valiant effort at keeping the doors open in the cozy Santa Monica neighborhood, but they have delivered their last artisan ice cream sandwich. We wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors.
Creative, plant-based superstar chef Matthew Kenney continues to expand his empire. A small piece of paper on the side of the space at 1700 Lincoln Blvd., in an increasingly fashionable stretch of Venice, lets us know that Double Zero will soon be inhabiting the erstwhile Italian deli. And what is Double Zero? With its flagship store in the East Village in New York, Double Zero will soon deliver to Venice vegan pizza from a custom wood burning oven, small plates including their proprietary plant-based cheeses, and desserts with sustainable European wines served in a “warm casual environment”.
A banner is up on the old Monsieur Marcel space at 1260 3rd St. Promenade announcing a branch of Taiwanese shaved snow dessert people iSno Café. For those who are unclear, Taiwanese shaved snow is a milk-based “snow” topped with various toppings. What makes iSno different is that, according to their website, instead of copious quantities of condensed milk and canned fruit, theirs is made from “organic lactose-free, low-fat milk infused with organic honey and sugarcane” and using “real fruit with puree and superfood with no condensed milk”. ISno currently has one other location in Irvine.
Update: I heard from a company spokesperson who clarified: ISno is NOT a Taiwanese dessert shop, but rather their own brand with a uniquely “shaved snow creation”, as well as organic teas and coffees, and made-to-order croissant pastries. We wish them the best of luck.
The City of Beverly Hills should consider rebranding their glamorous downtown as the Golden Devil’s Triangle for its ability to make restaurants disappear. The latest? Japanese batter specialist Harajuku Crepe has vacated its space at 9405 S. Santa Monica Blvd. Not sure what happened, but I’ll keep watching to see what develops…
As you may know, Manhattan Village is currently getting tarted up with a $180 million redo. Flashy new shops and restaurants are promised. One of the first out of the gate is a brand new branch of Jesse Gomez’/Jose Acevedo’s ever-popular contemporary Mexican powerhouse Mercado, moving into the old Brickworks space at the front of the mall. It looks like they’re shooting for a Summer 2019 opening.
We all know that Westwood has a fickle food scene. So we probably shouldn’t be surprised that mysterious The Poke, opened a little over a year ago at 935 Broxton, has thrown in the towel. And taking its place? A banner announcing Sharetea is hanging on the front. Sharetea is a massive boba tea brand from Taiwan with an astonishing 450 stores in 18 countries.
Considering the amount of time they spent on renovating the space, this is certainly sad news… D1 Café has unceremoniously vacated its location at 10959 Kinross Ave. in Westwood. I took almost a year and a half from the time I first noticed the extensive construction until their opening. The space is now gutted. I’ll keep watching to see what, if anything, moves into the tricky spot.
Update: A reader let me know that a fire took out D1 in August. Perhaps they’ll reopen…
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