New Gastropub on Highland Ave – Mud Hen Tavern

With all the holiday hoopla, some may have missed the opening of  the Mud Hen Tavern in December by chefs Susan Feniger and Kajsa Alger at 742 N Highland after closing STREET, a favorite street-food inspired spot with tastes from around the world.

Feniger, best known for the many Border Grills around Los Angeles, closed Street in early November and opened Mud Hen Tavern by early December in a record turn-around time, touting Mud Hen as a new neighborhood bar and restaurant serving up gourmet pub food.

“I’ve always wanted to open a casual neighborhood spot, and this side of town was in need of a bar and restaurant that just serves really great food and drinks that people can come back for every day.  I have fond childhood memories of going to baseball games with my dad in Toledo, Ohio to watch The Mud Hens play.  Afterwards, we’d always wander over to the local bar Andre’s to get sandwiches and argue about the best plays and worst errors of the game with the neighbors,” said Susan.  “Kajsa and I are re-creating that homey feeling of a lively gathering place for this area with Mud Hen Tavern.”

The place has been redesigned to have a larger bar area integrated into the main dining room, while keeping the outdoor patio area close at hand. As with so many restaurants these days, there are numerous large family style tables for people to share, and a lot of hard surfaces so we imagine the venue will be quite loud but friendly.

Mud Hen features an extensive cocktail menu in addition to reasonably-priced pub menu dishes like burgers, pizzas, salads and ‘snacks’ so popular now on the LA food scene, with Feniger’s unique twist on meat, vegetarian and vegan dishes. There are few reviews online yet of Mud Hen, so let us know if you’ve stopped in and tried it out. A stone’s throw from the popular Trois Mec, this part of Highland is seeing a birth of new evening spots, not far from Hancock Park.

Larchmont Buzz: Susan Feniger Bringing New Gastropub to Highland