It’s snowing outside, a perfect day to look through my collection of restaurant images. This is one of my best photos and I’ve always wondered about the place’s history.
The man in the foreground is almost certainly Mr. Hart. He proudly stands next to his new car, a 1940 Hudson, while his employees smile in the background. He seems unaware that his restaurant faces a doubtful future.
The restaurant’s history turned out to be difficult to research, but I did learn that both restaurants were in Los Angeles, and that No. 2 was at 203 W. Manchester Blvd. and No. 1 was on S. Vermont.
Neither location seemed to to be around for long. Already by January of 1941, Chicken House No. 1 was advertising for someone who would take a half interest in the business. Perhaps the entire restaurant sold quickly, because in May of 1941 it had a new address and was advertising “dancing & cocktails.” The October 1941 advertisement shown after the photo gives little hint that No. 1 had gone to auction already and that No. 2 had been offered for sale in April of 1941.
The for sale advertisement for No. 2 that was run in April claimed rather surprisingly that the restaurant seated 90 people and had a banquet room plus living quarters. The advertisement said it was being sold because the owner was ill.
Hart’s Chicken House was said to have originated in El Segundo CA, but I can’t find out much about that. The partial match cover shown here probably dates from at least the late 1940s, so it seems unlikely that it was run by Hart then. Note that the price for chicken had tripled.
© Jan Whitaker, 2026
It's great to hear from readers and I take time to answer queries. I can't always find what you are looking for, but I do appreciate getting thank yous no matter what the outcome.
Restaurant-ing through history 