Grand Central Market
36
CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD
G
rand Central Market is easily the
hottest new food hall project in the
sprawling metropolis of Los Angeles.
“New” could be a misnomer: The market
has actually been in continuous operation
since 1917, but it wasn’t until it was
acquired by developer Ira Yellin in 1984
that the project began to really evolve.
That evolution has been kicked into high
gear over the past few years, with Grand
Central Market going through an extensive
process of re-tenanting and revamping its
image as it attracted a new generation of
young food entrepreneurs to its historic
space. The explosion of multifamily growth
in downtown Los Angeles over the past
five years has radically changed the local
landscape as new residents (mostly
millennial) have moved into the area and
recast projects like Grand Central Market
to their preferences. The change has been
so notable that, despite the fact that the
market has been in operation for 99 years,
it was named
Travel + Leisure
Magazine as
one of the World’s Best New Food Hall
projects for 2016.
Grand Central Market currently boasts
35 food and drink vendors, with notable
inclusions like Sticky Rice’s Thai street
food (which now occupies two locations
in the market), Anya Fernald's Belcampo
butcher shop and food stand, the
provocatively-named Eggslut, as well as
purveyors including The Oyster Gourmet,
La Tostaderia and others. The lines at
lunchtime can be extremely long, but
based on the crowds, well worth it.