which opened as vegetarian restaurant in 2006 but evolved over the years to serve more Echo Park restaurant Elf Cafe announced it will close after 19 years in an Instagram post on April 29 The restaurant’s last service will be on June 1 “We’re incredibly proud of what we built and deeply grateful for everyone who helped make Elf what it has become,” the post reads but the love will reverberate for a long time.” Elf Cafe first opened as a vegetarian restaurant by Scott Zwiezen and his bandmates Astara Calas and Evan Haros in 2006 serving dishes like a vegetable tagine and morel risotto he calls those early days a “labor of love” in a statement provided to Eater LA saying that they were either too young or naive to feel limitations “We felt like we were doing some things that veered into uncharted territory.” Over the years Elf Cafe became a community staple as a restaurant and one of the first wine bars in the neighborhood to offer entirely natural wines on its menu Fans of Elf will have until June 1 to enjoy one last meal at the restaurant. After that, Zwiezen’s cooking can be found at falafel restaurant Dune and Atwater Village’s Eastern European-inspired Bar Sinizki. “For much of the time we were open, Elf felt like one long, beautiful, and magical dinner party,” Zwiezen says. “One to which the whole city was invited.” Oops. Something went wrong. Please enter a valid email and try again. Cathy Park Despite the mysterious entrance and layout, what Dada offers is fairly straightforward: a tight menu of simple Mediterranean-ish dishes prettied up with herbs and flowers, plus wines and juice-infused cocktails. The smaller plates—like cannellini bean spread with toasted sourdough, and a vibrant green risotto—are good for splitting over drinks, and there are a few shareable entrees if you’re sticking around for a full meal (the branzino is a good call). Dada makes for a nice under-the-radar weeknight dinner that won’t take up your whole evening (you can be in and out in about an hour), and the bar scene is the right amount of mellow, even on weekends. If you need a place for a group of friends who’ll be happy spending Saturday night eating grilled lamb chops, sipping on gin spritzes, and grooving under a disco ball, Dada can handle it all. Eagle Rock Capri Club is a retro-inspired aperitivo bar in Eagle Rock that is the neighborhood's best place to sip negronis Wine Bar Silver Lake The Ruby Fruit is more than just a Silver Lake wine bar and a daytime diner with excellent comfort food Japanese Echo Park Ototo is a sake bar Echo Park and one of our favorite pregame restaurants in LA Cathy is a California native who left her job in tech to eat for a living She believes every meal should end with something sweet (it’s science) Thousands are expected at Glen Echo Park’s Carousel Day festival on Saturday Not only is this opening day for the carousel, it’s a kind of homecoming. It’s the first time the public is seeing the five animal figures that recently returned after damage incurred due to a 2023 storm Over 50,000 people ride the historic carousel every year told WTOP the carousel is fun for the young and the young at heart “You’re never too old to ride the carousel,” Rogers said “We’ve had newborns here as young as two-weeks-old and we’ve had people celebrating their 100th birthday here Rogers jokingly pointed out children are not required to ride it as well but was not kidding when she spoke of the beauty of the carousel “It’s a piece of art you ride,” Rogers said told WTOP the company that made their carousel was from Germantown “The carousel was made by the cream of the crop of carousel companies Nearly 40 years after the carousel was installed, it became a landmark for civil rights. “Howard University students rode the carousel the Glen Echo Amusement Park was open to everyone,” Cloud said food trucks and a special percussive dance showcase headlined by the world’s leading authority on the art form of stepping Rhythmaya Dance and the Culkin School of Traditional Irish Dance It’s $2 to ride the carousel or you get an all-day wristband for $5 Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here. © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area. Jimmy Alexander has been a part of the D.C. media scene as a reporter for DC News Now and a long-standing voice on the Jack Diamond Morning Show. Now, Alexander brings those years spent interviewing newsmakers like President Bill Clinton, Paul McCartney and Sean Connery, to the WTOP Newsroom. Copyright © 2025 by WTOP. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area. The 22-year-old film school graduate, who works as a receptionist at the Ross Stores buying office in downtown Los Angeles, said that for most of those applications, she never heard back — not even a rejection. When she did land follow-up interviews, she was almost always ghosted afterward. “I knew that I wouldn’t be a famous screenwriter or anything straight out of college,” said Hernandez, who graduated from the USC School of Cinematic Arts in 2024. But she thought she’d at least be qualified for an entry-level film industry job. “It shouldn’t be this hard,” she kept thinking. Movies Hollywood’s crew members reflect on a 2024 marked by production slowdowns mental health struggles and sacrifices as they brace for a fragile recovery Studios scrambling to cut costs amid the turbulence were quick to slash low-level positions that historically got rookies in the door. “You almost feel cursed,” said Ryan Gimeson, who graduated from Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts in 2023, in the early days of the writers’ strike. And while screenwriting has always been a competitive field, industry veterans attested that the conditions have rarely ever been harsher for young writers. “In the past 40 years of doing this, this is the most disruptive I’ve ever seen it,” said Tom Nunan, founder of Bull’s Eye Entertainment and a lecturer in the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. Television As reality TV takes a hit amid a slowdown in Hollywood production crew members lament the loss of jobs to “runaway production,” cutbacks and consolidation The landscape is especially dry in television writing, according to a jobs report released last month by the Writers Guild of America. TV writing roles dropped 42% in the 2023-2024 season that coincided with the strikes, the report said. About a third of those cuts were to lower-level appointments. It’s a far cry from the TV business Liz Alper broke into 15 years ago. Alper, an L.A.