Elon Musk opened a diner in Hollywood. What could go wrong? I went to find out

[cbabe]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jul/26/elon-musk-tesla-diner-hollywood

Elon Musk opened a diner in Hollywood. What could go wrong? I went to find out

The tech billionaire’s ‘retro-futuristic’ drive-in and Tesla charging station has long lines, plenty of glitches – and adoring fans

Lois Beckett in Los Angeles
Sat 26 Jul 2025 07.00 EDT

It was just before lunchtime on its third day of operation, and the line outside Elon Musk’s new Tesla Diner in Hollywood already stretched to nearly 100 people. The restaurant has been billed as a “retro-futuristic” drive-in where you can grab a high-end burger and watch classic films on giant screens, all while charging your Tesla.

…

During a Tesla earnings call on Wednesday, as the company disclosed declining revenue and profits, Musk highlighted his new burger palace as a success: “Diners don’t typically get headline news around Earth,” he bragged. He also called the diner “a shiny beacon of hope in an otherwise sort-of bleak urban landscape”. (It is located on Santa Monica Boulevard, in a neighborhood full of high-end art galleries.)

I’d had plenty of time in the diner line to think about “retro-futuristic” experiences, and how good a description that was, not so much for this very ordinary diner, but for the rightwing political project that Musk had joined. We were now moving into a future that offered tank-like electric cars and on-demand drone deliveries, and also a resurgence of measles outbreaks and women dying from preventable pregnancy-related complications.

But continuing to function in the United States right now requires being very good at compartmentalization. I tucked away the cardboard Cybertruck lids to show my co-workers, threw away the Tesla waffles, and went on with my day. Nothing works properly here any more, but hey, it’s an experience.

//

[bronxiteforever]

1. Kick

[dalton99a]

2. Nourishment for brainless bootlicking cultist sheep

[peggysue2]

3. Unless I missed it . . .

The author doesn't mention that the enormous outside screen obliterates the light and view of three apartments behind it. Not sure if Musk bought the home dwellers off or just figured they'd be thrilled to be smack up against a Musk enterprise.

The whole experience sounds like a bust. I would never wait 2-3 hours for any meal. Btw, the cute take away boxes? One news reporter said they need work--they're flimsy and fall apart.

Which pretty much describes anything Musk touches these days.

[boonecreek]

4. $13.50 for a burger without fries?

I'll stick with Culver's, thank you.

[Retrograde]

10. Local place charges $11.99

for their basic burger - fries extra. This is Kirk's in Palo Alto, which has been a local staple since before I was alive (and before Silicon Valley was even a glint in eye of Fairchild Semiconductor). The area is known for high rents. Local pubs offer burgers (with fries) for ~$16, and up. So the actual prices don't seem too out of line, considering the Musk Mark-up.

However, these places have all been in business for some time, know their customer bases, and can be depended on to deliver a burger that's actually cooked to specification within a reasonable amount of time. Unlike an Elon endeavor.

[boonecreek]

12. Yeah, I don't know about the Elonburger.

I'd be afraid of getting a tape worm.

[JI7]

5. Reviews aren't so good

And even the items that are good are not good enough for how much it costs.

[cbabe]

6. One detail: popcorn making robot broke. Day two: stale popcorn. Such

an ironic metaphor: LA home of movie popcorn. ..

[usonian]

7. I look forward to eating there. (Can anyone loan me a Nazi armband?)

[tinrobot]

8. They're leaving milk and frozen foods out in the heat

Might want to get a health inspector out there

The Tesla diner is unfortunately in my neighborhood so I took a little peek to see boxes of milk and frozen foods out in the heat. Good luck to everyone’s stomachs.

— Melissa Stetten (@melissastetten.bsky.social) 2025-07-25T16:15:24.113Z

[AStern]

9. I liked this...

The generic-brand cola tasted cheap and was served with a woke bamboo straw.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

11. Long lines? Good for him. A new Jack in The Box just opened to long lines here in a Chicago suburb.

Somehow I think neither will sustain that novelty effect.

[senseandsensibility]

13. Disappointed in my fellow Californians

Hope this doesn't continue after the novelty has worn off.