SANTA MONICA Calif. La Grande Orange represents a convergence of legendary industry pedigree. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
It is the third location of a concept developed by Bob Lynn, a 25-year veteran of what was Houston’s—now called Hillstone Restaurant Group—who left that widely lauded company as executive vice president to step out on his own with LGO Hospitality. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
And at the Santa Monica location of La Grande Orange—known more simply as LGO—Lynn is partnered with two sons of Chicago-based Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises founder Rich Melman: R.J. Melman and Jerrod Melman. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
Though it remains to be seen whether the LGO brand will become part of the prolific, multi-concept Lettuce Entertain You empire, Lynn said the concept is “the right thing at the right time” given the current economic downturn. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
With a service format that is fast-casual at breakfast and lunch and full-service at dinner, and menu prices ranging from $6.75 to $18 for entrées, LGO is a “place that people can use every day,” Lynn said. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
That’s in part what attracted the Melman brothers, said Jerrod, the younger of the two, who will be 27 this month. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
“It’s a neat concept that adapts itself to the neighborhood it’s in,” Jerrod said. “At breakfast and lunch, people order at the counter and you’re getting people off the beach or after yoga. Dinner is full-service, and it becomes more of a complete experience.” —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
LGO Santa Monica is not the Melman brothers’ first collaboration with Lynn. The Houston’s veteran is a partner in their restaurant Hub 51 in Chicago. That relationship developed after Lynn opened the first La Grande Orange Grocery in Arizona, where the senior Melman keeps a home. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
“I have really become part of the family, and it’s great,” Lynn said. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
LGO Santa Monica, however, is the Melmans’ first restaurant investment outside Chicago, and the only California location for LEYE—though the company once owned the Ed Debevic’s diner concept in Los Angeles. The Ed Debevic’s chain was later sold to Chicago-based Bravo Restaurants. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
Opened in 2002, LGO Grocery in Phoenix is a restaurant and pizzeria with a retail component. Located in what was once an orange grove—hence the name—it is described by local reviewers as having a “Berkeley bistro” vibe, a simple but well-executed menu and a full bar that appeals to a diverse crowd. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
Lynn’s LGO Hospitality also includes two other Phoenix restaurants: Chelsea’s Kitchen, featuring burgers, sandwiches and taco platters; and the Italian-theme Radio Milano. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
The LGO concept, however, is the one that Lynn says he believes has legs. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
In early 2008, he opened the second LGO, known as La Grande Orange Café, in Pasadena, Calif., where it occupies a historic train station. LGO Café is open for lunch and dinner, though Lynn said the breakfast daypart would be added later. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
“It’s like your favorite rock band,” Lynn said. “Each album is a little different.” —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
The Santa Monica unit—a roughly 5,000-square-foot, 140-seat space, which opened in May—offers breakfast, lunch and dinner with a menu similar to that of the first two. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
A top seller is the burger, but sushi is also popular in Santa Monica, as are the signature salads, such as the Brussels sprouts with manchego cheese, almonds and a honey-mustard vinaigrette, or the Caesar with grilled asparagus. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
Dinner entrées include more healthful offerings, such as salmon au poivre with lemon vinaigrette or baked Alaskan halibut with melted fennel, both for $18.95, as well as classic American comfort foods, such as Dixie pan-fried chicken with mashed potato and coleslaw for $17.95, or a Niman Ranch braised pork shoulder with apricot-mustard glaze for $19.95. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
Ingredients are mostly organic and from local farmers markets, and nothing is frozen—except for the gelato, Lynn said. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
So far LGO’s growth has been “financed internally,” he added. Lynn declined, however, to discuss the concept’s sales. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
Lynn is the first to note that some may see similarities between the LGO concept and Hillstone’s Café R&D and R&D Kitchen, which he helped develop, though he said, “The first LGO opened before the first R&D.” —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
He also helped create Hillstone’s Bandera, Rutherford Grill and Gulfstream concepts, and he was involved in the opening of 13 Houston’s locations in California. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
Jerrod Melman said it’s too early to tell whether LEYE might get involved in more LGO units. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
“It’s like the early stages of a marriage,” he said. “We’re still working things out.” —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
For the time being, however, Lynn said his existing partnership with LEYE has been a great collaboration. —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called
“But we don’t have any solid plans of where we go from here,” he added. “Still, to be able to say I’ve worked with both [Houston’s founder] George Biel and Rich Melman is an amazing experience.”— [email protected] —A few blocks from the ocean on Santa Monica’s hippie-meets-hipster Main Street, a new fast-casual/full-service hybrid restaurant called