Stylish L.A. Restaurateur Is Serving Up His Home and Tequila Room for $7.6M
Realtor.com
With manicured grounds poised for entertaining, an English Country-style manse in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Hancock Park, seeks an adoring new owner.
Alexis Valentin Ramos, of Sotheby’s International Realty, and Rochelle Maize, of Nourmand & Associates, are co-listing the home for $7,695,000.
The homeowner is David Cooley, owner of The Abbey Food & Bar in West Hollywood, a landmark LBGTQ+ establishment.
The property sits on a .43-acre lot. Cooley bought the home 21 years ago for $1,925,000.
Tequila turret
After purchasing the property, he embarked on a major restoration.
The remodel included the addition of a tequila-tasting room, tucked into a turret of the detached guesthouse and opening to the outdoors. Of course, the next owner would not be obligated to keep the space as such.
The elegant estate was built in 1923 for silent-screen actress Katherine MacDonald. Later, TV star Vivian Vance lived in the place in the 1950s while filming the sitcom, “I Love Lucy.”
The 5,575-square-foot layout includes four bedrooms and seven baths, including three en suite bedrooms in the main house and a bedroom and bath in the guesthouse.
One bedroom features a custom walk-in closet. The primary suite is anchored by such luxury amenities as a clawfoot tub, dual vanities, a glass-walled shower, and vaulted beams.
Improvements were made to the main-house kitchen, which is now stocked with high-end appliances, an island with a second sink, and wine fridge. The space opens to the backyard, where an outdoor kitchen with a built-in barbecue makes al fresco entertaining a breeze.
The home includes a speakeasy-style lounge and screening room near the tequila-tasting room, where Cooley hosted an Academy Awards viewing party each year.
EntryRealtor.com
Tequila-tasting roomRealtor.com
Living roomRealtor.com
KitchenRealtor.com
One of the bedroomsRealtor.com
One of the bathsRealtor.com
Custom walk-in closetRealtor.com
SpeakeasyRealtor.com
Pool
Outdoor kitchenRealtor.com
Landscaped grounds
“When (Cooley) bought the property, it was very heavy, dark, old English,” Valentin Ramos says. “He kept some of it—the stained-glass windows, archways—to make sure the authenticity stayed with the house.”
White marble in the baths lightens up the home even more, along with new light fixtures throughout “to create more of a Hollywood Regency feel,” Valentin Ramos says.
Cooley worked with designer Chad Christopher Waterhouse to realize the property’s full potential with new landscaping.
Waterhouse “transformed the grounds into whimsical English gardens,” Valentin Ramos says. “The grounds are made for entertaining.”
An outdoor saltwater pool was recently added, too.
In the Hancock Park Historic Preservation Overlay Zone, “you have to abide by a lot of rules,” Valentin Ramos says of the area. “The exterior of the house cannot be touched. The inside of the house is up to the owner.”
And the opportunity to live in a neighborhood with such impressive estates is unmatched.
Another rarity is the property’s size in such a densely populated area.
“It’s hard to find big lots like this in Los Angeles,” Valentin Ramos says. “In Hancock Park, you get a lot of bang for your buck. It’s centrally located between Beverly Hills and downtown L.A.”
So will move in next? A celebrity with a penchant for hosting? A lover of historic homes? Or maybe both?
“It’s for a person that loves to entertain,” Valentin Ramos says. “You could [also] turn it into a family house.”
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