The Horseless Carriage sits amid a Ford dealership in the Los Angeles San Fernando Valley. | Photo by Lisa Jennings
Sitting in the Horseless Carriage diner in the Los Angeles area, one wouldn’t have the impression the restaurant industry is struggling.
Tables were packed on a Friday lunch, with guests waiting at the door. A steady pace of takeout customers picked up bags at the register. A couple of cheerful servers bounced around the room, bantering with what appeared to be many regulars, while delivering dishes heavy with steak and eggs, chicken and waffles, patty melts and baked-in-house pies.
What made the scene so unusual, however, was the fact that the 140-seat diner is in a car dealership.
A $40 ribeye at the Horseless Carriage. | Photo by Lisa Jennings
Just feet away from the 1960s-era counter and booths of the Horseless Carriage, shiny new Fords were on display. Across the street, it was Land Rovers and Aston Martins. Down the road, Volvos, Lincolns and Volkswagens.
In fact, the Horseless Carriage is just one concept in a growing restaurant group operated by Galpin Motors, a family-owned operation that dates back to 1946, when it began selling Fords. Now the sprawling dealership with outlets across the greater LA area sells about 13 brands, from Honda to Polestar.
And at those dealerships, Galpin operates restaurants, bars and coffeeshops, from the signature Horseless Carriage diner to a German (inspired) concept called Boxenstopp (in the Porsche dealership), where guests might sit down to a Bratwurst omelet, schnitzel or a Boxster Burger with truffle fries.
The menu at Boxenstopp. | Photo courtesy of Galpin Motors.
Leading the restaurant operation is Executive Chef and Food-and-Beverage Director Giovanni Euceda, who spent seven years with the Beverly Hills Hotel before joining Galpin in 2022.
That may seem like an odd move. But the Boeckmann family behind the Galpin empire is investing in the restaurant side of the business. Next up is a sushi concept Euceda is planning for a new Mazda dealership under construction (“It’s a Japanese brand,” he noted).
For a massive car dealership like Galpin, it makes sense, argued Euceda.
The late owner Bert Boeckmann, who died in 2023 at age 92, wanted to create a full-service experience, one that would keep people on the property if they got hungry while car shopping or waiting for service.
“It’s a complement to anybody who comes to purchase a car, while they’re waiting to sign the paperwork, to enjoy a meal with us,” Euceda said. “We pride ourselves on putting really gourmet food out there.”
While most car dealerships might offer snacks like stale popcorn or chips from a bank of vending machines, Galpin buyers and service customers can sit down to a draft kombucha, a cappuccino with freshly baked biscotti at Fika in the Volvo dealership (“fika” means coffeebreak in Swedish) or—for the elite buyer—even a high-end Japanese whisky in a James Bond-like showroom staged like a bank vault with the latest Aston Martin glittering on a pedestal.
Galpin also licenses a Starbucks outlet and a Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in some of its buildings.
“Everything has a little touch of food and beverage,” said Euceda.
Fika serves specialty chocolates, pastries and cakes, made in house, alongside a line of freshly brewed coffees. | Photo by Lisa Jennings
In addition, Euceda’s food-and-beverage team juggles the catering of various events, from the launch of new cars or the dealership’s annual car show, to F1 race viewing parties. Once a month, Galpin hosts a Cars and Coffee gathering for car lovers and their vehicles that typically attracts up to 4,000 people.
It’s big business. Euceda said the Horseless Carriage alone does about $3.2 million in sales annually. Overall, food-and-beverage sales bring in more than $5 million for Galpin.
And Galpin is not alone in seeing an opportunity with foodservice.
In nearby Ventura County, a Bunnin Chevrolet dealership reportedly hosts the barbecue concept R+Q Kitchen. In Charlotte, North Carolina, a Town and Country Ford dealership has created a brick-and-mortar home to a favorite food truck concept. In Sarasota, Florida, another Ford dealership boasts the Le Mans Kitchen restaurant, though it’s for customers only and not the general public. A Sacramento Mercedes-Benz dealership is known for its pizza.
The car-themed Ford’s Garage, a full-service chain based in Tampa, is also growing quietly. Founded near car pioneer Henry Ford’s winter home, the concept has no affiliation with the Ford Motor Co. But the automaker got curious about the brand and later signed a licensing deal with the chain. Now a Ford’s Garage operates across the street from the car brand’s world headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, and dealers are looking to bring the brand into their facilities.
At Galpin, one of the largest car dealerships in Southern California, some of the restaurant outlets are tucked into showrooms with no real street presence. Others, like the Horseless Carriage, operate as independent restaurants. Guests come and go from a separate entrance, without having to navigate hovering sales reps.
But Euceda is clearly well integrated into dealership operations. Walking through the various properties with him, he is greeted warmly by staff, with sales reps thanking him for taking care of buyers to help clinch deals.
On social media, the Horseless Carriage is touted as a local gem for those in the know.
@grubwithgreg @horselesscarriage has been here for 40 years and is America’s 1st in-dealership diner – and you need to come try it if you haven’t already! It’s just off Roscoe and the 405 adjacent to the Galpin Ford dealership. Here’s everything I tried: Carne Asada Skillet $18 Large Stack buttermilk pancakes $11 Build your own omelette $18 Rueben Special $18.95 Horrseless Carriage Triple Decker Club $20 Sizzling Angus Beef Fajitas $22 Angus Ribeye Steak $40 Galpinized Burger $20 📍HORSELESS CARRIAGE RESTAURANT 15505 Roscoe Blvd Van Nuys, CA
♬ original sound – Grub with Greg
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It’s largely a breakfast and lunch concept. The restaurant closes at 8 p.m., but offers early bird prime rib specials, starting at 4 p.m. and the menu (rather comically) offers dishes like surf-and-turf, with a whole lobster-topped steak.
“I run out of it all the time,” said Euceda. “People love it.”
The Surf and Turf at the Horseless Carriage. | Photo courtesy of Galpin Motors.
On the second floor of the Ford dealership is a bakery operation, where pies and cakes are produced daily. Euceda said he’s talking with a local coffee roaster about creating a Galpin brand of coffee to further extend the brand.
On Yelp, the Horseless Carriage has a 4.5-star review average, with many commenting on the “hometown vibe” or noting that their meal was comped as they waited for their car to be serviced.
“The food is much better than you’d expect,” said one recent review in The Infatuation. “Slide into one of the aqua-colored bar seats, order scrambled eggs with chunks of sweet lobster, and let the guy next to you explain how they don’t make engines like they used to.”
