> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Rude deli patrons irk neighbor - URL: https://www.smdp.com/rude-deli-patrons-irk-neighbor/ - Published: 2007-11-13T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T03:55:07.000Z - Author: Kevin Herrera - Tags: Business, Mid-City, #archive-import *Angry neighbor takes fight to city* MID-CITY For the last two years, Nathan Crowe says he has been unable to get a good night’s sleep because of excessive noise emanating from the parking lot behind Izzy’s Deli, a popular, 24-hour eatery that is one of the few places in Santa Monica where one can dine after hours. Crowe, whose cottage is separated from the parking lot by a 15-foot hedge, plans to go before the City Council tonight and demand that Izzy’s, a fixture in the community for over 30 years, be forced to close at midnight and reopen at 8 a.m., or be banned from using the parking lot during those hours. Crowe, who is disabled and seeking a kidney transplant, said his much-needed sleep has been interrupted by illegal food deliveries and late-night maintenance, but even more so by drunk, obnoxious patrons of the deli. Crowe said he has seen or heard customers get into fist fights during the early morning hours. One couple even had sex on the hood of a car, he claims. “This restaurant is doing nothing to stop this, or dissuade people from going out into the parking lot and partying,” Crowe said. “I will tell you that it has absolutely negatively impacted my health and I want something done about it. (The restaurant) should be held to a hire standard,” because it is allowed to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Izzy Freeman, the owner of Izzy’s, said there is no evidence to support Crowe’s claims. Freeman said he follows the letter of the law when it comes to deliveries and is doing everything he can to ensure his customers are respectful of the community that surrounds him. Freeman believes the noise is coming from those who are leaving a nearby bar called The Parlor and have chose to park in the lot behind his restaurant. He has hired a valet to monitor the lot and he forces people who park there to pay a $20 fee if they do not patronize his establishment. “People go to work before eight in the morning. If they won’t allow me to open, I might as well close my business and put 45 people out of work because of one schmuck,” said the Brooklyn-born Freeman, who opened up shop in 1973 at the northwest corner of Wilshire Boulevard and 15th Street. “For 35 years I’ve never had a problem … We’ve been here for a long time. We serve the community and the community has been good to us.” Freeman said he plans to post signs in the parking lot warning his customers to be courteous, and hopes that will appease Crowe. Over at The Parlor, a sports bar that is located just up the street from Izzy’s, manager Tim Dearn said he employs security guards to hang out on side streets and monitor his patrons to make sure they are respectful of the neighbors. Dearn said “once in awhile” he will get noise complaints, and that’s why he hired extra security. “We’re sensitive to the issue and do our best to make sure people respect the neighbors,” Dearn said. Both Freeman and Crowe said they are willing to go to court if they have to. During a recent Saturday night, there were roughly 10 people eating at Izzy’s around 1 a.m. Joe Petz was one of them. He said he “hits up” Izzy’s every couple of months for a late night snack and has never felt like there was a problem with noise. “It seems pretty quiet to me,” said Petz, who sympathizes with Crowe, but believes Freeman has the right to operate as long as he’s following the law. “I can see some people maybe being loud because they’ve been out late at a party or a club, but I don’t think Izzy’s should be made responsible for it. It’s up to each one of us to be respectful and not act like an idiot.” Petz said Izzy’s could put up signs, but that’s no guarantee that people will be quiet. “There are no smoking signs, no right-turn signs, no littering signs,” Petz said. “People still smoke, still make illegal turns and still throw things on the ground.” *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 13, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/111307.pdf?ref=smdp.com)