Beverly Hills’ first rooftop restaurant application was approved during a Beverly Hills Planning Commission hearing on Feb. 13. After some discussion regarding both traffic and noise concerns, the commission conditionally approved the Rooftop Dining Use Permit for the Beverly Hills Tower, located at 499 N. Canon Drive. The condition placed on the approval was that live or prerecorded music will not be allowed at the venue.
Previously, the only rooftop dining available in the city was limited to specific types of structures like hotels. Restaurants sit atop several city hotels, including the Peninsula Beverly Hills, Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, the Beverly Hilton, Maybourne Beverly Hills and SIXTY Beverly Hills.
An ordinance passed in Aug 2024 allows applications for rooftop restaurants and open-air dining within the area which encompasses most of Beverly Hills’ Business Triangle. The ordinance requires the permits to be reviewed directly by the commission and thereafter by Community Development Director Ryan Gohlich.
Under the plans of the approved application, patrons of the restaurant will arrive via a new elevator within the building located adjacent to the entrance of the parking area. A valet stand would be located in front of the elevator entrance. The dining area will be 2,765 square feet and includes a 182-square-foot bar area and 270-square-foot kitchen. The restaurant will total 128 seats. A retractable canvas cover will sit atop, and there will be a nine-foot trellis structure.
During the Planning Commission meeting, Alan Berro, a neighbor who lives nearby, shared concerns about late-night noise.
The owner of the building, Shawn Far, stated, “I understand that everyone is concerned about the noise. Our concern is not to create a restaurant with loud noise. This rooftop is so beautiful that you don’t need anything else to be added to it to bring a beauty out of it.”
Architect Hamid Gabbay, who submitted the application, told the commission, “One thing I have to say, the noise of Santa Monica Boulevard is much, much more than what possibly this small space could generate.”
However, the commission ultimately placed conditions on the permit approval pertaining to the live or prerecorded music.
Gabbay later told the Courier, “Our opinion was that this rooftop is extremely far away from the houses.”
