Gary Nguyen, left, co-founder of 360 Clinic, along with 360 Clinic Dr. Dung Trinh, center and 360 Clinic CEO Dr. Venessa Ho attend the opening of the new COVID-19 testing clinic at the Anaheim Convention Center in July 2020.
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Carolyn Cole
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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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Topline:
A string of businesses owned or backed by brothers with extensive real estate and health care holdings earned millions through contracts with government entities in Orange County, including some approved by disgraced former Supervisor Andrew Do. Those business transactions, now under scrutiny, include lucrative contracts to run the county’s mass COVID-19 testing during the pandemic and a $29.5 million Tustin property deal that fell apart in 2023.
Where things stand: CalOptima, the county’s Medi-Cal system, is investigating its share of these dealings even as it distances itself from companies owned by the brothers. A pending whistleblower lawsuit also alleges that the brothers’ business interests engaged in billing fraud while carrying out the COVID-19 testing.
Why this matters: Records obtained by LAist through a Public Records Act request underscore continuing concerns by various government agencies and private entities about how taxpayer money was spent under Do's watch.
What is Andrew Do’s status? Do pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge and is currently awaiting sentencing — potentially up to five years in prison. In his plea, he admitted to getting more than half a million dollars intended to feed seniors during the pandemic, and using it for personal gain. Some members of the Board of Supervisors are urging authorities to consider harsher punishment.
Read on ... for details about ongoing probes
A string of businesses owned or backed by brothers with extensive real estate and healthcare holdings earned millions through contracts with government entities in Orange County under the supervision of disgraced former Supervisor Andrew Do. Those government contracts with Larry and Gary Nguyen’s businesses have raised questions and concerns from a range of public and private entities — including the Board of Supervisors, the county’s health plan for the poor, an insurance company and a whistleblower — an LAist investigation has learned.
One multimillion dollar contract — with the firm 360 Clinic to carry out COVID-19 testing during the pandemic — is the focus of a former employee’s whistleblower lawsuit that alleges executives engaged in billing fraud.
Another concerns a property deal in Tustin between the county’s low-income health plan, CalOptima, and one of the Nguyen brother’s companies, Yorba Myrtle LLC. Under an agreement signed by Do as CalOptima’s chair, the agency had been set to buy the property for $29.5 million — 60% more than the company paid less than a year earlier — when the deal fell apart.
There are at least two probes underway into these and more than a thousand of other contracts handled by Do at county agencies over the years:
CalOptima has hired an outside firm to audit transactions approved while Do was on their board, including the Tustin property deal.
The Orange County Board of Supervisors is also preparing to conduct a widespread forensic audit focused on contracts that awarded pandemic relief funds, including the COVID-19 testing contract with 360 Clinic. They expect to release a request for proposals by the end of May, the first step in hiring an outside firm to do the work.
Do pleaded guilty to a federal bribery charge and is currently awaiting sentencing for accepting kickbacks from contracts intended to feed seniors during the pandemic.
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Stuart Pfeifer, a spokesperson for several of the Nguyen brothers’ businesses, declined to discuss LAist’s questions in detail but said there has been “full compliance” in 360 Clinic’s business interactions with the county.
David Tang, Gary Nguyen’s business partner in Yorba Myrtle LLC, did not respond to LAist’s requests for comment left at his office and by email. Pfeifer did not respond to LAist’s questions about the Tustin property deal.
Paul Meyer, a lawyer for former Supervisor Do, told LAist “it’s inappropriate to comment at this time.”
Here’s what LAist has learned about the transactions through interviews and public records:
The COVID-19 testing supersites
In-mid 2020, politically polarized Orange County was engulfed in a fierce debate over how serious of a risk the pandemic posed and how to address it.
At a Board of Supervisors meeting that summer, Do — one of two supervisors on an ad hoc committee formed to try to ramp up COVID-19 testing — announced a public-private partnership with a brand new company. The partnership would provide free, drive-through COVID-19 testing at the Anaheim Convention Center and the OC Fairgrounds. The plan was to test up to 5,000 people per day, which health officials said was a key step to reduce the virus’s spread and get back to normal life.
The company chosen to carry out the testing, 360 Clinic, had been formed just five days before that announcement, according to state business records.
There was no competitive bidding for the work, the full Board of Supervisors never voted on it, and the payment details were never revealed in a public meeting. Instead, the company’s contract was rushed through under a pandemic-era emergency rule.
