Among an already vibrant food scene in Northeast LA (NELA), the immediate area surrounding Occidental College has seen some new openings since last semester. Between delis, pizza, frozen treats and Sichuan eats, even seniors have new dining options just blocks from campus. While this does not encompass every recent opening, we picked out a couple of stories behind the origin of these new eats.
Ggiata Delicatessen
By Eliza Bodden
Ggiata Delicatessen opened its fourth deli location on York Boulevard in July, according to co-founder and co-owner Noah Holton-Raphael, which marked their biggest opening thus far. Holton-Raphael said he has been coming to Highland Park since moving to LA in 2018 with his childhood friends and co-owners, Max Bahramipour and Jack Biebel. They chose to open a location here because it reminded them of the neighborhood they grew up in, he said via email.
“The neighborhood has been great to us,” Holton-Raphael said. “We’re proud of the hospitality we give to the neighborhood, and we feel that reciprocated. We love it here.”
According to Holton-Raphael, Ggiata was inspired by the childhoods of the three owners, Holton-Raphael, Bahramipour and Biebel, who are from Montclair, NJ. Montclair was a sandwich town, and they felt that LA lacked delis, Holton-Raphael said.
“The menu is mostly inspired by the neighborhood spots we grew up going to,” Holton-Raphael said via email. “It’s east meets west.”
According to Holton-Raphael, Ggiata has a number of different vendors, ranging from farms in California to producers of cured meats in Italy. Two local brands they purchase from are RC Provisions and Bread Artisan, he said.
Holton-Raphael said that the Spicy P and the Chicken Caesar Wrap are the two most popular sandwiches, but his favorite is The Draper, which was inspired by one of their favorite childhood sandwiches in Montclair. All of these sandwiches can be found on their website.
According to Holton-Raphael, the name that inspired Ggiata captures their mission for their business in the community.
“There’s a phrase in Italian, ‘passeggiata.’ It refers to a neighborhood stroll that families take,” Holton-Raphael said via email. “It captured all the things we wanted our business to stand for. Community, inclusivity, leisure [and] nostalgia.”
Ggiata is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and until 9 p.m. on Friday through Sunday.
Tic Tac Toe Pizza
By Eliza Bodden
Tic Tac Toe Pizza, a new wood oven pizza shop located on Eagle Rock Blvd., opened its doors two months ago, aiming to fill a gap in the neighborhood’s dining scene. Co-owner and manager Jacob Boghossian initially opened the shop as a small set-up with minimal space, but said he soon realized that he would need to expand to accommodate demand from the community.
“I had a small oven sitting outside just to see if the neighborhood and the students would like us,” Boghossian said. “Immediately, I just didn’t have any more space in my oven.”
Today, Tic Tac Toe Pizza operates with an expanded setup featuring fresh ingredients and homemade recipes. According to Boghossian, the restaurant prides itself on making dough every morning and creating its own sauce, ensuring that the pizza is made to the best quality.
“Everything is fresh from the market. We slice them up in our kitchen. Nothing is canned, nothing is in bags,” Boghossian said.
The Tic Tac Toe employs eight staff members, half of whom are Occidental students, with another quarter being alumni.
“We try to kind of keep it in the community, and it’s working out for us,” Boghossian said.
Tic Tac Toe Pizza offers an Occidental student discount, allowing students to enjoy a complimentary refreshment with any pizza purchase.
According to Boghossian, there is also a patio with seating open to Occidental students and the Eagle Rock community.
“We just want to create an area where they’re welcome to come sit, do their work, they can socialize, they can just relax, whatever they would like,” Boghossian said.
Tic Tac Toe Pizza is open 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day of the week.
Contact Eliza Bodden at bodden@oxy.edu
Acai Craze
By Wura Ogunnaike
Acai bowl cafe, Acai Craze, co-owned by brothers Haike and Anthony Espinoza, opened on Eagle Rock Boulevard in July. According to Anthony Espinoza, going into business together was a natural idea.
“It’s just a family thing, we just decided,” Anthony Espinoza said. “It takes a lot of money to invest into a business, and in yourself and take that risk, and I can trust my brother.”
They sell a variety of preset smoothies, acai bowls and overnight oats bowls ranging from $8–$14. They also have a build-your-own option for acai bowls and oats where customers can customize their bases and toppings.
According to Anthony Espinoza, opening the restaurant took 30 days from beginning to end.
