Lil’ Redondo restaurant named #1 Vegan in U.S.

Top Honors: Gourmets all over the world now know about ‘lil Vegerie, the tiny takeout-only cafe located in a Redondo strip mall on PCH. That’s because they were declared the #1 vegan restaurant in America in the October 24 issue of Food & Wine Magazine. The honor comes exactly one year after Entrepreneur Magazine named lil’ Vegerie to its Top 15 list of “Extraordinarily Tasty Vegan Food and Ice Cream That Leaves You Speechless.”

The spot at the top of Food & Wine Magazine’s list of a 100 plant-based eateries across the nation is a startling honor for a suburban operation that is takeout-only. Jason Cervantes says the recognition has prompted calls from investors about expanding his space or relocating into fancier digs, but he said he likes it just where he is. He also confirmed that though this award is from Food & Wine, they don’t serve wine and don’t plan to start. They won this for the thoughtfully considered and beautifully composed dishes they’ve been serving since opening in May 2022, and don’t intend to change a winning formula…

by Richard Foss

Every year there is a flood of information about the local dining scene, from which commentators draw wildly varying conclusions. I’m more of an observer than a prognosticator, but will indulge in some predictions based on the year gone by. Following are my comments on the South Bay dining scene in 2024.

The decline of late night dining

A decade ago local restaurants could count on filling early, mid-evening, and late dinner seatings. Some were still taking customers near midnight. The trend toward dining early has been ongoing for years and accelerated in 2024, and it is now difficult to find anything but fast food after 9 p.m. This has been a major financial hit for restaurateurs, some of whom lost more than a third of their business because late diners tended to order more beverages.

Little restaurants in big spaces

Some recently opened restaurants are so understaffed that they can’t possibly serve all the tables in the room. Would-be diners get irate when they’re turned away despite open seats, not recognizing that there aren’t enough cooks or servers to provide a good experience. This is a balancing act for owners, who presumably are trying to grow their customer base and their staff at the same rate.

Restaurants without phones

Wonder whether you left your coat, credit card, child, or other item at a restaurant? You’ll have to go back to find out, no matter how inconvenient that might be, because many do not publish a phone number. Some restaurants that do list a phone number never answer it and don’t allow you to leave a message. The line spews recordings telling you to check their website, and then hangs up.

Human contact returns

Some restaurants that used tablets for ordering have switched back to human servers. Reasons cited for this include customer dissatisfaction, staff spending more time explaining the various options on dishes than it would take to just help patrons instead, and customers stealing the tablets. Most restaurant operators do a very bad job of customizing their menus for tablets, so people who have had negative experiences start the process with skepticism.

Diversity in food and drink

No particular culinary fad dominated 2024, unlike past years when most openings were Italian, sushi, poke, or other styles. One of the more interesting trends was in beverages, with sophisticated non-alcohol options appearing in many upscale restaurants. Mixologists are getting the hang of creating drinks with depth and subtlety of flavor but no intoxicants, and these are worth ordering even if you do imbibe.

By the numbers

2024 was a slack year for restaurant openings in the Beach Cities – 32 non-fast food chain eateries, compared to 45 in 2023. Redondo was ahead by far with 14, Hermosa had six (though two closed within months of opening), and Manhattan and El Segundo each had four. Palos Verdes’ four cities combined had three. The total would have been higher except for construction delays. Saint & Second is now two years behind, Montauk more than a year, and The GrubHaus on Artesia had planned to open in late 2023 but is still a bare lot. El Amigo Cantina and Unico Tokyo announced summer openings but missed that deadline, and there are many more. The delays happen for many reasons, and this problem is not limited to the Beach Cities.

Departures

We lost Aprons, BrewsHall, Chin Chin, Cultured Slice Sandwich shop, Mother’s Market, Pitfire Pizza, Pizza Coast Highway, and Western City Bagel. All restaurants that closed in 2024 were modestly priced, and all but one had counter ordering or were mainly take-out. All but seven of the 25 restaurants that opened this year are table service establishments with much higher prices than the ones that closed.

LOUD ENVIRONMENTS

One of the hallmarks of a nice restaurant used to be a serene atmosphere, but there are fewer and fewer upscale eateries where the decibel level is below a running chainsaw. That is a literal statement: the “noise and hearing loss” chart by the CDC makes that comparison to a 95 decibel environment, and there are local restaurants that hit or exceed that measurement. Customers often don’t let management know that they dislike the racket even though it makes a return visit less likely, so the problem is not addressed.

Looking ahead

There are at least 15 restaurants for sale between El Segundo and Redondo, though some current owners are asking such outrageous prices that they’re likely to stay on the market for a while. There are several “zombie restaurants” in our area that stay open despite being conspicuously unsuccessful because a restaurant with current permits and alcohol license is worth much more than one that needs to go through the application process. One has to pity the servers who survey mostly empty rooms, since most are dependent on gratuities, and empty seats don’t tip.

The big picture

While Torrance and Gardena are already destinations for eclectic Asian cuisines and are developing some interesting contemporary restaurants, the Beach Cities remain the magnet for local and regional recreational dining. Openings in 2024 included some exceptional creative restaurants as well as oddities like the area’s first Mongolian and upscale Korean fusion dining experiences. That diversity keeps tourists coming as well as satisfying the people who arrive on foot, electric bicycle, or a short drive, and bodes well for the local economy. The restaurants that opened this year and the ones being planned now depend on that flow of locals and outsiders, and we can only hope they keep coming. ER