It appears WeHoans will not be getting a Thai restaurant at the former Coffee Bean space after all. An employee at Crispy Pork Gang Thai in Los Angeles was excited to announce they were coming to the 8735 Santa Monica Boulevard location in West Hollywood. Demolition was underway, but after a few weeks, all activity stopped. A year later, a For Lease sign is back up at the empty storefront.
There is also a No Trespassing posting at the door stating that “the premisses is now in the possession of the landlord. There shall be no entry to the premisses without landlord approval.”
8735 Santa Monica Boulevard – Photo by Paulo Murillo for WEHO TIMESPhotos reveal the space on the corner of Hancock Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard was cleaned up and vacated following some demolition. There are still remnants from the old Coffee Bean space.
According to a source, the space was slated to open last summer. “We have a lot to do at that space to make it look perfect,” an employee at the Los Angeles Crispy Pork Gang location told WEHO TIMES a year ago. “We hope to open soon, but maybe it will be later. We plan to be very popular there.”
It’s not uncommon for a business to take a long time to open in West Hollywood. The up and coming gay bar next door has been on the verge of opening for several months, but continues to be in limbo on a grand opening, due to several setback from inspections and permits.
The owner at Junior Cookies located at 8703 Santa Monica Boulevard, on the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and Westbourne Drive, which is located on the same block a few doors away, also complained that permits and various city inspections kept his business from opening for several months. He said it was a financial burden, since he still had to pay rent during the delay.
Then there’s the El Pollo Loco two blocks away, which has been “Coming Soon” since October 2021.
The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, shuttered at that corner in early March, 2019, pre-COVID-19 pandemic. The Coffee shop had served the West Hollywood community for well over 20 years. An employee told WEHO TIMES at the time of its closure that the reason that location closed was due to the landlord raising the rent and low foot traffic.
According folklore, Dustin Lance Black wrote the Milk screenplay at that particular WeHo Coffee Bean space. Sightings of him at this location were reported numerous times through the course of the years it was open.
The space has been empty since its closure.
Established in 2017, the original Crispy Pork Gang Thai restaurant, located at 5253 Hollywood Blvd, specializes in Thai cuisine with a modern interpretation of classic meals. It would would have been the only Thai restaurant in that area. To get a taste of what could’ve been, visit: https://www.crispyporkgangla.com.
I’d change my mind too. This city is not small business friendly. It’s not business friendly period. Our current city council is destroying our city.
I used to see Justin there, writing that screenplay. While I was doing my own work.
Dyslexia
Check the address in the article. In the picture, it clearly shows the address as 8735 Santa Monica Boulevard.
Oh SNAP! Thanks Curtis. Fixed.
Thanks for the update – there are too many empty storefronts on our Main Street. Many of us hope that El Pollo Loco manages to open and survive (and no more acai bowl places, please!).