LOS ANGELES | Downtown Project Rundown 4.0

[Muji]

Caught a glimpse of the Courtyard Marriott this afternoon. This tower is going to be extremely visible on Olympic Boulevard to the east.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

Oh. My. Goodness. This hurts.

oh, that's so cruel to post that pic, not only cuz that proposal was much nicer than the one that was formally accepted, but cuz it's pretty much DOA. the federal courthouse that likely is going to be built at 1st & broadway appears to be a done deal. sadly, it reminds me of a govt bldg from the 1960s....but at least that big gap next to the LA Times bldg finally....FINALLY!!!....will be filled in.

the pics posted by blackcat, pink floyd & muji do help make up for things. Their photos....esp the one of the proj at 9th & Olive....make me.....

Now I'm going to be a debbie downer.....I read this wk's downtown news & they have an article on the new figaro french restaurant on broadway. It appears to be struggling right now, not exactly like what bottega louie experienced. That restaurant was busy from the beginning. But Figaro is attracting only around 100 customers per day. even a small hotdog stands needs more patrons than that to breakeven, & the owners of figaro have invested big $$ into their new business. I hope this is just opening day jitters.

not helping things, I understand the owner of the new towne restaurant on the ground floor of the watermarke apt tower at 9th & flower st has sold his business to someone else. Generally, if a business is a success, its owner won't want to sell. I hope that's not the case here.

but I'll again mention the pic taken by pink floyd...& no need to apologize for using a cell cam....& bring out....

[LosAngelesSportsFan]

the owner of towne was forced to sell by the other partners from what ive heard. hes not exactly the most popular person. Town has decent crowds every time im walking by. i think it will do fine.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by LosAngelesSportsFan

the owner of towne was forced to sell by the other partners from what ive heard......Town has decent crowds every time im walking by. i think it will do fine.

that's good to hear. There is no substitute for you forumers....for your feet on the ground & eyes looking around....who actually do live in the hood, or spend much time there.

since I mentioned the figaro restaurant that recently opened on broadway, I should have at least made an effort to post some pics of that place...although these are grabbed from others...



yelp.com


Aya T/yelp.com


Aya T/yelp.com


Geri B/yelp.com


Geri B/yelp.com


I hope such new businesses don't find the going tough in the still grubby sections of broadway, since that will slow down efforts to more quickly clean up....or clean up at all....that street.

another thing I read in the current downtown news is that many of the remaining old bldgs on broadway, whose upper floors are vacant or rundown, really can't be converted to apts or lofts. that's cuz their spaces are so spread out & far from windows....& sunlight....that only ppl who'd use those floors for offices or businesses would want to be in them. that means it will be more difficult to clean up broadway by finally putting some life into the upper stories of the bldgs along the street.

[ConstructDTLA]

Originally Posted by citywatch

Now I'm going to be a debbie downer.....I read this wk's downtown news & they have an article on the new figaro french restaurant on broadway. It appears to be struggling right now, not exactly like what bottega louie experienced. That restaurant was busy from the beginning. But Figaro is attracting only around 100 customers per day. even a small hotdog stands needs more patrons than that to breakeven, & the owners of figaro have invested big $$ into their new business. I hope this is just opening day jitters.

Figaro is doing beyond horribly. 100 customers a day sounds extremely high. I make a point to go by at LEAST once a day, and theres usually 0 or 2 people in there.. (dinner time). Lunch could be as high as 8 people on a good day.

They haven't put up a sign. They haven't finished their patio seating. They didn't restore the marquee like they said they would. Their doors are the same sh*t doors Carls Jr used. And I love the hispanic music blaring from across the street. They went 90% of the way on this place then stopped just short it seems. The food is pretty good though.

[brudy]

Originally Posted by HunterK

Figaro is doing beyond horribly. 100 customers a day sounds extremely high. I make a point to go by at LEAST once a day, and theres usually 0 or 2 people in there.. (dinner time). Lunch could be as high as 8 people on a good day.

I passed by on thursday around 6:30pm and I literally saw nobody in there. I think we're going to try and get breakfast or lunch there tomorrow. I think it's a combination of lack of publicity, signage and possibly location. 7th st is one thing for people, people get it, but I think broadway puts people off. I really want it to survive.

[LAofAnaheim]

Clifton's Cafetaria is 5 businesses down from Figaro. Once Clifton's reopens with its new nightlife 24 hour entertainment on the 3rd floor, then more people will notice Figaro.

Another problem with Figaro..........complete lack of signage. I still struggle to find Figaro at night and day. It needs a nice neon light to compete and something that juts out on the street like Pete's Cafe or Casey's. Artisan House has good signage; that's an example Figaro should use.

