NORMS Restaurant — Restaurant in Inglewood

I have loved Norms since I moved to L.A. in 1988. My sister's and I went to this Norms in Inglewood right after it opened. I have NEVER seen a happier and proud group of workers. It was just so cool.

As always the food was good, the prices good, the staff as I said was friendly. Even during COVID once the restaurants were allowed to reopen the staff and food was great, despite the pressure of the ever present virus.

We went back recently (my sister's live in Alaska and it's a tradition to go to this Norms on the way home from the airport. It's always guaranteed to start the visit on a perfect note) and everything was still great. The giddiness of the opening has calmed down, but the staff is great. My one complaint - turn the music down a couple notches please. OOf, it makes conversing and even thinking a little rough.

My other complaint is with the Equity Partners that bought Norms from the family that owned it and treated their employees so well people would work there their entire lives. I knew something was up because the food is still reasonable given inflation, and I knew cuts had been made somewhere. Yup - the new owners cut the old timer's 401k's out (I don't know the exact details, but the employees got the shaft) cut staff salaries, etc. Forced out older higher paid employees for younger and cheaper workers.

Private Equity will ruin America - and it's often for the benefit of the large retirement funds that screw over average workers to keep their profits up. Basically one employee group screwing another - yet even with that with that MOST of the profits go to the private Equity "managers,"not the retirement funds. So the pensioners and workers both lose.

So I am left with a problem. I want to support the workers at Norm's but I can see the Private Equity owners building a few more restaurants, stripping out more from the workers "to increase value" and then selling it. It's a sad tale of America. As a small business owner myself (small housing provider) dealing with the huge Private Equity firms and scoundrel banks that work in concert with to grab small owner's properties, I am acutely aware of the pain Private Equity can cause. They get cheap money from the FED and use it to steal from the people lower on the totem pole.

So my solution is to limit my trips to Norms, but tip very generously when I do go.

This is America these days folks. I'm not sure without Private Equity there would be an Inglewood Norms and all the employee pride and jobs it provides. But it should - and could - be a win-win for everyone.

Just remember it isn't the Norms we knew and loved - it's a shell game, which does have its benefits - a tiny fraction to the workers, the lion's share once again to Wall Street. It is symbolic of the plague of zero-sum money policy in America. It's how a beloved restaurant chain becomes a...

I placed an order over internet and I went to pick it up the waiter said their machine wasn't working. But it was found. She packing up my food and then all the waiter where sitting inside the restaurant at a table talking when there were 10 people inside waiting. Which was against health department policy. All the waiter sitting at the table talking called the one waiter who was working over and now all the waiters are at the table talking. Then another waiter which was a tall man with too tight, too short pants on asked us what was the problem because everyone was complaining about not being helped. He saud he was going to help us and he gave someone who walked in his receipt and he walked away and went and joined the group of waiter sitting at table talking. He lied to us. So I walked past their rope and started packing up my own food. The cook came from behind the counter and I pushed the food towards him and told him to give me back my money because its unsafe in here with all these people in here and all the waiters sitting at the table talking. The cook was trying to pack up everyone food because everyone is telling him to refund them their money. None of the waiters even attempted to move to come and help any customers even though it was too many people inside. I was at Norm's between 255pm and 345pm. Their were people in there before I walked in waiting. I feel like the treatment we received was very unprofessional and the stay at Norm's was unsafe. There were more then 10 people inside standing around who is against County code. And seeing that I work for County of Los Angeles I will be reporting the treatment that we received and how the tall skinny, Flooding too tight pants waiter stayed he was going to help everyone, but went and joined the 6 or 7 females waiters in their conversations. The whole...

Updated 11/21/2023 Finally made it to this establishment, updated atmosphere, and I enjoyed my visit. Nice, clean, and quiet atmosphere, and Brian, our server, was very nice and friendly!

I had the Veggie Omelet (Egg Whites) with Loaded Hash Brown and Pancakes. I didn't give the Atmosphere any stars because I had my food delivered and I've never been to this location. This was my first time ordering and having a meal from this place.

My two guests ordered the So Cal breakfast (hotcakes, bacon, and tater tots), and I ordered the Chefs sampler plate and macaroni and cheese with bacon. For dessert the Raspberry Cheesecake and the Strawberry Cheesecake.

One guest is a picky seven year old, and she enjoyed her breakfast. She gave me a thumbs up on her food, and she ate the whole platter. My other guest enjoyed her breakfast, too. She loved the consistency of the pancakes.

I always try the sampler plate when I visit restaurants. Thank you for not burning and over frying my chicken strips, onion rings, butterfly fried shrimp and mozzarella sticks. The bacon Mac and cheese was watery, but I enjoyed how it tasted. The five stars remain because my fried sampler plate wasn't burnt and I've had others who were burnt and chewy.

The cheesecakes were very good.

I ❤️ the orange containers that the food came in, was not expecting that and it was refreshing seeing that color and design. I also liked the double compartment for the breakfast that separated the pancakes from the other items.

I hope to one day visit this establishment, but I will order my breakfast from this place from now on and I plan to try other things...