(Editor’s note: Unable to ever turn a profit on his adjacent Swarthmore restaurants, former L.A. Mayor Richard Riordan closed the Oak Room on Saturday night and The Village Pantry on Sunday afternoon. Fortunately, this vital location in the business district will remain empty only a few weeks, as we report below.) The transition from the Village Pantry to Lenny’s Deli of the Palisades is just about as ‘shovel ready’ as it could possibly be. Lenny Rosenberg, who currently owns the 17thStreet Caf’ and Bakery on Montana Avenue, has entered into a lease agreement with Palisades Partners and hopes to reopen as a full deli within the month. While the Oak Room is not part of the deal, it will be available as a banquet room for outside parties to rent. The look of the eatery at 1035 Swarthmore will remain much the same, Rosenberg says, adding that he will keep the tables and chairs, add two more deli cases, and heaters for outside dining. But the menu will shift back to classic Jewish deli fare, as it was when Mort’s Deli filled the space. ’When you walk in, it’ll look just like any deli, you’ll see cases with meats, lox, cheeses, salads (egg, whitefish, tuna) which you’ll be able to buy by the pound,’ Rosenberg told the Palisadian-Post Tuesday. ‘Along with full sit-down service, we’ll also offer catering, take-out and delivery.’ An additional showcase will be added to accommodate more baked goods, including bagels (probably from the Bagel Nosh), pastries, muffins, rolls and double-baked rye bread. There will also be birthday cakes and birthday party catering. Rosenberg brings years of experience to the deal. Steeped in the New York business, he owned six shops in New Jersey, Queens and Long Island. His father, who eventually owned 20 stores in the New York area, launched his first bakery in San Francisco. Lenny made his own move to California, 10 years ago, triggered by ‘a two-foot snowstorm. I was tired of the cold.’ Looking forward to operating a full deli, Rosenberg found an attractive seller. He bought The Nosh of Beverly Hills, a 35-year-old neighborhood delicatessen and caf’, and ran it for six years before selling in 2006, thinking that he’d move back to New York. He didn’t, and instead bought Meyer’s Bakery in Palos Verdes in 2007. ’I moved to Redondo Beach to be closer to the store, but in the end, it was just too slow for me in Palos Verdes,’ he said. He currently lives with his girlfriend in West Los Angeles, adding, ‘I have figured a quick 10-minute route to Pacific Palisades.’ Rosenberg had been interested in bidding for Mort’s after Bobbie Farberow decided to retire in March 2007, but he was too late. Richard Riordan had already entered the race and Rosenberg bowed out. The Village Pantry and the Oak Room opened in mid-January 2008. ’About four or five months ago, I got a call from somebody saying that the place would be available again at the first of the year,’ Rosenberg said. ‘I called the Pantry looking for Trish (Patricia Torrey, Riordan’s daughter, who was running the restaurant) and she immediately called me back and put me in contact with the landlords.’ Rosenberg, who took over the 17th Street Caf’ two years ago at the ‘worst time economically,’ says that he does not weigh the economy in his decisions. ‘I am interested in making a good product and being in a good location.’ Eager to have his deli become a hub for Palisadians, Rosenberg says that he wants residents to know it’s a real-style deli with deli prices. He will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week (closing at 3 p.m. on Sundays), and will serve a few menu items such as orange curry chicken salad and grilled vegetable salad for more substantial lunches and dinners. He has also negotiated the prized liquor license, which will allow him to sell wine and beer at lunch and dinner. Throughout the negotiations, Rosenberg said that he has had several conversations with Bobbie Farberow, who will continue to offer advice. He and Bobbie met with her former head chef Esperanza Calderon, who may serve as a consultant, according to Bobbie. ’We also talked about the possibility of keeping some of the staff,’ Bobbie says. ‘He also asked me if I’d like to be a hostess. I told him that I work at Palisasdes Elementary three times a week, but that I’d think about it. I wish him well and if I can help, I will. Hopefully, he’s got the stuff to make it go.’ Rosenberg is planning a grand opening at which time he intends to offer complimentary items for every customer. ‘I also want to offer discounts to those people who contribute to the town’the firefighters, the police, the newspaper.’
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