Harvey’s/Johnie’s to Re-open as Bob’s Big Boy Broiler
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The story behind the soon-to-open Bob’s Big Boy Broiler in Downey is a fascinating piece of foodie history if I’ve ever heard one — a true (and rare) success tale of Los Angelinos banding together to preserve one of their favorite cultural and culinary icons.
The new Big Boy represents a reconstruction of the historic Harvey’s Broiler (later named Johnie’s Broiler), a classic Googie-style coffee shop and drive-in restaurant that opened in 1958. It was one of a few stand-out carhops in the SoCal heyday of carhops, earning it no shortage of appearances in TV shows and movies, including Can’t Hardly Wait (which, incidentally, I re-watched last week and thoroughly enjoyed).
Tragically, as with many classic Los Angeles food destinations of that era, the restaurant eventually closed and was converted to a used car dealership in 2002. In spite of grassroots efforts to have the building included on California’s official Register of Historical Places, a new landlord commenced illegal demolition on the building in 2007. Fortunately, authorities halted the destruction before the building’s main sign, front façade and car canopies were torn down — but plenty of damage had been done.
Fortunately (and here’s where the rare happy twist comes in), Jim Louder, owner of the Bob’s Big Boy franchise, heard the plight of injured icon, stepped up, signed a lease, and vowed to renew Harvey’s/Johnie’s to its former glory. Of course, the restaurant will now be a Big Boy, but every element of the original location that can be preserved will be, including the original broiler signage. If you want to keep track of the continued reconstruction efforts, check out the Big Boy thread on Roadside Peek. It’s pretty exciting to watch this SoCal symbol coming back from the grave.
From what I gather, the construction has hit its fair share of delays, but it’s getting there. As of this posting, the Big Boy corporate site still listed October 2009 as the date of the expected re-opening. So stay tuned! In the meantime, check out the gallery below that contains images of the rebuild.
