The Street Seen: Wave / World Café / Areal
2820 Main St @ Ashland
The northwest corner of Ashland and Main is an important Ocean Park corner, and since 1980 has received intense public scrutiny.
In 1985, the Ashland and Main corner is redeveloped with a new restaurant - the Wave. The Wave is followed by World Café in 1990 and then Areal in 2011. Areal has been closed since 2017.
The Wave (1986 – 1988)
In 1985, California Leisure Group1 redevelops2 the former beer tavern and auto service site with an ambitious3 new restaurant. The Wave, a California-style restaurant and bar with a soft pink, post-modern look, opens March 1986.
By May 1986, the Wave may be too popular for its own good - there are complaints about overcrowding and the operation of the valet parking.4
In December 1988, a brief two years after opening, the Wave closes. The establishment’s demise is blamed on a zoning restriction to 49 seats.5 The 49 seats are not enough to sustain the Wave.
World Café (1990 – 2011)
In February 1990, David Teck6 and Carole Woolley open the World Café - a neighborhood spot merging international cuisines through a California filter. The World Café has a fresh, eclectic cuisine and a garden patio.
Teck hires local artists to help turn the World Café into a funky, popular gathering place for locals of all ages to eat and drink.
In 1993, with neighborhood support,7 Teck successfully lobbies the City Council to be able to expand from 49 to 85 seats.
Teck runs the World Café up to his death in 2005. In 2011, the World Café shuts for 7 months for a much-needed remodel.
Areal (2011 – 2017)
Operated by partners Phil Slaughter and Mark Becker, World Café reopens in October 2011 with a remodeled dining room, lounge, and bar and a new name - Areal.
The farm-to-table restaurant offers locally sourced seasonal products. A wood-fired pizza oven turns out Neapolitan pies. The concept is in sync with health-conscious westside diners who prefer something a little more high-end, but without the cost that is usually associated with a restaurant of this caliber.
In August 2017, Areal abruptly closes overnight. A notice taped to the front door informs employees showing up for the dinner shift that the restaurant is permanently closed.
Updates:
The Wave restaurant is a joint venture between brothers Richard and Michael Condon, Steve Fargnoli, and capital investors from Oklahoma. Rumor, fueled by his occasional dinner appearances, is that Prince owns the Wave. But it is Prince’s then-manager, entertainment attorney Steve Fargnoli, who is a part-owner.
The existing 1940s to 1980s tavern and auto service buildings remain (although extensively altered), and the new construction partially infills the old parking area - but leaving a large patio. Existing curb cuts on Ashland and Main are removed. The owners claim to spend more than $500,000 on the project.
What we wanted to do,” says Richard Congdon, who shares ownership of the restaurant with his brother Michael and Fargnoli, “is create a restaurant where our friends could come to eat two or three times a week. We wanted it to be elegant, serve good food--and not cost a lot of money.” He sees the place as a sort of cross between Morton’s and Spago--which should give you a fair notion of what he considers affordable. “We wanted the food to be fresh and constantly changing,” notes Congdon, adding that he is “not a gourmet.”
If none of this sounds very promising to you, you are not alone. I had no great expectations, and the RG took one look at the beautiful room (which has the air of a new-wave L’Orangerie) and became positively hostile. “It’s going to be one of those places where they spent so much money on the decor that they had none left over for the food,” he said wearily. Anybody who has a passing acquaintance with California cuisine could have written this menu with his eyes closed; it’s that familiar mix of pizzas (one has wild mushrooms and goat cheese), grilled fish, and pasta tangled up with strange ingredients. RUTH REICHL March 23, 1986, Los Angeles Times
The City requires no-cost-to-the-customer valet parking for the Wave. The other three big restaurants on Main St (Josephina’s, Enterprise Fish Company, and Chinois) are also required to have valet parking.
A 1982 agreement with the City grandfathers the existing 49-seat with no parking requirement. In 1987, the City Council, overturning the Planning Commission's approval, rejects the Wave's application to expand from 49 to 85 seats. The expansion is opposed by the Ocean Park Community Organization and a majority of council members, who argue that there is not enough parking.
David Stuart Teck (1950 – 2005). In 1973, Teck and his wife Ingrid own Ingrid & Davids Gingerhouse International in Tarzana. Teck lives at 218 Ashland St and for many years is head of the Main Street Business Association. In 2000, Teck opens the Mix in the former Pink Elephant space (2810 Main). In 2003, Teck and Carole Lynn Woolley divorce.
In 1993, the Ocean Park Community Organization, Santa Monica Shores Tenants Association, and Sea Colony Homeowners Association now support the World Café seating expansion.