The classic diner-style eatery The Stand closed its doors last week, making way for the new brick-and-mortar extension of The Lime Truck, an Orange County food truck.
With an upgraded name ”“ TLT Food ““ the California fusion restaurant will open at 1116 Westwood Blvd. in early November, said Daniel Shemtob, the restaurant’s owner and head chef. It will be positioned near the popular pizzeria 800 Degrees Neapolitan Pizza and U-Mini, a smaller version of Umami Burger that is slated to open later this year.
TLT Food will replace the traditional layout of The Stand with a communal seating layout, built to accommodate the rush of Westwood’s late-night crowd.
Shemtob started The Lime Truck about two years ago in Orange County, selling tacos and sandwiches on street corners. The company eventually expanded to four trucks and clinched a victory on Food Network’s “The Great Food Truck Race” last year.
Shemtob chose a location blocks away from the UCLA campus for his expanding food enterprise so he could integrate his restaurant into the buzzing atmosphere of a college town.
“Moving to a restaurant just seemed like the natural progression,” Shemtob said. “I am excited to have the freedom of a full kitchen.”
At 24 years old, Shemtob said he is eager to be around people similar to him in age and interests.
To accommodate the college crowd, TLT Food plans to stay open until 2 a.m. Thursday through Sunday. Shemtob plans to offer wine and beer to accommodate college students on a budget, he said.
But with the opening of the new restaurant still several months away, some students are upset about losing the familiarity of The Stand.
Tobias Hirano, a second-year philosophy student, worked at The Stand for 10 months up until its closing. He hopes to work at TLT Food when it opens.
“There were a lot of regulars who came in once or twice a week,” Hirano said. “All of the workers really became a family. I feel a bit of nostalgia about that place.”
Unlike The Stand, which has locations in Encino, Century City and Woodland Hills, TLT Food will be an original restaurant with only the one Westwood location that replaces the food trucks the restaurant branched from, said Steve Sann, chair of the Westwood Community Council.
Members of the Westwood community are welcoming the new restaurant for its potential to draw diners from outside of the area.
“We welcome these newer, fresher, cooler concepts,” Sann said. “New cutting-edge restaurants draw people from out of the area and make Westwood a foodie destination.”
Representatives from The Stand could not be reached for comment.