[Illithid Dude]

Yeah, I went to Figaro and it just felt.. unfinished. The inside reminded me of an airport. The food wasn't very good. The plates felt weirdly cheap. It was like they ran out of money or something.

Also, I think it's just unrealistic to expect any neighborhood that isn't Vegas to support so many huge restaurants. Bottega Louie is one thing, but to add Towne, the french place across from BL, Figaro, Artisan House, and others that I can't even remember to that mix is ridiculous. In comparison, a lot of the smaller restaurants downtown that have recently opened, like Bar Ama and Alma, are doing great. I simply can't get a reservation at Alma. It's amazing.

[StethJeff]

7th, Spring, and Main are all established or at least on their way to becoming established food/bar/cafe corridors. Businesses are tightly packed without a lot of grime in between. South Broadway has a handful of good places but unfortunately still suffers from the fact that people identify it with cheap retail and addicted derelicts spouting off at other pedestrians. The Umami brand still has huge drawing power and Broadway Bar benefits a lot from the Orpheum. Other than that, LA Brewing Company sucks and Figaro is still a block further north. What else is there along this section of Broadway that most people would ever want to go to? I hope it survives but I think the above critiques are all very valid: bad location and bad advertising.

[StethJeff]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

Yeah, I went to Figaro and it just felt.. unfinished. The inside reminded me of an airport. The food wasn't very good. The plates felt weirdly cheap. It was like they ran out of money or something.

All this talk about Figaro made me wanna go tomorrow and finally check it out. Now I'm not so sure

[Illithid Dude]

Also, it isn't fair to expect every single business to open downtown to do well. Just like anywhere else in the world, there are swimmers, and then there are sinkers. It's the natural order of things.

Anyways, here was my meal at Figaro if anyone cares.

[StethJeff]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

Also, it isn't fair to expect every single business to open downtown to do well. Just like anywhere else in the world, there are swimmers, and then there are sinkers. It's the natural order of things.

Half-assing it definitely won't cut it in DTLA anymore. I think we're spoiled now.
Places like Industriel, Bäco Mercat, Parish, etc. set a pretty high bar. I can't even remember the last time that I left DTLA for a nice meal. Newcomers have a lot of stiff competition that they have to compete against if they want to stay relevant.

[Muji]

It's too bad to hear that Figaro isn't doing great, given the huge gamble they took with opening on Broadway. I stopped by for brunch there two weeks ago and it seemed to be doing just fine. I found the service and food to be excellent, though the decor is truly pretty bad. The bar area looks all right but the patisserie counter and the stairway in the back look like they belong in a Beverly Hills McMansion.

[RuFFy]

Found this in the LA Times...

"Ambitious plans have been unveiled for a 3.3-million-square-foot development that would bring a college, hotel, offices and apartments to the fashion district of downtown Los Angeles.

The owners of about three blocks' worth of faded commercial properties hope to build a project valued between $500 million and $1 billion called the City Market of Los Angeles. It would rise in an area that once housed wholesale produce businesses and is now home mostly to garment industry shops and warehouses.

City Market is in early stages of seeking approval for the project from city officials, which could take more than a year. The boundaries of the proposed 10-acre development are roughly San Julian and San Pedro streets between 9th and 12th streets."

Here's the link:
http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-mixeduse-fashion-district-20130125,0,4896850.story

[ConstructDTLA]

If the Los Angeles or Palace opened up Figaro would be filled every time theres a show. (But thats not going to happen ANYTIME soon). I noticed that awful Downtown St Louis had a group of thriving restaurants surrounding their FOX theater when I happened to be there a few months ago.


Another ridiculous/funny tidbit about Figaro. Their manager has been replying to yelp reviews insulting people and such.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/les-noces-du-figaro-los-angeles

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by RuFFy

Found this in the LA Times...

"Ambitious plans have been unveiled for a 3.3-million-square-foot development that would bring a college, hotel, offices and apartments to the fashion district of downtown Los Angeles.

The owners of about three blocks' worth of faded commercial properties hope to build a project valued between $500 million and $1 billion called the City Market of Los Angeles. It would rise in an area that once housed wholesale produce businesses and is now home mostly to garment industry shops and warehouses.

City Market is in early stages of seeking approval for the project from city officials, which could take more than a year. The boundaries of the proposed 10-acre development are roughly San Julian and San Pedro streets between 9th and 12th streets."

