Modern Restaurants in Los Angeles
Chris Nichols, associate editor at Los Angeles Magazine, Googie expert, author, and all-around architectural steward, recommends modern Los Angeles restaurants that shouldn't be missed—even if there's only time for a drive-by. Catch Chris at Dwell on Design—he'll be curating a discussion entitled Modern Restaurant Design: Mid-Century and Today at 2:30 on Sunday, June 27. Register for tickets now!
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Pann's
1958, Armet & Davis Architects. Interiors and landscaping designed by Helen Liu Fong. panns.com
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Fred 62
Opened in 1997 by designer Fred Sutherland and chef Fred Eric, Fred 62 is a retro-kitsch diner located in the heart of Los Feliz.
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Chip's
Designed by Harry Harrison in 1957, Chip's unites cartoon playfulness with the smooth lines of modernism.
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Corky's
Recently excavated from a tomb of '70s remodeling, Corky's swoopy roof shines again. Architecture by Armet & Davis, 1958.
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Bob's Big Boy
A state landmark where late moderne meets Googie, this location is open 24 hours and offers carhop service at its drive-in. Architecture by Wayne McAllister, 1949. bobs.net
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101 Coffee Shop
A 1960s motel coffee shop recreated for the 21st century by Warner Ebbink. 101coffeeshop.com
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Simply Wholesome
The former home of the 'Wich Stand' by Armet & Davis, 1957. simplywholesome.com
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Rod's Grill
The last of a chain of stylish eateries, Rod's Grill narrowly escaped demolition for a car lot and is thriving on Route 66.
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Norm's Restaurant (Slauson)
Designed by Eldon Davis of Armet, Davis & Newlove Architects. normsrestaurant.com
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Former Holiday Bowl Coffee Shop
Now a Starbuck's, this building was designed by Armet & Davis in 1958. starbucks.com
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Shakers
Previously named the Salt Shaker, designed by Armet & Davis. shakers.com
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Foxy's Restaurant
An A-frame cabin in the futuristic woods, designed by Burt Richardson in 1964. foxysrestaurant.net
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Mel's Drive In
Former home of Ben Frank's, 1962, by Lane & Schick, Architects. melsdrive-in.com
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George's 50's Diner
Former home of Grissinger's. Architecture by Wayne McAllister. george's50sdiner.com
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Encounter Restaurant
Designed in 1961 by Welton Becket, Luckman and Pereira and Paul R. Williams, Architects. Interiors by Eddie Sotto and Walt Disney Imagineering, 1995. encounter.com
Los Angeles International Airport
209 World Way
Los Angles, California -
The Stinking Rose
Original home of Lawry's. Remodeled by architect Wayne McAllister. thestinkingrose.com
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Diner on Main
A Googie coffee shop reimagined as an East coast diner. Originally Preble's, designed by Armet & Davis Architects. dineronmainrestaurant.com
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Denny's
The ubiquitous chain got its start in the LA suburb of Lakewood in 1958. This is one of the earliest remaining stores with the boomerang roofline. Designed by Armet & Davis. dennys.com
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Astro Family Restaurant
The dramatic gravity-defying roofline has completely dominated this Silver Lake corner since 1958. Designed by Armet & Davis. astrofamilyrestaurant.com
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Bonavista Lounge
A revolving circular cocktail lounge high atop the Bonaventure Hotel. Designed by architect John Portman in 1976. starwoodhotels.com
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Bob's Big Boy Broiler
Originally Harvey's Broiler, this drive-in and coffee shop was resurrected in 2009 as a new Bob's Big Boy. Carhops serve under the butterfly canopy. Originally designed by Paul B. Clayton, 1958.
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The Standard Hotel's 24/7 Restaurant
A mod room in the restored Superior Oil building, originally designed by Claud Beelman in 1955. standardhotels.com
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The Blue Star
A tiny butterfly roof peeking out among the junkyards of downtown's east side. The upscale comfort food attracts nearby apparel designers.bluestarrocksdtla.com
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The Oinkster
Occupying the former site of Jim's Burgers in Eagle Rock, Oinkster serves house-cured pastrami and slow cooked pork.
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Kitchen 24
Designed by Kristopher Keith and Spacecraft, this is a bustling 24-hour diner in the heart of the Cahuenga club corridor. kitchen24.info
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The Waffle
All day/all night breakfast with a mod '60s overlay. thewaffle.com
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Norm's Restaurant (La Cienega)
The flagship of the Norm's chain, with its classic Armet & Davis roofline and featuring an enormous neon pennant that flashes all night.This location opened in 1957. normsrestaurants.com
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Swingers Diner
Located inside the Beverly Laurel Motor Hotel, built in 1963. swingersdiner.com
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World's Oldest McDonald's
Built in 1953 by architect Stanley C. Meston. mcdonaldsdowney.com
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The Donut Hole
This giant Pop Art programmatic object was created in 1968. thdonuthole.com
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Arturo's Restaurant
Post-and-beam, designed in 1960. It's like eating Mexican food in a Case Study house. arturuosrestaurant.com
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Pho Cafe
Designed by Escher Gunewardena. phocafe.com
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Former Ship's Coffee Shop
Now a Starbuck's, this building was created in 1957 by architect Martin Stern, Jr. starbucks.com
Articles
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Just Browsing
Personal devices are the new frontier for shops peddling their wares. Have a look at how your toddler will shop.