-based writer-producer and co-founder of the fair worker treatment movement #PayUpHollywood, came up in the early 2010s, when opportunities in scripted television were still plentiful. The CW, for instance, was putting out three original one-hour shows a night, or about 18 to 21 original pieces of programming a week, Alper said. That translated to anywhere between 100 and 200 staff writer slots. Hollywood Inc. The TV station group aims to make the network more compatible with its local newscasts the rise of streaming has essentially done the opposite — poaching cable subscribers edging out episodic programming with bingeable on-demand series and cutting writing jobs in the process The job scarcity has driven those in entry-level positions to stay there longer than they used to. A 2021 #PayUpHollywood survey found that most support staffers were in their late twenties, several years older than they were on average a decade ago. Without those employees moving up and creating vacancies, recent graduates have nowhere to come in. “I think if you have a job, it feels like you’ve got one of the lifeboats on the Titanic, and you’re not willing to give up the seat,” Alper said. After strikes by actors and writers last year Los Angeles’ entertainment economy is struggling to stage a comeback as production activity employment and box office revenue are down The entertainment job market has also suffered from the ongoing exodus of productions from California where costs are high and tax incentives are low Meanwhile, young creatives are questioning whether L.A. is the place to launch their careers. In 2024, soundstage occupancy levels decreased to 63%, down from 69% the year before. The number of on-stage shoot days for 2023 also declined, according to a new report. Peter Gerard. (Robert Hanashiro / For The Times) Peter Gerard, 24, moved to L.A. from Maryland two years ago to pursue TV writing. After graduating with a data science degree from the University of Maryland, he sensed it was his last chance to chase his dream. Within weeks of arriving in L.A. in April 2023, he landed a handful of job interviews and even felt hopeful about a few. “I came moments before disaster, and I had no idea,” he said. In the days before the Writers Guild of America called on members to strike, the creators of hit shows, including ‘Shrinking,’ ‘The Last of Us’ and more, gathered to discuss the state of the industry. During the slowdown, Gerard filled his time by working on independent films, attending writing classes and building his portfolio. He was fine without a full-time gig, he said, figuring L.A. would work its magic on him eventually. Such “cosmic choreography” touched writer-producer Jill Goldsmith nearly 30 years ago, she said, when she left her job as a public defender in Chicago to pursue TV writing. After seven trying months in L.A., her luck turned when she met “NYPD Blue” co-creator David Milch in line at a Santa Monica chocolate shop. Goldsmith sent him a script, the show bought it and she got her first credit in 1998. Goldsmith, a lecturer in the UCLA MFA program in the School of Theater, Film and Television, said she tells her students such opportunities only come when they meet fate halfway. But hearing veteran writers mourn their lost jobs and L.A.’s bygone glory led Gerard to question his own bid for success. “I felt sorry for them, but it also made me realize, like, ‘Wow, there’s a lot of people who want to do this, and a lot of them are much further along than me, with nothing to show for it,’” he said. Film and TV writers of varying experience levels are struggling to find work after the Hollywood strikes amid an ongoing industry contraction. Lore Olivera. (Robert Hanashiro / For The Times) As the youngest staff writer in her current writers’ room, Lore V. Olivera, 26, has gotten used to her senior counterparts waxing nostalgic about the “good old times.” “I think they’re definitely romanticizing a bit,” she said, “but there is some truth in there.” Olivera landed her first staff writer job in 2023, a year after graduating from Stanford University. The process was straightforward: her reps cold-emailed her samples to a showrunner, he liked them, she interviewed and got the job. But Olivera said such success stories are rare. “I was ridiculously lucky,” she said. Still, getting staffed is no finish line, she added, just a 20-week pause on the panic of finding the next gig. What does a TV writer do? How do you become one? How do you move up? How much money can you make? The L.A. Times is explaining the entertainment industry — here’s what you need to know about being a TV writer. Olivera is also the only staff writer in her current room, with all her colleagues holding higher titles like editor or producer. It’s a natural consequence, she said, of showrunners facing pressure to fill limited positions with heavy-hitters already proven capable of creating hits. Olivera said she knows not every 26-year-old was getting hired a few decades ago, but even her elder peers agreed the industry has lost a former air of possibility. “It’s definitely a slap in the face when you get here and you’re like, ‘Yeah, it’s going to be a few miserable years, and then I might not even make it,’” Olivera said. “Not even because I’m good or bad... but just because the industry is so dead and so afraid of taking chances.’” Entertainment & Arts a wondrous mythology has emerged about Los Angeles in cultural circles who graduated from Chapman’s Dodge college in 2023 But the industry hasn’t given them anywhere to put it Instead, studios are pouring money into remakes, the 24-year old said, even as consumers have displayed their appetite for original material. “I hope that we move into an era of film where it’s new, fresh ideas and new perspectives and having an open mind to the voice of our generation,” Gillams said. Until then, the filmmaker said she’ll continue to create work for herself. During the strikes, Gillams and a production team with no budget made the short film “Sincero,” which won the audience award for short documentary at the 2023 Newport Beach Film Festival. As she continues the search for a distributor for the doc, she already has another project in the works. Director Joe Burke and longtime collaborator Oliver Cooper make microbudget indies. Their new one, ‘Burt,’ doesn’t have a distributor yet, just tons of heart. Weary from the “black hole” of job applications, Hernandez said she, too, is focused on bringing her own work to life. In an ideal world, that leads to a film festival or two, maybe even agency representation. But mostly, what drives her is pride in the work itself. “If I’m successful in my mind,” said Hernandez, “I’m content with that.” Business Subscribe for unlimited access Site Map El Clasico Tattoo shop isn’t just a business but a community hub where art one is greeted by more than just the buzz of tattoo machines; inside is a space where everyone belongs where every piece of ink carries a story of resilience El Clasico Tattoo has become a place where people gather and turn personal milestones into living art El Clasico Tattoo opened its doors in 2008 a time when it joined other Latine-owned businesses on Sunset Boulevard El Clasico Tattoo is one of the only original businesses still standing in the heavily gentrified area of Echo Park Sal Preciado – known locally as “Big Sal”– uncovers the business’s history meaning and cultural significance to the local community Preciado was born and raised in East Los Angeles, a community in Los Angeles where 95.5% of its residents are Hispanic, according to the 2020 Census. It’s a neighborhood that serves as a cornerstone of Chicano identity, according to PBS. In East L.A. murals, street corners, and businesses tell a story of