The true cost to taxpayers
The COVID-19 testing contract with 360 Clinic was supposed to cost Orange County taxpayers nothing. State and federal rules required private insurance companies to cover COVID-19 testing. And the cost for testing uninsured people was covered under a federal program to reimburse testing providers.
Two months after the initial agreement between the county and 360 Clinic, the parties agreed to change the contract — and put the county on the hook for uncollectible claims.
Tamarra Jones, who managed the county Health Care Agency’s Health Promotion and Community Planning division at the time, oversaw the 360 Clinic testing operation for the county. She said the contract change making the county the “payer of last resort” was one of many details of the testing contract that concerned her.
“It seemed as if they were getting paid lots of money for services I could not verify,” Jones told LAist.
She added, referring to the 360 Clinic contract and others granted to private firms during the pandemic: ”It seemed as if friends of friends were getting contracts,” bypassing normal channels.
Jones, who is now director of public health for San Mateo County, said when she raised concerns about payments to 360 Clinic, she was told by Health Care Agency leaders to “just pay it.”
Internal emails obtained by LAist through a Public Records Act request show that the insurance company Blue Shield of California also had concerns.
In 2021, the health insurance giant was investigating billing by 360 Clinic, records show. O.C. Health Care Agency spokesperson Ellen Guevara confirmed that Blue Shield was investigating, but said her agency wasn’t informed of an outcome despite efforts to follow up. Mark Seelig, a spokesperson for the insurer, wrote in a statement to LAist: “Blue Shield of California does not comment on investigations or litigation.”
Guevara told LAist in an email that Blue Shield denied payment on claims submitted by 360 Clinic and that “the County ultimately stepped in as the payer of last resort to ensure continued access to testing and vaccination services for our communities during the public health emergency.”
While the investigation was ongoing, emails between Health Care Agency leaders show that the question of whether to pay 360 Clinic for claims Blue Shield had denied got kicked up to the highest level — Supervisor Do.
“Just talked to Sup Do,” Clayton Chau, then the Health Care Agency director, texted to Margaret Bredehoft, the chief of public health services at the time, in October 2021. “We should pay 360 to fulfill our contractual obligation.”
The final bill
In the end, the county paid 360 Clinic just over $3.4 million to cover testing the company said it couldn’t collect insurance on, according to Guevara, the Health Care Agency spokesperson. Public records obtained by LAist show that among the reasons 360 Clinic leaders claimed for being unable to collect insurance was that a high number of uninsured people were showing up at testing sites, and that employees were often unable to verify their basic information to receive reimbursement from the federal government’s COVID-19 fund for uninsured individuals.
The county’s multimillion dollar payout stands in contrast to another large COVID-19 testing contract in Orange County that LAist reported on last year. That contract, for weekly testing of students and staff at the Santa Ana Unified School District during the pandemic, cost the school district nothing because the firm directly billed private insurance or the federal government for all costs of the testing.
Pfeifer, the spokesperson for the Nguyen brothers’ firms, wrote in a statement that 360 Clinic had undergone a “comprehensive, independent audit” over the past three months “ordered by legal counsel and led by a former FBI Special Agent.” He said the audit included insurance claims submitted by the company and had “found full compliance across all areas.” Pfeifer did not respond to LAist’s request for a copy of the audit.
County audit and whistleblower lawsuit
A former senior employee at 360 Clinic filed a whistleblower lawsuit alleging she was abruptly fired after voicing opposition to what she claims was billing fraud by top executives at 360 Clinic. Those allegations helped derail a deal for another of the Nguyen brothers’ businesses: CalOptima’s board unanimously voted this past February to back away from a plan to run a senior health center for Vietnamese-speaking elders in Little Saigon.
The curious case of the state health regulator who intervened in county affairs to further the Nguyen brothers’ businesses
Documents obtained by LAist through a Public Records Act show a top regulator of health care facilities in Orange County repeatedly urged a local hospital executive on CalOptima’s board of directors to discount a whistleblower’s fraud allegations against a Nguyen brother company. Officials at CalOptima told LAist they considered at least one of the messages threatening and said they had referred the incident to law enforcement.
