When she came across the name “Violet,” she palmed her head, realizing it was a no-brainer. Owner of Violet LA, Dana Slatkin ’84 opened her Westwood bistro in early 2020.
The name arose during an annual holiday reunion with her friends from Marlborough, a year before the restaurant’s opening.
“At dinner, we were trying to brainstorm restaurant names, when I looked around the table and realized that what brought us together and gave me some of the most steadfast friends in my life was Marlborough,” Slatkin said. “When I suggested the name Violet, we all sort of slapped our foreheads and said, ‘Duh!’”
Having graduated from Marlborough in 1984, Slatkin went to the University of California, Berkeley and The Culinary Institute of America before spending a year understudying a chef in France.
When she felt compelled to start up her own establishment, she turned to other Marlborough alums for support. In the process of mapping out the architectural plan of Violet, she leaned on classmate former Toni Lewis ’84 who founded local architecture firm Lewis|Schoeplein Architects with her husband, Marc Schoeplein. Moreover, Slatkin said she drew inspiration from Suzanne Goin ’84, founder of acclaimed restaurants Lucques and AOC.
“I still stay in touch with my Violets. We are the ‘core four’ and celebrate each other’s birthdays and milestones,” Slatkin said. “I also get to see lots of Violets at the restaurant. There’s nothing that warms my heart more. I am always blown away by the support and sisterhood that keeps coming from Marlborough these days.”
Throughout the restaurant, there are many subtle allusions and references to violets, such as their cocktail the Violet Spritz, their use of the marble “violetta” for the bar’s countertop, their use of violets as garnishes for multiple dishes and their signature violet perfume.
To further her career, Slatkin will be opening a new “retro, comfort food” restaurant in the Brentwood Village in October 2025.
Reflecting on her Marlborough experience and resonating with the concluding line of the Alma Mater – “Love for Marlborough will endure” – Slatkin said she cherishes the close-knit community of Marlborough and its continued enrichment of her career as a restaurant owner and entrepreneur.
“I am so grateful for the friends I met there, the ability to write well and advocate for myself and others, the belief in myself and the drive to find my little corner of the world where I can make a difference in someone’s life,” Slatkin said. “For making my life meaningful and fulfilling, I say Merci, Marlborough!”
