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What a rollercoaster of a decade it’s been for Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles. The famous Los Angeles comfort food spot, known for its namesake fried chicken and waffles breakfast plate that is beloved by everyone from Joe Biden to Snoop Dogg, has trudged through a number of different issues over the years, but isn’t slowing down yet. In fact, they’ve just opened up their new Mid-City flagship at the corner of La Brea and Washington, some four years after first announcing the project.
The new Roscoe’s at 1865 S. La Brea Avenue is listed as “now open” on the company’s website with hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, though a formal grand opening party is still to come. Owner Herb Hudson had been working on this location for years as part of a planned move from the aging Pico Boulevard location to something bigger and more comfortable. The project has even had several stop-and-start moments, with reps over the years promising an opening on the horizon — like in January 2019 — only to have to delay for one reason or another. The pandemic most recently put a nearly two-year damper on the opening, but this time it’s real.
Reps for Roscoe’s tell Eater that the longtime Pico Boulevard location (the one Obama visited) won’t be going away entirely. Instead, it will be flipping to a home for the newly launched Roscoe’s Motivation for Change Foundation, a non-profit that will “focus on public service, culture initiatives, community empowerment, job skill development and programming in culinary arts and media training.” An arrival party for the new non-profit is slated for today, October 20, as is a first formal press look for the new La Brea location of Roscoe’s.
What a ride it’s been for Hudson over the past nearly half-century of business. In 2018 Roscoe’s corporate struggled with bankruptcy court proceedings related to millions of dollars in outstanding debt; there was a racial discrimination lawsuit before that; and the company’s Pasadena location was even robbed during the pandemic. Still, one of LA’s most iconic restaurants has remained, and today they grow formally into a big new chapter.
