Forget wine and cheese. Richard Shapiro and Murray Wishengrad remain convinced that wine and gourmet hot dogs are even better.
Back in 1984, Shapiro co-founded the Daily Grill restaurant chain, so he has credentials. Now Shapiro and his business partner Wishengrad are focusing on the expansion of their upscale fast food chain, Stand.
The company’s newest restaurant opened this year in Century City near the Creative Artists Agency building. It was the second Stand locale, following the success of the first location in Encino, which opened in 2004. That store received a ton of publicity and some rave reviews for its custom dogs, imported beers and fine wines.
Five more locations in Southern California are currently in development, including one on Hollywood Boulevard and another on Wilshire Boulevard.
“We aren’t looking for Applebee’s-type stand-alone sites,” said Wishengrad. “We want to be a destination restaurant at places like the Grove, where we benefit from the site and we add to the site at the same time.”
Shapiro and Wishengrad, who met early in their careers when they worked in the car rental business, traveled around the country before opening Stand to develop regional hot dog recipes.
They chose the upscale fast food medium because it is the fastest growing segment of the food industry, said Wishengrad, who envisions going national with the concept.
Candy for Kids
Popular women’s Web site DailyCandy.com which sends out online “insider” scoops on sample sales, store openings, entertainment and food is expanding to target kids, or their moms.
Former New York magazine reporter Dany Levy launched the online company in 2000, sending the e-mails to about 700 people in New York, mostly from Levy’s contact list.
Over the past seven years, the company has expanded and is tailored to cities across the United States and internationally, and has about 2.5 million subscribers.
The Los Angeles kids’ edition will launch on Sept. 17 in Los Angeles as well as New York, Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco, and it will be delivered every Monday morning. The content will be along the lines of “the best after-school swim-nastics” and “can’t miss kidswear,” as well as retail sales, store openings and kid-friendly restaurants.
Edible Green
Driven by environmental consciousness, developers all over Los Angeles have gone “green” with their buildings. One example is developer Bret P. Mosher, who owns the Flat, a downtown apartment complex at 750 Garland St.
In October, Mosher will unveil an edible garden on the 4,000-square-foot roof of the six-story building. The garden will grow vegetables, herbs, and fruit trees for Blue Velvet, the restaurant located on the ground floor of the building.
Kris Morningstar, the executive chef of Blue Velvet, likes the idea.
“Not only can we plant unusual produce and herbs, such as bergamot, lovage and arrowhead spinach,” he said, “we get to use them in the restaurant and share them with guests. If we run out of basil, we don’t have to go further than a few flights of stairs.”
Bedding on California
Houston-based Mattress Firm, the nation’s third-largest mattress retailer with 450 stores in 21 states, is buying L.A.-based Mattress Gallery, which operates 53 stores in Southern California.
“I know the economy has been a little difficult in California, but it is our most populous state,” said Gary Fazio, the CEO of Mattress Firm. “If we are going to be a national company we need to have a presence there.”
The foray into California will be the first for Mattress Firm. Financial terms of the acquisition, which is expected to close in 60 days, were not disclosed. There will eventually be some staff changes but not initially, Fazio said.
Mattress Gallery stores will be converted into Mattress Firm stores, and will expand product selection.
“We have a different layout,” Fazio said. “We will be targeting the lady consumer because she is the decision maker for the home.”
Yogurt Newcomer
With L.A.’s yogurt landscape so crowded, it’s not easy to stand out, but a just-opened Beverly Hills store is doing all it can to make a name for itself.
Sno:la serves a variety of flavors, as opposed to the plain and green tea choices at most yogurt shops, including sour cherry, mango, chocolate and espresso chip with a 20-item toppings bar.
The shop, 244 N. Beverly Drive, bills its fare as healthy, too. The non-fat, organic, white sugar-free yogurt is made in solar-powered yogurt machines, served in parfait glasses made of corn with biodegradable spoons.
And let’s not forget environmentally concerned. The store’s countertops are even made of recycled computer chips.
Staff reporter Sarah Filus can be reached at [email protected], or at (323) 549-5225, ext. 235.
