L.A. Confidential

buffetbuster


WJ-
I'm certainly not going to pretend that a 10 day trip to Southern California makes me an expert on the area.  Far from it.  But, I do think you are underestimating the coffee shop as a style of Roadfood restaurant.  True, there is no individual food in these places that is indiginous or unique, but coffee shops seemed to especially thrive in Southern California.  I like to think about these places almost as if they are the west coast version of the diner.

 
Buffetbuster
 
You are  correct. California Coffee Shops (not coffee houses) are 100% pure Americana, however on my short and infrequent trips  out west (well infrequent compared to you! ) regional food trumps atmosphere.

Agree on the Coffee Shoppe's food, but they did give us the 50's/60's Jetson like  "Googie" designed buildings...most by Armet and Davis.

Thursday November 22, 2012
 
Considering this was Thanksgiving Day, there sure aren't going to be many tourists destinations open.  Luckily for us, there is one place nearby that is always open. Just a few blocks drive and we were at the famed LaBrea Tar Pits. 



It is just so weird to have this place right smack in the middle of such a populated area, but that's undoubtedly part of the charm.  There isn't really a ton to see here, especially since the Page Museum

and the nearby and truly excellent Los Angeles County Museum of Art were both closed for the holiday.  But, how can you not love seeing bubbling, black ooze

along with the smell that makes you think the road in front of your house is being repaired.  We spent a very enjoyable 45 minutes here.
 
One of the organizations I belong to is the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which oversees the Historic Hotels of America.  Because of this, I have stayed in quite a few of these hotels and easily my favorite is the Mission Inn, which I visited in 2004.  It is easily the most beautiful and romantic hotel I have seen.  So, we headed east into the Inland Empire to Riverside, where Mariton and I checked in.  TTM joined us at the hotel, but was staying elsewhere nearby.
 
The hotel is built to look like one of the famous California missions and succeeded, assuming the original missions included a spa and a cupcake shop.  Okay, maybe that was an unnecessary potshot, because the hotel is truly gorgeous.  We did explore, taking lots of photos, before finding Casey's Cupcakes

open. It was very surprising to find them open on Thanksgiving, but I know better than to look a gift cupcake in the mouth, so we went in.  These were some fine looking cupcakes


and we each picked one out, to be shared later.
 
By now we were hungry for dinner and ate in the Mission Inn Restaurant, which is in the middle of a three story courtyard.  A prettier setting for dinner is hard to imagine, but unfortunately, those photos are not worth posting.  I will be posting photos I took the following morning in the next segment.  Maybe TTM, who is a better photographer than I has something worthy of showing.  Anyway, most of the people around us were taking advantage of the $35.00 prime rib buffet and the plates people around us were walking by with were rather impressive.  But none us were in the mood for abig meal, so we just ordered off of the menu.  TTM got some kind of jumbo shrimp dish, which possibly came in a pasta, maybe.  Sorry, I did not take a photo of it, but he did like it.  I started off with the wonderful tortilla soup,

which was plenty spicy and featured a strong flavor of avocado.  Yeah, I know this is probably a sure sign of the apocalypse, but I ordered a salad, a Caesar salad,

which was just fine and exactly what I was in the mood for.  Mariton enjoyed her mixed green vegetable salad,

with some kind of vinaigrette dressing.
 
We headed back to the room to divvy up the cupcakes.  First up was Mariton's Rockin' Red Velvet,

which was a hit with everyone.  The only difference was that she scraped all of her icing off, while TTM enjoyed it with the icing.  My Decadent Dark Chocolate cupcake

was decidely rich, almost like a brownie and was almost too much of a good thing.  The concensus favorite was TTM's Luscious Lemon,

which was incredibly moist, with bright sunny flavor.  This was a great way to finish off our dinner.
 
I should mention that they claim the Mission Inn is supposed to be haunted.  We didn't experience anything unusual, although at times, we did get the strange feeling that we were being watched.

 
Much more to come.....

