Barneys Wins Bid to Expand Restaurant Services

Barneys New York, a five-story department store under construction on Wilshire Boulevard, won its appeal to the City Council this week to allow its restaurant to operate independently of the store.

The decision Tuesday overturned several conditions set by the Planning Commission in September that prohibited the fifth-floor restaurant from opening earlier than the store and from providing takeout food.

The council voted 3 to 2 to allow the 130-seat restaurant to open as early as 9 a.m. and provide takeout food. The commission had previously agreed to allow the restaurant to close at 11 p.m. and advertise separately from the store.

The store, which stretches along Wilshire between Peck and Camden drives, is scheduled to open in the spring.

Some residents, including Southwest Beverly Hills Homeowners Assn. President Ken Goldman, argued that Barneys was seeking major changes in the terms under which it had gained community and commission approval in 1992.

“During discussions with residents, Barneys made it clear that the restaurant was to be ancillary (to the store),” Goldman said. “Two years later, it’s a whole new ballgame.”

Now the store “wants a destination restaurant” that will attract patrons of its own, plus offer a takeout service, Goldman said.

Barneys store in New York has a huge takeout service, he said. Residents are concerned that the extended hours and the takeout service will increase traffic in their neighborhood.

Joseph N. Tilem, an attorney for Barneys, said the changes were needed because a prospective restaurant operator had balked at the restrictions and because none of the city’s other department stores had restrictions on their restaurant hours or takeout.