Elon Musk's Tesla Diner chef just quit to open a deli
Elon Musk's Tesla Diner — the billionaire's shiny, UFO-shaped restaurant in Los Angeles — may be in the market for a new chef.
The Los Angeles Times reported this week that chef and co-operator Eric Greenspan is leaving the project. The chef said that he was leaving to focus on opening his new spot, a Jewish deli, but the paper also noted he faced stark pushback for joining forces with Musk.
"I am leaving the Tesla Diner project to focus on the opening of Mish, my long-desired Jewish deli," Greenspan told the LA Times in a text message. "Projects like Mish and the Tesla Diner require a sharpness of focus and attention, and my focus and attention is now squarely on Mish."
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Mashable visited the Tesla Diner back in August, which serves the classics — burgers, fries, shakes, etc. — but with Muskified names. So you get items like "electric sauce," "autopilot avocado toast," a "giga burger," and now-defunct "epic bacon." The food did earn decent reviews from Mashable editor Neal Broverman, even if it felt overpriced for the portion size.
This isn't the first big change at the Tesla Diner. Shortly after the diner's opening, patrons noticed that the menu had been scaled back — thus the goodbye to "epic bacon." The LA Times also reported that the diner was looking to move to a full-service model — for the time being, you order at a tablet and get counter service. And, of course, now the chef has left.
In short: It seems quite unclear what the future holds for Musk's futuristic restaurant.
Tim Marcin is an Associate Editor on the culture team at Mashable, where he mostly digs into the weird parts of the internet. You'll also see some coverage of memes, tech, sports, trends, and the occasional hot take. You can find him on Bluesky (sometimes), Instagram (infrequently), or eating Buffalo wings (as often as possible).
