Huckleberry

Zoe Nathan trained at Jardinière in San Francisco and at Tartine Bakery before returning to her hometown of Santa Monica, where she met Josh Loeb, owner of the Rustic Canyon Wine Bar, after their mothers -- fellow book-club members -- introduced them. Huckleberry began informally, as a series of Saturday-morning breakfast pop-ups held at Rustic Canyon, where Nathan's father made huckleberry pancakes for a crowd of friends and family who had grown up in the neighborhood. The pop-up's popularity led Nathan and Loeb to open Huckleberry Bakery & Café as its own restaurant in 2009, with Nathan's father continuing to help out, including flipping pancakes. The couple built the restaurant deliberately as a place they would want to bring their own families, explicitly avoiding the hyper-healthy-eating trends often associated with Santa Monica dining in favor of pastries, baked goods and comfort food such as fried chicken alongside weekend brunch service. Huckleberry's success led Nathan and Loeb to open a run of related concepts around Santa Monica, including Sweet Rose Creamery, Milo & Olive, Cassia and Esters Wine Shop & Bar, building a small local restaurant group anchored by the original café.