End of the year roundup: Recent openings in downtown L.A.

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Downtown is blowing up. You probably don’t need us to tell you that, especially if you saw the crowds jammed into Cole’s and the Association on Friday night. But thanks to business-booster organization Downtown LA, we now have some semiofficial stats for the number of businesses that have recently opened in the area: 18, if you’re counting. That includes Starbucks (they serve food ... kind of), contemporary gallery Arty and the Grammy Museum. Yes, those numbers are inflated by the recent opening of LA Live, but Angelenic has understandably dubbed 2008 ‘The Year of the Restaurant.’

The über-chronicler of downtown life points out that ‘despite the underpinnings of a flailing economy that began last December, over 67 restaurant and nightlife projects in the pipeline have been seen through to a grand opening.’ Click here for their detailed list — broken down by neighborhood! — of all the downtown restaurant openings this year.

On the horizon, look for Casa restaurant to open in Bunker Hill and Bottle Rock to open at 11th and Flower sometime in January (hopefully). And early in 2009, Wurstküche, which is now open Monday through Saturday, plans to open on Sunday as well.

EATERIES
Blu LA Café
126 E. 6th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 488-2088
Mon.-Thu., 7 p.m.-11 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 7 p.m.-2 a.m.; Sun., 7 p.m.-midnight. A classic California café offering coffee, sandwiches, salads, burgers and a few fancier entrees like blue-ribbon braised pork.

Cole’s French Dip
118 E. 6th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 622-4090
Wed.-Sat., 11 a.m.-2 a.m.; Sun.-Tue., 11 a.m.-11 p.m.
Cedd Moses, who owns the Golden Gopher and Seven Grand among other downtown bars, bought down-on-its-luck Cole’s, restored it and brought in chef Neil Fraser of Grace to revamp the joint’s signature French dip sandwich. Let the rivalry with Philippe’s continue!

Drago Centro
525 S. Flower St., Suite 120
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 228-8998
Mon.-Thu., 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.; Fri., 11:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; Sat., 5:30-10:30 p.m.;
Mon.-Fri., 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. (lunch) & 5:30 p.m.-10 or 10:30 p.m. (dinner); Sat., 5:30 p.m.-10 or 10:30 p.m. (dinner); Sun., closed.
Celestino Drago (of Drago Ristorante, Enoteca Drago and Il Pastaio Ristorante) and partner-GM Matteo Ferdinandi offer a menu that features ‘modern Italian cuisine with regional influences’: warm langoustine carpaccio with pomegranates, micro herbs and yuzu dressing; crispy risotto cake with octopus and young garlic sauce; and more.

[More restaurants after the jump.]

Ma Petit Bakery & Café
257 S. Spring St., Suite 116
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 625-3328
Mon.-Fri., 6:30 a.m.-9 p.m.; Sat., 7:30 a.m.-7 p.m.; Sun., 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
The Kim sisters open a charming French-themed café with breakfasts, crepes, sandwiches, heartier dishes like chicken roulade, pot pies and fish and chips, as well as house-baked desserts.

Marty
638 S. Main St.
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 213-7832
Mon.-Sun., 7 a.m.-9 p.m.
Small café with drinks, sandwiches, pastries and travel necessities.

Provecho & Remedy
800 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90017
(213) 489-1406
Provecho: Mon.-Sat., 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; closed Sun.
Remedy: Mon.-Sun., 5 p.m.-2 a.m.
Republic chef Gabriel Morales and wife Jill Bigelow open their modern Mexican restaurant, Provecho, featuring a tequila bar and a ceviche bar. The adjacent lounge, Remedy, has a less formal vibe and will serve food from Provecho’s kitchen as well as its own menu of American bar fare, including burgers, salads and fish and chips.

Spitz Döner Kabob
371 E. 2nd St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 613-0101
Wed.-Sat., 10 a.m.-midnight; Sun.-Tue., 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
The second location of Spitz, the ‘home of the döner kebab,’ doesn’t have a gelato bar, but it has a few things the original Eagle Rock venue lacks: a wine list, a small but carefully curated selection of draft beers and plans to serve dessert kebabs with bites of fruit, brownies and baklava.

Starbucks at LA Live
800 W. Olympic Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 748-1009
Mon.-Sun., 6 a.m.-11 p.m.

Union Bagel
512 W. 6th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 623-4580
Mon.-Fri., 7:30 a.m.-4 p.m.; closed Sat. & Sun.
Fresh bagels and premium roasted coffee.

Wurstküche
800 E. 3rd St.
Los Angeles, CA 90013
(213) 687-4444
Mon.-Sat., 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; closed Sun.
Exotic sausages and beer in the Arts District. They plan to expand into a bar at night.

BARS & NIGHTCLUBS
The Association
110 E. 6th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 488-2088
Ashley Joyce’s sleek lounge for downtown dwellers features an exact replica of the door at 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the British prime minister.

Club Nokia at LA Live
118 E. 6th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 622-4090
The 2,300-capacity venue is the latest addition to LA Live’s $2.5-billion sports, residential and entertainment district next to the company’s Nokia Theatre and Staples Center.

Conga Room at LA Live
525 S. Flower St., Suite 120
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 228-8998
‘At the revamped, relocated incarnation of the popular Wilshire Boulevard Latin music venue that went dark 2½ years ago, the owners are hoping that more will be more.’

ESPN Zone at LA Live
800 W. Olympic Blvd., Suite A245
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 765-6800
Downtown now has a dedicated sports bar with plenty of TV screens, hot wings and sports-themed video games.

Lucky Strike Lanes & Lounge at LA Live
257 S. Spring St.
Suite 116
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 625-3328
Bowling almost seems beside the point at this upscale alley where you can drape yourself across the couches in the moodily lighted lounge while sipping martinis and noshing on dates stuffed with Parmesan, ahi tuna chunks seared in sesame oil and fried mac and cheese bites.

— Elina Shatkin