Estate sale set for September 30 and 31
By Dolores Quintana
James Beach’s time in Venice has come to a close after 27 years. The restaurant ended its run on Labor Day weekend and according to a statement on the website, will be holding an “estate sale” on September 30 and 31 of the restaurant’s art, mementos and objects at the restaurant.
In a lengthy statement posted to the James Beach website, owners James Evans and Daniel Samakow tell the story of the restaurant. The two owners originally met forty years ago at the West Beach Cafe, which was the same site where Evans and Samakow opened James Beach 13 years later. They were joined by chef Shari Lynne and envisioned a neighborhood restaurant for “one of the world’s most eclectic neighborhoods.” In 1995, chef Lynne’s creative vision was to cook “modern American comfort food.” The restaurant was praised for this innovation by the Los Angeles Times Food critic Irene Virbilia who said that it took courage to cook such “straightforward cuisine.”
The interior of the restaurant was designed by the Venice artists Billy Al Bengston.
The duo also opened The Canal Club across the street from James Beach which closed in 2019 and was chosen to open a restaurant to represent the city of Venice at the LAX terminal until it was shut down by the Covid pandemic.
Evans and Samakow made sure to thank their customers, neighbors and investors for all of their support over the years and have requested that customers share their memories and stories about the restaurant on their social media pages on Instagram and Facebook.
