Sonora Cafe on The Market

It's been open for 20 years, but Sonora Cafe is slowly on its way out. The restaurant stopped serving lunch, and according to our tipster, it will shutter as soon as someone takes over the lease. When Sonora opened in 1986, Southwest cuisine was all the rage, it seemed to fit the time and place. Owned by Ron Salisbury from the El Cholo clan, it was always seen as a "more upscale" El Cholo and not much more. Now the only time it's really busy is happy hour. Bonus fun fact: According to the LAT, Sonora Cafe replaced Mary Sue Miliken and Susan Feniger's much-beloved City restaurant, and in an unrelated move, the Border Girls opened Ciudad where the original Sonora Cafe was located downtown. Restaurant symmetry! Love it.
· Sonora Cafe [LAT]