"Ronan needed an immediate influx of customers to stay afloat, and even ordering one cocktail or piece of merch could help."
""I'm a COVID baby as a restaurant owner, but this is no less serious than that, and it's probably harder because the relief isn't there," co-owner Caitlin Cutler said in an interview. "In 2025 versus 2024, when you think it couldn't get worse, it got worse.""
""It's kaleidoscopic," said Jot Condie, president and chief executive of the California Restaurant Assn. "Every potential issue is conspiring against the restaurant industry. ... The industry is really in a very volatile position.""
Restaurant owners in Los Angeles experienced a severe downturn in 2025 as multiple, simultaneous crises reduced customers and revenue. One highly regarded pizzeria publicly pleaded for immediate patronage to remain solvent. Short-term grants and deferred loans were exhausted after summer ICE raids and a steep drop in tourism. Fires, neighborhood curfews, tariffs, rising labor costs and pandemic-era debts compounded losses. Dozens of notable restaurants closed, including Papa Cristo's, Guerrilla Tacos and Here's Looking at You. Helms Bakery closed amid unaffordable operating costs and inconsistent consumer spending. Many operators now face uncertainty about loan repayment and long-term viability.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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