Quick Shutter for Sandella's on 7th
David Markland
Sandella's closed last month in the Mandel Lofts, just over a year after opening.
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — Robin Kirksey shuttered Sandella’s last month after only a year in business. While lunchtime kept him busy, Kirksey said foot traffic dropped steeply in the evening and on weekends. “There are not enough residents here yet,” he said.
Real estate broker Chris Ortman, now tasked with finding a new lessor for the space, disputed this, pointing out that Subway, another sandwich shop two doors down, is thriving, and that if you walk by Bottega Louie on any evening you will rarely see an open seat.
Prospective lessors may be deterred by some of the location’s challenges. The space lacks a liquor permit, exhaust system and a full kitchen set up, all which would require a sizeable investment, and any additional renovations would likely require the owner to add new bathrooms to keep the space ADA compliant.
Regardless, Ortman believes that when Mas Malo, an offshoot of Silverlake’s popular Malo Mexican restaurant, opens in the space below Seven Grand later this month, the marketing for it will be so big that Sandella’s will be snapped up soon after.
“The whole area is in demand,” he says, saying that between Grand and Hope there is only one vacancy, and notes that there have been six new leases in the last six months, in spite of a bad economy.
Among them is the highly acclaimed Sugarfish, which opened two weeks ago, and K.K. Woody, a snack eatery opened in early October.
Chipotle Mexican Grill, a chain that “is very selective of their locations,” says Ottman, will open later this month at the corner of Grand and 7th, a block down from where the Mas Malo will be.
Of the remaining open storefronts, Ortman says due to the owners unwillingness to lease or sell, the Giannini Building remains vacant, and that the Okada Building is hoping to lease a 10,000 square foot space for $25,000 per month, which he believes is out of range in this economy.
But with the current offerings, and additional openings set for the near future, he says, “I’m 100% confident in calling 7th Street ‘Restaurant Row.’”
Guest on November 03, 2010, at 02:55PM – #1
“There are not enough residents here yet,” he said.
Bullshit. There are plenty of residents that reward restaurants that offer an interesting product at a good price point. See: That same stretch of 7th.
Thanks for mentioning the exhaust system. I went in there what must have been just over a month ago, and the place was filled with acrid smoke. Not very conducive to sitting down and eating. The food itself was always fine. Nothing special. Okay price point. Sorry it couldn't work, but blaming it on lack of residents is a cop-out.
Guest on November 03, 2010, at 03:53PM – #2
The problem was that they had at most, at most 2 people working there at any time and the wait to get food was just too long for a place that serves sandwiches. i could have gone in and out of Subway 4 times in that same time frame. Also they should have opened up to the alley next to the store and had some outside seating.
D
Guest on November 03, 2010, at 09:23PM – #3
Let's try not to rip the guy too much. He just lost a business. I applaud him for the effort and liked my visits in the place.
That said, not every restaurant can succeed and I hope a new tenant will not meet the same end.
Guest on November 03, 2010, at 10:23PM – #4
I'm waiting for an Indonesian or Malaysian restaurant. Or a Filipino restaurant that doesn't involve food wasting away for hours under heat lamps.
Guest on November 03, 2010, at 10:42PM – #5
They need a zankou chicken in that spot.
D
Bud Coffey on November 04, 2010, at 07:25AM – #6
I'm waiting for a great VEGAN restaurant on 7th Street.
Guest on November 04, 2010, at 07:57AM – #7
Portos...they're opening another one in Downey soon...why not Downtown?
Guest on November 04, 2010, at 01:40PM – #8
Great article! Although it's Ortman, not Ottman. If anyone knows of a business that would be a good fit for this space please have them call me. Thank you
Chris Ortman A-Line International Realty Inc. 213-500-2794 chris@alineinternational.com
Guest on November 04, 2010, at 03:15PM – #9
Haha, that's funny.
Wait, are you serious?
David Markland on November 04, 2010, at 10:11PM – #10
Chris: corrected. Sorry about that!
Guest on November 09, 2010, at 01:48AM – #11
This is sad. I think this is just a case of franchising gone awry and unsubstantiated expectations. It kind of reminds me of the yogurt place in South Park Lofts that's always empty. I think you're going to have a lot of these businesses on 7th turning over because they haven't really done their homework as to what people who live in the neighborhood really want. I walked by KK Woody the other day, wtf is a grasping cake? Gross.
Brigham Yen on November 09, 2010, at 01:56AM – #12
I tried the grasping cake (with turkey) and it's actually quite good :) Grasping cake is Chinese and they are being creative by turning it into a sandwich.
However, most ppl don't know what it is (hence the adverse reaction to it) and they will probably close up soon too unfortunately.
Guest on November 09, 2010, at 02:07AM – #13
Maybe I didn't get a good one. It had chocolate syrup in it and tasted like a fried tortilla. http://tinymo.us/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/IMG_6521.jpg
It's not an adverse reaction to not knowing what it is, I actually tried it. It was not tasty. What else do you recommend at KK Woody, Brigham? I'll give it one more chance.