GENTRIFICATION SUCKS! Having moved to California from New Jersey 23 years ago, I don’t have any relatives out here. But I found FAMILY at an unlikely little spot called Pepys Galley housed in the Mar Vista Bowling Alley where I pretty much eat 3-5 times a week. It’s old school 50’s. Authentic. Real. The BEST steaks in town for a fraction of what high end places charge. And at the helm of this ship is a beautiful man named Pepy who has been running the place for over 40 years along with his family. Pepy truly serves SOUL food- comfort for the belly and comfort for the heart. You walk in- he smiles. Hugs you. His staff already knows what you are going to eat and has your drink waiting for you. The customers all are regulars who know each other and share camaraderie. So many folks are famous poets, musicians, actors, filmmakers, artists- but it doesn’t matter. At Pepy’s you are just YOU. I know I will never be alone as long as there is Pepy’s…. But now, some asshole has decided to buy out Pepy’s, toss the staff out into the street, tear it down and put up the hipster bowling alley/cocktail lounge called LUCKY STRIKE exactly like the one in Hollywood. And in 2 weeks, Pepy’s will be NO MORE. Mar Vista is a family place and Pepy’s is the heart of Mar Vista. Seniors have their suppers there. The police have late night meals. Kids have bowling birthday parties. Teens hang out on the weekend. And single folk like me count on Pepy’s as a place to find some wholesome camaraderie. None of that fake Hollywood bullshit. I am so sick about this. I contacted the LA WEEKLY who wrote about it. Even got a City Council meeting. And what a farce that was- a bunch of local yahoos patting themselves on the back about how great they are- while 250 people spoke with passion about how much they love Pepy’s and want to keep it. There was NO audio or video recording of these impassioned pleas. Mayor Gil Carcetti failed to show up. The owners of the bowling alley were nowhere in sight. It truly was one big circle jerk. SO now, Pepy’s has two weeks left. And I will be eating there every day. And with each meal will be praying for a miracle- an angel to swoop down and buy Pepy’s some time so we can figure this out. Wish to God I was rich like so many of my Hollywood counterparts. Makes me sick to think that the million Pepy’s needs to bring itself up to code and stay is a chump change. Ben, and Tobey and Leo have their little poker games with more than that in the pot. Certain directors I know spend that much on their private jets and Christmas vacations in Hawaii with young companions….. The injustice and inequality and priorities of this world really get to me. And it’s hard to stay calm and cool. I feel like Billy Jack! I just want… to.. go… BERSERK and whoop the butts of the guys basically killing a way of life in Mar Vista. As with the recent situation regarding Cat on a Hot Tin Roof- there are two kinds of evil. Those who perpetuate it and those who see it and watch idly by. So as furious as I am at the callous/cold AMF BOWLMOR corporation who are destroying Pepy’s, I am more upset with the local politicians who put on airs of doing something but actually do nada- and those with the financial means to do something who simply look the other way. Argh! I swear- the day one of my flicks makes the kind of box office of an XMEN or TRANSFORMERS, stuff like this will never happen! Till then, I pray for Pepy and his beautiful staff, I thank him for the love he has shared with the community for 40 plus years- and I am heading there now to have a Patty Melt. laweekly/squidink/2014/06/17/pepys-galley-beloved-mar-vista-coffee-shop-set-to-close?showFullText=true
Posted on: Wed, 18 Jun 2014 20:54:25 +0000
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