When those officials looked into previous communications between CalOptima and the regulator, Hang Nguyen, they found that she had also emailed a CalOptima official concerning the Nguyen brothers’ property deal in Tustin with CalOptima. In that email, Hang Nguyen offered to join a meeting with Tustin city officials to “explain further on the benefits of the proposed program.”
Hang Nguyen’s employer, the California Department of Public Health, told LAist she had no official role in either of the proposed projects. In a statement to LAist, a spokesperson said the department is reviewing the allegations against Nguyen “and will take all necessary and appropriate actions.”
It’s unclear whether there’s a familial relationship between Hang Nguyen and the Nguyen brothers, Gary and Larry — Nguyen is a very common Vietnamese surname. Property records do show that one of the Nguyen brothers sold a home in Westminster to Hang Nguyen in 2010.
A second business deal being scrutinized, by CalOptima, involves a property in Irvine.
One of the Nguyen brothers, Gary, formed Yorba Myrtle LLC and purchased a former rehabilitation hospital in Tustin for $18 million in November 2021.
The exterior of the Tustin property that was almost purchased by CalOptima.
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Yusra Farzan
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LAist
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Five months later, in March 2022, the county’s chief real estate officer signed a letter of intent to buy it for $22.5 million. Ultimately, the county was unable to secure the state funding it would have needed to purchase the building, and the deal collapsed.
That’s when CalOptima stepped in with an even higher offer — at first, $27 million, and then a few days later, $29.5 million, a 60% increase in the property value compared to when Yorba Myrtle bought it less than a year prior. No permits for improving the property were filed with the city of Tustin between the time Yorba Myrtle LLC bought the property and then struck a deal with CalOptima to purchase it, according to the Tustin city clerk’s office.
An appraisal report prepared for CalOptima later that year concluded that the steep price increase was justified because it “reflects a willing buyer and seller. Considering these conditions, the current purchase price is a strong indicator of market value,” the report, which was prepared by the prominent commercial real estate firm CBRE Inc., states. A spokesperson for CBRE said they could not discuss the appraisal.
Do, then CalOptima’s board chair, signed the purchase agreement on Aug. 2, 2022. It’s unclear whether CalOptima’s board approved the purchase agreement, which is legally binding, and the price was never reported in a public meeting. Two days after Do signed the agreement, materials for the board’s Aug. 4, 2022 meeting state that “the price and terms of purchase” of the Tustin property “will be considered by the Board at a future meeting contingent on receiving the necessary approvals from the City of Tustin.”
In response to LAist’s emailed questions about whether and how board members voted on the purchase agreement, Deanne Thompson, a spokesperson for CalOptima, wrote that the agreement “was never final and included diligence and zoning contingencies that could have impacted price and terms. Had the purchase agreement become final it would have required a public vote.”
In response to further questions about the purchase price and price change from $27 million to $29.5 million, Thompson wrote that she couldn’t discuss the issue because the property deal is part of “an active internal investigation.”
Ultimately, the city rejected the proposed facility and the property deal fell through.
Still, Yorba Myrtle LLC collected $450,000 in forfeited funds that CalOptima had put into escrow, according to figures provided by Thompson.
What became of the Tustin building?
The Tustin hospital property ultimately sold earlier this year to another health care company. The price was $19 million — $10.5 million less than CalOptima had offered. LAist spoke with Tom Jurbala, director of business development for Generations Healthcare, which bought the property and plans to open a skilled nursing facility there. Jurbala said his company had considered bidding on the property when Nguyen first put it up for sale, but decided it wasn’t the right time for the company.
Asked whether he thought it was unusual that CalOptima had planned to buy it for so much more than he paid for it, Jurbala said “no.”
“They have their own parameters, I’m sure,” he said before adding: “I wouldn’t buy it for $29 million, I can tell you that.”
PANDEMIC CONTRACTS — AND QUESTIONS
LAist reporting has unearthed multiple problems with contracts awarded under Orange County’s pandemic-era rules. These include:
More than $13 million in contracts that were supposed to feed the elderly and hungry during the pandemic were awarded to a nonprofit associated with former Supervisor Do’s adult daughter, Rhiannon Do. Law enforcement authorities later said just 15% of the money was used for its intended purpose. The nonprofit was unable to document where the money went, and Andrew Do later admitted to receiving kickbacks in exchange for the lucrative contracts. Do is awaiting sentencing in June.
