Grease-Stain Worthy Dining in Southern California

[Holly Moore]

Greetings,

I'm going to be in the LA and San Diego area for just over a week, starting September 9th. Going to have plenty of time to do some research/eating for my web site.

Would appreciate any and all recommends for grease-stain worthy dining in the general area. Particular areas of interest - burgers, dogs, fries, local institutions, regional road food, ice cream, real frozen custard, etc.

Thanks,

[ScorchedPalate]

Local Institutions / Regional Roadfood:

Taco Mesa!

The original location in Costa Mesa is still the best:

647 W. 19th St.

(949)-642-0629

I'm sure you will get many recommendations for Pink's hot dogs on La Brea in Los Angeles... yum.

Edited to add:

Dr. Bob's Handcrafted Ice Creams got a nod in the current issue of Saveur, where they listed their 10 favorite ice cream joints. Never been there myself... I had to dig for the location of their "Dipping Store": 155 C Street, Upland, CA 91786.

Edited August 15, 2005 by ScorchedPalate (log)

[lesfen]

I'll probably get stoned for this, but my absolute favorite place to eat in So. Cal. was a place in Newport called Jack Shrimp. (I think they have a few locations tho'.) Big ass bowl of peel 'n eat shrimp soaking in a mildly spicy rosemary broth, served with a basket of crusty bread and butter. Oh man. Stains on your shirt, indeed.

[Evan]

For Burgers/local institution, you should try the Apple Pan in LA on Pico Blvd just east of Westwood Blvd, they are closed on mondays. Also Howard's Avocado bacon burger on Venice Blvd just east of Sepulveda Blvd gives a nice grease stain on the brown bag.

For LA local fried chicken institution, try Dinah's on Sepulveda Blvd just south of Centinela Blvd north of LAX and of course you also cannot miss out on Roscoe's chicken and waffles.

[lauderdale75]

How about Pink's @

709 N La Brea Ave in L.A.

[mizducky]

In San Diego, may I recommend Hodad's - a very Ocean Beach ("OB") joint, serving burgers almost bigger than your head in a room ornamented with bazillions of old licence plates and the front of an old VW microbus. There are actually a whole bunch of neighborhood joints all up and down this stretch of Newport Ave. catering to the area's hippie/surfer/biker demographic, but Hodad's strikes me as especially friendly to the HollyEats.com vibe.

[Chris Cognac]

Holly, would love to get a few folks together and show you around....let us know where you will be staying...Dont miss the Gardena Bowling Alley...best Hawaiian around!

[Stupid_American]

My "Cheap Eats" link, below, will list some eclectic eateries.

[Holly Moore]

Thanks for the suggestions to date. Please keep them coming.

I have a few LA locations on the site already. Pink's, one of my favorite dogs anywhere, is one of them. Also Cassal's, Original Pantry, Phillipe The Original and Tail O' the Dog.

At this point my schedule is unsettled. I'll know better in a week or two. Will PM those who have asked about getting together then. But always great to have a tour guide or 10. Especially when I can beat the freeway traffic and go by helicopiter. Right Chris?

An Oki-dog if they are still around is definitely on the agenda.

[andiesenji]

I still like the old Hamburger Hamlet in Hollywood at 6914 Hollywood Blvd.

The Hamlet

I love the burgers but especially love the:

"BBQ Meatloaf Sandwich

A Grilled 8oz Slice of Our Award-Winning Meatloaf, Brushed w. BBQ Sauce and Piled High on Garlic Toast w. Melted Jack Cheese, Hand-Mashed Potatoes and Our Little Fried Onions."

[rjwong]

I'm amazed that no one mentioned the Original Tommy's on Beverly Blvd. & Rampart. It is legendary!!

Edited to add: I second Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles. If you want the full experience, go to the one in Hollywood near the Palladium with the bouncer out front ... of the restaurant, YES!!

As for the Original Pantry, chicken fried steaks are served on Tuesdays & Saturdays while supplies last.

In Culver City, there's a Mexican taco stand called Tito's Tacos on Washington Blvd, I think. Really good!

Holly, could this thread be re-titled: The Dives of Southern California: Food for the Unrefined ? ... prim and proper lady encounters her meal at the Gardena Bowling Alley ... Mind you, I was referring to that Lily Tomlin character. I'm not implying that you're a lady, Holly, sir.

Edited August 17, 2005 by rjwong (log)

[Chris Cognac]

So, you want a helicopter ride while you are here?....let me know and I will try to swing an air tour of the best eateries in town...that way you can scout them much faster!

[susiew]

Hear hear. To further endorse, all over So Cal are imitators with names that look/sound like "Tommy's" like "Tomy's Original".

Tommy's is a stand in a parking lot. The burgers overflow with cheap chili and thick slabs of beef steak tomato. They have bathroom paper towel dispensers for you to manage your deliciously sloppy mess. You stand up while eating or sit in your car.

