Southern California has lost another restaurant with deep local roots, adding to a recent wave of beloved California restaurant closures. The Depot in Old Torrance served its final meal on September 30, ending chef-owner Michael Shafer’s run of nearly 35 years inside one of the city’s most distinctive historic buildings.
Shafer opened The Depot in 1991 and made the former Pacific Electric Railway station at 1250 Cabrillo Avenue his dining room, bar and banquet space. At 70, he said it was time to retire, telling customers he was ready to “hang up my knives and spatula.” The restaurant’s official farewell set September 30 as the last meal.
Fine dining inside a piece of Torrance history
The setting was part of The Depot’s appeal. The restaurant occupied a former Pacific Electric Railway station designed by architect Irving Gill during Torrance’s early development. The building dates to 1912, the same year the city was founded, giving diners a chance to eat inside a surviving piece of Old Torrance history rather than a conventional restaurant space…