"For thirty-eight years, Mistral has been ours." Matt Epstein, president of the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association, opened his August column with that line. A few months earlier, Mistral had covered its windows with paper for a renovation. Its worry is familiar to anyone who has lived along Ventura Boulevard for a while. A well-known place closes, and nobody knows whether the next tenant will carry on its role or erase it.
In 2026 that worry mostly hasn't come true. Several Sherman Oaks spaces with decades of history changed hands this year, and nearly every one already has a successor. Most of the new tenants do what the old one did: a French bistro is still a French bistro, and a pizzeria became another pizzeria. Where the use did change, the new tenant leans toward bread, sandwiches, coffee and plants. One space breaks the pattern. Boneyard Bistro's room at 13539 Ventura closed in September, and no replacement has been reported.
Mistral set the template for a careful handoff
Mistral at 13422 Ventura Boulevard is the clearest example of an ownership change that kept the restaurant intact. Eater LA reported that restaurateur Jonah Freedman, of the team behind Greekman's, took over the nearly four-decade-old French restaurant. After a short closure to update the menu and interior, he reopened it with business partner and culinary director Josh Migdal on Monday, August 10.
SOHA's column says the business actually changed hands the year before. The new owners kept the food and most of the staff, then closed for the remodel. The menu Epstein previewed still has the tuna tartare, the lump crab cakes, the house-cured king salmon, the Mistral Caesar and the French onion soup. The duck, the John Dory, the rack of lamb, the steaks and the pastas are also back. He spotted one new item: a Mistral Burger.
The same team is also adding to the building. Henri's, a raw bar, is planned for the attached space. Los Angeles Magazine gave "late fall" as the target, with no firm date. As of early October, it's still a plan. So the address that had one restaurant will soon have two.
The ledger so far
Mistral is one of several handoffs this year. Here is where each space stands as of October 8, 2026, based on SOHA's monthly columns and local food coverage.
| Space | Before | Now |
|---|---|---|
| 13422 Ventura Blvd | Mistral, about 38 years under prior ownership | Mistral under Jonah Freedman and Josh Migdal, reopened August 10; Henri's raw bar planned for late fall |
| 4319 Woodman Ave | Santino's NY Pizza, nearly 20 years, closed in March | Greco's New York Pizzeria, taking online orders |
| Ventura and Sunnyslope | Tony's Liquor, nearly half a century | Eagle Liquor, with Mother's Bread next door at 13368½ Ventura |
| 13711 Ventura Blvd | Green Queen dispensary | Florahound, a rare-plant shop |
| 13702 Ventura Blvd, at Woodman | Samos, about two years | Leased by chef Ludo Lefebvre for a sandwich concept; a separate filing names Cornichon |
| Former Le Pain Quotidien | Le Pain Quotidien | Being converted into a bagel shop |
| 13539 Ventura Blvd | Boneyard Bistro, more than 20 years, closed September 12 | No successor reported |
The first two rows are the easy cases. In each, the new operator moved into a space whose purpose the neighborhood already knew.
Same lane, new names
Santino's NY Pizza served New York-style thin crust on Woodman, just north of Ventura, for nearly 20 years before it closed in March. In the same column, SOHA reported that Greco's New York Pizzeria, which already ran locations in Hollywood and Tarzana, was preparing to open its third shop in that space. In April, What Now Los Angeles reported that co-owner Nico Grasu was aiming for early June at 4319 Woodman, with renovations still underway. No source I found gives the exact opening day. As of October 8, though, the Greco's online ordering page lists the Sherman Oaks location at 4319 Woodman for pickup and delivery. The Tarzana Greco's is one of the quick-service spots in our look at Tarzana's 2026 openings.
The Ventura and Sunnyslope corner went through a bigger change and still kept its original use. Tony's Liquor stood there for nearly half a century. Eagle Liquor replaced it and sells wine, beer, cigars and lottery tickets. SOHA's June column said the bigger news was next door, at Mother's Bread. Its owner and baker, Nick, is originally from the country of Georgia and uses his grandmother's recipes. He makes just three kinds of sourdough from a starter made with grapes. The loaves are shaped like long paddles, and the shop bakes roughly a hundred a day, many of which sell out before closing. The bakery's listed address is 13368½ Ventura Blvd.
