Posted on 08/04/2024 1:57:35 PM PDT by Fiji Hill
Once home to a luxury steakhouse frequented by stars like Mae West, a century-old building on the outskirts of downtown Los Angeles went up in flames during the early morning hours Saturday.
First opened in 1921, the Pacific Dining Car restaurant was housed inside a replica of a railway train car, lending a unique atmosphere to what would become a favorite of Old Hollywood. Over the next nearly 100 years, it was a fixture of fine dining in LA and a filming location for television shows and movies including 1974's "Chinatown" starring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway and the 2001 film "Training Day" with Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke.
The restaurant would become known as a swanky spot for local politicians and celebrities, with its pricey prime steaks and vast wine collection. The late Pulitzer Prize-winning food critic Jonathan Gold wrote in 1990 that the restaurant "prices its steaks out of the reach of anybody but six-figure businessmen."
Just last year, its vacant building officially became a historic cultural monument in the city of Los Angeles. It was more than 100 years after the restaurant was first founded by Fred and Grace "Lovey" Cook.
Around 1 a.m. Saturday, firefighters managed to put out a blaze that had engulfed the more than 100-year-old, 5,500-square foot building, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department, although the extent of the damage remains unclear. No injuries were reported.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
Sad to say, odds are it was intentional as too many fires are.
Somebody forgot to turn the stove off when they closed the restaurant.
Stand by for the insurance claim.
One less monument to Hollywood.
A restaurant owner named Cook? That’s like a library cop named Bookman.
homeless encampment?
The city forcing that establishment to remain as-is made it unprofitable, and meant there was only one solution
The old Hollywood--before it got woke.
Indeed when class was still in style.
That is just under my week’s grocery bill. Which is that high due to Nose strips, Nexium, generic Tylenol on sale, and Fixident. Milk and kiddie cereal, hub addiction, I cut his M&M off when they hit $10 for the party size. COFFEE IS A NECESSITY. Bought when it’s on sale. Now it is not going on sale. Dog food for 2 small dogs.
Designating private property to be a monument is a takings and the property owner should be justly compensated.
But noooOOOoooOOOooo.
Check out menu items cost for most steak houses nowadays...sometimes even more...actually the place was running down before closure...the outside of restaurant became very shabby...probably could have been rehabbed but the neighborhood became “third world”... and L.A buildings and restaurant health codes would have probably required demolition. .The previous downfall of the restaurant was before downtown L.A. became a hipster hangout...
Popular with LAPD brass too. James Ellroy was a regular there in the 90’s. Ironic seeing he’s a vegetarian.
Was this the diner depicted in “L.A. Confidential’ where Ed Exley thought the real Lana Turner was a fake Lana Turner?
“Monument” and “Historical” designations lock properties up under code restrictions that raise alteration or use changes costs greatly. Marysville Hotel in city of same name (CA) just suffered this fate a few weeks ago.
It would be simple just to INCENTIVISE keeping the structure, but you don’t get nearly as many bureaucrat billable hours as you do nanny stating it to death and the owners apparently see high temperature renovations as the cheapest way to regain use of their property...
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