Twinkling lights hang from the trees—outlining the streets of downtown L.A., lighting a path through the jewelry district to Joyce Restaurant. Prince Riley had a vision: to bring the comfort of home and southern flavor to the busy streets of Los Angeles. With the creative eye of Athena Riley—together, they built a home away from home. At Joyce’s everyone is welcome to enjoy the vibes.
“When you think about what type of restaurant you want to open, there’s so many ideas that come to mind,” Prince reflected on the origin story of Joyce restaurant.
“I’ve always been passionate about southern food, my family is from the south. I feel like there was a need in the market, L.A. is such a diverse city and such a strong food city, but in my opinion, it’s more globally inspired…as far as true American restaurants there’s not many.”
Located on 770 South Grand Ave., Joyce is a celebration of southern cuisine, with a clever twist. Each dish tells a story of Black heritage. Starting with their cloud-like Angel Biscuits with Lavender Honey, to the Smoked Duck Confit with Jamaican Jerk Spice.
Joyce offers a menu centered around southern favorites with an emphasis on sustainable seafood that also features an extensive raw bar. According to Prince, the catfish is a must-try. It’s a dish that honors southern heritage with a contemporary touch. An ode to the staple in sea food in South L.A.
The conception of Joyce came out of a series of million-dollar mistakes. Over a 17-year span, Prince would work in hospitality, developing and managing front-of-house operations, ultimately studying under his mentor, Michael Gonzalez— opening different branches of restaurants.
His mentor would tell him that this is the stage in life where he can learn through “making someone else’s million-dollar mistakes,” a metaphor: to learn through experience, while managing these branches.
By 2019, Prince would find himself imagining what it would take to open his own restaurant.
“He was definitely planting the seeds,” Athena considered her view of the restaurant’s development, working with Prince and seeing the progress that led up to the opening of Joyce.
“I don’t think it was clear how we were going to get to ownership, but as far as his career goes, he was strategically planting and making moves based on getting closer to that goal,” Athena said.
The inspiration behind the name came from within the family. Originally named after their four-year-old daughter, Olivia—Athena and Prince decided to name it Joyce, after Prince’s mom, both Olivia and Prince’s mom share that middle name.
While living right on top of the restaurant in downtown L.A., Athena and Prince began putting the soul into Joyce that the guests feel as soon as they walk in. The Riley’s said the grand opening felt surreal.
Clinking glasses and a high frequency buzz cover the entire restaurant, couples exchange smiles, while others sway to the soulful tunes in the background. Joyce’s gives L.A. natives a place to relax after a hard day of hitting the pavement.
The busiest nights are Saturdays, guests can choose to sit indoors or outdoors. There’s a parking garage right across from the restaurant, with $7 parking after 4:00 pm.
The prices typically range between $31 and $50 per person, with specialty cocktails costing around $19.
Athena, Prince and Oliva welcomes everyone to come feel the warmth of the south and share the laughter at Joyce Restaurant.
