Los Angeles’s restaurants continue to face difficult headwinds, starting in 2020 with the onset of a global pandemic and exacerbating with the Hollywood labor strikes in 2023, which led to an industry-wide slowdown that’s continued into 2026. From the lingering effects of the Hollywood strikes to rising costs (labor, rent, ingredients, etc.), many factors continue to strain restaurant owners operating on razor-thin margins. Los Angeles restaurants also continue to struggle with the impact of the 2025 fires, including slow business and devastating property loss, as well as the ongoing effects of ICE enforcement. Here are notable restaurant closures from February 2026. For more closure news, read our past closure coverage.
Heavy Handed Silver Lake — Heavy Handed’s third location in Silver Lake, which took over Lien Ta’s corner All Day Baby space, closed in April. The smash burger specialist’s Santa Monica and Studio City locations remain open.
Ta-Ke Sushi — After 43 years on the Sunset Strip, the family-owned Ta-Ke Sushi closed on April 5. The restaurant is one of many businesses closing on the block to make way for a residential building, a luxury hotel, and retail space. Ta-Ke lived on the same block as the fabled music venue, the Viper Room, which closed in 2023. The owners’ supporters launched a GoFundMe to help secure a new location…