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Shipping Container Retail Design
I wish I could see this cool new pop-up shop in person, but alas, it's in Manhattan and only until October 31. It's the first (albeit temporary) retail store for fashion designer Richard Chai, set…
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Grass Mirror
The architects at Paris-based studio H20 Architects know how to maximize space--and in their latest design, the Grass Mirror, it's no different.
Products
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Fleurir Chocolates
Robert Ludlow is the mad genius behind Fleurir Chocolates- not mad as in angry, but mad as in wildly creative and remarkably disorganized. After graduating valedictorian with Le Grand Diplome…
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Mast Brothers Chocolate
Mast Brothers roast their own cacao beans, and create amazing, intense, small batch, hand made, highly crafted chocolate. You can get an assortment of ten chocolates online, for the oh so serious…
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Store
Better suited to storing sugar than supporting Apollo missions, these ceramic containers’ lines were nevertheless inspired by space capsules. Armstrong and Aldrin would definitely approve.
Events
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American Clay One-Day Workshop
The One-Day Workshop is appropriate for both the plaster professional looking to add a new element, and to homeowners ready to tackle home projects. Our class is structured to include all aspects…
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miniHOME Workshops
In collaboration with Dwell On Design and our California Builder, Sustain will be holding two evening presentations and workshops on our sustainable, prefabricated architecture. While this workshop…
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Prefab Education Workshop
Join Ryan E. Smith, professor of architectural technology and author of Prefab Architecture, in the Prefab Education workshop on January 13th, 2012. Learn about the history of industrialized…
Makes me cry that Ship's is now a Starbucks. Criminal.
I think this list might have missed Dal Rae, in Pico Rivera (1958). Lovely place. Delicious crab cakes. http://www.dalrae.com/ D.
La Villa Basque in Vernon. Not far from downtown. A weird place. French restaurant meets a Denny's. Built in 1960 and trapped in amber since then. I expected the cast of "Mad Men", in full costume, to walk in, sit down at the bar and order martinis. (And start smoking.) Food was very good as well, if not authentic. American style French food. lavillabasque.com Corner of Soto and Leonis in Vernon. Open only during the day, Monday to Friday.
A lot of these restaurants are reviewed in the Los Angeles Diner Blog, Dinerwood. http://www.dinerwood.blogspot.com
Holy Cow, Chris! Thanks a million for this! Now I know where to go after the car show in Glendale Saturday!
I absolutely adore Dal Rae and La Villa Basque (and Buggy Whip and North Woods Inn and many others) but while their food, decor and interiors are mindblowing, I didn't think their exterior architecture was quite as distinctive as the examples above. THANKS and hope to see y'all on Sunday.
Dal Rae!!! Lawry's The Prime Rib, Musso & Frank's (don't just focus on the low-brow, move up to fine dining).
Nice List! A comment to another comment - There's nothing criminal about re-purposing some of these great buildings as other restaurants/diners, etc. What's really criminal is how many wonderful places were wiped off the map all over LA (and across the country) to make way for parking lots and indistinct buildings. Anyone remember Ships in Westwood Village and on LaCienega...Tiny Naylors in Westwood, and on and on. I say thanks to Starbucks for keeping two Ships on the map. Hey, don't forget about Delores Restaurant on Santa Monica in West LA - open since 1944 www.doloresrestaurant.com
Good point, Tim! I stand corrected. And yes, I remember the Ships on on La Cienega quite well from growing up, and Dolores too! Isn't Dolores the "home of the cherry-lime rickey"?
I too fondly remember the Westwood Ships and Tiny Naylors. Another candidate: The Wildflower pizza place on Main St. in Ocean Park. This simple yellow cube has been around, and stood out, for a long time.
All Googie?? Couldn't find any restaurants designed after 1975??
@ Somedude: Fred 62, 101 Coffee Shop, Oinkster, Waffle, Standard, Kitchen 24, Pho and Swingers were all either built or majorly remodeled in the last decade.
"It's like eating Mexican food in a Case Study house." OMG, this I must see.
yes, swingers certainly was...I designed it in 1996. Architecturally nothing was touched from the original but all the surfaces were new. There was a great concern about the tartan fabric wearability, until I was in a chinese restaurant downtown and noticed to my delight I was sitting on a plastic covered silk seat! Trash and practicality...We found one of Warhols old printers from the Factory who reprinted the cow wallpaper on his dining table in his apartment (that was an experience). Even found some original menu covers the other from when we did the Swingers Race car, anyone remember that? Great to see at least one project of mine in los angeles still intact.
There is an LA artist who digitally paints vintage black and white postcards of the old diners. He's won awards for his vintage work on the old Sunset and Vine location in Hollywood and the Victor Hugo (now Las Brisas in Laguna), and one of my favs, the Brown Derby. His name is Melvin Hale and his site is at www.ArtistLA.com
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