Larkin Mackey and Joshua McBride turned personal misery into one of L.A.’s hottest eateries

BY RICHARD ANDREOLI

It wasn't long ago that Larkin Mackey and Joshua McBride's lives felt completely unbearable. Mackey was unhappy doing research work for Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, while McBride's artistic endeavors had taken a backseat to being a hair stylist. Those stresses bled into their six-year relationship, and they both suspected it was about to end.

“I didn't think Larkin had anything giving his life purpose,” says McBride. “He was miserable, always complaining, and I didn't want to deal with that.” So McBride took a 30 day trip to Spain to “figure my own life out.” And when he returned, he was in for a surprise.

“I'd started cooking school at Kitchen Academy and decided to open a restaurant,” Mackey says, explaining that he'd never cared about any of his jobs in the past, but this felt different. He wasn't sure how his dream would come alive, but he decided to push on with or without his partner's help. “I'd finally found what I was passionate about and just went for it,” he says. But just as things started taking off, Mackey's dog died.

“Larkin had lost his best friend, and I felt this huge emptiness in him,” McBride says. “I realized in that moment how much I loved Larkin, and that I wanted to do everything in my power to help his dream come true.”

Thus began the creation of Larkin's, a soul food spot in Eagle Rock that has everyone from the L.A. Weekly and Los Angeles magazine to staunch food critic S. Irene Virbila at the Los Angeles Times buzzing with excitement. But it wasn't an easy journey. Neither man had experience running a professional kitchen (Mackey) or operating the front of a restaurant (McBride), and their vision was to create a space that dispensed with the self-important trappings found at fancy L.A. eateries and instead create a more down-home sensibility. Friends were quick to point out the pitfalls waiting to happen, and doubts increased as the couple leased a rundown Craftsman bungalow for their location.

“We just didn't know any better,” says co-owner and sous chef, Rick Rowan, whom Mackey met at culinary school. “This whole town is full of people with ideas and dreams, but Larkin inspired everybody to go forward with this dream.” And so the group persevered, redesigning the space, tearing out walls, hiring contractors, slogging through mountains of paperwork and handling city inspectors—until the money ran out.

“We had to start these private tastings so we wouldn't go bankrupt, but then they became really popular,” Rowan says. Indeed, after the L.A. Times mentioned Larkin's “friends-only” dining list, word about the restaurant instantly spread across town. As Mackey says, “You know L.A. people and their lists. Everyone was calling asking, 'How do I get on this list?' and coming to the door having tantrums because they weren't on the list. It was crazy.”

Those six months of private tastings not only raised necessary funds, they also taught everyone how to run the restaurant. And while Mackey and McBride admit to making some beginner's mistakes during that time, business has continually increased since the restaurant's opening in April 2007.

Though the trials of running a business never cease, Mackey is certainly happy with the public's response and the restaurant's continued evolution; not only is his vision becoming a reality, he also sees Larkin's as a positive jumping off point for the family he helped bring together to run the restaurant. And how is his relationship with McBride?

“When he rips me from sleep in the morning and starts bouncing around like a little ball of sunshine, I'm ready to strangle him,” Mackey deadpans. “But we're fine after the first hour and the coffee.”

McBride laughs, affectionately leaning into Mackey's shoulder. “I feel like I've lived a very self-centered life,” McBride says, now turning serious. “But in the process of giving all my energy [to] Larkin's dream, I realized that this has become my dream, too. We had this lack of emotional substance in our lives, and then all of a sudden there was this whole new thing to put our energy into. And since we've built that up, we've also built up a beautiful relationship.”

Larkin is located at 1496 Colorado Blvd., Eagle Rock. For more information, visit www.larkinsjoint.com or call 323/234-0954.