A $1 million awarded to Do’s daughter’s nonprofit to build a Vietnam War memorial, which remains unfinished. A civil lawsuit filed by the county against the nonprofit and affiliated businesses seeks to recoup the taxpayer money.
A contract awarded to the wife of a top aide to Andrew Do for mental health care work that was never completed. The organization that received that contract gave the $275,000 back last year after a demand from county health officials spurred by LAist reporting.
Senior Reporter Ted Rohrlich contributed to this report.
Caption on lead photo:Gary Nguyen, left, co-founder of 360 Clinic, along with 360 Clinic Dr. Dung Trinh, center and 360 Clinic CEO Dr. Venessa Ho attend the opening of the new COVID-19 testing clinic at Anaheim Convention Center, in July 2020
A Compton-born coffee pop-up thrives in a Guisados
By Isaac Ceja | The LA Local
Published May 8, 2026 8:00 AM
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, poses for a portrait at Guisados in Pasadena.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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Topline:
Local taco chain Guisados partnered with the Caffeinated Cart to bring its coffee to the people of Pasadena in a space where owner Pablomanuel Maldonado can chat up his customers and serve his Latino-inspired signature coffees.
About the drinks: Nearly all of his drinks have names in Spanish, a nod to his Mexican roots. By far his best seller is the “Cereal Killer,” a cinnamon brown sugar latte with a cereal garnish, where customers can choose between Cocoa Puffs or Cap’N Crunch Crunch Berries.
The backstory: The Caffeinated Cart began in 2020 when Maldonado started selling bottled lattes in his hometown of Compton before eventually popping up at local markets like Angel City Market and the Beach Flea.
Just inches away from where workers warm up handmade tortillas at Guisados in Pasadena, Pablomanuel Maldonado puts the finishing touches on different drinks before calling out to his customers.
“Provecho,” Maldonado, owner of coffee pop-up the Caffeinated Cart, says to each customer before quickly redirecting his attention to the next, treating each one like he’s known them for years.
Local taco chain Guisados partnered with the Caffeinated Cart to bring its coffee to the people of Pasadena in a space where Maldonado can chat up his customers and serve his Latino-inspired signature coffees.
Nearly all of his drinks have names in Spanish, a nod to his Mexican roots. By far his best seller is the “Cereal Killer,” a cinnamon brown sugar latte with a cereal garnish, where customers can choose between Cocoa Puffs or Cap’N Crunch Crunch Berries.
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, prepares a Cereal Killer at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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Though he’s only been operating at this location for the past three weeks, small touches — like Virgen de Guadalupe candles, a new coffee blend from local roaster Picaresca and a shiny new drink menu on the wall — make his corner of the restaurant feel welcoming.
“For the first time, I don’t feel tired. I feel mentally at peace, and it’s like, ‘Damn, this is what I love doing,’ you know?” Maldonado told The LA Local. “I get excited to come here. I get excited to get out of bed.”
Maldonado recently transitioned from working full-time at Bristol Farms during the week and doing coffee pop-ups on weekends to serving coffee full-time at Guisados.
The Caffeinated Cart began in 2020 when Maldonado started selling bottled lattes in his hometown of Compton before eventually popping up at local markets like Angel City Market and the Beach Flea.
Only a couple of years after he started, Maldonado was selling out at the pop-ups. Today, he has over 23,000 followers on Instagram.
Maldonado’s partnership with Guisados began in 2025 via an Instagram story when owner Armando De La Torre Jr. put out a call for coffee pop-ups at his Guisados location in Long Beach.
A photo illustration of the Caffeinated Cart’s most popular drink the Cereal Killer, a cinnamon brown sugar latte with a cereal garnish, at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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After connecting with De La Torre, Maldonado began popping up outside the Long Beach location for six months. But Maldonado said permitting issues with the city’s Health Department forced him to stop.
Nearly a year after their initial collaboration, De La Torre invited Maldonado to Pasadena to show off the space he had in mind for him, but the Caffeinated Cart owner had mixed emotions.
Maldonado was concerned about going to Pasadena and leaving behind the community and regular customers he had in Long Beach, but he was excited by the idea of finally having a physical space, even if it wasn’t completely his own.
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, hugs his former boss who visited him at his new coffee residency at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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“We’re in a world where… everybody gatekeeps and then everybody stops each other from growing, and coffee’s been so welcoming, man,” Maldonado said. “The community I’ve built around me has just been so welcoming, and a lot of people just truly do trust us.”
