A while back I told you that Raising Cane’s was moving into the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. Here is the new location at 1401 Third St. Promenade, on the corner of Santa Monica Blvd, formerly the home of Bibibop. It looks like they are working on a complete build-out. This is part of a major expansion into the California by the beloved Louisiana-based poultry provider known for chicken finger meals and noontime lines out the door.
There’s plywood and a poster up on the front of 923 Broxton Ave, formerly home to Habibi Cafe. The poster is promising a new pie joint, Chill Since ’93 Pizza. Chill Since ’93 has a location in The Grove, as well as Lugano and London. They promise super crispy pizza, and sandwiches made with the bread of the moment, “crisp, house-made focaccia bread”.
I have it on good authority that popular chicken finger restaurant Raising Cane’s is coming to Westwood Village. What you are looking at in the photo is the build-out for the beloved poultry purveyor at 10948 Weyburn in Westwood Village. Louisiana-based Raising Cane’s is (thankfully) expanding in California, with yet another location planned for nearby Third Street Promenade.
A bit of digging by a dedicated reader (Thanks!) appears to confirm that a major Taiwanese brand is moving into the former electronic device shop at 1009 S Broxton Ave. in Westwood Village. Milksha started in Tainan, Taiwan in 2004 and has since spread to over 500 stores worldwide. It looks like this is their first US location. Milksha is passionate about bubble tea made with the highest quality ingredients and techniques.
Erratum: A reader informed me that this is not their first US location. They have two other locations, in Milpitas and in Seattle.
A new Korean grab & go concept has appeared out of nowhere in Westwood Village. Minari Express recently threw open their doors at 10912 Lindbrook Dr. Minari offers a wide range of prepared and prepackaged Korean staples (think Everytable) as well as snacks, banchan, drinks, and sweets. We wish them the best of luck.
Congratulations you lucky people of Westwood, epic sandwiches are on the way! With a nearby Montana Ave location that has constant lines, sandwich sensation Bread Head is opening a new location at 1136 Westwood Blvd in Westwood Village. Bread Head is the pet project of Alex Williams and Jordan Snyder, two chefs with Trois Mec pedigrees. They specialize in carefully crafted sandwiches on proprietary focaccia. They also have a new-ish Manhattan Beach location as well.
A sharp-eyed reader spotted new signage up at 10878 Kinross Ave in Westwood Village. Expanding ice cream brand Van Leeuwen appears to be settling into the historical building. Van Leeuwen, which started out in 2008 in New York as a food truck, will soon be bringing their signature artisan ice creams, vegan ice creams, sundaes, vegan chocolate chip cookies, and shakes to the neighborhood.
A sharp-eyed reader (Thanks Barry!) noticed a banner hanging over the front of the space 10912 Le Conte Ave in Westwood Village. This address has been a revolving door for many businesses, most recently We Roll Nori. Now it appears that SoCal’s very own smoothie expert Robeks is going to give the tricky location a try.
Readers were sending me news of recent closures in Westwood Village, so I went by to have a look. Sure enough, after five and a half years, Tocaya Organica has decamped from their commodious location at 1140 Gayley Ave. Also recently disappeared is Pressed Juicery from their address at 10878 Kinross Ave. I’ll keep my eye on the spaces to see what may develop…
After 24 years of dishing one of Westwood’s best NY-style pies from their humble location at 10940 Weyburn Ave, Enzo’s Pizzeria is about to get an expansive new home. There are notices up on the commodious space at 1145 Westwood Blvd, previously home to mysterious java joint Brewin’ Coffee, announcing the news. A spokesperson says there’s no official timeline for the move, but until they’re settled into the new digs, you can still pop by their old location and grab a slice of a Westwood Village classic.
Many of you have been excitedly writing to let me know of a new pizza option in Westwood Village so I’m sharing the news. Danny Boy’s Famous Original Pizza has recently thrown open their doors at 10889 Lindbrook Dr. Danny Boy’s has another location in DTLA and in addition to NYC-style pies, offers a menu of sandwiches, salads, and (eventually at this location), “grab ‘n’ go cold sandwiches and spaghetti & meatballs”.
