Soom Soom Soon In El Segundo

Posted on February 14, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

LemonShark Poke Invades Culver City

Posted on February 12, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Fantastic Coming To Elevon In El Segundo

Posted on February 8, 2019 by toddrickallen

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…

Enso Tea/Acai Now Closed In Santa Monica

Posted on February 7, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Trader Joe’s Lands A Second Location In Santa Monica

Posted on February 5, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Crimson Replacing Inotheke In Santa Monica

Posted on February 2, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Fuddruckers Disappears From Santa Monica; Collective Freak-Out Ensues

Posted on January 30, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

What’s Going On At 800 Degrees In Santa Monica?

Posted on January 29, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Samosa House Folds In El Segundo

Posted on January 25, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Beach City Creamery Goes Under In Santa Monica

Posted on January 24, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Double Zero, Matthew Kenney’s Plant-Based New York Pizzeria Coming To Venice

Posted on January 22, 2019 by toddrickallen

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”.

ISno Café Showering Downtown Santa Monica With Healthy Taiwanese Shaved Snow Soon

Posted on January 18, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Harajuku Crepe Folds In Beverly Hills

Posted on January 17, 2019 by toddrickallen

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…

Mercado Bringing Contemporary Mexican To Manhattan Village Soon…

Posted on January 15, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

Sharetea Bringing Boba From Taiwan To Westwood Soon…

Posted on January 11, 2019 by toddrickallen

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.

D1 Café Vanishes From Westwood

Posted on January 10, 2019 by toddrickallen

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…

PokeCeviche Landing On Main St. In Santa Monica

Posted on January 8, 2019 by toddrickallen

Back in October of 2017 I first noticed that a bowl joint was taking over the erstwhile Knuckle & Claw space at 2715 Main St. in Santa Monica. But there hasn’t been any definitive proof about the impending eatery until now. A sign recently went up in the window letting us know that this will be a branch of PokeCeviche. PokeCeviche has four other locations (Santa Barbara, Oxnard, and Pomona), but this will be their first foray into The Westside. Look for a menu of signature and custom bowls, nachos, poke tacos, ceviche tostadas, and Japanese soups.

Kaido Replacing Musashiya In Westwood

Posted on January 4, 2019 by toddrickallen

A little over three years ago, the opening of Musashiya Udon Noodle at 1049 Gayley in Westwood caused quite a stir. Sadly, they have vacated the spot. But something new is coming to the location. An ABC application is up on the papered-over windows announcing that Kaido is moving in. The name on the ABC application appears to link this Kaido with Kaido Japanese Cuisine that will soon be forced to vacate the closing Yale Center strip mall in Santa Monica.

Pizzari Replacing 800 Degrees In Westwood

Posted on January 3, 2019 by toddrickallen

It was a sad day when revolutionary pizza purveyor 800 Degrees closed up shop in its flagship location at 10899 Lindbrook Drive in Westwood. Now, according to window paper, a new “neighborhood pizza eatery” is moving into the spot. According to this article in Daily Bruin, Pizzari will differentiate itself from the myriad of other Westwood pie joints by offering “organic, healthy pizza”.

Happy New Year From Toddrickallen!

Posted on December 31, 2018 by toddrickallen

At this time of year, I like to say a heart-felt thank you to all who read and support this blog. It looks like we can look forward to another year of LA food scene madness. And I’ll be right there with you in 2019… Let’s see what happens next. Until then, wishing you all a Happy New Year! Cheers!

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Toddrickallen

The Westside at Its Finest

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