photo from LAist.comSome of the crappy chain places along Wilshire's Miracle Mile put up a big stink when the new wave of food trucks started parking around the 5700 to 5900 blocks. Toshi's, the bastard stepson of Samurai Sam's, was the most upset. Now Chowhound's Mr. Taster reports that both Toshi's and O to Go have closed up shop. I don't wish for anyone to lose their livelihood in this difficult economy, but he is dead right -- if these places had served anything remotely worth eating, I would have likely spent more than $5000 there over the course of working on Wilshire for more than 14 years.
Instead, I'm a dedicated brown bagger, happy to sporadically check out the Grilled Cheese Truck, Kogi or the Nomnom truck. I can't get too excited about a Coffee Bean possibly taking one of the spaces, either. Can we please get some better food along Wilshire? I did see a new sushi place going in the 5600 block, so maybe there will be more changes in the neighborhood.
10 comments:
The word from a now former employee of O to go is that a new place is opening in that space but the same owners. Rumor has it Toshi's will be replaced with a Coffee Bean
dedicated brown bagger? really? Can you do a post on that? your rotating lunch bag? Cuz I notice lots of food truck tweets during your lunch time :)
O to Go's closing has nothing to do with the food trucks. Rather it's due to a change in corporate strategy undertaken after they went private this summer and got a new CEO. They're changing their menu and focus (more emphasis on their catering business and fancier ingredients). While I don't know the specifics of that location, it seems from the comment above that they are doing the same thing there as at the downtown Cal Plaza location - remodeling it to fit with the new strategy.
I worked at the SAG building for almost a year.
Toshis (Samurai Sams) was not great. It was okay when there were little other choices.
O to Go was good food, but crazy expensive. You coudn't get out of there for less than $12.
If they had offered both value and quality, neither would have closed.
I left that building before the truck revolution, but I would have been THRILLED to see them.
The inability of Miracle Mile to once again become a truly buzzing commercial district with great restaurants is a vexing fact. That intact collection of Deco buildings, the street frontage that appeals to pedestrian and motorist alike, the rich demographic mix, the history...Oy. Don't get me started...
Agreed, the Miracle Mile has shockingly few restaurants to serve the ever-growing population. I have lived her for 10+ years and always jump in the car and go to another (but close) neighborhood to eat. Any place that is truly good (and not ridiculously overpriced.. ahem...CaBrea and Campanile) will be bustling. Look at how well La Brea bakery has done for so many years and Umami burger took off right way. The food trucks have been a welcome addition for folks like me who live here.
The "Miracle Mile" as I recall, never had much of anything consumer friendly besides office related buildings.
Interesting read that 2 of the very few restaurants there are going out of business. But I don't think that that's related to the food trucks.
Both the higher end and lower end restaurants are getting hammered in this economy. So I'm not surprised that a lot are going out of business. And if the price points and/or the food wasn't any good to begin with, then it sounds more of a case of that.
One man's opinion.
With all the new residential-retail mix of buildings going up along Wilshire and La Brea, I hope some of those retail spaces will have something more interesting than Jamba Juice, Subway or a box store. But I fear it's only the large, dull chains that can afford the rent.
They're changing their menu and focus.If they had offered both value and quality, neither would have closed.
Wow...leave the trucks alone!! They bring quick, yummy food right to you!
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