Eric Greenspan likes to break the rules. The chef, whose first restaurant The Foundry on Melrose was nominated for Best New Restaurant by the James Beard Foundation in 2007, has since made a name for himself in several outside-the-box ways – Guy’s Grocery Games, Mr. Beast Burger, the controversial Tesla Diner. With his new restaurant Mish, on La Brea and First, Greenspan wants to reinvent the Jewish deli. In Los Angeles, where surnames like Canter, Factor and Langer have for decades slow-cooked pastrami into a seemingly untouchable deli canon, that might take a bit of chutzpah.
But if anyone’s got it, it’s Greenspan.
His passion for food is unmistakable. In our 27-minute conversation he casually dropped the f-bomb 48 times to describe the restaurant, the way he cooks, a perfect Reuben sandwich and even Billy Crystal – more on that later. Greenspan is unafraid to take risks and do things entirely his own way, largely because he has nothing to lose. Whereas longstanding delis rely on a loyal customer base that relishes in a never-changing menu and a storied atmosphere, Mish only has to look toward the future…