It’s been about a year since I told you about the closure of vegan eatery Native Foods, at 1114 Gayley Ave. in Westwood Village. The space is about to get a new tenant. There are posters in the window letting us know that Bruxie is setting up housekeeping at this location. Bruxie is known for their signature chicken and waffles, but they also offer sandwiches, salads, frozen custard, and sweet waffle sandwiches. The expanding chain has locations throughout SoCal and a couple in Georgia.
It looks like a new specialty drink spot is setting up housekeeping at 10911 Lindbrook in Westwood Village. There’s a large banner over the former Yogurtland space announcing the arrival of Le Phant Milk Tea Co. Not much on social media yet, but we have this from the Westwood Village Business Directory: “We are 2 quirky twenty-agers who want to share our best version of milk teas. We brew premium loose-leaf teas, mix it with our house creamer (no preservative-filled powders utilized), and add on made-from-scratch muscovado brown sugar boba. We can’t wait to serve you all.” We wish them the best of luck…
While there is already a (sort of) branch of British powerhouse sandwich chain Pret a Manger at Tom Bradley in LAX, Los Angeles is about to get its very own stand-alone location. Also simply known as Pret, there is new window paper up at 901 Westwood Blvd. in Westwood Village announcing the happy news. If you are unfamiliar with the brand, Pret a Manger (which means ready to eat in French) is a popular grab-and-go prepared sandwich chain that began life in 1983 in London and has since spread to many countries and locations across the globe (including New York and Chicago), and soon here as well. While I don’t know what the menu will be like here in LA, I can tell you that when I’m in London, which is usually about once a year, I never miss the opportunity to grab one of their delectable super fresh sandwiches. I usually stuff a few in my suitcase as well. This is certainly exciting news….
Update: This is apparently a developing story, and readers are writing to let me know a branch is heading for the old Breadblok space in Studio City, as well as possibly at least one more somewhere else…
This story saddens me… When local institution Stan’s Donuts closed their longtime home at 10948 Weyburn in Westwood during COVID in 2020, locals were literally devastated. Then came a plucky new contender to fill the historic shoes, Primo’s Donuts. I can personally vouch for how hard this business worked to remain relevant to the community. They frequently sent me information on special promotions and deals they were offering. So it is with a heavy heart that I let you know that, after a little over two years, Primo’s Donuts has closed down this location (Their Sawtelle and Topanga Social locations remain open). Read more about their reasons for the closure here…
It caused quite a stir when I reported that New York’s noodle expert Dun Huang was moving into the former El Pollo Loco space at 1081 Gayley in Westwood Village. For whatever reason, that never happened. Now the address appears to be getting a new tenant. Signs are already up announcing the arrival of House of Mandi. House of Mandi has a location in Anaheim and specializes in Yemeni food which you can read more about here.
That didn’t take long… It was only last month when I told you about the disappearance of Kung Fu Tea and TKK Fried Chicken from the diminutive space at 1136 Westwood Blvd. in Westwood Village. Wasting no time, a new purveyor of organic drinks, Honey Krush, has quickly set up housekeeping. If they’re not already open by the time you read this, they will be shortly…
The unassuming space at 10912 Le Conte Ave in Westwood Village has seen a number of food and drink vendors come and go. The most recent (I believe) was Ichi Tea & Sushi, and before that, Coco Fresh. Now a new contender is giving the tricky space a go. We Roll Nori has set up housekeeping at this address and is delivering a menu that focuses on onigiri, misubi, and hand rolls.
This has been a full circle for one of my my readers… Back in March of 2022, JP wrote to tell me about an exciting new project coming to 1136 Westwood Blvd. in Westwood Village. What was exciting was that the self-described “largest bubble tea brand in America”, Kung Fu Tea, was opening a storefront in collaboration with Taiwanese brand TKK Fried Chicken at this address. Sadly, JP recently wrote to me again to let me know that the experiment appears to have folded and the space is now empty once again.
(Thanks JP!)
Sad news for Westwood Village… Los Angeles’ last outpost of vegan eatery Native Foods is closing today (June 23). A somber note on the front expresses gratitude and announces the permanent departure from their long-held address at 1114 Gayley Ave. There is a glimmer of hope though: The note also says that they are searching for a new Westwood location. We wish them the best of luck. Until then, if you’re missing their signature plant-based sandwiches, you can still find locations in San Diego, Orange County, and Palm Springs.
(Thank you Leslie!)
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