Support Café Tropical Staff
No one gathers better than the rats
Hello, my beloved rats! I know I told y’all you wouldn’t hear from me during the holiday break, but this is not the Ratplay you’re used to.
Ratplay is a community-inspired newsletter meant to connect and uplift the glorious people of city with one another, and there are no people more glorious than the former employees of Café Tropical. As a kid who grew up with some of the best Cuban food in the world, living down the street from Tropical made my move to LA close to seamless. I loved it there, as did the people in recovery groups crowded outside the pastel purple walls sipping on coffee; as did the the people perched under the pink and white umbrellas with a dog and a book; as did the people swinging in before work to grab a box of guayaba y queso pastelitos (they’re always better when they’re shared).
As some of you may have read in my “note” (I still don’t really get Substack’s other features, did y’all get a notification about that??) Café Tropical, along with its sister restaurants El Cochinito and Bolita, permanently closed last week. In the midst mourning this loss, I found out that the staff were given three days notice (no more than the rest of us) that they’d be losing their jobs. I was also informed by GM Manny Contreras that all of their final checks were returned due to “insufficient funds” (if you’re a nosey rat, here’s an LA Times article).
Ratplayers: the staff need our help, and if there’s any community that knows how to gather in numbers, it’s the rats! With the GoFundMe, we’re looking to raise at least a month’s wages to help the employees through the holidays as they look for other employment. Café Tropical, El Cochinito, and Bolita were community institutions that helped make our city more vibrant, diverse, and welcoming for everyone, and the staff were a reflection of that love and care. Let’s get together and send that love back during this difficult time.
If you have some dollars to spare, you can help by donating to the cause (you'll find more information on the page as well.) If you don’t have $$ right now, sharing the fundraiser is just as valuable–you can repost the GoFundMe on your IG story, or send a text/email with the link. Love y’all, take care of each other.
In community,
CK