Westside Restaurant Vets Opening New Concept at Former Josie in Santa Monica

There’s more life coming to the former Josie space on Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica, as a group of big names has taken over with plans to reinvigorate the address. Raphael Lunetta, the longtime lead at the iconic JiRaffe, is in part behind the project, alongside Mike Garrett and Daniel Weinstock of Divide + Conquer, Inc. — they’re the folks who helped bring Maple Block Meat Co. to life.

So far, there are no concrete plans for what exactly Lunetta and the Divide + Conquer team will be doing with the Josie location, but this ABC license certainly shows a desire for a full bar. Eater reached out to Garrett and Weinstock to talk about the planned concept for Josie, and it looks like things are at the moment just in planning phase.

Still, the return of not only the Josie address but of Raphael Lunetta himself is a big, big get for Santa Monica. Add in two team members behind what is arguably the most talked-about barbecue restaurant to hit Los Angeles in a while, and all of a sudden the prospects begin to seem very great, indeed.