Los Angeles’s restaurants continue to face difficult headwinds, starting in 2020 with the onset of a global pandemic and exacerbating with the Hollywood labor strikes in 2023, which led to an industry-wide slowdown that’s continued into 2026. From the lingering effects of the Hollywood strikes to rising costs (labor, rent, ingredients, etc.), many factors continue to strain restaurant owners operating on razor-thin margins. Los Angeles restaurants also continue to struggle with the impact of the 2025 fires, including slow business and devastating property loss, as well as the ongoing effects of ICE enforcement. Here are notable restaurant closures from February 2026. For more closure news, read our past closure coverage.
Ta-Ke Sushi — After 43 years on the Sunset Strip, the family-owned Ta-Ke Sushi closed on April 5. The restaurant is one of many businesses closing on the block to make way for a residential building, a luxury hotel, and retail space. Ta-Ke lived on the same block as the fabled music venue, the Viper Room, which closed in 2023. The owners’ supporters launched a GoFundMe to help secure a new location.
DTLA Cheese Superette — In 2013, Lydia Clarke and Reed Herrick opened their cheese shop in Grand Central Market. They expanded into a larger space in 2023 as a cafe, market, and bustling cheese counter. Their last day of operations was April 17, though their adjacent wine bar by the same team, Kippered, will remain open. The owners’ closing statement is on DTLA Cheese Superette’s Instagram.
The Misfit — After 15 years in the neighborhood, the longtime Downtown Santa Monica bar and restaurant, the Misfit, closed on April 18. LGO Hospitality, the restaurant group behind the Misfit, confirmed the closure to Eater, writing that they decided not to extend the lease at the current location, citing the ongoing challenges of running a business in downtown Santa Monica. LGO is currently searching for a new home for the Misfit.
Stuff I Eat — One of Los Angeles’s oldest plant-based restaurants, Stuff I Eat, served its final plate on April 26. Chef Babette Davis opened her Inglewood restaurant in 2008 on Market Street near Manchester Boulevard. Davis spoke to her Instagram followers about the decision to close and shared the following: “We wanted to close on our own terms and celebrate the legacy instead of waiting until we had to.”
La Fe — On April 26, Echo Park’s La Fe closed. Owners Brooke Fruchtman and Jaime Turrey flipped their former Ostrich Farm into a cocktail, lounge, and restaurant in 2023.
B&T’s Deli — Santa Monica’s vegetarian sandwich shop, B&T’s Deli, ceased operations on April 30. Co-founders and Santa Monica residents Brittany and Terrence Caldwell opened their 853-square-foot takeout-only space in 2024. Brentwood’s Pop’s Bagels will decamp from its longtime San Vicente Boulevard location to move into B&T’s former digs on Montana Avenue sometime before the end of the year.
Clifton’s Republic — Though a consistent schedule has eluded Clifton’s Republic for years, 2026 is more of an official closing for the Downtown Historic Core business. Los Angeles Magazine reports that Clifton’s current owner, the Robhana Group (which purchased the building for $8.6 million in 2022), applied to transfer the venue’s liquor licenses on April 1. Former owner Andrew Meieran will remain on as a consultant. Clifton’s opened in 2015 to great fanfare, with multiple themed dining areas, bars, and performance stages.