https://www.instagram.com/p/CDdbaqAjLGe/?igshid=1mehsw31iddc4
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Big loss but not too surprising
Heartbreaking news. One of my favorite restaurants…
Man I didn’t eat there enough. Enjoyed some wonderful meals at Broken Spanish.
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me too - I think one of their problems is that all my enjoyable meals (and many others I presume) were before going to the staples center.
It doesn’t say permanently, it says “for the indefinite future” and “We close our doors today with an abundance of gratitude in our hearts and hopes that this is just goodbye for now.”
Yeah seeing these closures is like getting gut punched.
We lived at the Met Lofts (BS’s home) for 5 months when our place was being remodeled (demolished really). Every afternoon there was Chef Garcia at a table in his empty restaurant with pen & pad discussing the evening’s menu with his staff. He seemed quiet, dedicated and very focused on making sure everything was perfect.
Chicharron - Belly, Garlic Mojo, Pickled Cabbage Salad
The kind of dish you’re not likely to ever forget.
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This blows. It seems like just one punch after the other with all these closings. Sadly it looks to be more of these in the short term as there’s no relief from the government even with Covid numbers not improving.
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Since Jun Won’s announcement last week. The spate of heavy hitter FTC faves announcing closures the past few days is really getting scary… I hate to imagine what the dining landscape is going to look like on the other side.
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Baco Mercat, Jun Won, Dong Il Jang, and now Broken Spanish… the past few days have been brutal.
I had two memorable meals at Broken Spanish. One of their early desserts, the baked Oaxaca, a clever play on baked Alaska, has stuck with me since I had it. And of course the porchetta-style chicharron dish was mouthwatering too. I hope Chef Garcia and the restaurant’s team will land on their feet. MILA seems like a smart pivot given the current climate.
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I sort of think it might be back to about a decade ago? Lots of street vendors, pop ups and trucks and a handful of higher end with mostly chains occupying the middle. Figure that the low cost of entry of the pop ups, etc for the people who are willing to take the plunge. The high end dining will find investors, chains will get big bank financing.
But the explosion of interesting middle class brick and mortar options we’ve enjoyed in the last 5 or so years will take a couple of years to come back. Those operators will have to start back up with trucks and pop ups to re-establish themselves on firmer financial footing, build up reputation and steady clientele before making the financial investment on a brick and mortar.
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Great analysis… sounds very plausible
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Ghost kitchens everywhere. 3rd party delivery driver to your door.
Low fixed costs, high variable costs.
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Yep! It’s like food trucks during the recession. Delivery or Quick pick up. Next evolution…
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And I think this pandemic will also change the overhead/rent landscape for businesses. As a sector, commercial real estate may likely suffer even after the pandemic ends, as companies have discovered during this time that many if not most of their employees CAN work from home to a satisfactory enough a degree of productivity. This will lead to many companies downsizing their footprint in rental square footage.
Furthermore, workers, having experienced a home-based workday routine, may also not be so fond of the notion of returning to a daily commute. Commercial space, in turn, may become cheaper to rent, and this one factor may become the catalyst to spark the return of more brick & mortars restaurants - Just my musings…
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MILA was also supposed to begin today but now the website just says Coming Soon
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I know nothing about commercial real estate industry. In your opinion, do you think in the new landscape, tenants would be able to negotiate more favorable exit terms or renegotiations in case of emergencies similar to current pandemic?
Something that would allow tenants time to regroup and stay for long term instead of landlord losing any income by tenant just closing and walking away?
I’m also not in the commercial real estate arena (just speaking as a business owner who rents space).
Traditionally, in L.A. brick & mortar eateries, a huge portion of the overhead (and headache) involved the rent and dealing with lack of space. All I’m predicting is that since the price-per-square-foot might drop after the pandemic, it might make it easier for restauranteurs to set up a new shop. Also, landlords may recognize that good tenants may be harder to come by, and thus may be more accommodating to those tenants.
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