Connie & Ted's, opened in 2013 by chef Michael Cimarusti and business partner Crisi Echiverri, will close on July 1 after years of financial setbacks. The restaurant offered New England flavors in West Hollywood, including fried clams, chowders, and lobster rolls made with never-frozen lobster. Cimarusti aimed to recreate his Rhode Island upbringing cooking in Los Angeles using scratch-made ingredients and high-quality seafood sourcing. Closure reasons include inflation, high labor costs in West Hollywood, and a major dip in sales. The pandemic, 2023 entertainment-industry strikes, and 2025 fires contributed to prolonged business loss, despite earlier acclaim and consistent menu offerings.
"Like many other L.A. restaurateurs, Cimarusti alongside his wife and business partner, Crisi Echiverri, cited inflation and the high cost of labor in West Hollywood, which is one of the highest in the country at $20.25 for non-hotel employees. But the biggest factor, Cimarusti said, was the dip in sales. The pandemic, followed by the 2023 entertainment-industry strikes and the 2025 fires led to a prolonged loss of business."
"“I wanted to be able to re-create that food here in Los Angeles and do it the right way, without any shortcuts, and making everything from scratch, and using the finest-quality ingredients that we can buy,” Cimarusti said. “I feel like that cuisine deserves it.”"
"The restaurant, named for Cimarusti's grandparents - Constance and Edward - opened to fanfare, acclaim and “feverish oyster shucking.” It appeared on multiple L.A. Times 101 lists through the years and specialized in a sort of “no shortcuts” pre-World War II philosophy, with everything made from scratch, including its breadcrumbs and crackers. New England-style lobster rolls weren't always so plentiful in Los Angeles, and Connie & Ted's offered some of the best and most consistent, spooning lobster shipped fresh from Gloucester, Mass., onto fluffy, griddled rolls."
Read at Los Angeles Times
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