Shri Shirdi Saibaba Sansthan La

Come on guys. I have to give this place a 5 star rating. Honestly this murthi of Shirdi Sai is effectively a replica of the one in Shirdi itself. Another secret you probably didn’t know is that the same sculptor that formed the Shirdi Sai murthi sculpted this one as well. They brought it on a ship and it is a Shirdi Sai miracle that this came here safely!
This is practically a Shirdi in the USA. And we are blessed and happy to have a Shirdi here right in LA. Come on a Thursday evening and take some maha prasadam with you. Also bring some sweets, Baba loves peda.
There has been a change in management and these guys have been doing a great job. They recently opened a room to help with management of donations and it is very accessible for the temple staff.

Beautiful Sai Baba temple in Montebello area of Los Angeles (main Sai Baba temple for the LA area). Parking can be kind of hard since it is in a residential neighborhood but usually easy to find street parking. Priests are very, very nice and embody true spirit of Shirdi Sai Baba. Om Sai Ram!

The first thing you notice when you arrive is that the Shirdi Temple of Montebello is not in the greatest area, almost shady if you ask me. I was run almost run over twice crossing the street. The second thing you notice is that available street parking is little to none (can’t park in the small alley next to the temple, you will get a citation). Sometimes you will get lucky and catch someone leaving to snag their spot. Beware, people can get super competitive for parking spots.
The inside of the temple and shrine rooms are nicely maintained. Poojas can get crowded so get ready for pushing and shoving, but, that’s expected so its ok. Poojas are conducted in mostly Telugu and some Marathi. Most people bring prasad to be blessed and distributed amongst the people in attendance after the religious procession. If you can’t make Indian food, you can bring some fruits or water cases.
Though the insides of the temple are well kept (minus the bathrooms, they are kinda gross, I’d suggest you hold it till you get home or find a nearby fast food place), the outside is not so nice. Make sure you wear shoes.

This temple was built about 3 years back if I remember it right. We go there once a year or so. The idol and deity area is nicely maintained. However the area outside is small and not well kept. Sometimes they put prasadam outside and the place is full of flies. The restrooms are not well kept. Parking area is very small and can accommodate about 6 or 7 cars, everyone else should park on the crowded streets outside. Yesterday there was some pooja going on in the outside room and the place was full of smoke. It was very suffocating to stand inside and we had to come out asap.