The Resurrection of LA’s Fred Harvey Restaurant as Sports Bar
Lost Places Update: Homebound Brew has been recategorized as a Lost Place. Why? Sadly at the end of 2023 Homebound closed for good. I have heard the space will turn into an event venue.
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A short distance from Olvera Street, the birthplace of Los Angeles, sits one of its most iconic buildings, Union Station. The iconic Spanish Revival building has been featured countless times in movies and television, and serves as a transportation hub for visitors and locals alike. It’s also home to Homebound Brew House which offers up burgers and beer with a dash of history.
Back in March I shared our visit to the remains of the Needles Harvey House and discussed the importance of the Harvey Houses, created by Fred Harvey, across the United States. While it sits in a sad, gutted state of limbo, Los Angeles’ old Fred Harvey Restaurant inside Union Station has been brought back from the dead.
The Fred Harvey Room, as it was simply named, opened with Union Station in 1939, and served those rushing in and out of the train depot, including soldiers going off to war and Hollywood hopefuls. Designed by Mary Colter, (who designed many other Harvey Houses across the southwest, creating a romanticized mythos for those traveling west) the restaurant’s look was a mish-mash of the time and place, with clear Spanish Colonial Revival, Art Deco and Streamline Moderne elements, as well as Navajo influences (as seen in the floor design) and parrot tiles lining the walls.
As the interstate highway system began to take over travel, the restaurant lost its following, shuttering in 1967. For over fifty years the restaurant sat vacant, being used exclusively for events, and, since this is Hollywood, filming, including music videos such as Fiona Apple’s 2009 song “Paper Bag.” The cost to revamp and update the kitchen was regularly cited as the reason for the continued closure, then suddenly there was a breakthrough! A new lease was negotiated, and in October of 2018 Imperial Western Beer Company moved in, that is after a seven month restoration.
Only a year and a half after opening, Imperial shut down with the rest of the country when COVID hit, and it didn’t survive. Thankfully a new company swooped in, picking up the pieces and dubbing itself Homebound Brew Haus, a sports bar with a focus on the Dodgers, as it is conveniently located near the boarding for the Dodgers Express.
I’m not a beer person, so I can’t attest to the range of beers offered, but they offer a pretty solid burger, plus the ambiance is great. I’m thrilled to see such an iconic piece of Los Angeles history back open for business. Grab a beer, catch a Dodger game, and reflect on the history of the Harvey Houses at Homebound Brew Haus inside Union Station at 800 N. Alameda Street in Los Angeles.
What’s Nearby?
Sources
Barragan, Bianca. “Union Station’s Fred Harvey Room is officially restored.” Curbed Los Angeles, 12 May 2017.
Elliot, Farley. “Union Station’s Art Deco Bar Rebrands as a Destination for Sports, Sausages, and Beer.” Eater Los Angeles, 5 November 2021. Accessed 19 May 2022.
“Fred Harvey Restaurant (former)” Los Angeles Conservancy. Accessed 19 May 2022.
Stuart, Gwynedd. “How One of L.A.’s Most Beautiful and Underused Spaces Came Back to Life.” Los Angeles Magazine, 2 November 2018. Accessed 19 May 2022.
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Hi any one here ever worked for Fred Harvey Inc. ??
Then sold to AMFAC INC. Late 1970’s
I worked back then for these for both these companies in the hospitality industry. Its not too likely there’s are many or any of us left walking abt these days. I was very young when I worked as a Harvey Girl.. There use to be lots of Harvey House museums about there history as Mr. Fred Harvey invented fast food & motel hostel type services at ever train stop crossing America with refreshment & comfort to the many passengers of the first mode of luxury in transportation needs on trains that made traveling East coast to West coast a luxury way to traveling cross country in America, after the civil war yrs late 1800’s into current travel options of cross the USA by train. Many of the national parks still are from these earliest days of seeing America’s treasures in our national park systems today. I worked with Mr. Joe Baxley Grand Cyn, LAX then last I heard back to Grand Cyn . also LAX, Ranch House Inn Mr. Tim Waterhouse who was in Corp office in Brisbane CA. last I heard, Mr. Miller, Mr. Green, Ernesto Martinez LAX Front Desk Managers. Corp level Ms. Barbara White & Mr. Torten Stairs along with Many more in my yrs of employment in these companies.
A reunion might be possible at Union Station in L.A.CA. Aug 20th & Aug 21st 2025 weekend their doing a Fred Harvey Houses presentation of some sort I’m trying to go but @ 70+yrs old my transportation will be my biggest challenge as weekend train travel is less hours availability & many time limited if repairs are being done for weekly traveler into L.A. as these Metolink trains are full with commuters with the auto fuel cost high over or at $5.00 A gallon in needs of todays commuters into L.A. from rural outlying areas of big city living in L.A. Ca. I recall gasoline line then only buying on odd or even days accordingly to your license plate # if any gas was avail of course. In the 1970’s it was a commuters nightmare to find gas for your need to get to your job daily. No gas your not driving to LA to do your job. But it was my best memories great training in true hospitality To clients & customers service as or customers were to be treated as if they were guess in our own home. Top notch hospitality service not like today they could could care less about my staying or about my needs helping in my locating tickets in a event while in their establishment.. No Harvey Girl in the lobby to assist in your sightseeing or sports event tickets even concerts Hollywood bowl events we could all Most always get tickets with our connections and of course our Harvey Girl doing all the leg work. And if nothing else we had seasonal box seats in many venues around. Our Harvey Girl dressed in white black big hooped skirt as did these earliest Harvey Girls did in 1800’s into late 1970’s of course the big hoop skirt was not worn in food service or housekeeping positions but out in public streets on days off you were always to travel walking in town with at least 2 other Harvey girl employees as your in cowboy towns where men only knew saloon women not refined eastern educated females use to males in gentleman fashion never rude or full of themselves just passing thru in a cattle drive or wagon train skirting town to gather up supplies to keep traveling to next outpost of these new establishment of train stations set up to pick up mail and refuel in wood coal water as trains used. Any of these as their fuel or if trains had wash out tracks snow ice no traveling on till it cleared itself or a crew could reopen the track safely.. But passengers did not have restrooms on these early trains no chef or food service it was hard seats not comfortably seating. No air No heat just basic train cars bench seating hoping no robber or rouge young Indian attacked but it was better the a wagon train or walking across America Midwest as other transport was ship before Panama Canel was made digging out a passage other wise it was shipping to south America waters between the artic ice cold water dangerous currents that many ship became lost with all hands & passengers along with cargo. A risky way to get from east to west or west to east of the world country’s
Hope to find a old Fred Harvey employee or Amfac employee like myself still wanting to share our memories of Fred Harvey Hospitality at Aug. 20&21 in L.A