Norms Restaurants Explained

Foundation: in Los Angeles, California, United States
Founder:Norm Roybark
Location City:Bellflower, California
Locations:23
Area Served:Southern California
Industry:Restaurant
Owner:Norms Restaurants, LLC

Norms Restaurants (stylized as NORMS) is a regional chain of diner-style restaurants in Southern California. Founded in 1949 by used-car salesman Norm Roybark, some restaurants are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. the company operates 23 locations in Greater Los Angeles,[1] with plans to expand into Las Vegas, Nevada.[2]

History

The first Norms opened on Sunset Boulevard near Vine Street in 1949. The oldest surviving Norms, declared Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument number 1090 in 2015,[3] opened on La Cienega Boulevard in 1957, featuring a distinctive angular and brightly colored style that came to be known as Googie architecture.[4] Key characteristics include angular walls, large glass windows, jutting roof, and a neon marquee. Many Norms restaurants, including the 1957 La Cienega Boulevard location, were designed by the architectural firm of Armét & Davis to look like automobile showrooms.[5] Their appearance has made them the subject of exhibitions curated by the Getty Center.[6] [7]

In December 2014, the Roybark family sold the family-owned Bellflower-based chain, but not the land each of the restaurants had sat on, to an investment firm, CapitalSpring, for an undisclosed amount.[8] "We cut across everything," Mike Colonna, the new president of Norms said in 2019. "We have the blue collar workers, white collar workers with ties getting a quick lunch, ethnic diversity at every table. We get late-night millennials, and our base of baby boomers. We're kind of retro cool and we think the Googie architecture is a big part of the brand." When the real estate under the La Cienega store was sold, Colonna reassured customers that the business would stay. "Norms has committed to the location long term," Colonna told Los Angeles magazine. "We have an agreement with the landlord and plan to be in business for quite some time."[9]

The Norms restaurant on Pico in West Los Angeles was forced to close on Christmas Eve 2016 because the new landlords refused to renew the lease and had other unspecified plans for the real estate. County assessor records showed that the Roybark family had sold the land in April 2015 for $8.25 million.[10] [11]

In 2023, the company announced that it plans to open its first location outside of California, in Las Vegas, in mid-2024.

In popular culture

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Norms Locations . March 10, 2021 . Norms . December 1, 2023 .
  2. Web site: Wright . Jarah . September 21, 2023 . Norms Getting Ready to Open First Location in Las Vegas . . April 19, 2024 .
  3. Web site: Historic-Cultural Monument (HCM) Report - City Declared Monuments . February 24, 2016 . City of Los Angeles Department of City Planning . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303192636/http://cityplanning.lacity.org/complan/HCM/dsp_hcm_result_Citywide2.cfm?Monument=0 . March 3, 2016 .
  4. News: Go on a SoCal Hunt for Googie Architecture . Whitney . Friedlander . . May 18, 2008.
  5. News: Lacher . Irene . Neon Rhapsody . . August 3, 2003 . June 15, 2023 .
  6. News: Review: L.A.'s Satisfying Sprawl . Christopher . Hawthorne . Los Angeles Times . April 18, 2013.
  7. Web site: Emily Alpert . Reyes . L.A. to Consider Preservation of Googie-Style Norms on La Cienega . Los Angeles Times . January 15, 2015 . January 4, 2023 .
  8. Nichols . Chris . Norms Restaurant Chain Has Sold . Los Angeles . January 8, 2015 .
  9. Nichols . Chris . Review: After 70 Years, the Norms Chain of Iconic Googie Diners Looks to the Future . Los Angeles . October 17, 2019 .
  10. The Classic Norms on Pico Is Closing on Christmas Eve: The Westwood coffee shop goes dark after 47 years . Los Angeles . December 13, 2016 . Chris . Nichols .
  11. Web site: Chandler . Jenna . Googie-style Norms on Pico Boulevard will close for good on Christmas Eve: It's looking like the site will be redeveloped . . December 9, 2016 .
  12. Web site: Painter . Alysia Gray . January 14, 2015 . Norms La Cienega: Demolition Permit Ordered: The Googie Diner Is Up for a Local Landmark Nomination . https://web.archive.org/web/20171002120551/http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/NORMS-La-Cienega-Demolition-Permit-Ordered-288578941.html . . October 2, 2017 .
  13. Web site: Our Brand Story . March 27, 2019 . Norms Restaurants . June 15, 2023 .
  14. Web site: Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee . . June 15, 2023 .

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