Friday November 23, 2012
 
Mariton and I got up early, to walk around and take photos of the hotel.  She did later on tell me that this was the nicest hotel she has ever stayed at and it was one of the highlights of the trip for her.


The builder of the Mission Inn, Frank Miller, compiled an impressive collection of bells including the oldest bell in Christendom that dates to 1247 AD and this

huge, centuries old bell, known as the Nanking Temple Bell.















 




 
Needless to say, many famous people have stayed here over the years, including several Presidents,

with Teddy Roosevelt being the first in 1903.  Richard Nixon and his wife Pat were actually married here in 1940.  When President Taft visited here, they built a special chair

to fit him and his girth.  In the main hall, they have a long carpet

with the name and dates of all the original California misions.  There really is something new and interesting to see around each corner.  They do have a museum on site and offer tours of the hotel, but we had too much to do. 
 
Just as we finished up our picture taking, TTM called to say he was up and ready.  So, we settled on a breakfast destination and headed back towards Los Angeles.

I don't know what I have on my DSLR, but I got one decent shot of our outdoor dining at The Mission Inn. I can't imagine that there is a picture that could have captured the experience, but I think you get the sense of being outdoors.
 

 
MetroplexJim  -  Yes, I currently live in the native territory of Five Guys in nothern VA, but I actually consider myself from RI where I was born and grew up.    To me, In 'N' Out and Five Guys are not even comparable.  Before I tried In 'N' Out, I was expecting a close challenge, ... but after trying it, it wasn't even a fair fight.  A TKO in the first round.   As for Texas' Whataburger, to me they taste very much like BK's Whopper.  Whataburger might be a notch better.  Not going out of my way for one again.   
 
WanderingJew -   Regarding the sweetenss of the fruit smoothies versus the date shakes, I think it was more a matter of expectation.  We expected date shakes to be sweet ... and they were.  We did not expect the fruit smooties to be as sweet as they were. (We are fruit smoothie newbies).    It also might have been the particular flavors we ordered. I imagine some fruits/flavors are sweeter than others.   It might be that we just don't like fruit smoothies, ... anywhere.      As for the date shakes, we like Shield's Date Garden  the best because it had the most most date flavor.  The one at Oasis Date Garden was very weak with little date flavor.  We tasted more vanilla than date.  The third one we had was at the Wheel Inn in Cabazon, and their date shake scored in the middle.  Unfortuntely, we did not have a date shake at the Orange Inn.     Regarding Du-Par's, I certainly have not found pancakes that good when I lived in RI.   Du-Par's is certainly worth a stop next time you are in SoCal.  RI for jonnycakes.  Du-Par's for pancakes.  :) 
 
BuffetBuster -  Those mission photos are amazing!  Lookng forward to seeing the rest of your report and hearing your opinions.  I agree with you on the "coffee shops".  They are very much a Southern California institution. And the food was great at the ones we visited.      Although not "Roadfood", as they are a chain, we also vistited a "Norm's" coffee shop, and it was pretty good, but not in Pann's league.    
    It's funny when I told several of my friends that I went to a few "coffee shops" in California, as Janet and I don't like coffee and we dont drink it.   You decribed them well, equating them to Southern California's version of a diner. 
 
 
Glenn
 
 
 
 

Glenn1234


WanderingJew -   Regarding the sweetenss of the fruit smoothies versus the date shakes, I think it was more a matter of expectation.  We expected date shakes to be sweet ... and they were.  We did not expect the fruit smooties to be as sweet as they were. (We are fruit smoothie newbies).    It also might have been the particular flavors we ordered. I imagine some fruits/flavors are sweeter than others.   It might be that we just don't like fruit smoothies, ... anywhere.      As for the date shakes, we like Shield's Date Garden  the best because it had the most most date flavor.  The one at Oasis Date Garden was very weak with little date flavor.  We tasted more vanilla than date.  The third one we had was at the Wheel Inn in Cabazon, and their date shake scored in the middle.  Unfortuntely, we did not have a date shake at the Orange Inn.     Regarding Du-Par's, I certainly have not found pancakes that good when I lived in RI.   Du-Par's is certainly worth a stop next time you are in SoCal.  RI for jonnycakes.  Du-Par's for pancakes.  :) 


