Sarah BennettThe supposedly cursed Old Town Pasadena address of 42 S. De Lacey Ave. claimed another restaurant casualty this weekend: three-year-old Haven Gastropub + Brewery, which unexpectedly closed its doors on Saturday, May 17.
Customers Sunday were greeted with a sign on the door that said “Go to Lucky Baldwins” and by afternoon, a status update on the brewpub's Facebook page clarified that they had to shut their doors “due to circumstances beyond our control.”]
Haven Gastropub + Brewery was the L.A. offshoot of Orange County's Haven Gastropub, the five-year-old craft-beer-and-thoughtful-food staple in Old Towne Orange. Acting as the Haven Collective, partners Greg Daniels, Ace Patel and Will Dee owned the two Havens as well as Taco Asylum at The Camp in Costa Mesa and Provisions, a specialty food and bottle shop also in Old Towne Orange.
With former Drake's Brewing Head Brewer Brian Thorson at the kettle, Haven Brewing has been making some of the region's best hop-forward beers from Simcoded, an American pale ale, to Lenny G, a smooth American amber ale. Last month Haven Brewing's Hops Inc. IPA won a silver medal at the World Beer Cup.
Credit: Haven Collective
The closure of Haven Gastropub + Brewery might mean the end of Haven Brewing, but the leftover beer will continue to be served at Dee, Patel and Daniels' other locations and the brewhouse itself will be moved to Orange County for another upcoming brewery project.
“We fought for our life in this building with a cursed history, and took every one of [our employees'] jobs very seriously,” Haven posted in the comments of its status update. “The banks who own the building forced us out through complicated circumstances, and sadly there was just nothing we could do.”
A press release sent out Sunday night said the closure of Haven Gastropub + Brewery comes alongside amicable ownership changes in the Haven empire, including the decision by Dee and Daniels to focus solely on their Old Towne Orange locations – which they are in the process of purchasing entirely – while selling interest in Taco Asylum and Haven Pasadena to Patel.
“Despite the recent changes, our plans for Haven Gastropub and Provisions Market haven't changed – they never have,” Dee and Daniels said in a joint statement. “Above all, we are energized and excited as we enter this new chapter for Haven Collective.”
Want more Squid Ink? Follow us on Twitter or like us on Facebook.
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.