Tender Greens, a California chain of restaurants that staffs fine-dining chefs and serves locally sourced food, opened Monday, nearly two years after originally scheduled.
The restaurant was scheduled to open in November 2014 in one of Westwood’s oldest buildings on Kinross and Glendon avenues.
Officials delayed the restaurant’s opening to change its initial renovation plans, restore some of the building’s original architecture and update its infrastructure to comply with modern standards.
The Westwood location is an approved vendor and caterer for UCLA and will allow people to pay using their BruinCards, said Erik Oberholtzer, one of the company’s founders.
Oberholtzer said he thinks a series of delays caused unnecessary expenses and stress to his partners and their landlord. But he said he thinks Westwood is ultimately a great location because of the surrounding neighborhoods and the university.
Since 2014, the restaurant has restored some of the building’s original features and updated its infrastructure to meet regulations, Oberholtzer said.
Architect Howard Wells designed the building in 1931 to feature an open-air patio and brick arches, which businesses over the years have blocked off and covered with stucco, said Westwood Community Council Chairman Steve Sann.
Tender Greens replaced part of the roof in its dining room with a skylight to emulate the original patio and restored the original brickwork, Sann said. It also installed windows that are replicas of the building’s original windows.
The restaurant decided to make these changes after Sann filed an appeal to the West Los Angeles Planning Commission protesting the architect’s original plans to cut through the brick and wall off arches because they did not respect the building’s original features, he said.
Sann said he thinks the design changes were a compromise that preserved the building’s historical importance and improved the restaurant’s appearance.
Additionally, Tender Greens had to upgrade the building’s power and plumbing, said David Dressler, one of the company’s founders.
“The space itself had design challenges right off the bat,” he said. “It was not the prettiest and we wanted to bring the old design back to life.”
The restaurant also developed unique decor, including a patch of live lettuce as a centerpiece of the dining room and a set of paintings by award-winning artist Chris Reccardi, which tell the story of childhood friends working together.
Kirsten Walker, the restaurant’s executive chef, said the restaurant receives lettuce from Scarborough Farms inside reusable plastic trays, where they are still planted and watered until they are used in dishes.
She added the location will be the first to serve soft-serve ice cream with locally-sourced chocolate shavings as well as several new beverages.
Oberholtzer said the restaurant also inherited a liquor license from the Acapulco, its predecessor, and will serve beer and wine.
Dressler said he thinks some residents were opposed to the restaurant when they first heard about it because Tender Greens’ concept is fast-casual while Acapulco was a sit-down restaurant.
“They didn’t believe Tender Greens was right for Westwood until they understood what it is really like,” he said.
Minnie Tu, a second-year computer science student, said she thinks the restaurant looks like it serves higher-end food. Even though she liked the healthy food concept, she said she thinks she isn’t sure she can afford to eat at the restaurant regularly.
Oberholtzer said he thinks Tender Greens is similar to other successful businesses in Westwood such as Whole Foods, Cava Grill and 800 Degrees. He added he thinks residents, students, office workers and people who go to local fitness clubs will be attracted to their business model, which emphasizes healthy living and responsibly sourced products.
“I believe this is going to be one of (our) best locations in the state,” Oberholtzer said.