Chez Melange

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| established = 1982

| closed = February 29, 2020

| current-owner = Michael Franks, Robert Bell

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| chef = Robert Bell

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| food-type = Seafood, gastropub

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| street-address = 1611 South Catalina Avenue

| city = Redondo Beach, California

| county = Los Angeles

| state = California

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| country = United States

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| reservations = Yes

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| website = {{URL|https://web.archive.org/web/20200321203443/http://www.chezmelange.com/|chezmelange.com}}

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Chez Melange was an American seafood restaurant and gastropub located in Redondo Beach, California, which closed on February 29, 2020. It was opened in 1982 and owned and run by Michael Franks and co-owner and head chef Robert Bell.{{cite web|url=https://www.dailybreeze.com/2019/01/10/where-to-find-the-best-seafood-in-the-south-bay/|title=Where to find the best seafood in the South Bay|author=Shindler, Merrill|date=January 10, 2019|work=The Daily Breeze}}{{cite web|author=Harris, Jenn|date=January 16, 2018|work=Los Angeles Times|title=Ranchero Mexican restaurant in Pasadena is closing after 49 years|url=https://www.latimes.com/food/dailydish/la-fo-re-ranchero-20180220-story.html}}{{cite web|title=These special farmers supply fruits and veggies for Chez Melange restaurant in Redondo Beach|date=March 22, 2018|author=Davis, Genie|work=The Daily Breeze|url=https://www.dailybreeze.com/2018/03/22/these-special-farmers-supply-fruits-and-veggies-for-chez-melange-restaurant-in-redondo-beach/}}{{cite news|title=California Grows Her Own Cuisine|authorlink=Robert Lindsey (journalist)|author=Lindsey, Robert|date=August 18, 1985|page=9|newspaper=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/18/travel/california-grows-her-own-cuisine.html}}{{cite web|title=No Vacation for Chez Melange Partners|author=Jenkins, Kathie|date=October 10, 1993|work=Los Angeles Times|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-10-10-ca-44122-story.html}}

History

Chez Melange was originally located on Pacific Coast Highway and after the lease was up it moved to its new location in January 2009 on Catalina Avenue.{{cite web|title=Q&A: Chez Melange Co-Owner Michael Franks|author=Avelino, Bianca|date=September 11, 2010|publisher=Patch Media|url=https://patch.com/california/redondobeach/qa-chez-melange-co-owner-michael-franks}}

Chez Melange ran three restaurants at the same Redondo Beach, Catalina Avenue venue, Sea Change, a sea food themed restaurant, Bouzy, a gastropub and The Oyster Bar.

Robert Bell said when first meeting Michael Franks, "I remembered thinking, I don't want to work with this guy. I'm from Brooklyn, he's from London. He came from what I thought was an upscale upbringing, I was just off the line of being poor. He went through restaurant school, I barely made it through junior college. But we were both very driven, very passionate about what we were doing, and that's the only reason we got along."{{cite web|url=https://easyreadernews.com/mama-teranos-boy-chef-robert-bell/|work=Easy Reader|date=September 30, 2016|title=Mama Terano's Boy Chef: Robert Bell|authorlink=Richard Foss|author=Foss, Richard}}

Chez Melange closed permanently on February 29, 2020.{{cite web|url=https://patch.com/california/redondobeach/chez-melange-will-be-closing-after-37-years-south-bay|title=Chez Melange To Close After 37 Years In South Bay|author=Holland, Emily|publisher=Patch Media|date=January 14, 2020}}

Table Manners, Perfect Storm

In 2021 the Chez Melange location was reopened under different ownership as a new restaurant called Table Manners{{cite web|work=Easy Reader|title=Learning Table Manners [restaurant review]|author=Foss, Richard|date=March 30, 2021|url=https://easyreadernews.com/learning-table-manners-restaurant-review/}}{{cite web|work=The Daily Breeze|url=https://www.dailybreeze.com/2021/02/26/former-chez-melange-in-redondo-beach-has-been-split-into-two-new-restaurants/|title=Former Chez Melange in Redondo Beach has been split into two new restaurants|author=Guzman, Richard|date=February 26, 2021}} and was later renamed Perfect Storm.{{cite web|url=https://easyreadernews.com/potential-realized-in-redondo/|work=Easy Reader|title=Potential realized in Redondo|author=Foss, Richard|date=October 28, 2022}} Perfect Storm permanently closed in the early 2020s.{{cite web|publisher=Yelp|title=Perfect Storm|url=https://www.yelp.com/biz/perfect-storm-redondo-beach}}

Montauk

In 2024, it was announced a new fine dining restaurant, Montauk, would be opening at the former Chez Melange location in the spring of 2025.{{cite web|title=Lavae McClinnahan Introduces Montauk: A Sophisticated Coastal Dining Experience in Redondo Beach|date=November 12, 2024|publisher=KTLA|url=https://ktla.com/business/press-releases/ein-presswire/759919458/lavae-mcclinnahan-introduces-montauk-a-sophisticated-coastal-dining-experience-in-redondo-beach/}}{{cite web|title=Montauk Official Site|website=montaukinredondo.com|url=https://www.montaukinredondo.com/}}

=Controversy=

African American entrepreneur Lavae McClinnahan had the original high-end restaurant concept of Montauk that was influenced by the hamlet of Montauk in the Hamptons.{{cite web|publisher=BET|url=https://www.bet.com/article/rgp849/how-one-restauranter-is-bringing-black-excellence-to-a-california-beach-town|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20250201055946/https://www.bet.com/article/rgp849/how-one-restauranter-is-bringing-black-excellence-to-a-california-beach-town|title=How One Restaurateur is Bringing Black Excellence to a California Beach Town|author=Venable, Malcolm|date=January 31, 2025|archivedate=February 1, 2025}}

In 2025, it was reported that in Redondo Beach, though a largely liberal area, some locals were not happy about an African American-owned upscale dining location, with some going so far as to contact the police in hopes of shutting Montauk down before it opened.

Unfazed, McClinnahan said that he envisioned Montauk as African American entrepreneurs reclaiming beachfronts which were once epicenters of African American culture.

BET quoted McClinnahan as saying, "Here in South Bay, there's no African Americans." Adding, "The community is asking for more. Everything has been kind of dumbed down, and people want better options."