In the lead-up to the already controversial opening of the Tesla Diner in LA came the unexpected appointment of LA chef Eric Greenspan, famous for the critically acclaimed grilled cheese joint.
Just his participation was news in the food world. It felt like a small local food celebrity with community goodwill was self-consciously taking sharp steps toward broader ambitions. Other chefs, like Chicago’s Paul Kahn, were hesitant to work with Musk and said so publicly. Meanwhile, a Los Angeles Times story about the diner’s opening indicated that Greenspan also intended to open a Jewish deli called Mish not far from the Tesla Diner.
Well, according to a report from the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday, Greenspan says he’s actually going to focus on his Jewish deli.
Greenspan apparently messaged Los Angeles Times reporters to say, “I am leaving the Tesla Diner project to focus on the opening of my long-desired Jewish deli Mish,” adding that, “Projects like Mish and the Tesla Diner require an intensity of focus and attention,” and that his “focus and attention is now solely on Mish.”
The Tesla Diner is housed in a charming, UFO-shaped building, and is strategically located to attract lots of LA tourists in rental Teslas. According to Eater’s reporting, Greenspan’s cooking was apparently a little hindered by Elon Musk’s demand that everything on the menu be “epic,” including — or especially — the “epic” bacon side dish.
For a restaurant opening, the event was controversial, coming a month after the public feud between Elon Musk and Donald Trump created the most tabloid-friendly moment so far in a president’s second administration. The restaurant was picketed almost immediately. Then, the next month, Greenspan changed the menu to remove some items including salads, a club sandwich, some sides and desserts, and that “epic” bacon.
“Now we don’t order anything but burgers,” one anonymous guest told The New York Times restaurant critic, “everything else is terrible.”
The Los Angeles Times apparently unsuccessfully pressed Greenspan on whether people were protesting and saying he worked for “Swastika restaurants” thus contributed to his departure. He did not comment on that.
In any case, it’s probably not strange to guess that marshalling your “focus and acuity of attention” at the opening of your own Jewish deli, while being pressured to make epic bacon at a controversial car-themed restaurant to please the world’s richest man, who sometimes doesn’t shy away from making it seem as if he’s not fond of Jews at all, seems irritating.
But now Greenspan can focus on what he clearly wanted to do in the first place. In the meantime, according to unnamed sources who spoke to the Los Angeles Times, the Tesla Diner and its historic building will remain open, and plans are underway to make it a “full-service” restaurant early next year.
Gizmodo inquired about the reasons for Greenspan’s departure from Tesla, and will update if we hear back.