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Add The California Post on Google Talk about a home-cooked meal.
From breakfast burritos in bungalows to tea parties on the lawn at hilltop estates, trendy home-based restaurants are popping up all over LA — unlocking a slew of new dining experiences as diverse as the City of Angels itself.
And unlike the scores of street stalls taking over local sidewalks at a time when brick-and-mortar businesses are suffering and shuttering , this time it’s completely legal.
The change comes in the wake of a shift in permitting rules in Los Angeles County — authorizing microenterprise home kitchen operations , or MEHKOs, back in May 2024.
The program allows people to operate small-scale food businesses from their homes, paying well under $1,000 for their papers, according to County of Los Angeles Public Health — with some strict guidelines.
Since permits started being issued in late 2024, the department has given out more than 400 licenses.
Now, the city is exploding with buzzy home businesses like Granada, a stunning, all-day cafe at the end of a driveway in the Angelino Heights historic district, better known for its collection of Victorian-era homes.
The chic haunt at the home of Sydney Wayser and Isaac Watters has drawn lines down the block — and even amassed an international following since opening in January of this year.
“We just thought it would be a fun way to open up our house and meet some of the neighbors, but then it kind of became this place that people really wanted to come to from all over,” said Watters. “We’ve had people come from Sweden, a lot of people from France, all over Europe.”
Only open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Mondays through Thursdays, Granada sells coffee, tea, and locally-baked pastries to avid fans — the business has over 16,000 followers on Instagram, and even sells Granada-branded merch.
Frequent customer Adele Jacques, who has lived in the surrounding Echo Park neighborhood for 20 years, says she likes coming to Granada because it “bridges European and American culture.”
“It’s not just a business. It’s like you come in someone’s space and it feels comfortable,” said Jacques. “It feels like home.”
Customer Azniv, who didn’t give her last name, lives just an 8-minute walk away — she told the California Post she comes to Granada at least once a week.
“There’s a lot of cafes I really love around LA, but this one’s just a little bit different in that it’s a very homey and very inviting to sit down and the combination of the kids fun and adult friendly. It’s a good combination,” she said.
Another chic home cafe, Loto, located in a quiet residential section of Echo Park, has earned major looks since opening in August — even garnering raves in local blogs.
“Somehow, a home cafe where neighbors and guests can pop in and sit a while in the backyard chatting, sipping from homemade ceramics, and feels like it carries forward the community sprit I remember,” a reviewer for Eater Los Angeles gushed.
Though many Angelenos seem thrilled with MEHKOs, others worry the spots could affect the quality of life in residential neighborhoods if the businesses get too popular.
“I don’t want to see my neighbor cooking all day at night with a bunch of people coming and leaving,” one social media user wrote at the time the new…