For months, Gregory Dulan has lost sleep over his South Los Angeles soul food spot, Dulan’s on Crenshaw. In late August, he announced that his 33-year-old soul food restaurant was struggling and launched an online fundraiser to save it. Days after making a public plea for support, Dulan was met with an outpouring of it from the Los Angeles community and beyond.
Dulan tells Eater that, in recent weeks, he’s met visitors from Bakersfield, Santa Clarita, and Palmdale; in late August, chef Roy Choi visited. Dulan’s on Crenshaw has been breaking projected food sales goals; Dulan has hired three new employees in recent weeks, and business is up more than 40 percent. “People are coming out,” he says. “I served a young lady from Russia and another from Argentina yesterday. We have a party of 100 coming, and I don’t know where I’m going to sit everyone.”
Dulan’s on Crenshaw is one of Southern California’s longest-running soul food restaurants. It opened in 1992, serving classic dishes like smothered pork chops, fried chicken, collard greens, and candied yams. Dulan was nominated by the James Beard Foundation for Outstanding Restaurateur in 2023. Throughout the decades, Dulan’s on Crenshaw has become an essential part of the neighborhood.
Fried chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, and cabbage at Dulan’s on Crenshaw. Wonho Frank Lee
In 2018, the neighborhood around Dulan’s on Crenshaw was in the midst of a massive redevelopment as multiple projects broke ground at the Crenshaw Corridor (the slim stretch of Crenshaw Boulevard that meanders through West Adams, Baldwin Hills, and Leimert Park), including a new Metro line and the 1.3-mile-long open-air museum Destination Crenshaw. Dulan recalls housing and new developments being built at a rapid rate, which diminished street parking capacity, a crucial element for his restaurant and the neighborhood; Dulan says that 40 percent of his customers are seniors who drive. In 2020, Dulan hoped to secure a million-dollar facade improvement grant from city councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson’s district. He didn’t receive it, but realized that he needed to upgrade the dated interior.
In 2021, Dulan closed his restaurant for a two-year renovation. “With the construction of the K-Line and other developments, I knew what was coming: other new restaurants,” he told Eater in 2023. “I knew that I needed to upgrade the dining room to keep up with the Joneses and be fresh.” He also purchased two adjacent properties on the block with the intention of building a parking lot.
Dulan took out short-term, high-interest loans to cover the costs of the interior remodel and parking lot development. But the borrowed funds dwindled sooner than he expected. “We ran out of money and couldn’t finish the parking lot,” says Dulan. “I was expecting certain funding that I didn’t get. Everything cost way more than I thought, and it sort of drained my liquidity. I had to finish the construction because I believe in the restaurant that much. We don’t have many sit-down restaurants in South LA.”
Dulan’s on Crenshaw reopened in late 2023 with an expanded dining room, multiple kitchens, and two patios. The expanded presence was a hit with families, especially the Sunday post-church crowd. Local organization turned to Dulan’s to host events — Lauryn’s Garden, a self-care collective, even hosted a yoga class on the rear patio.
Dulan expanded the restaurant’s business by collaborating with Vallarta Supermarket to offer heat-and-serve meals in stores. As business grew, Dulan purchased another nearby property that he uses as a warehouse. “The building is the future,” says Dulan. “It will be my future production and training kitchen. We’ve already outgrown it because of the business with Vallarta.”
Although the outpouring of support has been promising, Dulan says the restaurant is not out of the woods yet. In recent weeks, he has renegotiated the terms of his loan and received an extension on making a balloon payment. The fundraiser remains open and has currently raised $21,273.34, with a $500,000 goal to cover loan repayments.
Still, Dulan remains optimistic about the restaurant’s future even amid his current challenges. “We’re going to weather it. I’ve been in business since 1989, and I have weathered storms and challenges,” he says. “This is tough because it forced me to go public. I’m so glad I did, because I could never have anticipated the support. By supporting Dulan’s, they’re supporting all of Crenshaw.”
A corner view at Dulan’s on Crenshaw in Los Angeles. Wonho Frank Lee