Leo Abularach, co-owner of Picaresca in Boyle Heights, has been a longtime supporter of the Caffeinated Cart. He told The LA Local that he loaned Maldonado over $3,000 worth of equipment to help him get started. Abularach even let him use his business delivery service, so Maldonado would no longer have to run to the store for things like extra milk.
“He has always been there for Picaresca. He is part of our family,” Abularach said of Maldonado. “He is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met, and I think his personality is one of the reasons why people love the Caffeinated Cart.”
Pablomanuel Maldonado, owner of the Caffeinated Cart, pours coffee beans into a grinder at Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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Customers Adriana Acevedo and Eilene Gonzalez saw the Caffeinated Cart on TikTok. When they realized it was around the corner from their workplace, they decided to give it a try.
“It’s amazing. It tastes really good. Like, no notes. Amazing,” Acevedo said after finally trying the coffee in real life on a recent Wednesday morning.
“Yeah, for first timers, now I think we’re going to be returners,” Gonzalez added with a laugh.
Pablomanuel Maldonado, right, talks with customers Adriana Acevedo, left, and Eilene Gonzalez, centert, at the Caffeinated Cart inside of Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
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Isaac Ceja
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The LA Local
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The two praised the welcoming service offered by Maldonado, and after Acevedo mentioned she loves caffeine, Maldonado even gave her an additional shot.
“I’m all about making it affordable. I don’t charge extra for alternative milks. You want extra shots? Bro, get extra shots. I’m not going to charge you extra,” Maldonado said.
“We’re all for the people,” he said. “We want to make sure people can still come back and not have to feel like ‘Was the $7 coffee worth it?’”
Though it was only a Wednesday, customers kept trickling in, keeping him busy throughout his shift, and even Maldonado’s old boss from Bristol Farms, Dina Urquilla, came to support.
Maldonado said he’s still saving to open up his own shop in the future, but for now, he says he looks forward to making coffee every day in his corner of Pasadena.
A view of some of the trinkets at the Caffeinated Cart inside of Guisados in Pasadena, Calif. on Mar. 4, 2026.
Warnings and advisories: Extreme Heat Watch Sunday morning through Tuesday evening in Coachella Valley
What to expect: Some morning clouds followed by a sunny afternoon. Temperatures to reach the mid-80s for some areas and up into the triple digits in some parts of Coachella Valley.
Read on ... for where it's going to be the warmest today.
QUICK FACTS
Today’s weather: Sunny, partly cloudy some areas
Beaches: Mid-60s to low 70s
Mountains: Mid-70s to low 80s
Inland: 82 to 89 degrees
Warnings and advisories: Extreme Heat Watch Sunday morning through Tuesday evening in Coachella Valley
Warm temperatures are on tap again today as we head into a toasty weekend with temps set to reach the triple digits in desert communities.
L.A. County beaches will see daytime highs from 67 to 72 degrees. It'll be between 69 and 76 degrees along the Orange County coast. More inland areas like downtown L.A., Hollywood and Anaheim will see temperatures from 75 to 81 degrees.
Meanwhile, the valleys will see varying temperatures. Areas closer to the coast will see highs from 78 to 83 degrees, and further inland, temps will stay in the upper 80s, up to 89 degrees.
Meanwhile in Coachella Valley, temperatures will rise to 101 to 106 degrees.
Looking ahead to the weekend, the valleys will reach the 90s for Mother's Day, up to 100 degrees in the Antelope Valley too. Come Sunday, an Extreme Heat Warning kicks in for the Coachella Valley, where temperatures will stay in the low 100s, with up to 109 degrees possible. Make sure to stay hydrated!
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Before today, the D Line ran until Koreatown, largely parallel to the B Line.
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AURELIA VENTURA
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Topline:
The first phase of the Los Angeles Metro D Line extension opens today, with the public able to start riding to the three new stations at 12:30 p.m.
The new stops: The three new Wilshire Boulevard stops are located at La Brea and Fairfax avenues and La Cienega Boulevard. The first phase of the extension will stretch D Line service from downtown L.A. to Beverly Hills. Before today, the D Line ran until Koreatown, largely parallel to the B Line.