struggle, resilience and pride through their art. From an early age, Preciado was immersed in the world of tattoo art. He recalls a pivotal moment at nine years old, hanging out at his good friend’s house, surrounded by family members. “And I remember the first time, so I was probably like nine years old. This guy was getting his whole back tatted. And was like wow, like, that is amazing,” he said. It was at that moment that Preciado knew he wanted to be a part of that world. Originally, El Clasico Tattoo was supposed to be located in East Los Angeles, where Preciado is originally from, but he couldn’t find an open location. His vision for El Clasico Tattoo was to serve his community, where people‘s vision for tattoos could come to life. Somewhere, people felt comfortable coming in and speaking in Spanish with someone who looked like them. “They weren’t going to feel uncomfortable coming in because they didn’t speak English all that well,” said Preciado. “It was really important to do that, because when I was in Hollywood, I would see how people come in and they were almost intimidated to go in and speak to somebody.” “We‘re neighbors. If you open your door, Echo Park’s right there. Echo Park opens the door. East L.A. is right there, so this is also a classic part of Echo Park. So I was like, El Clasico it is, you know, it’s classic, I’m going to keep it true to the community,” said Preciado. Growing up in the industry, Sal noticed the lack of Latine-owned tattoo shops, let alone a shop named in Spanish. El Clasico translates to “The Classic,” which speaks to the community and what he represents. “I’m down. I’m down for my people, my community, and I’m down to represent,” he proudly states. In spite of gentrification, El Clasico Tattoo remains. The annual art gallery draws in community members, lowriders, and local artists who transform the tattoo shop into a gallery. Known as “Park on the Dance Floor,” where local artists and vendors take up Sunset Boulevard. The annual event serves as a reminder of the Chicano culture that remains in Echo Park. Although a date has not been set for this year’s gallery, keep an eye out for an announcement in the month of August. “We‘re not taking from the community, I’m giving back to the community. We‘re enriching our community. We‘re letting people see this. Everybody’s invited,” said Preciado. “It’s beautiful that everybody wants to come to our event, but everybody’s invited to see how El Clasico gets down.” For Preciado, El Clasico Tattoo signifies, “A bunch of rad Chicanos doing rad tattoos.” Preciado’s commitment to his community has never gone unnoticed; the art shows are free. He emphasizes that the art shows known as “Park on the Dance Floor” are not for-profit events, ensuring the event remains welcoming amidst the challenges of gentrification. Preciado attempts to inspire the next generation of young Chicanos with a clear message: if he, a kid from East Los Angeles, can achieve his dreams, so can they. Facebook pageTwitter feed RSS feeduscannenbergmedia.com © 2025 USC Annenberg Media Five existing homes in Echo Park are slated to give way to the latest multifamily residential development from South Park Group, per a new application to the Los Angeles Department of City Planning. calls for the construction of a new eight-story building featuring 67 studio and two-bedroom apartments above podium parking for 52 vehicles Requested approvals include Transit Oriented Communities incentives to permit the construction of a larger building than would otherwise be allowed by zoning rules. In exchange, six of the apartments are to be set aside for rent as extremely low-income affordable housing Plus Architects is designing the project which is depicted in a rendering as a contemporary podium-type building South Park Group and Plus Architects frequently work on multifamily residential buildings across Los Angeles, including an under-construction building at 8000 Beverly Boulevard and a previously-completed apartment complex in Echo Park. Twitter / Facebook / LinkedIn / Threads / Instagram / Bluesky « All Events this program will foreground the struggles of housed and unhoused tenants those who are forced to live on the streets and take to the streets Tents and Tenants: After Echo Park Lake is a public exhibition about how poor people make the city their home Abandoned by the city during a global pandemic unhoused organizers created an encampment at Echo Park Lake that soon became an uprising against the policed-propertied order of Los Angeles The exhibition and associated public programs activate an archive of organizing histories that is intended to be the practice of a collective future Join us for the final Tents and Tenants public program on Friday, March 21, 7pm: The Liberatory Living Room, A Performance This exhibition is organized by the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy with support provided by the Mellon Foundation 2025 at the Skid Row History Museum & Archive a project of Los Angeles Poverty Department Skid Row History Museum & Archive hours: Thursday 3250 Public Affairs Building - Box 951656Los Angeles The statements on this page represent the views of people affiliated with the Luskin School of Public Affairs and do not necessarily represent the views of the University of California Posts and comments by individuals at UCLA on social media channels may not reflect the opinions or policies of UCLA the University of California or the Luskin School Image co-hosted a party in memory of Género Neutral the beloved retail shop in Echo Park that closed earlier this year which is also a celebration of what’s to come Interspersed throughout are photos from the party of all the friends and family who pulled up The questions got louder and louder and my voice I preferred being the young(ish) woman who did “cool” things who was fun and held it together enough to turn chaos into chaotic good I preferred being “that girl who owns that shop” instead of “that girl whose shop ended up closing,” and who felt like a failing live wire because of it “I have no idea how I’m doing” became my typical — and honest — sad girl response to those daunting questions for all of spring and summer until it became too much to let die another day and I needed to figure out how to rebirth my business and Bryan Escareño My business partner and I were of course not alone in this experience of closing our doors suddenly and seemingly prematurely as we watched so many fellow small businesses succumb to the quicksand of L.A We approached this past January with fresh energy as best we could existing in survival mode most days and fairly detached from the social spaces we used to frequent We weren’t ready to be vulnerable with others about the predicament we found ourselves in Our spirits were weary from a tough holiday season from watching a few “bad” days turn into weeks But we were determined to reignite the Género magic that helped us turn nothing into something during the pandemic replacing the seltzers of our days gone by whatever we did in the shop wasn’t going to be enough to sustain a new future We couldn’t throw the financial dice another