Sound the Alarm: April Bloomfield Is Definitely Opening Her First LA Restaurant

One of the saddest restaurant closures in recent Los Angeles memory has to be The Cat & Fiddle, the popular patio space in Hollywood that lived in the heart of many an evening drinker. But there's light at the end of the tunnel, as chef April Bloomfield and restaurateur Ken Friedman — the names behind everything in New York City from The Breslin to The Spotted Pig — are still hard at work bringing back that beautiful patio, all while allegedly installing a brand new Middle Eastern concept, complete with a wood-fired oven. Here's what we know so far.

For a while, it seemed that a West Coast iteration of the Spotted Pig was the most likely option for the space, but those plans have apparently been shuffled off for something new. According to sources, the upcoming restaurant will actually carry a Middle Eastern lean. Beyond that, expect beer and wine for that beautiful patio, with a possible full bar — at least per this ABC license — still in the conversation.

John Verive

Speaking of the patio, it’s still under some pretty heavy construction as you can see. But things are progressing along; walk by any day now and you’ll see heavy chain-link fencing up and lots of work going on inside. As for the rest of it, like what the interior will ultimately look like, it’s still very much too early to know. That being said, New York’s Roman + Williams team is behind the design — they also did Bloomfield’s The Breslin inside the Ace Hotel in Manhattan, making this their first West Coast venture.

Chi Spacca's Chad Colby could be the one running the restaurant

Now for some juicy rumor: the chef to run the upcoming unnamed restaurant could indeed be Chad Colby, the former Chi Spacca lead who stepped out at Gwen just before opening. That would put Colby mere steps from his former employer, right in the thick of booming Hollywood. Though Eater hasn’t been able to confirm with Colby his upcoming employment plans, it’s a widely-held rumor that he’ll be on site there. Colby was also recently seen working the grill alongside Bloomfield at the celeb-studded Alex’s Lemonade charity event this summer.

In terms of timing on it all, don’t expect anything until next year, though at this point it’s all as fluid as ever. Both Colby and Friedman have yet to confirm requests for more information (and they may never respond), so holding your breath for this one to open isn’t advised. Still, things are looking up, and soon enough Hollywood could once again be in line for a top-of-the-line year-round patio situation the likes of which it hasn’t had since, well, The Cat & Fiddle.

• Owner Explains Why The Cat & Fiddle Had to Go [ELA]
• Why Is the Cat & Fiddle Space Still Sitting Empty? [ELA]
• It's Probably April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman at The Cat & Fiddle After All [ELA]
• All The Cat & Fiddle News [ELA]