Update — Tuesday June 16th — 7:30a
“We had a problem. We fixed it. We are now better than ever. Welcome back WeHo.”
We caught up with WeHo Bistro owner, Jeff Douek, Tuesday morning as the restaurant settled back into its first day open after LA County health inspectors shut the popular hangout down.
Douek addressed the restaurant’s initial silence on the closure. “Our initial silence was because we were focused on resolving the crisis,” he said. “We hope that our reputation also reflects how we responded to the crisis.”
He also explained the restaurant’s current “C” health grade, is automatic upon reopening after a closure. He expects to receive his “A” grade back as soon as the restaurant is legally reinspected, which he said would happen July 1 or 2.
The restaurant passed its initial LA County re-inspection Monday and reopened at 4 p.m. “We appreciate the enormous and heart warming support we are receiving from our fans,” Doueck said.
Update — Monday June 15th — 3p:
WeHo Bistro passed its LA County re-inspection and will reopen Monday at 4 p.m. Owner Jeff Douek told WEHOonline Monday afternoon the restaurant is back and ready to get going. “We had a small problem. We fixed it. We are now vermin free and have put new policies in place to remain so,” he told us on Sunday.
Original story published Sunday, June 14, 2026:
WEHOonline spoke exclusively with owner Jeff Douek this morning. After buzz on the socials that it would reopen by Sunday, in time for LA Pride weekend, Jeff confirmed the reopening has been pushed back.
The neighborhood restaurant and popular corner hangout at 1040 N. La Cienega Blvd. was shut down last week (June 10) by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health after inspectors found cockroaches — five of them alive in the kitchen and couple more of them were found dead in the bar and dry goods storage areas. We can all agree – yuck! But shutting down the joint, for days, over some cockroaches? Turns out there was more, all of it addressed Douek confirmed. 
The closure was issued under California Health and Safety Code Section 114259.1. Vermin infestation. The same code section that brought down San Vicente Bungalows and The Peninsula Beverly Hills earlier this spring, and Dan Tana’s in April. While I’ve definitely seen plenty of rats dining there over the years, if you catch my drift, there was no mention of rats on the property.
Inspectors also wrote up a four-point major violation for food-contact surfaces that weren’t properly cleaned and sanitized, a two-point minor violation for improper hot and cold holding temperatures, and a string of general violations covering thawing methods, non-food-contact surfaces, equipment maintenance, vermin-proofing, and the condition of floors, walls and ceilings.
The restaurant landed a “C” grade. County records list it as Facility No. FA0054788, a high-risk establishment with seating for 31 to 60 patrons.
“We had a small problem. We fixed it. We are now vermin free and have put new policies in place to remain so,” Douek told WEHOonline exclusively. The restaurant completed a deep clean, he said, and is now waiting for a county re-inspection before it can reopen. Douek said he had hoped volunteer health inspectors would come over the weekend so the restaurant could reopen in time for Pride. Unfortunately, they were a no-show — so, no-go. He expects to reopen by noon Monday.
An earlier message on the WeHo Bistro website said it would be closed June 12 and 13 due to “technical difficulties.” An Instagram story described the situation as “unforeseen circumstances” and said management hoped to welcome customers back Sunday. A note posted Sunday on the restaurant’s website confirmed it would remain closed June 14. “We are working on making the Bistro sparkle and operational ASAP,” the message said.
Douek had some feelings about the timing. “The health dept has a job to do. Unfortunately it coincided with Pride weekend. Which is very unfortunate,” he said.
He previously told WEHOonline his goal was always to build a place people wanted in their regular rotation. “So my goal was to have a place people want to come to all the time, and to embrace where we were and bring a little life to this corner,” he said.
The shutdown was first reported by The California Post. Jeff told us he’ll have more to say later today. We’ll update this story then.
“We are now vermin free and have put new policies in place to remain so” I certainly hope so. I don’t patronize any restaurant that has less than “A” rating. That’s because even with an “A” they can have some violations. I’ve gotten sick way too many times from eating out. The health inspectors are the public’s eyes…happy to see they’re doing their job to keep the public safe.
It would help the brick and mortar eateries in the city if there wasn’t numerous pest vectors putting cockroach/rodent fuel into the drains illegally, attracting a more entrenched vermin ecosystem underfoot
Im sure all the trash all over the sidewalks and over flowing trash bins on the blvd are not helping either. Ps cvs is filthy lately too
So gross. Cross that one off the list. Is it that difficult to keep up with your pest control? Come on people! That is nasty. Spreads disease.
That’s a shame. WeHo Bistro is one of my favorite spots — I go there at least once a month. The food is amazing, and the staff are always very nice. I studied Classic French Cuisine with a chef for several years. There are not many places around serving that fare, certainly not at a modest price point. As someone who almost died from food poisoning many years ago, I am quite disappointed that they allowed those multiple conditions to occur. They lost out on major revenue over Pride weekend.
I know right! If I wanna dine with rodents and or cockroaches, I can stay home😫
Stay home and watch Ratatouille!