“I was designing the menus [and] figuring out every little detail about a month prior to opening,” said Anthony Espinoza. “I would go into other cafes and smoothie bars to see what they were doing, and get an idea of how to implement that in my own way.”
Haike Espinoza said that his favorite menu item is the S-berry Sensation Bowl, but most people get the Classic, which comes with strawberry, banana and granola.
“People get the health benefits from it, but they get a sweet treat as well,” said Haike Espinoza.
According to both brothers, the community in Eagle Rock has been very welcoming.
“We see all different types of people, and everyone loves us,” said Haike Espinoza. “We’re for the community. We want to be a part of it and experience what it has to offer, and we also have something to offer.”
Acai Craze is open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m.–7 p.m. and until 6 p.m. on Sundays.
Viet Tapas Bar
By Wura Ogunnaike
Viet Tapas Bar, a tapas-style restaurant serving Vietnamese food, opened in May of last year on Colorado Boulevard. Owner Viet Tran also owns two locations of Viet Noodle Bar, in Santa Monica and Atwater Village. According to Tran, he wanted to explore different styles of Vietnamese cooking and was inspired by street food. Originally, he tried to house the tapas bar in one of his noodle bars, but it didn’t work out.
Tran said that the tapas style allows him to experiment with different menu items and seasonal ingredients.
“The idea of tapas is that you have more variety to try out,” said Tran. “When people come to a restaurant like a noodle bar, they already know what they want. But here, they want to be surprised [and] see what’s new.”
The menu includes items like bison roll, diced lamb and watercress salad. The drinks selection included imported beer, sake, wine and non-alcoholic beverages. Prices range from $8–$22.
“I cook here, and sometimes I also serve the customers because that’s the only way you can see [what they like],” Tran said. “Our customers are very reactive.”
Tran said that he doesn’t advertise his restaurant on social media and wants to rely on word-of-mouth.
“I have the luxury that I can maintain and run it because I have a very good customer base, and I’m happy with moving slow and steady,” Tran said. “In the restaurant business, the most important thing is pace, and if you run at a steady pace, you can maintain quality.”
Viet Tapas is open Tuesday through Thursday 5 p.m.–9 p.m. and Friday through Saturday until 10 p.m.
Yellow Paper Burger
By Wura Ogunnaike
Yellow Paper Burger is a pop-up smashburger restaurant co-owned by Colin Farhner and Katie Burnett. According to Farher in an article for Eater, they began by working out of their backyard during the pandemic.
They frequently collaborate with different restaurants to host their van, including Side Pie owned by Kevin Hockin. According to Hockin, Side Pie has hosted Yellow Paper Burger three times.
“I first heard about them through a friend, actually my friend who owns Walt’s on York,” said Hockin. “He mentioned that they were hosting a burger popup, so I went, and I thought it was incredible.”
Hockin said that he was excited to bring something new to his community by hosting the pop-ups.
“We don’t have options for a good smashburger in this area, so I thought that this would be cool to bring not only to the community but to also expose them to something that isn’t readily available,” said Hockin.
The pop-up currently sells burgers, hand pies and other sides ranging from $1–$13. They advertise where they will be located on their Instagram.
According to Yellow Paper Burger’s Instagram, they are fundraising for a permanent location in Eagle Rock. Their GoFundMe says that they are looking for an early 2025 opening day.
According to Hockin, having a pop-up concept move to a brick-and-mortar location is like graduating.
“You realize that it is just better to have more consistency,” Hockin said. “If you’re stationary somewhere and people can rely on you within those days or hours that you’re open, you become like an anchor.”
Yellow Paper Burger is expected to open in the coming months.
Contact Wura Ogunnaike at ogunnaike@oxy.edu
Ice Cream Luv
By Diana Trutia
Situated on Colorado Boulevard, less than two miles from campus, Ice Cream Luv opened Aug. 31. The shop’s interior is themed to evoke nostalgia for the 80s and 90s, and owner Ray Williams said that his lifelong love of ice cream and his business background motivated him to open the business.
“My mom had some recipes, and we wanted to test them out with a wholesome partner,” Williams said.
A single scoop costs $5.25, while a double scoop is $7.95 and a sundae is $8. Williams says that he is proud of the shop’s selection of vegan flavors.
“All three of our vegan flavors are coming on the first of October,” Williams said. “One of those vegan flavors will be honeycomb, another will be Cookie Monster, and another will be strawberry fields.”
