A New All-Day Restaurant Grows at Downtown’s Historic Ace Hotel

The ground floor restaurant at the base of the Ace Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles is set to reopen soon, albeit with a new chef, name, and overall direction. Best Girl, from Providence chef Michael Cimarusti has departed following a four-year run; in its place comes Loam.

As the name indicates, the new Loam will focus on the rich soil and deep roots of Los Angeles itself, with a particular focus on vegetables (though Loam will not be exclusively vegetarian or vegan). Spread across breakfast, lunch, brunch, and dinner hours — eventually — Loam will work up a menu that ranges from breakfast sandwiches with braised kale to beetroot Reubens and simple hotel burgers for lunch. At dinner, travelers and locals can tuck into smoked black cod, lots of roasted vegetables, or a hanger steak with turnips and fermented plums.

The restaurant will also offer coffee, to-go food options, natural California wine, and cocktails, including several in the low-ABV and no-alcohol genre. Loam will be overseen by chef Joshua Guarneri, who most recently made a name for himself running the kitchen at now-closed Bar Avalon in Echo Park.

As for the space, expect a similar look to the former tenant, as is befitting the style of the existing Ace Hotel, which was built in 1927. There will definitely be a mellow ambiance for coffee shop workers and travelers, and the upstairs mezzanine area will host its own art and music shows (and its own bar menu) in the coming months as well. The first iteration of Loam at 929 S. Broadway in Downtown will open on October 6, with coffee and to-go counter service offerings to start, plus sit-down dinner at night. A move into more fully-realized breakfast, lunch, and brunch service will follow shortly after.

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