Grand Central Market

The market opened in 1917 replacing an earlier department store as a tenant of the Homer Laughlin Building, and by 1926 it held around 120 stalls before shrinking to 52 by 1968 as the neighborhood declined. In 1985, attorney Ira Yellin bought the building and led a restoration that stripped away mid-century additions to reveal the original Beaux-Arts details and installed both vintage and new neon signage, work his widow Adele continued with renewed investment starting around 2012.

Today the market draws roughly 2 million visitors a year to dozens of food stalls representing many of the cuisines found across Los Angeles's immigrant communities, from Mexican and Chinese counters to Salvadoran pupusas, making it a place where newcomers can often find a taste of home. It sits directly across Broadway from the Bradbury Building and a short walk from Pershing Square, so it pairs naturally with a downtown walking day that also takes in The Broad or Olvera Street.