The corner still has a liquor store, as it did for fifty years. It also has a bakery it didn't have before.
Where the use changed, it shifted toward daytime
The spaces that switched categories this year mostly went to businesses built around the daytime.
At 13711 Ventura, near Woodman, the storefront with the large mural used to be Green Queen, a dispensary. It's now Florahound, a rare-plant shop built around horticulturist Leon Massoth. According to SOHA, he has spent decades finding, growing and studying rare tropical plants, many raised slowly from seed, that commercial growers don't carry.
The corner of Ventura and Woodman is less settled. Samos had remodeled the space into a Mediterranean restaurant and closed after about two years. In June, Epstein said he hadn't heard what would replace it. In September he reported that Ludo Lefebvre of Petit Trois had signed a lease there. The plan was a sandwich concept, and Lefebvre had asked to circle back once he had a clearer vision and a name.
On October 7, What Now Los Angeles reported public filings for Cornichon, a French sandwich café, at 13702 W. Ventura Blvd. The filed menu includes hot-pressed and classic baguette sandwiches such as jambon and Comté, sweet versions such as chocolate with salted butter, and pommes frites. The applicant named in the filings is Felix Lyubovny, who didn't answer the outlet's question about timing. 13702 Ventura is also the address Samos listed for itself. So two reports point to a French sandwich shop at the same corner. Neither confirms that Cornichon is the Lefebvre project, and no opening date has been announced.
Two blocks of SOHA's September column fit the same pattern. Le Pain Quotidien's longtime space is becoming a bagel shop. Blank Street Coffee has taken over the corner of Fulton and Ventura and already had a line out the door.
The room without an heir
Boneyard Bistro served its last meal on September 12 after more than 20 years. What Now Los Angeles described the menu as Southern-style barbecue and Santa Maria-style red-oak grilling: slow-smoked baby back and St. Louis ribs, brisket and tri-tip, plus beer, whiskey and cocktails at the bar. In his farewell post, owner Aaron Robins thanked the community and said he's taking a break.
Boneyard was a full-service evening restaurant with a bar. Every other closing in the ledger already has a reported successor. As of early October, SOHA's columns and the food coverage I followed haven't named one for 13539 Ventura.
New ground between the handoffs
Some of the year's new activity came from spaces with no famous predecessor. Fulton Crossing, a mixed-use project at Ventura and Fulton across from Casa Vega, puts shops on the ground floor and offices above. A vintage Airstream trailer is parked on the corner, and Blank Street anchors the project. Just past Casa Vega, LLAMA at 13443 Ventura offers art and sewing classes, workshops, birthday parties and Grown-Up Nights.
Down at Fashion Square, BoxUnion has opened a boxing and fitness studio with 45-minute group classes. Noodle St, which SOHA described in June as having been "coming soon" for some time, now lists its Fashion Square location as open.
More is on the way. What Now Los Angeles has reported that Hapa Haus, a Hawaiian-leaning restaurant and bar with golf simulators, is targeting a November opening, and that Sushi Tomoki has filed plans for a second location at 14622 W. Ventura Blvd. SOHA counts more than thirty sushi restaurants on Ventura already, and Sumi Sushi is joining them next door to Burger She Wrote.
Several dates are still open: Henri's, the Ventura and Woodman corner, the bagel shop in the old Le Pain Quotidien and whatever ends up at 13539 Ventura. More on the neighborhood is on our Sherman Oaks page, and you can compare the restaurant changes across the hill in our Studio City dining piece.
I grew up in Sherman Oaks, and I follow these storefront changes the same way I follow the market. If you own a home near one of these corners, or a commercial space on the Boulevard, and want to talk through how the new tenants could affect it, Steven Craven is glad to sit down with you. Book a Consultation, or start with a home valuation.
