The Original Pantry Cafe at the corner of 9th and Figueroa streets in downtown L.A first served plates of classic American breakfast in 1924, cultivating a loyal multi-generational base of regulars. More than a hundred years later, the diner is closing down.
Former L.A. Mayor Richard Riordan bought the restaurant in 1981. After his death, his administrative trust took over ownership, which also oversees the charitable nonprofit Riordan Foundation.
In a statement to LAist’s media partner KCAL News, the Richard J. Riordan Administrative Trust says selling the restaurant will better fund the foundation’s education work for low-income students.
The Original Pantry Cafe is set to close. We paid it a visit
The greasy spoon has legion of fans who waited around the block to bid farewell.
Patron lined up around the block on the last day of The Pantry's operation.
The counter was full on The Pantry's last day.
Riordan operated the restaurant as a passion project, and the Foundation says it was never profitable:
“The trustees of the Mayor’s estate have determined that closing The Pantry and selling the property upon which it is located is the best path to provide the Foundation with the most financial resources to continue its wonderful charitable mission.”
End of an era
Fans of the Pantry have flocked to the greasy spoon for days knowing that it’s closing down. Sunday morning, the mood was bittersweet. A line stretched down the entire block of James M. Wood Boulevard and wrapped around until Francisco Street.
Word on the line: The wait on this final day of business would be three hours.
Josephine Garza came from Montebello, making it on the line by 10 a.m. Garza said when learned about the closure from the news, she made plans for one last meal.
“If it’s the last day I’ve got to eat that bread. I love the bread,” she said. “It’s delicious.”
Patrons waiting to go in chatted with each other about the iconic food and the memories they had dining at the restaurant over the years.
For Dolores Rivoli of El Sereno, The Pantry was where she and her late husband went often with the family. She planned to honor him by ordering his favorite meal.
The scene on the last day of The Pantry's operation.
Tables turned over all day as a long line of customers waited outside.
“He loved the ham steak, the potatoes, the sourdough bread and the delicious pancakes, and of course no one could make coffee like them…He would be here,” Rivoli said.
Inside the restaurant diners savored meals, drowning food in ketchup and syrup and leaving extra large tips on their tables. Many gave a tap on the shoulder of waiters they’ve known their whole lives, for what is likely the last time.
They were full of joy and sorrow, and many seemed just happy they got a table at all. The crowd was expected to be nonstop until closing time at 5 p.m.
Ronnie Medina of Norwalk enjoyed a plate of pancakes and said this meal was just one of many special occasions he’s had at The Pantry.
“Special moments with my dad at the counter. I shared those same moments with my son,” Medina said. One time he was eating with his son, and realized they had the same waiter who'd served him when he was a little boy some 40 years ago.
“I asked him, ‘How could that be?’ and he said, ‘Because I’ve never missed a day. And if you came and sat at the counter on a weekday at this time, it was me,’” Medina said.
Labor negotiations
Brenda De La Rosa was the lone cashier working Sunday. She’d been at The Pantry for just over a year, but her mother — a decades-long server — had been bringing her here since she was a child.
She said she’s not sure what she and her mom will do next. “We’re all sad. They gave us a three-week notice,” De La Rosa said. “We’re still gonna protest and try to fight. Customers here are sad, they have many memories.”
UNITE HERE Local 11, the union representing workers at The Pantry, sought to renegotiate their contract to safeguard work protections in the case of new ownership — but to no avail.
So by shift's end, it was the end of a chapter for a local institution.
“Today's our last day. We're hoping [for] a miracle or something, you know,” said Maricela Granados, who has been working at the Pantry for 26 years. “Thank you for all the loyal customers that we have and everybody's trying to support.”
