Shoppers who frequent the Hollywood Farmers’ Market on Sundays will soon have the option to brighten up their fresh haul of fruits and veggies.
Beginning April 7, the weekly produce market along Ivar Avenue will also be home to a small spice bazaar. The two-block market will extend its footprint west to include a recently renovated alleyway that runs behind businesses on the east side of Cahuenga Boulevard.
Sustainable Economic Enterprises of Los Angeles, the non-profit operator of the farmers market, has dubbed the addition “Spice Alley.”
Vendors will include Hepps Salt Co., World Flavorz Spice & Tea Co. and Zesty Herbs & Spices. Silver Lake bulk-foods retailer Rice & Beans will also sell grains, beans, pastas and flours.
A few years ago, the brick-laid alley was dirty and riddled with potholes and graffiti. Now, the pedestrian-friendly East Cahuenga Alley, called EaCa Alley, is home to patios for popular restaurants such as St. Felix, Velvet Margarita, Kitchen 24 and Berlin Currywurst.
Those businesses and property owners began petitioning to bring the farmers market to their backyard last fall.
David Gajda, who owns a building that houses three restaurants on the alley and acts as president for the recently established EaCa Alley Property Owners’ Association, said he thinks the spice vendors and area restaurants will enjoy a symbiotic relationship.
“All the restaurants are jumping aboard to offer spicy drinks and foods,” he said. “After a morning spent shopping at the market, visitors can pick up some exotic spices to flavor their meals, then sit on one of the alley’s restaurant patios.”
James Haydu, executive director for SEE-LA, said the spice bazaar was a natural extension for the farmers market. He contends that it’ll start small but grow as it gains traction with Sunday shoppers.
“It was a no-brainer for us to partner with them because the alley runs parallel to and is really a direct extension of our footprint on Sundays,” he said.
Checking Out
Upscale grocery chain Gelson’s Market is slimming down.
The retailer, owned by Compton holding company Arden Group Inc., will shutter its store at Paseo Colorado in Pasadena this summer after more than a dozen years there.
The closure leaves the chain with 16 stores, though another is expected to open in Long Beach along the Pacific Coast Highway at East 2nd Street later this year. Gelson’s last closed a store more than a year ago in Northridge.
Rene Soto, senior managing director at real estate firm Charles Dunn Co. in Glendale, said the grocery’s placement at the retail complex – along the back side of the property facing the Pasadena Convention Center – was problematic. The storefront did a poor job of attracting drop-in shoppers and parking was a hassle.
“You have to know where you’re going to find it and you have to pay for parking,” Soto said. “It’s a whole process to get in and get out. If you have a bunch of bags, it’s not feasible.”
Gelson’s Vice President Hee-Sook Nelson said she doesn’t blame the store’s disappointing performance solely on its side-street location.
“We just haven’t driven the traffic we need,” she said. “We did try for 12 years, and at that point we had to make a decision to focus our energies elsewhere.”
She said the 60 employees affected by the closure will be reassigned to the retailer’s other locations.
“It’s important to us to keep them employed,” she said.
Revolving Door
L.A. restaurant company Innovative Dining Group, which owns and operates BOA Steakhouse and Sushi Roku restaurants, among others, will open a fine-dining Chinese restaurant in West Hollywood this month. The restaurant, Chi-Lin, will open on Sunset Boulevard next door to RivaBella, an Italian concept the group opened in January. … Retail real estate firm RKF in Santa Monica announced that Torrance bakery and coffee spot L’Amande Bakery & Café signed a lease at 9530 S. Santa Monica Blvd. in Beverly Hills. The French-inspired café will open in July. … Chef Ricardo Zarate and business partner Stephane Bombet will open Paiche, a Japanese-inspired Peruvian restaurant, in Marina del Rey on April 2. The restaurant is the third for the duo, who also own Peruvian restaurants Picca and Mo-chica. … Furniture retailer Ashley Furniture Industries Inc. of Arcadia, Wis., opened a 42,000-square-foot store in West Covina last month in a space formerly occupied by Babies R Us of Wayne, N.J. … Family-owned Hollywood taco stand Cactus Tacos is expected to open in Studio City on Moorpark Street in coming months. Popular taco joint Henry’s Tacos moved out of the same space earlier this year after more than 50 years there. … L.A. gourmet sandwich chain Mendocino Farms will open a third downtown L.A. location at the FIGat7th retail center April 2. … U.K. cosmetics company Lush Retail Ltd. will open a 1,300-square-foot store this month at Westfield Fashion Square Mall in Sherman Oaks.
At Your Service
Jeff Lubell, former chief executive of Vernon fashion retailer True Religion Apparel Inc., received a severance package from the company he founded when he stepped down last month as part of his contract. In addition to those benefits, he will be paid $1 million a year for the next two years for consulting services, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
Staff reporter Bethany Firnhaber can be reached at [email protected] or (323) 549-5225, ext. 235.