Glenn

 
 
Glenn,
 
Call me skeptical but basing my benchmark on the Pancake Capital of the Nation- Vermont-  I must insist-  get thee self to:  Nicks on Broadway in Providence, The Brickway in Providence, T's in Johnston, Modern Diner in Pawtucket and Jigger's in East Greenwich (although I haven't had the pancakes since new ownership took over) 

buffetbuster, Gorgeous photos!  I was waiting for El Zorro to come flying out one of the windows.

So near and yet we drove the other direction. Bobbi was out for Thanksgiving and we decided to drive to Santa Fe for the weekend.  Had we known you were in L.A., we would have had a tough choice between buffetbuster and Bobcat Bite. 
 
WWBBD? Sorry Cliff, you know the answer.

wanderingjew

Glenn1234


WanderingJew -   Regarding the sweetenss of the fruit smoothies versus the date shakes, I think it was more a matter of expectation.  We expected date shakes to be sweet ... and they were.  We did not expect the fruit smooties to be as sweet as they were. (We are fruit smoothie newbies).    It also might have been the particular flavors we ordered. I imagine some fruits/flavors are sweeter than others.   It might be that we just don't like fruit smoothies, ... anywhere.      As for the date shakes, we like Shield's Date Garden  the best because it had the most most date flavor.  The one at Oasis Date Garden was very weak with little date flavor.  We tasted more vanilla than date.  The third one we had was at the Wheel Inn in Cabazon, and their date shake scored in the middle.  Unfortuntely, we did not have a date shake at the Orange Inn.     Regarding Du-Par's, I certainly have not found pancakes that good when I lived in RI.   Du-Par's is certainly worth a stop next time you are in SoCal.  RI for jonnycakes.  Du-Par's for pancakes.  :) 


Glenn

 

Glenn,

Call me skeptical but basing my benchmark on the Pancake Capital of the Nation- Vermont-  I must insist-  get thee self to:  Nicks on Broadway in Providence, The Brickway in Providence, T's in Johnston, Modern Diner in Pawtucket and Jigger's in East Greenwich (although I haven't had the pancakes since new ownership took over) 

 
 
I've been to Modern and have been to the old Jigger's. 
With several of us on here vouching for how good Du-Par's is,  you might want to try Du-Par's for yourself.  I think you'll like it.     
 
Glenn  

 Great photos of the Mission Inn. Looks like quite a place. Love the Taft chair. As a lover of all things presidential, I really enjoyed t your tidbits. it looks like a place I would like to visit  when i visit my son in socal.

They both have closed, sadly -  and it's a hard [really, really]  haul into LA to eat at Dupar's now. I miss it. A lot.

mr chips-
The Mission Inn is 100% worth seeing and they do give a great tour, which I took on my previous visit.  Unfortunately, they don't have that much Presidential stuff, other than paintings of the different Presidents who have stayed there, the Taft chair and the fact that the bar is called the Presidential Lounge.  Still, I recommend a visit when you are in town to see Sam.
 
totillie-
Sorry that the nearest two Du-Par's closed on you.  Do I remember that the Thousand Oaks location used to be in a hotel?
 
JRPfeff-
While we would have loved to have seen you and Pie Diva, I completely agree with your choice.  Especially if you ate a you-know-what from you-know-where!
 
TTM-
Thanks for the photo.  It is certainly better than anything hat I have. 

Oh, my-those cupcakes!!!!And, what a beautiful hotel-very classy.

Just spent some time in LA on business and had the pancakes at Du-Par's - I also loved that diner vibe and have to say the pancakes were delish. Made the mistake of breakfast at Pann's - a great atmosphere, but really disappointing breakfast - bacon was like jerky, and the pancakes AND the syrup were basically tasteless. Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles - I actually really enjoyed the waffle, but the chicken was not good. My favorite breakfast was at Phillippe's - we were happy to see you can order a dipped sandwich anytime of the day, so we did - split a beef and a pork. Loved the atmosphere, really enjoyed our sandwiches.

