Seeing the shambles many of the restaurants and kiosks were in earlier this week, mere days before the grand debut, it's amazing how many actually opened today. On Tuesday, workers were still hammering, hanging, floors weren't even in on some places, but today the big restaurants opened their doors to throngs of people who acted like they've never seen a Cheesecake Factory in their life. And although the AAB flacks swore everything would open on May 2, there are still a few boarded up. Before you head out looking for swirly things, New York-style pizza or sausages, we have an update:
Frida's Mexican Cuisine: Staffers were in a training meeting, but the place was full of construction and commotion. Lots of equipment laying around, workmen, etc. One guy told us it won't open for a few weeks, but Americana reps say "early next week."
Jewel Street Diner: Again, we saw staffers inside getting the rundown, boxes on the counter, people in meetings, but the sign on the door says "We Are Almost Ready!" and will open on Sunday, May 4. Cute little space, old-school diner-esque inside, lots of tables outside. Right near the fountain.
We poppped on over to the Americana at Brand for lunch today and it was sheer chaos---at least in front of the Cheesecake Factory. Were they handing out free cheesecake or something? Because the line that spiraled around the front door after the noon debut was ridiculous. And with so many other options....well, actually, there weren't that many other options, but we'll get to that in a follow up post. According to the Americana flacks, the goal was to have everything open today, but that didn't quite happen, at least for the restaurants and eateries. Here's what you will find:
Caffe Primo: And what a primo spot it has, too, right in front of the valet stand. As soon as we poked our head in, the staff told us they were running about 45 minutes behind. It was packed.
Katsuya: So they don't have to weather a similar onslaught, Katsuya is only taking limited reservations, maybe a few walk-ins. They anticipate full speed by mid-May. Lunch today was solid, but everyone's still getting their footing. But one of the first tables was Mr. Rick Caruso himself (pictured in the gallery). After running around the mall taking pictures under the noon sun, our watermelon-cucumber mojito totally rocked it. (Res line: 818.244.5900)
Oh yeah, baby. It's here! In case you haven't watched a local news channel, read the paper or perused the blogosphere: Rick Caruso's new Americana at Brand opens today. The $400 million mixed use shopping mall/residential development is the Grove on steroids, more Vegas than Glendale, everything's bigger, splashier, shinier. We had a sneak preview earlier this week while workmen polished, buffed, painted and constructed finishing touches in just about every nook and cranny. Curbed and Racked LA have obsessed over the residential and shopping side of things, and we'vedoneourpart for the restaurants---Katsuya! Frida! Beard Papa's! Cheesecake Factory! Caruso promised everything would open today for the big debut, but the way things looked on Tuesday, that seemed like such a stretch. We'll have a full report from the scene soon.
· Americana at Brand: Dining Update [~ELA~]
· Americana at Brand Mega Preview: Day 1 [~ELA~]
· Americana at Brand Mega Preview: Katsuya [~ELA~]
· Americana Mega Preview Day 2: The Rest [~ELA~]
We offered a look around to some of the restaurants/cafes/eateries yesterday, and earlier today it was all Katsuya; now we have a final look at the rest. Frida Mexican Cuisine is the big corner anchor for the Brand entrance, and with its huge ceilings, big par, patio and shiny tile, it's nothing like the intimate original on Beverly Boulevard. Beard Papa's will be a kiosk not to far from that, and the Jewel City Diner looks all retro and cool over by the H&M. Caffe Primo is on the other side, near shops like Kate Spade and Lucky Brand. We didn't catch where Richie's Pizza, Granville Cafe or the Korean place will be. It's amazing that this entire development, which looked like controlled chaos today, will open in two days; one if you count the private black-tie premiere on Thursday. But we heard it from the tanned Rick Caruso himself: All will open on May 2.
· Americana at Brand Mega Preview: Day 1 [~ELA~]
· Americana at Brand Mega Preview Day 2: Katsuya [~ELA~]
We just took a spin around The Americana at Brand, which is still heavily under construction as all the workmen, staffers, groundskeepers and head honchos put final touches on everything for the May 2 debut. It's really quite frantic, especially with the various tour groups being led through the sawdust. We had a small preview yesterday, but today's TAAB gallery comes in two parts. First up, the new Katsuya, the third and largest of the SBE/Katsuya Uechi resto chain. Some fun facts about the space, next.
We've been keeping an eye on the dining haps at Americana at Brand, Rick Caruso's new Grove-like Glendale mall, but here we have the official first sneak preview of some eateries. Of course there's SBE's third Katsuya, a Cheesecake Factory, Pinkberry and Jamba Juice. Other restaurants/cafes that will open on May 2---The big public debut! Just days away!---are a Nestle Toll House Cafe, CrepeMaker, Frida Mexican Cuisine, Granville Cafe, Beard Papa, Richie's Pizzeria, and the Jewel City Diner, which we hear, is a Caruso-owned venture (he also owns the Whisper Lounge at the Grove). And because "Korean" continues to be the buzzword for 2008, Kyopo Grill has been added to the roster. Our siblings took a look at the retail and residential side of Americana. Are you excited or bored about the openings? Is this a boon or bust for Glendale? Comments is all yours.
· Americana at Brand Dining Update [~ELA~]
· SBE Future: Foxtail, Jose Andres, More Katsuyas [~ELA~]
· Curbed Inside: Developer Rick Caruso's Americana At Brand [Curbed LA]
· Americana at Brand: The Mega-Mall-Mixed-Use Preview! [Racked LA]
We were just informed that all of the restaurants at Glendale's new Americana at Brand will open on May 2, when the entire complex opens. That means the Katsuya, Cheesecake Factory, Caffee Primo and Jewel City Diner will compete with the likes of Pinkberry, Jamba Juice and Beard Papa all at once. Let the shopping/eating/shopping begin. [EaterWire]
As our brethren at Curbed have noted: Rick Caruso's Americana at Brand is just days away from its big Glendale debut. We drove around the construction site a few weeks ago and it's definitely its own little city in there, lots of activity, heavy lifting equipment, hard hats. What we couldn't do was get inside to get all the restaurant Plywood---and there's lots. Above is a shot of SBE's third (and largest) Katsuya location, which along with all of the other restaurants, will open on May 2 when the complex does. The roster includes: Frida Mexican Cuisine (from Beverly Hills), Cheesecake Factory, Granville Cafe; plus quickies like Pinkberry, Jamba Juice, Jody Maroni's, CrepeMaker, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Beard Papa; then something called Jewel City Diner, an offshoot of the Sunset Strip's Caffe Primo, and Richie's Pizzeria, which just opened another location in Santa Monica. None of these restaurants are particularly earth-shattering, and unless the traffic problems around Americana and the Glendale mall cease to persist, it's just as easy to get to the other locations. Plus, none compare to nearby Porto's.
· Americana at Brand vs. L.A. Live [~ELA~]
· Pre-Plywood Special: Katsuya Glendale [~ELA~]
· Americana at Brand, Part II: Weekend Construction [Curbed LA]
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