- 5920 Sunset Boulevard
- Opened: 1969
- Closed: June 2024
- One owner: Marilyn Leviton
r/FoodLosAngeles
- Message From the Owners of Hollywood Arby's
[https://www.reddit.com/r/FoodLosAngeles/comments/1difz76/message_from_the_owners_of_hollywood_arbys/?rdt=57970]
tehmasterpizza Hi everyone,My name is Laina. My grandma Marilyn Leviton owns the Arby's in Hollywood that closed on Saturday and my dad was the General Manager for the last 11 years. My family and I have been seeing all of the attention that we've been getting on here, Twitter, other social media sites, and the news. I wanted to answer a few questions that we have been seeing.
Firstly, we do not own the land that the restaurant was on. We only owned the franchise, and only this one location.
Secondly, regarding the sign: we looked into what we could do with it after closing the restaurant, and as it turns out, there is a city ordinance that does not allow for the sign to be sold or removed without the entire building first being torn down (which is not going to happen in the foreseeable future). For now, the hat sign itself will remain, but it will be rebranded.
We are all so sad to see it close. However, as my grandma said in her interview, the rising cost of doing business, coupled with a number of upgrades needing to be done on the (55!) year old building and other technical upgrades made it impossible to continue.
My family is so grateful for all the love and attention that the restaurant has been getting the last couple of days. It really warms our hearts.
Thank you all so much! If you have any other questions, I will do my best to answer as many as possible.
- tehmasterpizza Update:
We are so thankful for the outpouring of love for our historic sign! We are researching our options and have more knowledgeable people helping us. I will keep you updated as best I can.
By the way, we have decided to turn the sign's lights on for the next couple of days if you want to drive by at night and take a picture.- esotouric_tours Hi Laina, it is so kind of you to post here and answer questions for the community.
We're trying with others in the preservation community to work with the city and figure out a way that your family's beautiful sign can stick around, and there are options because it's a potential LA landmark. Please get in touch directly so we can explore the options.
/u/tehmasterpizza Here is the message we are sharing on social media encouraging people who love the big hat to contact the council office.
Hollywood's Arby's Sign
The latest on the push to preserve the neon hatLAistHistoric Arby's Roast Beef Sandwich Neon Cowboy Hat
Now that the Arby's in Hollywood has closed after 55 years of serving roast beef sandwiches on Sunset Boulevard, some people are on a mission to save the towering neon 10-gallon hat sign from being scrapped.The Arby's, near the intersection of Tamarind Avenue and Sunset Boulevard, had been run by the Leviton family since 1969. Judy Sibelman, one of the four children of Mike and Marilyn Leviton, told LAist they left everyone they knew in Illinois to move to California and build the restaurant from the ground up. "My father liked to say the business had to have three important things - location, location, location," she said. And with a once-clear view of the Hollywood sign and nearby studios packed full of potential customers, the Arby's certainly had its site on its side.
But Sibelman said financial troubles started around 2019, when the restaurant was celebrating its 50th anniversary. The landlord they'd worked with for decades died, and the family was given the right of first refusal to buy the property outright, but she said "none of us happened to have a spare $5 million lying around."
The new landlord came with a more difficult relationship, and the family was able to renegotiate another lease, but only for five years. The landlord didn't immediately respond to LAist's request for comment.
With that lease expiring at the end of June, combined with a decline in business during the COVID pandemic and the Hollywood strikes, it became increasingly clear their days of beef and cheddar were coming to a close.
Historic Hollywood Arby's sign spared, for now
KTLA Chanel 5Farewell Hollywood. TY for 55 great years
Over the weekend, the owners of the Hollywood Arby's franchise abruptly closed the 55-year-old fast food restaurant, citing financial difficulties that began during the pandemic.Since 1969, the cowboy hat-shaped sign has welcomed diners and drivers, promising “delicious” roast beef sandwiches (among other items). Now, instead of advertising meal deals, the red and black changeable letters read, "Farewell Hollywood. TY for 55 great years."
Situated between two historic film studios, Sunset Bronson and Sunset Gower, and within blocks of many other entertainment industry fixtures, this particular Arby's also served countless celebrities over the decades.
Jerry Seinfeld came through with his Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee show a couple of years ago, Brad Pitt, Lawrence Fishburn, and Tom Felton have been spotted in the drive-thru. Dean Winters, Tim Allen, David Harbour and Chrissy Metz have come inside, among others. And that's just the last few years!-Debby Husch, daughter of owner Marilyn Leviton
Los Angeles has listed the Arby's sign as potentially historic and eligible to become a local landmark. The city's online registry calls it an "excellent example of 1960s commercial signage; exhibits distinctive design features that evince the commercial ethos of the era, including eye-catching forms and neon illumination."
Hollywood Arby's: 5920 Sunset Boulevard. Opened: 1969. Closed: June 2024. One owner: Marilyn Leviton
