Kosher Club CLOSED?!?!?

Just got word that Kosher Club, the kosher supermarket on Pico Blvd. just east of La Brea, is closing.  Tomorrow, Dec 9, is the last day of business.

Julie Fax will look into the whys and wherefores—I suspect competition from big box retailers like Costco that moved into the kosher business didn’t help.

I shopped there regularly, as much for the prices and selection as for my long chats with darryl, the owner.  Darryl is a Harley-riding tough guy with a good heart and his share of tsuris.  He was always good for a good insight (especially into the inner workings of the kosher meat business) and a quick laugh. 

The store itself functioned as a mini shtetl. I always bumped into friends, talked to people reading from the stack of Jewish Journals, sampled the latest kosher snacks. I’ll miss the place—thanks Darryl, thanks David, thanks to the great and hard-working staff, so long Kosher Club.

This e-mail from a friend sums up the loss:

Dear Rob,

I’m not sure what it says about me, that the first time I am compelled to email a newspaper editor of any kind is about the closing of THE KOSHER CLUB. 

That said, i am taking this closing very hard. Not just because my busy working mother life is made so much easier by this wonderful, easy to navigate, grocery that is open Sundays, - but because I cannot believe that in Los Angeles this place that has been in business for 30 years, can no longer make a go of it!

There. I’ve said my peace. I believe you were the person who first introduced me to this bastion of delicious meat (and where on earth am i going to find the chicken nuggets shaped like hearts, stars and moons, that have been a staple in Isaac’s life for all of his 11 years??) and so I felt the need to reach out to you in my sadness :(