There is nothing like them and if you grew up on them, the craving never goes away (as witnessed by my passionate recommendation).

In case you are on Highway 5 near Valencia, there is a Tommy's there that is as good as the original but without the character. I once saw it and thought it was an oasis after my long drive...

I'm amazed that no one mentioned the Original Tommy's on Beverly Blvd. & Rampart. It is legendary!!

[JFLinLA]

Okay, so maybe it's not Tommy's or the Apple Pan or as famous as Pink's but, if you've never been, get yourself a "double-double" at an In & Out while you're in town.

And, since you mentioned ice cream . . . go check out Mashti Malone's. There was a whole thread here about ice cream not that far back.

Edited August 17, 2005 by JFLinLA (log)

[dfunghi]

Tommys is a sentimental fav but IMHO Fat Burger or better yet In and Out for greasy cal burgers, Ok wait, once I typed greasy I knew Tommys double chili cheesburger was King

Please do go to Dinos Burgers ( but get the chicken, everyone does) on Pico between Normandie / Vermont.

I second Casels BTW. Good flat tasty well done burger.

If you want "real " mexican go to Highland Park on Fri or Sat nights and cruise York blvd for taco trucks or tamale stands. Boyle height has this also but can get kinda freaky ( read Gangs) at night.

If hot and spicy is on the agenda you must go to Youn Gui ( formerly Huas) at 301 Garvey in Montery Park. Research Hua's. It has changed names but nothing else has changed. Hottest food in USA by far. You catch a buzz when you eat it.

Enjoy

[Chris Amirault]

No surprise you'll hit Pink's Holly. Get an extra chili dog for yer hungry pal, won't cha?

Meanwhile, following Stupid_American's suggestion when stuck in Anaheim on a recent trip, I went to the La Palma Chicken Pie Shop, which was fantastic and absolutely essential if you've never been. I'll say more if someone can confirm it's still there, since S_A has removed it from his website....

[ScorchedPalate]

More options for O.C. Mexican:

Anita's New Mexico Style: 600 S Harbor Blvd, Fullerton

- Sit-down restaurant, like nothing you've had in California

El Conejo: 2429 N Tustin Ave, Santa Ana

- Order at the counter, then they bring your food out to your table.

Other local institutions:

Watson's Drugs and Soda Fountain: 116 E Chapman Ave, Orange

- A real drugstore with a fountain lunch counter, right off the Circle in Old Town Orange. There's othing spectacular about the food; it's the setting.

Clearman's North Woods Inn: 7247 Rosemead Blvd, San Gabriel

- A theme restaurant that's been there for at least 40 years (My parents used to go on dates there ). Waiters dressed like lumberjacks, sawdust on the floor, the whole nine yards. Steaks, served with a baked potato bigger than your head, famous cheese toast, and two kinds of salad.

Pie'n Burger: 913 E California Blvd, Pasadena

- Just what it sounds like, very old-school.

Man, I am missing Pink's. And Roscoe's. I never really understood the appeal of Tommy's, though. Gotta get me down to L.A. soon...

Edited August 17, 2005 by ScorchedPalate (log)

[FoodZealot]

At Tommy's, may I suggest a number 1 combo (double patty, double cheese) with the chili on the side, fries well done and your drink of choice. Some may say that it's somehow less than the real experience to order the hot meat mayonaise on the side. But by doing so, they serve it in a one of those paper trays, you end up with more chili, you can add chili to each bite of burger, it's easier to eat the burger, and the fries can be dipped in chili. I suppose if you're a maniac, you could get the chili cheese fries, but it's overkill to me.

At Fatburger, may I suggest the Kingburger (1/3 pound patty), specify on the char (otherwise it'll be on the griddle), add cheese and a fried egg, everything except relish, onion rings, and your drink of choice. As a side note, depending on which location you go to, they may offer either skinny fries, steak fries, or curly fries.

At In-and-Out, you may have heard of the "secret" menu. I get my fries well done there as well, but they're still not satisfying.

I know it's not really your thing, but I also like The Counter and Father's Office, both in Santa Monica, for different burger experiences.

In regards to Tito's Tacos, Loteria Grill and El Tepeyac (another legendary place), I have always been disappointed by them, their popularity notwithstanding - just my opinion.

~Tad

[Evan]

Yes there are plenty of chain "california" hamburger places like In and Out, Fatburger, and Tommy's. For me, hands down, Fatburger is the best, then In and Out, and then Tommy's. The meat at fatburger tends to be more juicy compared with the other two. I don't care much for Tommy's because when I have their chili cheese burger, the meat is almost always dry and the chili on top looked like someone just took a big ole wet dump on top of the dry patty to reconsitute the moisture back in the patty.

