Sage Regenerative Kitchen in Echo Park announces closure after 14 years
Echo Park's Sage restaurant closing after vegan backlash
Sage opened in 2011 with a fully-vegan menu. In May 2024, the restaurant made the controversial decision to add meat and dairy products to their offerings, leading to a slew of protests. One of those protests, on Father's Day 2024, forced Sage to close early after protesters stormed into the restaurant.
LOS ANGELES - Sage Regenerative Kitchen & Brewery, the formerly plant-based Echo Park restaurant, announced it will be shutting its remaining locations this weekend, after 14 years in business.
The restaurant announced the impending closure in an Instagram post on New Year's Day. In the post, the restaurant's team said the decision to close came down to ongoing financial struggles.
Sage opened in 2011 with a fully-vegan menu. In May 2024, the restaurant made the controversial decision to add meat and dairy products to their offerings, leading to a slew of protests. One of those protests, on Father's Day 2024, forced Sage to close early after protesters stormed into the restaurant.
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The menu shift came shortly after the owners, chefs Mollie Engelhart and Elias Sosa, "made the difficult decision to sell thier home in hopes of breathing new life into Sage," the post read. "…But, despite our efforts, we find ourselves in the same predicament today."
Engelhart told FOX 11 in June that she worried the protests could lead them to shut down. More than six months later, Sage announced it would be shutting its doors, with the last service set for Sunday, Jan. 5.