Restaurants come, they go. At one time, this location housed Granata's Italian Villa. According to the Downey Patriot, " Granata's restaurant is the longest-running family business in the history of Downey... It first opened at Paramount and Alameda in 1955, moved to Florence three years later, and proved so successful that Downey's city manager... thought it'd be great for the city if they moved downtown, which they did in 2001."
And there they stayed until 2009, when the restaurant was sold and reopened as Granata's Restaurant and Tapas.Now it's empty, with a change of ownership sign that says, "Joseph's Bar and Grill," which will join several other "bar and grill" type restaurants in the newly vibrant downtown Downey.
I'm sorry they didn't continue to be successful. My husband and I went there not that long ago and were very disappointed with the food.
ReplyDeleteI can proudly say that I worked for Ralph and Paul back in the early 90s. Most of us kids that worked there came from SouthGate high school. It all started with Diego, then Benny then Me and I brought James Morales. Out all of us I believe James Morales stuck it out the longest. I left right after HS and joined the Marines. When I came back I took everyone there to eat. The location was on Florence right after the bridge. Food was always great. My fondest moments were when grandma made those bird noises while we worked in the kitchen.
ReplyDeleteGreat times. Sad my favorite restaurant no longer exist.