month or find the last loophole in an economy that isn’t built for independent small-business owners I met people I never wanted to live without in that shop; I met a version of myself I never imagined I could be when we opened our doors How do you put a price on that let alone pay rent and next season’s invoices from it albeit to the shock of a lot of our friends and peers who didn’t have to keep track of what success looked like the way we did Free Oribhabor, Bobby Cabbagestalk and friend After closing his coffee shop and while exploring his cult-followed “Capitalism Doesn’t Care About Your Curiosity” series he self-produces on Instagram, Harris’s approach is changing, while rooted in authenticity. He’s journeyed his love of flowers into scent exploration, developing candles and fragrances. “I’m giving myself room to be more flexible in the world of doing this differently,” he generously shared. He’s focusing on the things that he’s discovered can be next, and new. Carolina Isabel Salazar and Pablo Simental Jonathan Lee and Eric Kim of Firmé Atelier Image’s fashion director at large, Keyla Marquez, editorial director Elisa Wouk Almino, and staff writer Julissa James I’m completely certain of what’s next — things being hard, growth being nonlinear, not knowing what I’m doing and doing it anyway, much like the approach we had when crafting Género Neutral from scratch. I smile again because of it, and because we have thousands of new friends now to see us through. If GNLA is the other side, then I hope to see you there. Ashley S.P. is a writer and the co-founder of GNLA, a new multicultural agency rooted in the joyous and inclusive spirit of the Género Neutral shop in Echo Park. Image 2025An allegedly armed man who police said pointed a handgun at Los Angeles police officers was shot by them in Echo Park.ECHO PARK LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- An allegedly armed man who police said pointed a handgun at Los Angeles officers was shot by them in Echo Park Officers responded to the 2400 block of Bellevue Avenue near Coronado Street regarding a man with a mental illness armed with a handgun around 4 p.m according to the Los Angeles Police Department After the man allegedly pointed the gun at officers He was taken to the hospital in critical condition Investigators recovered the weapon at the scene for evidence and continued investigating the location late Monday evening No officers were injured during the shooting City News Service contributed to this report The UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy is pleased to announce Tents and Tenants: After Echo Park Lake a public exhibition about how poor people make the city their home Join us at the Skid Row History Museum & Archive for the opening of the exhibition on Saturday Future Tents and Tenants: After Echo Park Lake public programs: Friday, February 21, 7pm: Tenants in the Streets, A Panel Discussion Friday, March 21, 7pm: The Liberatory Living Room, A Performance LAist is part of Southern California Public Radio I got to the park on this lovely Sunday 30 minutes before its 11:00 a.m Daniela Salazar are the minds behind this contest says the inspiration came from a Timothée Chalamet lookalike contest — which kicked off this global trend after attracting not just lookalikes we should and we can do this here," Salazar said Salazar and her co-organizers started to get the word out about the contest a lot of people were interested and our community really wanted it — and kind of needed this this is just a reminder to all of us that you are Peso enough and that we are community." Some 100 people showed up at the lake to enjoy the contest and the community One woman told me she wasn't sure if the contest was real making for the final field of 6 contestants where lookalikes are judged under 5 categories including their dancing skills and their Peso "Bella" impersonations — the winner is crowned Oscar Reyes from Downey is a huge fan of Peso Pluma He said he just learned about the contest a couple days ago "He's like one of the greatest artists right now." Reyes gets the grand prize of a $50 gift card for King Taco a fake gold chain — and a surprise Hija De Tu madre “guadalupana” jacket I caught sight of someone who called himself "Cash," and says he's here to check out the Peso Pluma contest which is just a couple hours from an event he is throwing at the lake The UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy invites you to join us at the Skid Row History Museum & Archive for a performance entitled “The Liberatory Living Room: Belongings Precede Belonging.” As the closing public program of the Tents and Tenants: After Echo Park Lake exhibition members of the After Echo Park Lake Archive Collective will present the politics and poetics of how an encampment became the commons and today some 1.2 million acres are declared “very high” fire hazard zones The vastly expanded footprint includes thousands more homes and cultural institutions including the Annenberg Beach House and Los Encinos State Park as well as the “Tom House.” and after explaining how his country invited in German troops during World War II to repel Russian ones she explains his artist’s origin story “Tom meets these young German men in exquisite uniforms and leather boots and they were the first people he had sex with He fetishized those first experiences and all the accoutrements that go with them.” After he saw Marlon Brando's 1953 chopper drama The Wild Ones he became fixated on leather-clad bikers. Tom's first cover of Physique Pictorial magazine from 1957 gallerist Edward Cella started crafting a strategic plan “The Tom of Finland Foundation Board and I have convened a blue-ribbon Task Force,” Cella tells Los Angeles “It consists of experts and professionals from the fields of art and archive collection management and care alumni of our Artist-in-Residence Program and organizational management along with members of staff and Board of Directors.” Cella says the landmark is being “loved to death” and the foundation has outgrown the space “The Foundation desires to ultimately acquire the property and undertake major rehabilitation,” Cella says “To better preserve the home and gardens as a living museum dedicated to interpreting the legacy of Tom of Finland.” but the art world has countered that and insisted that he is in fact an artist against all his protestations He’s known worldwide and is a treasure.” Never Miss a Beat! Subscribe to Los Angeles Magazine’s The Daily Brief for daily updates delivered straight to your inbox. Join below or by clicking here lawyers say Boston Police Officer John O'Keefe showed injuries consistent with a dog attack and plan to present a case against Chloe a German Shepherd who was re-homed by the owner's of the house where the cop's body was found in a snowbank Magazine’s takeaways on five notable topics from President Donald Trump’s first 100 days of his second term consumers are stocking up on household items and bites from THEBlvd and Hinoki & the Bird with luxe amenities and a reasonable price the Hancock Park native revisits his go-to local spots The Los Angeles City