Toward the second half of 2023, the Los Angeles restaurant scene was battered by multiple forces that led to slower-than-usual business and increased costs. Multiple restaurants quoted the writer’s and actor’s strike, which ground production and other industries related to the entertainment industry to a halt, as the primary reason for lesser than expected sales. In addition, increased labor, rent, and other costs have continued to put pressure on operators that already operate on thin margins. Here now, a running list of restaurant closures in Los Angeles beginning from the last days of 2023 going into the first month of 2024.

Spartina LA — Melrose Avenue

Wonho Frank Lee

Spartina LA, which opened in 2015 by chef Stephen Kalt, announced on social media last week that it would close on January 28. Kalt has had a nearly four-decade-long career in restaurants spanning New York City, Atlantic City, and Las Vegas. Spartina was originally named for a restaurant he helped open in the early 1990s in Tribeca before that neighborhood had become one of the hottest in Manhattan.

Spartina in LA was his ode to Italian American food, preparing shareable pizzas, handmade pastas, and seasonal California produce. Kalt told Eater that from Memorial Day onwards, sales had dropped off about 40 percent from expected, blaming the writer’s and actor’s strikes. “In 40 years in this business, I’ve never seen anything like it before,” said Kalt. The last day of operations will be this coming Sunday.

Atrium — Los Feliz

Los Feliz restaurant Atrium, which opened in 2018 from Beau Laughlin and Jay Milliken, closed without warning on December 23, 2023. The stylish Los Feliz restaurant offered versatile dishes with international flavors in a high-ceiling space in a neighborhood that sorely lacks quality dining. Staff was notified of the closure just a few days before Christmas though outwardly Atrium hinted that it would reopen in the new year. Atrium has not reopened though its sister lounge space Pinky’s continues to operate.

Skylight Gardens — Westwood

Westwood Italian restaurant Skylight Gardens had just celebrated its 12th anniversary when it quietly closed in recent weeks (it originally opened in 2012). A tipster says the signage was taken down and that multiple Yelpers have reported it closed, though the restaurant’s website — which announced the restaurant’s 10th anniversary — is still up at the time of publication.

Jeni’s Ice Cream — Venice

Rose Avenue ice cream parlor Jeni’s has closed since around the end of December, though word is that the artisan scoop shop has reopened as a stand on Windward Avenue closer to the Venice Boardwalk. Jeni’s still has locations in Larchmont, Beverly Hills, the Runway in Playa Vista, Calabasas, Los Feliz, and Highland Park within the LA area.

Caffe Roma — Beverly Hills

For 45 years, Caffe Roma has been a streetside destination for Italian food and coffee in the Golden Triangle of Beverly Hills. The restaurant announced its closure on January 1, 2024, though its sister restaurant Cafe Amici will continue to operate, which means longtime fans will still have a place to get eggplant parmigiana and lasagna with beef ragu. Eater spoke with a representative from Caffe Roma who said the landlord had doubled the rent, which made it more challenging to operate despite nearly half a century of history in the neighborhood.

ETA — Highland Park

Wonho Frank Lee

Jazz bar and cocktail lounge ETA, which is a sister restaurant to the Greyhound sports bar, closed on December 30, 2023 after initially opening in 2016. Owner Mateo Glassman said part of the reason for the closure was that his partners James and Ryan had moved farther away and that Glassman’s recent addition to the family had made it difficult to sustain operations. Glassman said the Highland Park and jazz community were a huge part of ETA’s success and was thankful for both.