Additionally, the shop has selection of dairy flavors, including cinnamon, almond fudge and green tea.
“Let’s not forget about our dairy lovers as well,” Williams said. “I recommend the Mexican chocolate. It is absolutely out of bounds.”
As the owner, Williams said he manages all aspects of the shop.
“I manage all our vendors, hire our team and work with our team to make sure that we’re consistent on ice cream delivery sizes and on having a consistent brand to deliver to the community,” Williams said.
Williams said that customer satisfaction and service to the community are crucial to how he runs his business.
“I wanted an ice cream shop that was hand-packed ice cream, that was tasty, that was elegant, well-done and simple,” Williams said. “I wanted to introduce the community to a great ice cream charm.”
Luv Ice Cream is open Monday 3 p.m.–9 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday 2 p.m.–9 p.m., Friday and Saturday 2 p.m.–11p.m. and Sunday 12 p.m.–9 p.m.
Belle’s Bagels
By Diana Trutia
Belle’s Bagels, co-owned by James Dean Rocchio and Nick Schreiber, opened as a pop-up shop in 2012. Belle’s later transitioned to an outdoor seating-only brick and mortar location, and Aug. 1, Belle’s opened with indoor service for lunch and dinner, as well as a newly-added deli and bar.
“It was always the dream to have a regular bagel place,” Rocchio said. “Over the course of 2020, 2021, I think we just got a little bit more ambitious, and we’re like, ‘What else could we do?’”
Rocchio said that the idea to add a deli came from wanting to fill a new gap created by the large number of Jewish delis closing in LA.
“There seems to be an opportunity there. It’s meaningful to us, it might be meaningful to the community,” Rocchio said.
Belle’s sells breakfast bagel sandwiches, ranging in price from $8–$14, and cold sandwiches, including Jewish specialties, which range in price from $11–$17.
“We’re definitely making a name for ourselves with the pastrami. Our Westlake is our version of the Langer’s sandwich, with Swiss cheese, coleslaw, pastrami,” Rocchio said. “It’s not that popular yet, but I’m a fan of the patty melt, and we also have a broccoli melt and we can make that vegan too.”
According to Rocchio, during renovations customers would look inside the restaurant and ask about the progress. While he and Schreiber originally thought about staggering openings for each new component of the restaurant, they decided to go all-in with one grand opening.
“If we’re doing it, we’re doing it all,” Rocchio said. “And hopefully people will wait and hopefully it’ll be worth it.”
Belle’s Bagels is open every day except Tuesdays. Breakfast and lunch service is from 7 a.m.–3 p.m. on weekdays, and 8 a.m.–3 p.m. on weekends. Dinner service is daily from 5 p.m.–10 p.m.
Mala Class
By Diana Trutia
Mala Class, a Sichuan restaurant on York Boulevard, opened August 2024. Co-owner Kevin Liang said that he and co-owner Michael Yang met working in restaurants together in New York City, becoming fast friends. Three years after Yang left to open a restaurant of his own, he approached Liang for a partnership.
“He said, ‘Hey, I’m trying to go out to LA. I want to open a restaurant and I want you to be my business partner,’” Liang said. “We packed up our things and drove across the country and came up to LA in September 2019.”
Liang said that he manages customer interactions, with Yang serving as the head chef.
“I always joke around that he makes the food, and I sell the food,” Liang said.
Mala Class is open every day for lunch and dinner, except Mondays. Small plates are $7–$9, noodles are $12–$16 and main dishes are $15. Liang said that current customer favorites include cucumbers and bean curds, the mushroom fries and mala chicken wings.
“I would definitely recommend our dan dan noodles,” Liang said. “It’s sesame-based, as traditional Sichuan dan dan noodles should be, and it gives off a nice, right flavor mixed in with chili oil, garlic and the preserved vegetables. There’s tons of layers of flavor in that dish, and it really showcases what we’re capable of doing here with our menu.”
Liang said that he and Yang chose Highland Park as the location for their restaurant because of its nostalgia to them, as well as its status as a proliferating neighborhood in LA.
“Highland Park is becoming an up-and-coming neighborhood in terms of restaurants. It’s like a destination spot, which is awesome,” Liang said. “So we thought it was a great place for us to start and grow.”
Mala Class is open Tuesday through Friday and Sundays 12 p.m.–3:30 p.m. and 5 p.m.–10 p.m. and Saturday 12 p.m.–1 p.m.
Contact Diana Trutia at trutia@oxy.edu