Council has voted to uphold the approval of a proposed mixed-use development on Sunset Boulevard in Echo Park, rejecting an appeal which sought to block the project's construction The Sunset + Everett development, a project from Aragon Properties is slated for a site that spans from 1185 to 1247 Sunset Boulevard Plans call for the construction of two seven-story buildings featuring a combined 327 studio and three-bedroom apartments above 9,462 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and parking for 263 vehicles Project approvals granted by the Planning Commission in July 2024 include density bonus incentives to allow larger development than zoning rules would normally permit. In exchange, Aragon has agreed to set aside 41 of the new apartments as deed-restricted very low-income affordable housing KTGY is designing Sunset + Everett using setbacks and insets to create balconies and terrace decks for residents Plans call for amenities including a fitness room An environmental study conducted for the project points to a 30-month construction timeline Aragon has sought for more than a decade to build on the site at Sunset and Everett, previously seeking approvals for a smaller 204-unit complex Revisions to state law regarding the density bonus has enabled more generous incentives than were available at the time the original project was initiated thus accounting for the larger size of the new proposal Five carved and painted carousel animals returned to Glen Echo Park after undergoing repairs part of the park’s 103-year-old Dentzel carousel sustained water damage during a storm in July 2023 a 2024 National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow Glen Echo Park’s menagerie carousel features 52 animals: 40 horses Installed in 1921 by the Dentzel Carousel Company of Germantown it is one of only 135 functioning antique carousels in the U.S It also played a role in the Civil Rights Movement when Howard University students protested segregation by riding it in 1960 Photos courtesy Glen Echo Park Partnership for Art and Culture Glen Echo Dentzel carousel with repaired animals Carousels and Carvings repairing storm damaged animal The storm that damaged the carousel also downed 15 large trees and caused $50,000 in losses and the almost-century-old Wurlitzer band organ Staff and contractors worked to clear debris and restore the park for visitors the Glen Echo Park Partnership launched the “Lift Us Up” fundraising campaign The carousel operates from May through September It will open for the 2025 season on Saturday The annual festival attracts about 4,000 visitors with arts and crafts Visitors can see the restored animals before the season begins. The National Park Service offers a 45-minute walking tour every Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. Also, the park service offers Glen Echo Park Civil Rights and History Tours on the first Saturday of each month at 10 a.m. with the next tour scheduled for April 5. In an Instagram post that went live early Monday morning, both the arcade and its restaurant Poltergeist shared that they will close Sept. 29. When faced with rising costs, a slowing summer season and a lease renewal, both teams decided it was time to go out on top. The timing simply felt right — especially when most of the kitchen equipment died as they made their decision. Poltergeist chef Diego Argoti was told the equipment could run another 30 days; he said he only needed 21. It is, the chef says, a little like playing the violin as the Titanic sinks. Food one of East L.A.’s best pop-ups lands a restaurant space “We are on top right now and the best thing to do is just stop it on our terms,” Argoti said “If I let my ego get the best of it and continue this Right now we could leave and pay everyone out and that’s very rare closing a restaurant with style and grace.” Los Angeles restaurants are still opening at a rapid and hopeful clip, though 2023 and 2024 have proved tremendously difficult years for operations given pandemic loans coming due the city’s economic fallout from entertainment industry strikes and national rising costs while often filled with guests and showered with accolades were facing lower check averages from guests and slow periods that made it hard to justify signing another lease I wish this place was just a flat-out dud because it would just be easier to make these decisions and pull the trigger and explain it away,’” Weiss said “But it always passed the eye test: We’ve got people in the door we’ve somehow stuck it out this long,” he added “Reconciling that with the numbers that we were seeing and the operating costs and this feeling of a ceiling getting visibly lower with each passing week makes no sense but I know that other people are in the same boat.” Button Mash was never designed to maximize dining profit: It was built a decade ago to spotlight craft beer creative food and vintage arcade games blocks from Dodger Stadium That it survived this long was a pleasant surprise Diego Argoti blurs all kinds of borders — with his manic wild cooking at Poltergeist inside Button Mash arcade in Echo Park Button Mash was home to a number of pop-ups throughout the years, including the long-running Starry Kitchen, a 101 List awardee under former L.A Weiss and Argoti met during a subsequent pop-up there before the chef consulted on the opening menu of Weiss’s Virgil Village cidery Button Mash returned from its pandemic-spurred closure, which almost closed the bar permanently, tapping Tacos 1986 to run the food program Argoti’s genre-bending restaurant serves playful The Bestia alum has used the space to expand on his popular pop-up Estrano which often draws throngs of guests to alleyways and other corners of L.A Poltergeist’s head-turning plates such as Thai Caesar salads crowned with fried rice paper towers or Panang lamb neck mounted with herbs have garnered attention and accolades from around the country “Poltergeist — what a name! — serves the most manic, unchecked and wildly envisioned cooking in Los Angeles, and opinions are duly polarizing,” L.A. Times Food critic Bill Addison wrote in his 2023 review they register as the taste equivalent of a new language.” The Sticky Rice Game Hen dish bound and photographed at Poltergeist in February 2023 (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) At first diners didn’t know what to make of Poltergeist and while reception was generally positive the summer after its launch saw fewer tables filled during a season that’s traditionally slow for restaurants the team began to wonder if they’d even make it that far Weiss and Fowlkes considered making the menu more accessible with burgers and sandwiches but instead veered in the opposite direction offering dishes like masa-fried whole dorade — some of the most creative food Argoti says he’s made there Accolades for the funky, irreverent menu began to trickle in, including Addison’s review. Poltergeist began garnering national attention from the likes of Esquire and, earlier this year, the James Beard Foundation Awards, which tapped Argoti as a semifinalist in the Best Chef: California category. Despite feeling critically