Once-Busy South Bay Gastropub Hudson House Is Back, Pretzel Bun Burger and All

Redondo Beach’s busy Hudson House has formally reopened with new ownership. Top Chef’s Brooke Williamson (Playa Provisions) turned the keys over late last year to a then-unspecified new ownership group after 12 long years, and now those owners — Kate Failor, Hudson House’s former director of operations, and longtime local restaurant owner Jessica Ibarra (A Basq Kitchen) — are up and running with a menu that harkens back to the previous days of the place. That means gastropub staples, lots of cocktails, and (most importantly for some) a return of Hudson House’s pretzel bun burger with Jarlsberg cheese.

While the restaurant did quietly return to takeaway service last month, this new, formal opening includes more on-site dining and a more robust menu. Hudson House now keeps dinner service hours nightly, and runs brunch starting at 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

In other news:

• Owner Jeanne Cheng of Kye’s (known mostly for its greens-wrapped ‘kyeritos’) has opened a new ghost kitchen outlet in Hollywood, in a commissary space at Western and Melrose. The move means more access to Kye’s food further east, and growth for the self-taught health food enthusiast Cheng.
• Anaheim’s Modern Filipino Kitchen restaurant has a new location, too. The small Orange County group is now selling out of the SteelCraft development in Bellflower in Southeast LA County.
• Orange County distillery Blinking Owl is back in business in Santa Ana, per state guidelines on distilleries, breweries, and wineries. The production space includes some limited indoor seating and a large patio, and now there’s even an on-site kitchen turning out things like burgers and flatbread pizzas.

• Speaking of flatbread pizzas, Oste on West Third Street has more formally opened now that state restrictions have allowed some on-site dining. The restaurant began during the pandemic by serving essentially pinsa-style pizzas only as a takeaway, and now offers a more complete osteria menu that includes burrata, pastas, seafood, and more.
• Money is pouring in to help support the family of a murdered street vendor up in Fresno. The shocking death has led to calls for protections for vendors, and a rallying cry to find the suspect involved. Fresno city council members have collectively raised thousands in reward money to find the shooter, and on GoFundMe the family has brought in over $60,000 to help defray living expenses and funeral costs.
• Greek independence day is Thursday, March 25, and to celebrate the folks at Theía will be doing a customary battered and salted cod and mash potato dish called bakaliaros skordalia to celebrate. Meanwhile over on the Papa Cristo’s patio, Sundays this spring are for grilling lots of lamb ribs.