My initial thought was most of the old guard places--Elaine’s, Four Seasons, Fred’s at Barney’s, et al--functioned as the urban equivalents to the country clubs of suburbia. As our culture has broadened, we may not really need those “club sandwich” sorts of places anymore. And that is probably to our credit, really!
"If a place gets even the slightest patina going, it will usually be painted over to keep things looking fresh for the new guests that are necessary for a business to keep going."
This. Another drawback of constant restaurant turnover is that nothing survives long enough to form elbow grooves at the bar, creases in the leather banquette or a bit or organic, well-meaning graffiti in the bathroom. Now it's all squeaky clean dining rooms more sanitized than an operating room, and just as brightly lit so the influencers can shoot reels.
So if this came out more bitter than I anticipated, it just really bums me out. My city, Boston, has some of the most beautiful and historic architecture in America, but good look eating in a restaurant that's been there longer than eight years.
LA has been losing spots like this at an alarming clip. I still miss Kate Mantilini, which really was the classic "this is the place you go to have backslappy lunch meetings and make deals...we don't really know why anymore, there are much better restaurants around here, but this is the place where it has to happen" industry spot. It was all about the vibe. I guess a lot of that migrated to places like Soho House, which is definitely a place that people just "go to," but it just isn't the same--the exclusiveness insists on itself too much, and it's less a "scene" than a studio commissary dressed up like a private club.
My initial thought was most of the old guard places--Elaine’s, Four Seasons, Fred’s at Barney’s, et al--functioned as the urban equivalents to the country clubs of suburbia. As our culture has broadened, we may not really need those “club sandwich” sorts of places anymore. And that is probably to our credit, really!
"If a place gets even the slightest patina going, it will usually be painted over to keep things looking fresh for the new guests that are necessary for a business to keep going."
This. Another drawback of constant restaurant turnover is that nothing survives long enough to form elbow grooves at the bar, creases in the leather banquette or a bit or organic, well-meaning graffiti in the bathroom. Now it's all squeaky clean dining rooms more sanitized than an operating room, and just as brightly lit so the influencers can shoot reels.
So if this came out more bitter than I anticipated, it just really bums me out. My city, Boston, has some of the most beautiful and historic architecture in America, but good look eating in a restaurant that's been there longer than eight years.
This is great and on point.
LA has been losing spots like this at an alarming clip. I still miss Kate Mantilini, which really was the classic "this is the place you go to have backslappy lunch meetings and make deals...we don't really know why anymore, there are much better restaurants around here, but this is the place where it has to happen" industry spot. It was all about the vibe. I guess a lot of that migrated to places like Soho House, which is definitely a place that people just "go to," but it just isn't the same--the exclusiveness insists on itself too much, and it's less a "scene" than a studio commissary dressed up like a private club.