on top, summer is slow again, costs are rising and rent has increased. The decision to close took weeks, maybe months, to make. Argoti won’t reopen Poltergeist elsewhere. Weiss says he and Fowlkes most likely will sell most of their arcade games to collectors. “I love Poltergeist, but Poltergeist was always built as a space into Button Mash,” Argoti said. “With the name being ‘noisy spirit,’ the whole point was just to make noise and get attention and open opportunities — and prove if I can run a business. People see me as the weird kid in the alleyway cooking frog legs and now it’s like, hey, I could and I want to. It’s been really, really cool.” The next few weeks will be “really, really crazy,” with frequent menu changes and off-the-wall specials that Argoti was always hesitant to run, such as a ricotta-and-veal-brains pasta dish, or a rad na lasagna. He wants to bring back frog legs. But before he dives into opening another restaurant, Argoti says he needs to take time for himself. The day after his dad died, he learned of his James Beard semifinalist nod. He hasn’t fully taken time to process or mentally or physically sort through his loss. He has a new puppy to spend time with. And he wants the time and breathing room to see which form his culinary style will take next. “I just want to treat this like music or albums: What I was cooking two years ago and what I wanted to cook 10 years ago is completely different than what I plan to do two years from now or a year from now,” Argoti said. “The growth accumulates in a way that I’m excited to see what I cook and what I want to cook and how that’s gonna look.” Poltergeist and Button Mash, 1391 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles Stephanie Breijo is a reporter for the Food section and the author of its weekly news column. Previously, she served as the restaurants and bars editor for Time Out Los Angeles, and prior to that, the award-winning food editor of Richmond magazine in Richmond, Va. Born and primarily raised in Los Angeles, she believes L.A. to be the finest food city in the country and might be biased on that count but doesn’t believe she’s wrong. World & Nation AZRE Cushman & Wakefield has advised the sale of Echo Park 303 – Building A a newly built 220,240-square-foot (SF) Class A industrial building on ±13.7 acres in Glendale Situated in Phoenix’s booming Loop 303 industrial corridor in the Southwest Valley submarket the freestanding building located at 9701 North 151st Avenue is 100% leased to HubStarr Logistics The asset is part of a larger 38.6-acre industrial business park that includes a second Class A building featuring 455,936 SF MORE NEWS: Phoenix bucket list: 25 things you must do INDUSTRY INSIGHTS: Want more news like this? Get our free newsletter here a Southern California based national vertically integrated real estate company focused on the ownership and operation of industrial buildings in a joint venture with Grandview Partners—both full-service real estate investment firms The project was originally designed by LGE Design Build Cushman & Wakefield’s Will Strong and Jack Stamets of the firm’s National Industrial Advisory Group—Mountain West represented the seller in the transaction “This is a top-tier industrial asset with strong institutional appeal thanks to its long-term single tenancy and solid stability The building stands out as a true Class A facility with cutting-edge design being in a prime market alongside major global companies it’s well-positioned for continued value growth—making it a great addition to the buyer’s expanding industrial portfolio,” said Will Strong According to Cushman & Wakefield’s latest Q4 2024 market report the Southwest Valley recorded a substantial 12.8 MSF of occupancy growth in 2024 outperforming all other submarkets in the Phoenix Metro area by a wide margin The next best submarket performance was the Northwest Valley with roughly 5 MSF of occupancy gains in 2024 “The Southwest Valley is seeing a surge in demand for warehouse and logistics space thanks to its prime location near major transportation hubs like rail lines and the I-10 with the Southern California ports just a six-hour drive away it’s an ideal spot for companies looking to streamline distribution and logistics,” added Molly Hunt Copyright © 2025 AZ Big Media | All Rights Reserved | Site by Blufish Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInCINCINNATI (WXIX) - A man is behind bars after he allegedly killed someone in Mt is being charged with one count of murder after he fatally shot 27-year-old Limber Gomez Rivera with a semi-automatic firearm The shooting happened at 202 Crestline Ave Salaam and the victim got into a “minor” vehicle collision at Mt When Rivera drove to another area of the park stopped “a short distance away,” checked the damages on his vehicle and then drove home and Rivera was transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center where he was pronounced dead the following day detectives and Cincinnati SWAT executed a search warrant after they determined the vehicle involved was registered under Salaam’s name When they arrived to his home on Stillwell Road Salaam and the damaged vehicle were both there Officers recovered a firearm and several other pieces of evidence while searching the home Jail records show Salaam was booked into the Hamilton County Jail on Friday morning See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please click here to report it Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description Please email if you would like to be allow listed Safi Nazzal is a former social media video producer for the Los Angeles Times where he covered local news and California’s evolving climate challenges for new audiences on digital platforms Nazzal worked as a puppeteer with the Bob Baker Marionette Theater and Jim Henson Company He grew up in the Bay Area and is a graduate of the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University The restaurant will also close its Pasadena location just months after introducing regenerative meat and dairy to its menu Sage Regenerative Kitchen, formerly known as Sage Plant Bistro & Brewery, is closing its remaining Southern California locations in Echo Park and Pasadena on January 5 The sudden closure marks the end of a 14-year run for Sage which opened its first location in Echo Park in 2011 and grew into one of Southern California’s most notable plant-based restaurants “I’m just incredibly grateful to have been able to serve the LA community for so long,” says Mollie Engelhart who operates the restaurant with her husband Elias Sosa the business was behind on rent and taxes; in early 2024 Engelhart and Sosa decided to close the Agoura location and the cloud kitchen in Culver City to consolidate the restaurant’s customer base The pair also sold their California home to infuse the restaurant with more money The addition of regenerative animal products to the menu and the widespread coverage of the changes didn’t result in new customers coming to the restaurant Engelhart and Sosa faced dire financial challenges again “Now we just find ourselves in the exact same