Astro Family Restaurant given historic monument designation – NBC Los Angeles

A 24-hour diner that’s been a staple in Silver Lake for more than 60 years was designated as a historic monument by the Los Angeles City Council.

Astro Family Restaurant has greeted its customers with a neon star atop the building and a menu full of American comfort foods. Since its inception, the diner has been serving classic breakfast items and hearty dinner fare. Now, it’s cooking up a historic designation marker.

“If he was here now, he’d be very excited about this,” Maria Siafaris, daughter of restaurant owner Harry Siafaris, said.

The elder Siafaris opened the restaurant on Fletcher Drive. He died two years ago but his establishment continues to be run by his loved ones.

Siafaris’ eatery is easily identifiable by its dramatic, sloping space-age roof. It’s a retro design better known as “googie style,” which pays homage to car culture and has a futuristic influence to it.

The Los Angeles Conservancy said that kind of design was once criticized by architects, leading to the demolition of several LA buildings that had that style. Now, preservationists are trying to change that.

Astro Family Restaurant’s historic-cultural monument status protects it from immediate demolition if such a thing were ever to occur.

To learn more about Astro Family Restaurant, click here.