Farley Elliott
is the Senior Editor at Eater LA and the author of Los Angeles Street Food: A History From Tamaleros to Taco Trucks. He covers restaurants in every form, from breaking news to the culture, people, and history that surrounds LA's dining landscape.
It’s the end of the road for cycling-focused Arts District coffee spot The Wheelhouse. The funky hideaway wasn’t super easy to find at first, tucked back beyond The Factory Kitchen down what basically amounted to an alleyway, but it managed to find a local footing not only within the neighboring community, but amongst riders of all stripes.
The Wheelhouse first came to life in late 2015, operating from a tall, open warehouse with roll-up doors to the outside. The coffee portion was actually rather modest — just a long communal table and lounge area inside, mostly — while the majority of the space was used for bicycle repair and merchandise. Coffee and cycling are common partners, of course, as evidenced by other similarly-themed shops like A Bloc on York in Highland Park.
The final day of service for The Wheelhouse came just before the new year, with owners Tami and Chase Spenst putting out a lengthy blast on social media informing fans of the “hard decision” to close. The full statement is below:
:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/58182199/Wheelhouse.0.jpg)
