Mr. Cecil's Barbecue Spot Closes

After nearly 10 years in business, Mr. Cecil's California Ribs has closed its Sherman Oaks location, leaving its doors and windows boarded up.

The owner of the restaurant at 13625 Ventura Blvd., former movie producer Jonathon Burrows, was unavailable to talk about the closure.

Burrows talked last year about leaving the movie business and opening three restaurants in Los Angeles, in an article on Sherman Oaks Patch.

His concept was an almost instant success. Three months after he opened, a Los Angeles Times reviewer declared that Burrows’ offerings were “plates of meat to dream about.”

But the competition between barbecue restaurants in Sherman Oaks became more heated when Boneyard Bistro, which is one block east of Mr. Cecil's, expanded the size of its restaurant and introduced a new menu.

"If you really like barbecue, then the Boneyard became the place to go," said a store owner who asked that his name not be used.

Mr. Cecil's California Ribs on Pico Boulevard in West Los Angeles has also closed; however, the location on Highland Avenue in Manhattan Beach remains open.