Here's the link:
http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-mixeduse-fashion-district-20130125,0,4896850.story

Wow. Just...wow.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by HunterK

Another ridiculous/funny tidbit about Figaro. Their manager has been replying to yelp reviews insulting people and such.

that may hint at just how much pressure the owners are under right now, since I'm guessing the manager is either a member of the family that owns Figaro or is closely related to them.

It will be very sad if that restaurant can't make a go of it on broadway....due in part to it being family owned, from brothers, sister & their father from France. It still would be if it were owned by a big corporation, with bigger pockets, & closed down anyway, cuz that will put a chill on efforts to revive broadway. but when a business is owned & operated by a family, that's something more ppl can relate to. iow, a family who has its own money, possibly even life savings, on the line.

they probably stretched their budget to get the restaurant up & running, which is why there may not have been enough $$ left over for a sign or for other improvements, like a better front door, a better sidewalk dining area, or other features on the outside of the bldg.

illithid mentions the hood not being able to support all the large new restaurants....that dtla isn't vegas, full of enough tourists & other ppl with $$. I hope he's wrong. That's cuz there's another place, owned by ppl based in toronto, that will be a huge new Italian restaurant at 8th & spring....terroni's will be sort of an eastside dt version of bottega louie. the canadians are investing big $$ into their proj.



aiselections.com

I'm also concerned about another new french restaurant that will be opening up in the douglas bldg.....


blogdowtown.com

^ that corner has had bad luck in holding at least one other restaurant over the past few yrs. The new business will be owned by the ppl who also own Church & state....which has managed to stay open & do well in spite of its rough location in the arts dist....& someone originally from Patina. so I hope their reputation will help overcome the problems that surround the ghosttown condition of the area around 3rd St & Spring.

the real kick in the head is if these very ambitious, well funded, nice additions to the hood don't survive, while all the swapmeets currently on broadway are still there well into the future.

if that happens, it will deserve the biggest possible.

[LA/OCman]

Not sure why all the ragging on the new Figaro. I have eaten there twice and the food is superb, very similar to food I have eaten in Paris. The owner and staff are professional and very nice. The owner took us on a tour of the space. The signage is not stopping people from eating there. It is the tattered part of a changing Broadway. The city needs to control the noise of the stereos blasting. The owners are also facing the delays of Clifton's. I understand they are a year away from opening which will hurt other businesses.

Also, the Los Angeles Theatre is sold out on Feb 9th for a showing of Romeo and Juliet. We need more programming! I am sure they will do well that night.

Lastly, the pastries are excellent. Who cares if the owner responds on Yelp? He is a passionate Frenchman. So far there are 38 reviews with an average of 4 stars. Pretty damn good in my opinion.

When I first bought Downtown I would go to this great little restaurant on 8th called Colori Kitchen. It was so quiet in there in the beginning. I was so afraid they would not survive.....and now they have two locations. Figaro opened Dec. 19th. I hope they flourish.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by Illithid Dude

Anyways, here was my meal at Figaro if anyone cares.

the little scoop of rice makes the dish look somehow not correct, or not in tune with "french". Or it makes me think of an overly unsure menu, which has been value engineered....sort of like the new federal courthouse.

Ppl have also complained that the lighting levels in Figaro are too bright....some ppl have said the same thing about the new towne restaurant in the watermarke tower. If so, it's surprising that something as basic to setting the proper mood isn't handled well by ppl who are investing big $$ into their business.

the city market proposal is surprising, since that part of dt doesn't seem like it would receive much new investment til well into the future. So I'm not sure if it's going to be another version of the glass tower proj, LA central proj, or the big neo classical towers that were planned a few yrs ago for the location around Olympic & grand.

fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.

however, the proj is very interesting cuz it involves several property owners who are getting together to improve & clean up their part of dt. If more of that would happen throughout the hood, it might not take so long to get things turned around.

[citywatch]

Originally Posted by LA/OCman

When I first bought Downtown I would go to this great little restaurant on 8th called Colori Kitchen. It was so quiet in there in the beginning. I was so afraid they would not survive.....and now they have two locations. Figaro opened Dec. 19th. I hope they flourish.

your comment about colori & how that can be applied to Figaro does give me some new found optimism & hope. The owners of figaro also did face slow business when they first took over their restaurant in the los Feliz area.

speaking of colori, their location will seem a bit less since the large area almost catercorner to them is now the site of the new apt proj on 8th St between grand & olive. And the sad, rundown bldg across from them finally...FINALLY!....is being shopped around to new buyers. and a block to the south, the new apt tower at 9th & olive may be breaking ground shortly....although the parking lot where it will go up wasn't all that bad. still, one less gap.

gloom over!