![]() “There’s this feeling when you walk down the boardwalk that the city has just let it fall by the wayside.” “It’s never been a place that the neighborhood generally wants to go spend a bunch of time in, so that’s something that we’re trying to change,” said Matias. The team wants to reconnect the local community with the Venice Boardwalk, which in recent years has come to cater almost exclusively to tourists and in recent months to a rapidly growing unhoused population. “We wanted to reframe a little bit what the restaurant was,” said Matias “We felt that it had kind of lost its connection to the neighborhood and to some of the principles I think the restaurant initially carried.” While part of their goal was to create a more modern and trendy restaurant, the redevelopment also sought to reconnect the business with its original values. The team took over the Fig Tree at the start of the pandemic, spent six months rethinking the business, and opened doors in September. “My father has this eternal spirit of adventure and inspirational energy that I think will always run through the place,” said Matias. ![]() It features healthy California twists on traditional Latin dishes alongside a funky cocktail list and range of Pacific Coast natural wines.īoth Matias and Sophia spent their high school summers working at the restaurant and are committed to keeping family and community and the center of the business. The revitalized food and drink menu was developed by Dashiell Nathanson and draws on his experiences traveling and working in China, Europe, and South America. The reinvented Fig Tree’s laid back yet elegant atmosphere is inspired by a family favorite cafe in the coastal Uruguayan town of Jose Ignacio. Matias and his partners are all globetrotters with Southern California roots and have woven their experiences into the restaurant’s music, food, drinks and decor. “We wanted guests to feel comfortable and cozy, but we wanted to color that familiarity with thoughtful details in food and design that would bring you the feeling of being off traveling in a new place.” “Our menu and our aesthetic is driven by a desire for a casual but thoughtful coastal dining experience,” said Matias. ![]() The restaurant recently received a facelift under the leadership of Bunge’s son Matias who, alongside sister Sophia and best friend Dashiell, transformed the space into a beachy chic cafe replete with lush plants, groovy beats, and all-around good vibes. This week the spotlight is on Fig Tree - a recently renovated California-Latin beach cafe on a mission to bring locals back to the Venice Boardwalk.įig Tree cafe is a neighborhood institution that was founded by the Feigenbaum family in 1978 and taken over by Jose Bunge in 2006. As outdoor dining reopens and local restaurants begin the road to recovery the Daily Press is highlighting one excellent eatery a week sharing its history, pandemic struggles, and signature dishes.
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