(Bloomberg) -- A hilltop Hollywood compound that’s home to a legendary Japanese restaurant is hitting the market for $100 million.
Yamashiro, a sushi restaurant in a century-old replica of a Japanese palace, appeared in movies including Memoirs of a Geisha, Kill Bill: Vol. 1 and Gone in 60 Seconds. The building stands at the center of the 7.3-acre (3 hectare) site overlooking the Hollywood Walk of Fame with sweeping views from downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Ocean.
The restaurant is staying, at least for now. But the buyer would be able to construct as much as 280,000 square feet (26,000 square meters) of additional structures surrounding the centerpiece building, according to a sales presentation.
Potential uses range from a high-end boutique resort to an art museum, think tank or personal estate, said Peter Sherman, a principal with brokerage Avison Young, which is listing the site. The property is unlikely to attract investors seeking a quick return on their money because high interest rates, a 5.5% city of Los Angeles real estate transfer tax, the building’s landmark status and LA’s protracted approval process have chilled dealmaking, he said.
“It’s not a commodity type of real estate,” Sherman said in an interview. “Who this property appeals to are probably folks that aren’t necessarily slaves to interest rates.”
The site last sold in 2016 for $40 million. The new asking price is about $314 a square foot, compared with $358 a square foot paid in 2022 for the adjacent Magic Castle, an Edwardian manor that’s home to the Academy of Magical Arts, said Chris Bonbright, who’s working with Sherman and Chase Gordon on the sale.
Yamashiro — a name translating to “mountain palace” — has a storied history. The building was constructed by Asian artisans for the brothers Eugene and Adolph Bernheimer to house their art collection. In the late 1920s, it hosted the 400 Club, an exclusive gathering spot for A-list celebrities from the Golden Age of Hollywood.
The property features an open-air courtyard, garden, shrines and temples. It also has as a 600-year-old pagoda imported from Japan that’s the oldest structure in California, according to the Yamashiro restaurant’s website.
Restaurants have struggled to stay open in Los Angeles because of high minimum wages and other costs. But the city is also expecting continued tourism growth as it hosts upcoming events, including games in the 2026 World Cup, the 2027 Super Bowl and the 2028 Olympics.
(Adds property details in penultimate paragraph. An earlier version of this story corrected the date of the Magic Castle sale.)
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