Free fares: The entire Metro system — including bus, rail, bike share and Metro Micro — will be free starting Friday morning through early morning Monday. If you’re using Metro Bike Share, make sure to input the code 050826.
Celebrations at the new stations: KCRW DJs and food vendors will be at each of the new stations and the Western Avenue station in Koreatown. Throughout May and June, there will be activations at the new stations, including salsa dancing and basket weaving classes.
More to come: Two additional extensions of the D Line, currently forecast to open in 2027, will add four additional stations through Beverly Hills, Century City and Westwood Village.
Gab Chabrán
covers what's happening in food and culture for LAist.
Published May 8, 2026 5:00 AM
Jessica Wang (center) stands with her mother, Peggy (left), and father, Willie Wang (right), at the Gu Grocery storefront in Chinatown.
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Daniel Nguyen
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Topline:
Jessica Wang has been waiting nearly two years for the City of Los Angeles to approve permits for Gu Grocery, a Chinese-Taiwanese grocery store and community hub in Chinatown.
Why it matters: In a neighborhood where half of residents are low-income and one in five are seniors 65 and older, Chinatown has lost multiple grocery stores in recent years — including its last two full-service markets in 2019 and Yue Wa Market in fall 2024. Gu Grocery would be the first to offer EBT-eligible prepared foods, filling a critical gap for seniors and low-income families who rely on walking to shop.
Why now: Wang launched a GoFundMe campaign in mid-April after spending more than $200,000 on a buildout, permits and rent on a space she can't operate. The community response was swift — 134 donors raised nearly $12,000 in two weeks — but money can't solve her core problem: she's still waiting for at least seven final city inspections with no opening date in sight.
What's next: Wang hopes to open by Father's Day — her general contractor dad's birthday — with a phased approach: prepared foods only through a takeout window, then slowly stocking shelves as revenue allows.
Jessica Wang has experienced delay after delay for nearly two years as she tried to open Gu Grocery in Chinatown. Her father, a contractor, had told her it would take nine months.
Instead, she says, there have been issues with city permits, inspectors, inaccurate information, illness and wayward appliance installers which have pushed things back.
The community didn't take nearly as long. In two weeks, 134 donors contributed nearly $12,000 to keep Wang afloat. But money can't solve her problem — she still needs the city's approval to open the doors.
Wang signed the lease at the end of 2023, envisioning a Chinese-Taiwanese grocery store and community hub where seniors could use EBT to buy fresh tofu, where kids from nearby elementary schools could stop by after class, and where her mother, Peggy, could teach neighbors how to make their grandmother's pickles.
Now, more than two years into a five-year lease, and nearly out of money after paying for permits, buildout, and rent on a space she can't operate, Wang launched a GoFundMe campaign a few weeks ago. The response showed the community believes in Gu Grocery and wants to see it succeed. But she's still waiting for at least seven final inspections by the city before she can open.
The story of Gu
The name "Gu" carries layered meaning: the character 菇 means "mushroom" in Chinese, a traditional symbol of prosperity, while the sound "gu" also means "auntie" in Mandarin — honoring intergenerational caretakers. Wang's mission for the space is to provide a place to purchase Chinese-Taiwanese pantry staples and prepared foods, and to host community workshops.
The communal aspect is central to Wang's vision of social entrepreneurship, not solely focused on profit. In addition to workshops, Gu Grocery plans to accept EBT and offer senior discounts for those on fixed incomes.
"I wanted a space where I could share knowledge and share culture and also just learn from the community," Wang said.
Ultimately, she hopes to convert the store into a worker-owned co-op.
Wang grew up in the San Gabriel Valley and worked as a pastry chef at San Francisco's State Bird Provisions before a pre-diabetic diagnosis at age 29 prompted her return to L.A. She began volunteering with API Forward Movement, a local nonprofit focused on health equity and food access in AAPI communities, and saw firsthand the need during COVID food distributions at L.A. State Historic Park.
Chinatown had lost its last two full-service grocery stores in 2019.Last fall, the neighborhood lost another: Yue Wa Market, a small produce shop that had served residents for 18 years before rising rent and pandemic losses forced it to shut its doors. The closures hit especially hard in a neighborhood where, according to American Community Survey data, half of the residents are low-income and one in five are seniors 65 and older — many of whom rely on walking to shop.
Jessica Wang (center, in black) and her mother Peggy (left, in white and red) smile while serving customers at a farmer's market pop-up for Gu Grocery.
