Ben Ford, son of the actor Harrison Ford, is preparing for a lavish, star-glutted Saturday night party to launch his much-awaited Ford’s Filling Station.
One year almost to the day after Mr. Handal’s immediate neighbor, Honey’s Kettle Fried Chicken, opened, Ford’s Filling Station will spring to life with a party that is by invitation only.
Across the street, at the corner of Culver Boulevard and Irving, new owner Jim Rodriguez of Santa Maria Barbeque is preparing to shift the locus of his operation to the site formerly occupied by Thai Barbeque.
Handal Is Ubiquitous
No indication was available at mid-day regarding the plans for San Gennaro Café.
But its owner, who often has seemed to be hitting his stride at mid-life, remains a man of action.
“Jay is a survivor,” a friend of Mr. Handal’s told thefrontpageonline.com this morning.
“I don’t know any details of what is going on. I only heard about it a little while ago. But I do know this: He is a survivor. I will not be surprised to see him emerge from this situation in an upright position.”
As widely known and lauded for his generosity and philanthropy as Mayor Albert Vera, Mr. Handal serves on numerous community groups.
No shrinking violet, Mr. Handal is regarded as one of the most outspoken voices of Culver City, which has landed him in periodic disputes with assorted officials at City Hall.
At Tuesday night’s installation dinner for the Friends of the Library, rumors were circulating that what has been a hot Downtown attraction for the past decade may close.
Neither confirmation nor denial were made.
Routinely, San Gennaro is the landing place for some of Culver City’s most revered occasions.
Ever the genial, outgoing host, Mr. Handal, as the moving force behind the Greater West Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, has owned two versions of San Gennaro, including the store on Barrington Avenue, Brentwood.
Filing under the Chapter 11 laws of reorganization “gives Mr. Handal a wide berth for options,” a bankruptcy analyst told the newspaper.
“Ninety percent of the Chapter lls that I file are strategic,” said a midtown bankruptcy specialist. “You can scour the records for reasons, but you are not likely to discern a true explanation. There are millions of reasons for 11s. Often things go on as before.”