position bouncing checks to vendors,” Engelhart says Sage announced its impending closure in an Instagram post on January 1 The post’s comments section below has become a sharply divided discussion between diners mourning the loss of the restaurant and others celebrating its closure after it added meat to the menu “I think that Sage closing is a reflection of how disconnected we are from our food systems,” Engelhart says calling it a “sad victory” for the vegans who protested the transition away from being entirely plant-based “What will come into Sage that’s going to be better for the animals and better for the community than I was?” Engelhart asks For now, Engelhart and Sosa have turned their attention to their regenerative farm in Texas and the restaurant they run there, the Barn at Sovereignty Ranch she hopes that her work at Sage will continue to impact dining culture and choose the highest quality ingredients,” Engelhart says Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInVideo is from previous coverage CINCINNATI (WXIX) - The suspect in a homicide at Mt Echo Park after a minor collision waived his right to appear in court Friday was indicted earlier this month on two counts each of murder and felonious assault in the death of 27-year-old Limber Gomez Rivera after Salaam and Rivera were involved in a vehicle collision that police describe as “minor.” shooting him as he drove to another area in the park Salaam drove off but stopped a short distance away to check the damage on his vehicle before driving home Rivera was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center but died the next day Salaam was arrested earlier this month and booked into the Hamilton County Justice Center Get to know Los Angeles through the places that bring it to life From restaurants to shops to outdoor spaces The stately Victorian homes to which 19th century business leaders would retire after long days at their downtown offices are still intact perched on the high ground above Sunset Boulevard along Carroll Avenue with a few holdouts along its parallel streets So is Keystone Studios, the world’s first enclosed film stage and studio and the birthplace of slapstick comedy though it has since been repurposed as a public storage facility (not the worst case of historic preservation in Los Angeles) Even some of the first efforts to make Los Angeles a viable Anglo-American settlement can still be found on a stroll around Echo Park Lake originally a reservoir for drinking water when it was completed in 1868 Paddle boats have gently treaded its surface since it expanded into a vaguely English-style park in 1892 — the same year that palm trees were imported from Mexico to obscure its proximity to the city center In addition to being one of the few neighborhoods in Los Angeles to welcome culturally diverse immigrants during the population boom at the turn of the 20th century Echo Park’s illusory distance from the rat race has attracted — and continues to attract — countercultural figures while in exile from his native Mexico for social reform activism that would later spark the Mexican Revolution laid low on the northern border in 1915 to live with his comrades on a 5-acre tract nicknamed “Red Hill,” was later home to Carey McWilliams author of “Southern California Country: An Island on the Land” and other landmark texts spreading leftist perspectives on regional development The architecture of Echo Park may still be about as low to the ground as it was a century ago (its tallest structure is a mere eight stories yet still towers over its neighbors) but displacement and urban renewal have certainly taken residence here as well What was once a part of “Edendale,” a cluster of neighborhoods that included Silver Lake and Los Feliz to the northwest has gone to great lengths to contribute to the hipster image of the Eastside while still preserving some of the idyllic nature associated with its former name That is not to say, however, that Echo Park is a monolith of hipsterdom. Surviving several waves of gentrification, multiculturalism remains active in small businesses, such as Kien Giang Bakery and Centro Botanico Nacional an herb shop that has offered spiritual cleansings using traditional Latin American medicinal practices for nearly three decades hundreds of paper lanterns hovered above Echo Park Lake in honor of the local Filipino community Perhaps the neighborhood’s spirit is best expressed on the northwest corner of Sunset and Echo Park Ricardo Mendoza’s “Sculpting Another Destiny,” a larger-than-life mural of Chicano figures symbolizing the community care that took place in this former maternity clinic building a “one-stop self-care shop” for gender- and size-inclusive lingerie Echo Park is an escape — and it remains among one of L.A.’s most multifaceted Anyone who’s lived in a major metropolis can tell you that neighborhoods are a tricky thing They’re eternally malleable and evoke sociological questions around how we place our homes our neighbors and our communities within a wider tapestry we may include gems that linger outside of technical parameters we hope to celebrate all of the places that make us love where we live.Our journalists independently visited every spot recommended in this guide We do not accept free meals or experiences CINCINNATI — Police have arrested a man after a 27-year-old was shot and killed in Mt was taken into custody with the assistance of the Cincinnati Police SWAT team on Thursday According to the Cincinnati Police Department Salaam is charged with murder in connection with a shooting that occurred in the 200 block of Crestline Avenue on Saturday Echo Park when he crashed into Salaam's vehicle Rivera was taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center The 38 Best Tacos in Los Angeles The Best Barbecue Restaurants in Los Angeles, According to Eater Editors The Hottest New Restaurants in Los Angeles Where to grab a bite and a beer before or after a Dodgers game Dodger Stadium is one of the nation’s last standing original ballparks and holds a special spot for Angelenos. With stunning views that beautifully capture the sunset during an evening game, it’s one of the few without a corporate name attached. The history runs deep into Los Angeles’s soul, as Chavez Ravine was originally home to hundreds of Mexican American families displaced before the stadium broke ground While the stadium offers plenty of dining options the surrounding neighborhoods of Chinatown and Echo Park have plenty of great options for those looking to grab a bite before or after a game they’re sure to be full of fans who are also cheering for the Boys in Blue Here are the best places to eat around Dodger Stadium New this update: Neighborhood banchan shop Perilla fried fish sandwich specialist Little Fish longstanding Italian sandwich shop Eastside Italian Deli she used to get Dodger Dogs delivered just to feel an ounce of the gameday joy Matthew Kang is a lifelong Dodger fan who gets an order of garlic fries and a Dodger Dog at every game he attends He once brought an entire deep-dish Chicago-style pizza to the stadium and shared it with friends especially when