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Daniel Nguyen
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Permitting woes
Much of bringing Gu Grocery to reality has been made possible by support from Wang's friends and family. Her father, Willie Wang, serves as her general contractor. When plans were submitted to the city in March 2024, he told her the buildout would take nine months if everything went smoothly.
Instead, she’s experienced delays from all directions, from slow bureaucracy, to issues with contractors. A hood installation contractor rescheduled multiple times, she said, then doubled his price the day before a rescheduled appointment. Drywall contractors said their workers had been detained by ICE and never returned.
The process hasn't just taken time — it's been expensive. One inspector approved a makeup air unit for the kitchen hood system, she said, only to have a senior inspector overturn the decision and order a complete replacement at nearly $6,000. Her father paid out of pocket — even as he was recovering from March surgery to remove a cancerous lung growth.
"Who would have thought that something an inspector asked us to do would be completely overturned by another inspector?" Wang said. "That's just so wild."
LAist has reached out to the city's Department of Building Services for comment but has not heard back.
The financial toll
Wang estimates she's spent more than $200,000 so far — more than $100,000 on buildout and permits alone, plus a full year of rent on a space she can't operate, equipment, insurance and taxes.
She draws no income from Gu Grocery. To cover personal expenses, she teaches fermentation workshops through her other business, Picklepickle, though that work has been inconsistent lately. Her health insurance doubled this year. The GoFundMe money, she said, is a "rainy day fund" in case she needs it to pay future bills.
The financial strain has touched her entire family. Her mother, who received a small inheritance when Wang's grandparents died, got scammed late last year trying to grow that money to help with the store. Targeted through online ads, she was convinced by an "investment tutor" based in Taiwan to hand over cash to a stranger in a parking lot.
"I didn't realize this would become part of what it's like to have aging parents in the age of technology," Wang said. "But it's scary how they get targeted."
Black sesame noodles from Gu Grocery's popup menu. Wang uses black sesame for higher nutritional value and plans to offer the dish as one of the prepared foods when the store opens.
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Aunty J
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Rice balls with house pickles from a Gu Grocery pop-up. Wang has been teaching fermentation and pickling workshops for 15 years and plans to serve pickles alongside all meals when the store opens.
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Aunty J.
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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Addressing Chinatown's needs
Once Gu Grocery opens, it won't operate as a full-service market — there won't be a meat counter. Instead, it will function like a corner store with a focus on healthy prepared foods: butter mochi, sesame noodles and daily congee.
"Something that Chinatown has never had was prepared food that is EBT eligible," Wang said.
In 2020, Wang surveyed seniors through API Forward Movement's Tai Chi fitness program to understand their shopping habits following the closure of local grocery stores. Many told her they now ride the bus to Super King on San Fernando Road in Glendale, nearly 5 miles away, for produce deals, or rely on family members to drive them to 99 Ranch in Alhambra. Some grow their own food in gardening plots, Wang said, "but they can't produce everything they need."
Willie Wang (left), Jessica Wang (center), and Peggy Wang (right) pose inside Gu Grocery. The signs display the store's values in both English and Chinese — Willie's reads "body health" and Peggy's reads "mushroom auntie," playing on the dual meaning of "gu."
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Daniel Nguyen
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Courtesy Gu Grocery
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The community response
When she launched her Go FundMe in mid-April, she was overwhelmed by the response. "I have a hard time asking for help," said Wang. "So actually receiving help, it's very moving."
The donors range from former pop-up customers and friends to a range of assorted well-wishers — a musician who had her food once at an event, fellow food business owners, farmer's market regulars and even her insurance agent.
"The generosity is beyond my expectations," Wang said. "Some of these people only had my food once. People are showing their support truly in a personal way and really believing in the vision."
The GoFundMe money helps Wang stay "afloat for now," but she's had to rethink her opening strategy. She won't be able to afford full inventory when she opens. Instead, she plans a phased opening: prepared foods only, served through a takeout window, then using revenue to slowly stock shelves with the retail items she originally envisioned.
The community raised more than $14,000 in three weeks. After nearly two years of delays, Wang is still waiting for permits. She hopes to open by Father's Day — her general contractor dad's birthday. But she's learned to expect the unexpected.
Many donors sent her direct messages saying simply: "We got this, Jess, we got you."
