On Eagle Rock's Stretch of York Boulevard, the Building Decides What Opens Next

The northeast corner of York Boulevard and Armadale Avenue sits a block south of Occidental College. It is a 1920s commercial building of about 5,400 square feet, split into three storefronts. The doors are numbered 4751, 4753 and 4757. For years the building held the Ocxy Store, which sold liquor and convenience goods. Today one door opens into a gallery, one into a Lebanese restaurant, and one into a bagel-and-pizza shop whose owner planned to leave on Oct. 31.

All three doors have the same landlord. Occidental bought the building in 2015, and since then the college has picked every tenant behind those doors. A short walk west, the newest restaurant on this part of York opened in a space its operators' family bought in 2017. On this edge of Eagle Rock, whoever controls the space has done more to decide what opens, and how long it takes, than any foot-traffic count.

One Landlord, Three Doors, Eleven Years

The Occidental-owned building has filled slowly and on purpose. In a 2024 profile in Occidental magazine, the college's then-communications director, Jim Tranquada, recalled the goal at the time of purchase. The renovation would "make it more obvious that Oxy is nearby" and draw York's growing retail scene closer to campus.

The building filled over years. The first restaurant opened about three years after the gallery. Skaf's took four years to go from signed lease to open doors, and the reason was the college's patience as landlord. Six months after the Skafs signed, the pandemic hit. Chris Skaf told Occidental magazine that the college's answer was, "Take your time. Once things get back to normal somehow, we'll restart everything."

What the College Is Shopping For Next

When Robles said he would vacate 4751 at the end of October, Occidental agreed to release him from the lease. Amos Himmelstein, the college's vice president and chief operating officer, explained why to The Occidental, the student newspaper, on Oct. 14:

"We're going to let him out of the lease, knowing someone else is coming in. We're currently in talks to see who might be taking it over […] we don't want an empty corner."

Himmelstein also described what the college wants in the space, and his answer is about hours more than food. He told the paper that Bagel + Slice was chosen to complement Skaf's next door: "Bagels and pizza was a good idea because it was [open in the] morning and went into the evening. We're trying to find something complementary to that space."

This is how a curating landlord thinks. It plans the building as one unit and chooses each tenant for the hours and traffic it adds next to the others. The arrangement also served students. Bagel + Slice took Occidental vending money through the GetMobile app, and one student told the paper it was the only place off campus where that money could be spent.

The gallery shares the building with the restaurants. Meldia Yesayan, director of Oxy Arts, wrote to The Occidental: "It's been wonderful to have [Bagel + Slice] as neighbors on what we feel is a satellite campus, and it will be sad to see them go."

As of the last public report, from Oct. 14, the college had not named a successor. Whatever goes into 4751 will have been chosen by a landlord that has said what it is looking for: food that runs from morning into evening, fits next to a Lebanese restaurant, and keeps the corner from sitting empty.

A Short Walk West, the Family Bought the Space First

Zero Fox opened at 4607 York Blvd. in mid-September with limited hours, then held a grand opening on Sept. 26. Eater LA places it on the border of Eagle Rock and Highland Park, in a building that used to be an auto shop.

Its timeline also starts with a purchase. Robby Herrera Sr. bought the space in 2017, planning to open a restaurant with his family, Eater reported. He had worked at a family restaurant in Mexico before running a Northeast Los Angeles plumbing business for 25 years. Nine years after the purchase, his children Robby Herrera Jr., Ingrid Herrera and Cindy Lemuz run the restaurant. They grew up three blocks away. "My parents are the main ones with the idea and funding," Herrera Jr. told Eater. "My sisters and I are in charge because our parents are getting older."

The family that bought the space set the menu, the price points and the room. Zero Fox seats 78 inside, with a 20-seat patio in back, and has multiple screens for watching games. Eater lists daytime prices from $13 to $24, nothing on the dinner menu above $20, and cocktails under $15.

The food covers the whole day. Chefs Chalo Martinez and David Paulino serve breakfast burritos, chilaquiles, huevos rancheros, hot honey chicken and waffles, and berry French toast in the morning. Four burgers, a crispy chicken sandwich, roasted Brussels sprouts and fried calamari come in the evening. Cesar Flores, founder of Elite Bartenders, wrote the cocktail list. There are nine rotating beers on tap, and coffee and aguas frescas are served all day.

Herrera Jr. described the goal to Eater plainly: "This is a place for the neighborhood to come in and enjoy a casual time, some good food, and watch games."

Two Ways to Fill the Same Hours

Put the two buildings next to each other and they turn out to want the same thing. At York and Armadale, Occidental is trying to fill the whole day by pairing a morning tenant with an evening one. At 4607, one family covers the whole day under one roof.

Here is how the posted schedules fit together on this stretch:

1. 7 a.m. on weekends, 8 a.m. on weekdays. Zero Fox opens for brunch.
2. 11 a.m., Monday through Saturday. Oxy Arts opens its gallery at 4757 York and stays open until 4 p.m. It is closed Sundays and national holidays.
3. Evening. Skaf's on York serves shawarma, kebab plates, falafel and hummus next door to the gallery, with an online ordering menu that runs until 8:45 p.m., and Zero Fox moves to its dinner menu.
4. 10 p.m. on weekdays. Zero Fox closes.

The empty slot in that list is morning coffee and lunch at the Occidental corner, which Bagel + Slice used to cover. Himmelstein's comments suggest the college is looking for a tenant to fill exactly that slot.

On Colorado, a Bookstore Runs on Construction Time

A third timeline is playing out on Colorado Boulevard. Skylight Books is opening a new Eagle Rock location at 1958 Colorado Blvd. The space is nearly 6,000 square feet. The Eastsider reported this month that the opening, first expected this fall, has moved to January. "We're unfortunately behind our original timeline," general manager Mary Williams told the outlet. "It looks like we're going to miss the holidays."

On York, the schedule depends on who owns the building. On Colorado, a buildout this size runs on its own schedule. For a bookstore, missing the holidays means missing the season that sells the most gift books.

On the Oxy Corner This Month

The corner has more going on than its empty storefront suggests. These dates are coming up from now through early December:

• "Hold Each Other's Hands: Trans Mutual Aid, 1966–1996" is on view at Oxy Arts, 4757 York Blvd., through Dec. 5. Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• A dialogue with Dee Farmer takes place at Oxy Arts on Nov. 19 at 7 p.m., according to the gallery's events calendar.
• Oak Gall Painting is a workshop at the Center for the Arts Eagle Rock, 2225 Colorado Blvd., on Saturday, Nov. 21, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Participants make ink from oak galls and paint with it. The workshop is open to ages 6 and up, and materials are provided.

Skaf's next door is still a good place for dinner after a gallery visit, and Zero Fox is a short walk away for anyone who wants a game on with their burger.

If you own a storefront, a duplex or a home near a corner that is about to change hands, the Longfellow + Leach Team can walk you through what its next tenant might mean for your property, with a complimentary valuation and design plan.