bringing young fans to Dodger Stadium Instead of taking an hour (or more) to leave the parking lot or take a rideshare and right into Fluffy McCloud’s for a root beer float or an ice cream sandwich made with the conchas from Cafe Tropical This Tijuana-style taqueria parks its trailer directly in front of Lassen’s on Sunset and Echo Park Avenue burritos (called sobaquera here for their wide The truck is only parked here Friday through Monday Fried fish sandwich specialist Little Fish has settled nicely into its Echo Park home after gaining a cult following as a pop-up The fish sandwich — with beer-battered bass and pickles on a potato bun — is still the star but the rest of the menu has plenty to offer too or go for the grilled steak sandwich with tri-tip and chile-lime cream The 20 Best Seafood Restaurants in Los Angeles This Echo Park seafood spot is ready for Dodger crowds with plenty of indoor seats or at the bar, along with two patios. Lonely Oyster restaurant specializes in the restaurant is open until midnight nightly The Best Restaurants Open on New Year’s Day in Los Angeles For something that's easy to share with a group The Best Happy Hour Drinks and Deals in Los Angeles Ototo in Echo Park may be a “younger brother” (literally to next-door izakaya Tsubaki) but its James Beard Award-winning sake program and irreverent frequently changing menu of Japanese bar snacks has given it a main character energy all its own Angelenos and out-of-towners — all subject to the restaurant’s egalitarian sign-yourself-in waiting list — descend upon Allison Avenue for dishes like fluke sashimi spiked with ponzu and patches of limey yuzu kararin okonomiyaki topped with fluttering bonito flakes and a filet-ototo-fish sandwich that can only be tamed with a two-hand grip with tasting notes on the menu supplemented by the knowledge of staff members who happily offer pairing suggestions for each plate Where to Revel and Feast on New Year’s Eve in Los Angeles Eastside Italian Deli has been a go-to for sandwiches in the neighborhood since opening in 1929 like the spicy Italian cold cuts stacked with cured meats Hot sandwiches like Italian sausage and peppers or roast beef come blanketed with provolone cheese pick up a few cannoli or a slice of tiramisu Located in the same courtyard development as vegan bakery Bakers Bench Perilla is a neighborhood banchan shop by chef Jihee Kim alongside spicy beef dupbap and a chicken dosirak it's easy to swing by before an afternoon game An underrated taco gem near Dodger Stadium this enduring Chinatown-adjacent restaurant prepares some of Los Angeles’s smokiest carne asada thanks to the plentiful options at the salsa bar sandwiched between two tortillas with cheese The 17 Essential Restaurants in LA’s Chinatown 19 Places to Chase Nacho Perfection in Los Angeles When in Chinatown, head to Katsu Sando for Daniel Son’s flavor-packed Japanese-style convenience store sandwiches as these amply-sized sandos like the pork katsu or chicken katsu are excellent and travel fairly well to the ballpark For something that resembles a konbini sandwich 20 Amazing Takeout Meals in LA and All the Nearby Picnic Spots to Enjoy Them Heading to a classic Chinatown spot for noodles and orange chicken before a Dodger game can be a true LA adventure The dining room can be packed during peak service hours with a brief walk (or an even quicker Lyft ride) to Union Station where fans can hop onto a shuttle straight to the stadium 20 Iconic LA Dishes Still Available For Delivery and Takeout There is debate over who originated the world’s first French Dip in 1918 (we see you, Cole’s). But before any Dodger Game, Philippe the Original fills up with blue and white jerseys. Everything is made to order, especially the beef double dip with jus. Always take a generous spread of Philippe’s house-made mustard on the sandwich the balance of the jus and the heat is beyond perfect Los Angeles's 18 Most Iconic Restaurant Dishes Silver Lake pizzeria La Sorted’s has expanded with a second location inside the former Chinese Friends restaurant in Chinatown has brought some of LA’s best slices to his sit-down restaurant The interior is decorated with sports memorabilia It’s a little further south of Chinatown and a short walk from the Union Station stadium shuttle Though typically a chill hangout on most days Homage Brewing can get busy and buzzy on Dodgers game day It’s an intimate spot on the north end of Chinatown where excellent music plays on the PA while staff pours lagers or ales DJs will pop up in the main room and the interior of the brewery transoforms into a dance floor under the disco ball overhead 19 Places to Cool Down With Some Craft Beer in LA After a day of eating Dodger Dogs under the sun sometimes a more upscale dinner is in order Majordomo is as impressive as it has always been and is located just a few minutes away from the stadium at the edge of Chinatown Book a reservation in advance to guarantee seating a savory pancake topped with a choice of chickpeas Meals here are best shared between a group so assemble an order of dishes like oxtail ragu rice cakes 10 French Fries That Are Actually Good in Los Angeles The 21 Best Dishes Eater LA Editors Ate in 2021 Silver Lake pizzeria La Sorted’s has expanded with a second location inside the former Chinese Friends restaurant in Chinatown. Owner Tommy Brockert, a lifelong LA sports fan, has brought some of LA’s best slices to his sit-down restaurant, alongside wine and beer. The interior is decorated with sports memorabilia, and on game days, it's sure to be chock-full of fellow fans. Boomtown Brewery is a Dodgers bar, pure and simple. It’s a little further south of Chinatown and a short walk from the Union Station stadium shuttle. The selections are vast, with 18 beers on tap, as well as IPAs, stouts, and sours. Any beer can be turned into a Michelada, and food trucks will always be on-site. Though typically a chill hangout on most days, Homage Brewing can get busy and buzzy on Dodgers game day. It’s an intimate spot on the north end of Chinatown where excellent music plays on the PA while staff pours lagers or ales, saisons, or something from a superb wine list. On weekends, DJs will pop up in the main room and the interior of the brewery transoforms into a dance floor under the disco ball overhead. Sylvio Martins Along with a handful of tacos and tostadas, you’ll also find larger, more composed plates, like duck confit with a nutty-sweet date mole that simmers with chile smoke. We’ve yet to be disappointed with any of the specials on the menu, and half the thrill of a meal here is seeing what unexpected riffs appear next. To paraphrase Pitbull, A Tí may not be here for a long time, but clearly, it’s here for a good time. Historic South Central Tacos Mexican Arts District Guerrilla Tacos used to be a popular taco truck and now it’s a great Mexican restaurant in the Arts District Mexican Oaxacan Highland Park Carnal is a fantastic Oaxacan restaurant in Highland Park that serves showy Sylvio moved to LA over a decade ago and still misses his exit on the 10 He came to us as a freelancer and wrote so many guides that we gave him a job.