Restaurateur Samuel E. Spivak Dies

Samuel E. (Eddie) Spivak, longtime Southland restaurateur, died Thursday at the age of 71.

He had suffered a stroke two years ago and died in Rancho Encino Hospital in Encino.

Spivak was born in Philadelphia and came to Los Angeles as a boy. He began in the food business with three street-front hamburger and hot dog stands on Broadway where the bulk of his trade was servicemen walking the streets with little else to do in a strange city but eat.

From there he opened the Redwood House on 1st Street and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles where his customers ranged from presidential candidates to film stars to courthouse secretaries. When Times Mirror Co. needed the restaurant site for expansion purposes, Spivak moved to 2nd Street between Broadway and Hill. He then became general manager of Lawry’s California Center north of downtown Los Angeles.

He and his wife, Rosemary, who survives him, also opened the Bouillabaisse, a 10-table restaurant in Encino where he prepared the French seafood chowder and she served it.

In addition to his wife, he leaves two sons, Robert and Michael, and a daughter, Susan. A funeral service will be held Sunday at 1 p.m. at Mt. Sinai Memorial Park in Los Angeles.