At Fatburger, may I suggest the Kingburger (1/3 pound patty), specify on the char (otherwise it'll be on the griddle), add cheese and a fried egg, everything except relish, onion rings, and your drink of choice. As a side note, depending on which location you go to, they may offer either skinny fries, steak fries, or curly fries.

I believe the king burger patty is a 1/2 lb patty and the normal fatburger patties are 1/3 lb. I've taken down a few double kingburgers in my school days. I love the relish and feel as though it makes fatburger different from the rest, to each his/her own I guess. I get the fat(steak) fries but as my friend mentioned before and I agree completely, that the skinny fries has more surface area for the grease, which equals more goodness. Mmm fatburger (insert Homer Simpson drooling sound here), I guess I know what I'm having tonight. I may have to try the double king for old times sake, just to see if I can polish that thing still.

[Stupid_American]

ScorchedPalate Posted Today, 09:36 AM

Clearman's North Woods Inn: 7247 Rosemead Blvd, San Gabriel

- A theme restaurant that's been there for at least 40 years (My parents used to go on dates there ). Waiters dressed like lumberjacks, sawdust on the floor, the whole nine yards. Steaks, served with a baked potato bigger than your head, famous cheese toast, and two kinds of salad.

Wow!

I like Northwoods Inn, but never mention it.

The last time I did (on a certain snobbish board) I was berated!

Those potatoes with butter cheese sauce are great.

I love when the server throws the peanuts at your table.

[Chris Amirault]

Is La Palma still there, S_A?

[mizducky]

Holly, I've just turned up another grease-stain worthy joint for you to check out if you do make it to San Diego: Taco Motion in Pacific Beach (1313 Garnet Ave). Typical mom'n'pop storefront taqueria in a tiny strip mall, but with a number of menu items you don't usually see in taquerias geared more at the gringos. I've just inhaled one of their cabeza burritos, and man was it good. Wonderfully tender-but-chewy-textured meat and lots of it, in a thick mild brown gravy, with nothing else in the burrito except a sprinkling of sliced scallions, with lime wedges and hot sauce on the side to perk it up as one desires. Yummy, ridiculously cheap, and by the time I finished eating, the paper bag that had held the burrito was just one humongous grease stain. Now I've gotta go back and try their menudo (most places, if they have menudo at all, only serve it one or two days a week, but Taco Motion proudly announces that they serve it every day). Alas, no lengua, or tripas as a burrito/taco filling, so I'm still on the lookout for other joints to assuage my Mexican offal fetish, but this place will definitely do in the meantime.

[Jaymes]

If I were going to be in San Diego, and if I were a fellow with a 'food information' thing going, and if I were in search of adventures to have, consume and write about, I would not miss the site of the Original Caesar Salad.

It's been a few years since I was there, but it was definitely write-worthy.

Not to mention that there is lots of good street food in TJ, as there is in any Mexican town.

Edited August 18, 2005 by Jaymes (log)

[rjwong]

ScorchedPalate Posted Today, 09:36 AM

Clearman's North Woods Inn: 7247 Rosemead Blvd, San Gabriel

- A theme restaurant that's been there for at least 40 years (My parents used to go on dates there ). Waiters dressed like lumberjacks, sawdust on the floor, the whole nine yards. Steaks, served with a baked potato bigger than your head, famous cheese toast, and two kinds of salad.

Wow!

I like Northwoods Inn, but never mention it.

The last time I did (on a certain snobbish board) I was berated!

Those potatoes with butter cheese sauce are great.

I love when the server throws the peanuts at your table.

←

Here is my post about the North Woods Inn, the one along the 5 just north of the Orange County line near La Mirada.

The cheese toast was definitely ... cheesy.

Another place that serves great cheese toast is the Smoke House in Burbank. But that's a high-class retro place, so that doesn't count.

[lesfen]

ScorchedPalate Posted Today, 09:36 AM

Clearman's North Woods Inn: 7247 Rosemead Blvd, San Gabriel

- A theme restaurant that's been there for at least 40 years (My parents used to go on dates there ). Waiters dressed like lumberjacks, sawdust on the floor, the whole nine yards. Steaks, served with a baked potato bigger than your head, famous cheese toast, and two kinds of salad.

Wow!

I like Northwoods Inn, but never mention it.

The last time I did (on a certain snobbish board) I was berated!

Those potatoes with butter cheese sauce are great.

I love when the server throws the peanuts at your table.

←

Here is my post about the North Woods Inn, the one along the 5 just north of the Orange County line near La Mirada.

The cheese toast was definitely ... cheesy.

Another place that serves great cheese toast is the Smoke House in Burbank. But that's a high-class retro place, so that doesn't count.

←

I used to have a sales rep that would entertain clients there and I would often tag along. It was always... um... interesting. The bread ain't all that's cheesy in that place!!