Famed La Golondrina Cafe Faces Eviction After More Than 90 Years On Olvera Street

The owners of the famed La Golondrina Cafe on Olvera Street — a restaurant that opened in 1930 — have 30 days to pay almost $300,000 in unpaid rent and maintenance fees or face eviction.

David Gomez and his mother Bertha Gomez bought the restaurant from original owners, the Bonzo family, in 2022. However, before they could welcome their first guests, they ran into roadblocks — first with the sale itself and then with the plumbing. The restaurant has since remained closed.

The Gomez family filed a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles, Councilmember Kevin de León and the UNITE HERE Local 11 union, which represents hospitality workers in May because of the issues they say they encountered when they tried to buy the restaurant. The lawsuit would put the city on the hook for repair work at the restaurant since the cafe is a city-owned building. The lawsuit also alleges de León and the union interfered in the sale process.

However, they dropped the lawsuit against de León after he filed a lawsuit against them, said David Gomez. Per Gomez's lawyer, “We dismissed de León for procedural reason.”

In the meantime, the commission that oversees Olvera Street, the El Pueblo De Los Angeles Historical Monument Authority, voted on Sept. 28 to evict the Gomez family.

Details of the lawsuit

For 90 years, La Golondrina was a Los Angeles institution where patrons enjoyed fresh flour tortillas, margaritas and creamy flan while a mariachi band performed. But when the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered eateries, the Bonzo family looked to sell the iconic restaurant.

Vendors on Olvera Street can only sell to another Olvera Street business owner or to a family member, according to their agreements with the city. Bonzo sold it to the Gomez family, who runs a candy stand a few vendors down from La Golondrina Cafe.

Typically, these transfers take up to three months, said David Gomez. He knows, because he filed a public records request to find out.

“Our transfer took about six months. It went to a committee that other transfers never went to, and ours was actually pulled from that committee stating a labor issue, and Kevin de León's office actually stated that there was a labor issue,” he said.

In the lawsuit, the Gomez family alleges that de León asked the chair of the A&P committee to pull the transfer because of a “labor dispute.” When contacted by LAist for comment, de León’s office said they are unable to provide a statement due to active litigation.

With the transfer held up, David Gomez said he met with the union, UNITE HERE Local 11, to understand what the labor dispute entailed. After the meeting, he said he never heard from the union leaders and did not know what happened with the transfer.

The city eventually approved the transfer of the restaurant from the Bonzo family to the Gomez family at the end of 2021. But David Gomez said he was only informed of the transfer in early 2022. In the lawsuit filed against the city, the Gomez family alleges the transfer was delayed while the union, de Leon and the general manager of the commission worked together to bypass typical rent relief procedures.

Plumbing roadblock

La Golondrina Cafe is located in the oldest brick house in Los Angeles, the Pelanconi House, built in 1855. Gomez says the cast iron pipes in the city-owned building are almost 100 years old. They've been unable to reopen the restaurant because the cost of repairs have been estimated at close to $90,000.

After submitting three different work estimates to the commission that oversees Olvera Street, David Gomez said the General Service Department came out for an inspection. After several requests for a report from the GSD, as well as a public records request, Gomez says he still does not know what their findings are.

To date, the commission and the city have not repaired any of the plumbing damages, forcing the restaurant to stay closed, Gomez added.

“That's essentially what our lawsuit is about, the city is stating that it's our responsibility (to repair the damaged plumbing) and we're stating that it's their responsibility,” he said.

While they've navigated the plumbing problem, the Gomezes have not paid rent for the La Golondrina Cafe location. In the lawsuit, they state they should receive “rent abatement for the entire time that city has failed and refused to repair said plumbing.”

The commission and UNITE HERE Local 11 did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Legacy of La Golondrina Cafe

David Gomez doesn't know what will happen next, but Olvera Street, he said, needs La Golondrina Cafe to reopen.

“It's just kind of created this kind of ghost town feeling at Olvera Street, and all the vendors want it open,” he said. “It's good for business. It brings in a different type of clientele than the taquerias with, you know, a little bit more money and a little bit more spending power. That helps everybody else out on the street.”

Whenever he is at the restaurant, people stop by to share their memories. One told him about how they would bring their children to the restaurant on their 21st birthdays to share a margarita. Another said their parents met at the eatery and showed him their tattoo of the La Golondrina Cafe.

“It definitely needs to be back open and open soon. It's already been way too long,” he said. “There was a chicken mole dish that was just amazing and something that we are planning on continuing and using that same recipe.”