 | This articlecontainspromotional content. Please helpimprove it by removingpromotional language and inappropriateexternal links, and by adding encyclopedic text written from aneutral point of view.(July 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | restaurants catering retail food sales |
| Founded | Los Angeles, California, USA (1995; 30 years ago (1995)) |
| Founder | Joan McNamara and Carol McNamara Glass |
| Headquarters | 8350 West Third St. Los Angeles, California 90048 United States |
| Owners | Joan McNamara, Carol McNamara Glass, and Susie Hastings |
| Website | joansonthird.com |
Joan's on Third is a specialty food marketplace and restaurant located onThird Street in Los Angeles, California, USA.[1] Joan's is situated in an area popular with Angelenos for its eating and shopping establishments, located between theBeverly Center onLa Cienega Boulevard andFarmer's Market at the Grove onFairfax Avenue.
A family business owned and operated by chef Joan McNamara and her children, Carol McNamara Glass and Susie Hastings, Joan's started out as a catering operation running out of a storefront on Third St. As demand grew, McNamara expanded her business to include a small café and marketplace. The store tripled its size after a decade of operation, and the restaurant now includes a full menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The shop in the same space sells artisan cheeses, prepared foods, baked goods, desserts and non-perishables.[2]
Its popularity and success has grown on the strength of its products and good reviews in multiple publications and media outlets. It also has a reputation as a hip gathering spot frequented by Hollywood celebrities and foodies, such asRobert Duvall,Jake Gyllenhaal andMoon Zappa.[1]
When the lines get too long and customers are waiting, Joan has been known to rush out with a tray of cupcakes for everyone.[3]
Joan McNamara, namesake of Joan's, is a chef originally from New York, where she ran a cooking school and her own restaurant before moving to L.A. She opened Joan's in 1995 as a catering company located in a storefront on West Third St.[4][5] Joan's two daughters, Carol, a graduate of the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, and Susie, an alumna of the Georgetown University School of Business, also run the business, with Carol running the Catering and Special Events arm of the business, and Susie overseeing Operations.[5] San Francisco chef Chester Hastings came to work at the store in 1997 and eventually married Susie McNamara.[5]
In 1998 Joan's expanded into an adjacent storefront on Third Street, helping to realize Ms. MacNamara's "lifelong dream of opening a gourmet foods marketplace and café."[5] Another major expansion took place in 2007 that helped expand the scope of the company's operations by tripling the floor space of the market.[6][7] Beside being a market, Joan's is also a full-service restaurant providing table service andtake-out meals for it patrons.[1] Often very busy, Joan's has been described as being reminiscent of some famous New York restaurants, includingZabar's,Dean & DeLuca, andFairway Market.[1][5][7]
Joan's has a full-service cheese counter, dessert bar, assortment of chocolates; and a food counter where sandwiches, ready-to-eat foods, salads and snacks are offered. An assortment of dry goods and refrigerated products are also offered.[8] The owners travel extensively to source products.[5]
The restaurant has generally been given favorable reviews in several publications and news outlets, including theNew York Times,CNN andTime magazine.[9] ALos Angeles Times review noted that Joan's is the"rare in LA specialty foods store" that"stocks essentials -- salt-cured anchovies sold by the ounce, capers under salt, ricotta cheese, fleur de sel (a specialty sea salt from France), and imported De Cecco brand pasta" and"a small selection of carefully chosen cheeses, such as locally made burrata, English Cotswold, or a truffle-infused Boschetto."
While theLos Angeles Times reviewer stated that the food was"above average", she also noted that"It [the restaurant] is somewhat disorganized. When there's a rush (i.e., more than a handful of customers), the servers behind the counter can sometimes get flustered, and it seems to take longer than it should to put together an order."[10] TheZagat Survey lists Joan's as a Top Bakery in the US and the customer reviews posted on the website are mostly positive, with one poster calling Joan's offerings"fun and delicious, albeit expensive, snacks, cheeses, etc."; however a couple of other commentators stated it is "overrated" and "overpriced".[11]
TheLos Angeles Daily News Food Editor on LA.com noted the crowded conditions in Joan's and warned that "At busy times, it can be difficult to snag a table - and the frenetic pace and wait to order at the counter may not appeal to some. Parking is sometimes difficult to come by."[12]
The company has been noted as being popular among several celebrities andgourmands who live in the southlands of California.[1][9] Writing forThe New York Times,Moon Zappa described Joan's on Third as her favorite Los Angeles eatery.[13] The restaurant is also a favorite ofJake Gyllenhaal, who has been seen dining there with ex-girlfriendKirsten Dunst.[14][15]
When it comes to Joan's, I am humbled. My devotion borders on addiction. This little haven on Third, my Dean & Deluca come west, is a demonstrative embodiment of its luminary namesake.
It's easy to fall in love with the lemon bars at Joan's on Third -- all lined up in the glass bakery case, prettily dusted with sugar.
Holy crap, look at the size of Joan's on Third.
...throngs of hungry customers. The seating is limited, and even if you score a table you will probably spend a lot of the meal being bumped by take-out patrons. But the freshly-made sandwiches and salads are more than worth a few "excuse mes."
Artisan cheese in the display case, turkey meatloaf you wish you could make at home, fresh lemonade that's just the right amount of sweet and sour, strawberry jam for sale on the shelf...
In the taste department, Joan's on Third is by far my favorite spot, not just on Third, but possibly in all of Los Angeles.
Joan's on Third. Come on, I had to eat at one of Jake Gyllenhaal's favorite restaurants.
Kirsten Dunst and Jake Gyllenhaal have prompted hopes of a reunion, after they were spotted enjoying a coffee break together.
34°04′22″N118°22′18″W / 34.0727°N 118.3718°W /34.0727; -118.3718