The Must opened in December of 2008 to rave reviews and an enthusiastic welcome from the neighborhood. The subsequent evolution of The Must was closely related to the symbiotic relationship Rachel and Coly developed with their neighborhood patrons. Within a year of opening, The Must won various awards and received numerous press pieces in Bon Appetite magazine, the L.A. Times, the L.A. Weekly, Sunset Magazine, NBC, Urban Daddy and Thrillist, among many others. It was voted best neighborhood bar in 2009 by the readers of the Downtown News Press and was lauded as best happy hour in Los Angeles by Los Angeles Magazine in 2009. Opening a tremendously successful bar and restaurant in the untested downtown market put Rachel and Coly on the map as pioneers and created a loyal local following.