Hollywood’s famous fast food restaurant is closed permanently

One of the most recognizable neon signs in Hollywood has disappeared forever.

The Arby’s Roast Beef restaurant at 5920 Sunset Boulevard closed Saturday after 55 years in business.

When customers arrived, they saw workers covering the windows and doors with plywood with a message reading, “Goodbye Hollywood. Thanks for 55 great years.”

Arby’s has had just one owner since it opened on Jan. 5, 1969, Marilyn Levitan, now 91.

Levitan told KTLA 5 News, which is located less than a block from the restaurant, that she has struggled to keep the restaurant open for years.

“The truth is I think the pandemic is what ruined us. I really think we would have closed down during the pandemic [if it weren’t] for federal loans,” she said.

Other factors, Levitan said, include California’s recent law raising the minimum wage for fast-food workers from $16 to $20 an hour, and equipment upgrades needed by Arby’s corporate headquarters.

“I’m very sad that it has to come to this,” Levitan said. “I think we did a good job for 55 years.”

KTLA has reached out to Arby’s for comment.

Critics of California’s new minimum wage law, including many in the quick-service restaurant industry, have said it’s bad for business and customers. Restaurants have responded by raising menu prices and, in some cases, firing workers.

In December 2023, four months before the law took effect, two large Pizza Hut operators laid off all of their delivery drivers.

Rubio’s Coastal Grill, the San Diego-based Mexican food chain that introduced millions of Americans to fish tacos, recently closed 48 California locations, citing “rising costs of doing business.”