In California, as the costs of film and television production soar and there are changes in tax policies, it is no longer surprising to see a mass exodus of Hollywood movies and TV shows leaving Los Angeles. Now, even the top-notch dining establishments in the area are joining this relocation trend due to high operating costs, leading to even the famous hotspots in Beverly Hills packing up and leaving.
One of the legendary dining establishments in Beverly Hills, loved by Hollywood superstars, “Crustacean,” has confirmed that it will officially close its doors at the end of this month. The An family has decided to cease restaurant operations in Los Angeles, including the renowned “A5 Wagyu Steaks,” and move to open multiple new branches in other states.
Known for its signature garlic noodles and roasted Dungeness crab, this Asian fusion cuisine restaurant, founded by the An family at the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and Bedford Drive in 1997, has been a favorite gathering place for many celebrities such as Barbra Streisand, Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers, Samuel L. Jackson, and Diane Warren.
As the restaurant enters its final countdown, it has recently hosted several star-studded farewell banquets. According to attendees of the banquets who spoke to “Page Six Hollywood,” guests including Kevin Kwan, the original author of “Crazy Rich Asians,” former “The View” host Lisa Ling, and Kiss band lead singer Paul Stanley, among others, showed up to pay their respects, making the atmosphere lively.
Moreover, Roman Peete, the son of former NFL quarterback Rodney Peete, also attended the banquet. In 2005, his mother, actress Holly Robinson Peete, experienced labor pains while dining at the restaurant and was immediately rushed to the hospital to give birth. This historical anecdote added a touch of warmth to the farewell dinner.
Reportedly, the main reason for Crustacean’s closure is a change in landlords and the high operating costs in Los Angeles County. The An family decided to restructure their business, abandoning their expansion plans in places like Calabasas or Pasadena in California and shifting their focus to establishing new locations in Atlanta, Sun Valley, and Honolulu; however, they still plan to hold a pop-up event at the sister restaurant “AnQi Bistro” in South Coast Plaza in Orange County at the end of November.
The closure of Crustacean is not an isolated case. Los Angeles is currently facing a “Restaurant Bloodbath.” Over the past 18 months, skyrocketing rents, food costs, and labor expenses, along with a decline in foot traffic, the aftermath of the pandemic, Hollywood strikes, and previous wildfires, have forced several well-known popular restaurants to close their doors.
The restaurant industry in Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) has also recently suffered another blow. “Sora Craft Kitchen,” a meticulous Turkish restaurant with only 16 seats that was once rated by Esquire magazine as one of the best new restaurants in America and recommended by the Michelin Guide, announced that its head chef, Okay Inak, will close the restaurant within two weeks.
Unlike the group commercial layout of Crustacean moving to other states, the closure of Sora Craft Kitchen exposes the challenges faced by small independent restaurants in Los Angeles. Founded in 2024 by chef Inak and his wife, this modern Anatolian cuisine restaurant heavily relied on the chef to manage both the front and back operations.
Inak revealed that apart from the unbearable operational pressures and external threats such as security issues and repeated thefts, the hardware problems of the old building were a fatal blow—severe roof leaks, flooding, air conditioning malfunctions, poor ventilation, and restroom damages have directly pushed this “best new restaurant” to the brink of collapse.
From the reluctant withdrawal of the longstanding iconic dining establishments in Beverly Hills to the dim departure of the cutting-edge Michelin-recommended restaurants, the restaurant industry in Los Angeles, under the dual pressure of costs and environment, is undergoing an unprecedented survival challenge.