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…
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.
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.
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”.
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!
South Santa Monica Blvd. in The Golden Triangle can be a tricky location. Eateries come and go along the notoriously capricious strip. But that doesn’t seem to deter plucky newcomers. Recently I told you about The Kind Ones, and right next door, in what used to be Bo Nuage at 9523 S. Santa Monica, signs have recently gone up announcing a branch of expanding Australian coffee chain Bluestone Lane.
Well that didn’t take long… It was only just a couple of weeks ago that I told you about a new pressed juice joint landing in the old Basanti Tea Bar space at 9465 S. Santa Monica Blvd. Wasting no time, Organica Juice Bar is now up and slinging smoothies to the good people of Beverly Hills.
To all my dedicated readers and everyone who visits this site, I wish the best that the Season has to offer. May your Holidays be filled with all manner of delicious things and your celebrations be bright and joyful. Thanks for reading!
It appears that Beverly Hills is about to get a whole lot sweeter soon… Window displays are up announcing confirmation that the much-anticipated Fatamorgana Gelato will soon be arriving to the space at 162 S Beverly Dr. in Beverly Hills. The celebrity fave Italian brand has one shop in Studio City and boasts 66 hand-made flavors, 26 of which are vegan, and everything is gluten-free. I’m told they’re shooting for a March opening.
It looks like local fave Cabbage Patch has dispensed their last sandwich at 214 S Beverly Dr. in Beverly Hills. Their website lets us know that they’ve closed their Downtown branch as well. That leaves one location left, in Marina Del Rey.
I’ve been watching the new construction on the northeast corner of Washington and Overland in Culver City to see what may develop. After a new Starbucks, it appears that a branch of sandwich chain Jimmy John’s is intent on moving in. There are still a lot of spaces left on the ground floor, so I’ll keep watching to see what else may land there.
Bareburger quietly slipped out of its space at 2732 Main St. in Santa Monica last month. Wasting no time, it looks like a new contender is ready to give the capricious Main St. food scene a try. A new ABC application has already gone up in the window. The applicant is listed as Jolie LLC and the business name is oddly marked “_._._._ Jolie“. No idea what this means, and there’s no information out there that I can find, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see…
Back in April, I told you about the new Kreation Kafe coming to the old Gaucho Grill location at 11754 San Vicente Blvd. in Brentwood. At the time, I noticed an ABC application on the front, something unusual for the healthy chain better known for their “pressed juices” and “cleanses”. Kreation Kafe officially opened today at 7am. (If you rush, you might be lucky enough to be one of the first 100 who will receive free juice.) But what’s different about this Kreation, is that they will be serving “Kreation Kocktails”, which are made with beer, wine, and their proprietary juice blends and are intended for people who “like to drink healthy but still get buzzed”. Kale yes!
The corner space at 20th and Santa Monica Blvd. in Santa Monica, in what is currently the Gateway Hotel, has had a rocky past. First it was an IHOP. Then, for a minute, it was Rudy & Hudson California Diner. Now something exciting is on the way. An ABC application informs us that a new eatery is intent on moving in, but there’s no business name listed. There is however a design review notice that shows an artist’s rendering of the new place, and gives it a name: Socalo. And according to this article in the Santa Monica Daily Press, Socalo will be none other than Mary Sue Milliken’s and Susan Feniger’s triumphant return to Santa Monica, after the demise of the iconic Border Grill. I can’t wait.
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