Lenny Rosenberg, owner of the former Lenny’s Deli in Pacific Palisades, is once again attempting to breathe new life into a landmark eatery location: the historic site of Junior’s Deli in Westwood.
“This is a much larger-scale deli [11,000 square feet] than the location in the Palisades [6,000 square feet],” Rosenberg told the Palisadian-Post. “There is a lot more product here, a lot more variety.”
Rosenberg, who took over Richard Riordan’s Village Pantry location on Swarthmore in 2011, said he “didn’t fully intend on moving Lenny’s” but that he appreciates the new location. “It’s a major difference. In the Palisades, you have maybe 30,000 residents, but that’s all you can do” [in terms of potential customers]. This site is located on a busy street with lots of traffic.”
Rosenberg took in a partner, former car dealer Steve Taub, and eventually sold his share of the business to him in early 2012 because of a family crisis (the death of his father). Taub’s restaurant, Steve’s, went out of business in early May, leaving the location owing $20,038 for one month’s back rent.
The closure of Steve’s and the adjoining Oak Room added nearly 80 feet of empty storefront space on Swarthmore, a block already suffering from years of empty spaces from previous closures (The Prince’s Table, Village Books, á la Tarte, Roy Robbins and Lily James).
The location’s lack of foot traffic, partly caused by empty storefronts, was just one of several issues with Lenny’s Deli on Swarthmore, said Rosenberg, noting that he initially had success in the area, but was frustrated by the obstacles he encountered because of the landlords (known collectively as Palisades Properties).
Rosenberg, whose father was a baker, has owned and operated several successful eateries, including the Bagel Nosh Deli in Beverly Hills, 17th Street Café in Santa Monica and Mayer’s Bakery in Palos Verdes.
“They were the most miserable landlords I’ve ever had to deal with,” Rosenberg said. “John Wilson was the exception; other than that, they all hated each other. You have 10 different families, and each family hated each other, and each one hired someone to represent them; and even they hated each other. The representatives wouldn’t talk to anyone.”
The deli location and other prime commercial real estate in the Village is owned by the Palisades Properties group, whose members include the Carey family and other aligned interests, the Wilson family interests, the children and grandchildren of Wilson’s deceased brother, and the MacDonald and Joslyn family interests.
The group is currently in a drawn-out process of selling its Village portfolio to prominent developer Rick Caruso, who lives in Brentwood.
A reliable source close to the sale told the Post last Friday that Caruso’s people are working toward closing the sale and conducting their due diligence. The source dismissed rumors that Caruso might be moving away from the purchase.
If Caruso buys the property, “it’s a positive,” said Rosenberg, adding that anything is a plus over the current landlords.
He said that one of the landlords (not Wilson) held up his lease so long, “weeks before I was supposed to open, I kept falling back on all the work because I didn’t have the lease yet.” It became obvious that this landlord was sabotaging lease negotiations to try to keep the storefronts empty, Rosenberg said, adding that the group sat on a dozen lease proposals (including one from a well-known coffee franchise) and turned everything else down.
When asked if he would ever consider coming back to the Palisades, Rosenberg said: “If we had reasonable landlords, I would absolutely come back and maybe Caruso is that guy.”
Rosenberg would not comment on the valuable liquor license he holds with his lease, which is still under Lenny’s Deli Inc. Also, when asked about the lease payment notice addressed to Lenny’s Deli Inc. that was posted on the restaurant’s door, he said the corporate name belongs to Taub.
For now, Rosenberg, who was one of key players behind the effort to form a Business Improvement District in the Palisades, said he will concentrate on making his new location in Westwood an L.A. landmark. Rosenberg said he regrets not having the right atmosphere to have achieved a landmark location in the Palisades.
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