Walk into the Best Western Plus Hollywood Hills Hotel today and you’ll find Clark Street Diner. It’s good. The pastries are flaky, the coffee is artisanal, and the vibe is clean. But for anyone who spent their twenties or thirties in Los Angeles before 2020, that space will always be the 101 Coffee Shop Hollywood. It wasn’t just a place to grab a patty melt at 1:00 AM. It was a cultural tether.
Hollywood is a neighborhood that constantly tries to overwrite its own history with glass towers and juice bars. Usually, it succeeds. But the 101 Coffee Shop was different. When it shuttered during the height of the pandemic, it felt like someone had unplugged a vital organ from the city’s nightlife. You didn’t go there because the food was Michelin-star quality. You went because it felt like a mid-century time capsule that didn't feel like a museum. It felt like home, if your home was dimly lit and smelled like espresso and nostalgia.
The Mid-Century Ghost That Refused to Fade
The aesthetics were basically a character in their own right. Designed by architectural firm Armet & Davis, the space originally opened in 1930 but found its soul as a Googie-style masterpiece. We’re talking tan stone walls. Wood paneling that looked like it had seen some things. Those specific drop-ceiling lights that cast a warm, amber glow on everyone’s face, making even the most hungover screenwriter look somewhat presentable.
It was cinematic. Literally. If you’ve seen Swingers, you know the vibe, though that was filmed at the Dresden and the now-gone Johnie’s. But the 101 Coffee Shop Hollywood was the spiritual successor to that entire era. It appeared in Entourage. It was in Glee. It was the backdrop for countless indie films because it looked like "Old Hollywood" without the kitsch of Musso & Frank. It was accessible.
Why We All Cried Over a Diner Closing
Most people don't get emotional over a hotel diner. But the 101 was the "after-party" for the entire UCB (Upright Citizens Brigade) comedy scene. If you saw a show at the old Franklin Avenue basement, you walked down the hill to the 101. You’d see famous comedians dissecting their sets over a bowl of "Cajun Catfish and Eggs" or the legendary "Purple Haze" milkshake.
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The menu was a weird, beautiful mix. It wasn't just standard greasy spoon fare. You had the No-Huevos Rancheros for the vegans and legitimate blackened catfish for the soul food seekers. Honestly, the food was remarkably consistent. That’s a rare thing in a city where restaurants change chefs like people change socks.
I remember sitting in a booth once and seeing a very famous Oscar winner eating a burger by himself at 11:00 PM. No one bothered him. That was the unspoken rule of the 101 Coffee Shop Hollywood. It was a neutral ground. Whether you were a tourist staying upstairs at the Best Western or a local rock star, you were just another person in a booth.
The Business of Nostalgia
When news broke in late 2020 that the 101 wouldn't reopen, the internet went into a genuine tailspin. People weren't just sad about the coffee. They were mourning a specific type of social infrastructure.
- The "Third Place" Problem: Los Angeles is notoriously spread out. Diners like the 101 act as "third places"—spaces that aren't home or work where community happens naturally.
- The Pandemic Toll: Like the Pacific Dining Car or the original Souplantation, the 101 was a victim of timing and the brutal economics of the 2020 lockdowns.
- Owner Transition: Warner Ebbink and Chef Brandon Boudet, the duo behind the 101 (and other spots like Little Dom’s), eventually had to let it go. It was a business decision that felt like a personal breakup to the neighborhood.
Transitioning to Clark Street: Is It the Same?
Let’s be real. When Clark Street Diner took over the lease in 2021, there was a lot of skepticism. People were protective. Zack Hall, the founder of Clark Street, knew he was walking into a minefield of memories. To his credit, he kept the bones.
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The stone walls are still there. The booths are still there.
But it feels different. The menu is more refined. The coffee is arguably much better—let's be honest, the old 101 coffee was diner coffee, meant for volume, not tasting notes. But there’s a certain "grit" that’s gone. The 101 was a place where you could spend four hours writing a screenplay that would never get made while drinking endless refills. Clark Street is a place where you go for a very high-quality breakfast. Both have their place, but they occupy different corners of the soul.
Why the 101 Coffee Shop Hollywood Matters Today
You might wonder why we’re still talking about a defunct diner in 2026. It's because the 101 represents the "Last of the Mohicans" era of Hollywood cool. Before every corner was a luxury condo or a flagship tech store, Hollywood had these pockets of weird, dark, wood-paneled safety.
It serves as a case study for urban preservation. When we talk about "saving" Los Angeles, we shouldn't just talk about the TCL Chinese Theatre or the Hollywood Sign. We should talk about the booths at the 101. We should talk about the places where the actual culture was made—the conversations, the script deals scribbled on napkins, the first dates that turned into marriages.
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How to Experience the "101 Vibe" Now
If you are looking to capture that specific 101 Coffee Shop Hollywood energy today, you have to look in the shadows.
- Visit Clark Street Diner: It’s the physical shell. Sit in the back booth. Squint your eyes. The ghosts are still there.
- The Dresden Room: Just a short drive away on Vermont. It has that same mid-century weight and a legendary house band.
- Canter’s Deli: For the late-night, no-judgment energy.
- Little Dom's: If you want to taste what the 101’s founders are doing now in Los Feliz. It’s tighter, busier, and more "Italian-American," but the DNA of hospitality is identical.
The Reality of Hollywood’s Evolution
Cities change. They have to. If Hollywood stayed exactly the same as it was in 1995, it would be a stagnant theme park. But there is a cost to this evolution. Every time a spot like the 101 disappears, a little bit of the neighborhood's "memory" is erased.
The 101 Coffee Shop Hollywood was a bridge. It bridged the gap between the glitz of the Oscars and the reality of being a working person in LA. It was a place where you didn't have to "be" anyone. In a city built on the industry of being someone, that was the ultimate luxury.
Honestly, the best way to honor what the 101 was isn't to complain about the new place. It's to support the remaining independent diners that are still hanging on by a thread. Go to the 101's neighbors. Tip the servers well. Sit in a booth for too long and talk about something that matters.
The 101 might be gone, but the spirit of the late-night Hollywood hang is only dead if we stop showing up for it.
Actionable Steps for the Hollywood Enthusiast
- Support the Remaining Icons: Make a point to visit places like Musso & Frank or Pann’s once a month. These aren't just restaurants; they are cultural landmarks that need revenue to survive.
- Document the Spaces: Take photos of your favorite local spots now. The 101 taught us that these places can vanish overnight.
- Explore the History: Read up on the Googie architecture movement. Understanding why these buildings look the way they do makes the experience of sitting in them much richer.
- Eat at Clark Street: Don't be a hater. The new diner is keeping the lights on in a historic space. It’s a different chapter, but at least the book didn't close entirely.