Hart House Monrovia opens to serve plant-based alternatives

By Georgia Valdes and Jamaire Revis

Hart House, Kevin Hart’s plant-based quick service restaurant, opened the doors to its Monrovia location on Wednesday, Nov. 9. The 30-seater, indoor space is designed by Black female entrepreneur, Kai Williamson and creative expert, Nicollette Santos. In a nod to its community, ten percent from the opening day proceeds is pledged to Boys and Girls Club of the Foothills. 

Hart House’s menu features an entirely plant-based, fast food style cuisine with the promise of zero cholesterol, antibiotics, hormones, artificial colors, preservatives, corn syrup or trans fats. A speedy start, the opening comes only a month after actor, comedian and restaurateur, Kevin Hart, made his Instagram announcement. 

According to Marcus Byrd, director of marketing, Monrovia was an easy choice for the chain’s second location because of its accessible location and unattended customer base. 

“A big piece of Hart House we’re looking to do is accessibility. So going to places that maybe there aren’t a lot of plant-based concepts because everybody’s going to open up Hollywood, everybody’s going to open up on the west side. But let’s get it to some people that maybe don’t have the opportunity to eat this kind of cuisine” Byrd said. “A ton of families are out here, in Monrovia. We just figured none of our competitors are here, so can we be the first to kind of plant our flag?”

The Monrovia location is the second Hart House and opened just two months after its flagship in Westchester. In its first week, it saw over 7,000 guests with 1,200 meals sold. For Byrd, Hart House is only getting started. He added that it welcomes customer feedback and is hopeful that Hart House can continue to add and upgrade menu items that meet the company’s standard to center health and offer flavors customers expect from a burger and fry restaurant.

“As we continue to grow, and keep going down this road, even from where we were six months ago, now, we brought sodium (down by) 30% … in a lot of ways I think Hart House can be a gateway to healthier eating,” Byrd said. 

To learn more about Hart House and its nutritional layout, visit myharthouse.com. The Monrovia location is at 602 W. Huntington Drive and is open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.  

Story written in collaboration with “Yall Know What.”