Friday November 23, 2012 (cont.)
 
I had called Donut Man in Glendora to see if they were open, but there was no answer.  Considering who we were traveling with, you have to expect these types of things.  So, we arrived at our breakfast destination, Pie 'N Burger

in Pasadena, just minutes ahead of TTM.  We grabbed seats in the middle of their long counter. 

This gave us a perfect view into the kitchen,

although we would need to stand up if we wanting to check out the grill.
 
Since this was still fairly early in the morning, both Mariton and TTM decided on breakfast.  Hers was sausage and eggs

which she enjoyed and TTM also made no complaints about his bacon and eggs.  What none of us really cared for was the home fries, which needed to be crispier.  Much crispier.  Better was the toast

and they make their own bread in house.  And to put on top of the toast, they have some excellent strawberry, apricot and blackberry preserves. 

These were so good, we thought they had to be homemade also, though we never did ask to make sure.  We do know for sure that they make their own salsa,

which Mariton used liberally on her eggs and potatoes, but proved to be too hot for me.
 
Like a gambler on a hot streak in Vegas, TTM rolled the dice again and ordered the pancakes.  The waitress did ask whether he wanted them thick (like regular pancakes) or thin (like crepes) and he chose thick. 

These pancakes were not as thick as Du-Par's nor as good as Du-Par's, but you can't hold that against them.  They tasted just fine and putting a little bit of the preserves on top, as opposed to the syrup, seemed to really bring out the flavor.
 
With a name like Pie 'N Burger, there was no doubt that a burger is what I needed to order, once it was confirmed they will make one that early.  Here is the double cheeseburger,

wrapped in the burger diaper, for easy lifting.  It automatically comes with lettuce, pickles and their own Thousand Islands dressing.  This made for a sloppy, delicious mess and the burger itself had a real nice crunchy exterior to it.  BTW, I also ended up with the poor home fries, since it was too early for them to make french fries.
 
Did anyone doubt pie would be part of my breakfast?  They are famous for their butterscotch, but they make it only every other day, alternating with peanut butter pie.  And this was peanut butter pie day. 

What an impressively tall meringue and the filling had a wonderful, strong peanut butter flavor.  This was a really good slice of pie.  TTM also seemed to be happy with his thin crusted boysenberry,

with lots of sweet fruit.
 
As much as we like Pie 'N Burger for the food, we really loved the service.  Our waitress, who looked very much like my sister-in-law, was a real pro, with a good sense of humor and took great care of us.  In the middle of our meal, we saw her sitting further down the counter, eating her breakfast.  But, she kept getting up to refill our coffee cups and water glasses, despite the fact that she was obviously on break.  We kept telling her to go sit back down.  While we were knee deep in pie, another waitress stopped by to chat.  She told us she had worked there for 29 years and while she has gotten tired of eating all the other foods after all those years, she has never grown tired of eating the pie.  How could I not take a picture of this wise woman after my own heart?

 
Oh, Pie 'N Burger, you didn't really have to have tall meringues and great service to win me over.  After all, you had me at pie clock. 

You had me at pie clock.
 
Pie 'N Burger
913 E. California Blvd.
Pasadena, CA
626-795-1123 

BB:  I sure do enjoy your food travel adventures.  Roz will be graduating in a few months and we will make our around the USA tour to Arizona for graduation.  I fully intended on stopping at some of the top places you have mentioned in NM, CA WA and many other places.
 
Thanks again for your over the top post.  We will see TTM in late January in FL. 
 
Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

I still haven't uploaded the pictures from my real camera, but I took a few with my cell phone (Samsung Galaxy SIII) that turned out pretty well. One of which was the toast from Pie 'N Burger.
 

 
Yeah....I know. It's toast. I'm telling you - this was some fantastic toast. The pancakes were a notch below Du-Par's, but they were still strong. The addition of the fresh preserves definitely helped. I wish I had made that discovery earlier on in the eating process.
 
I would like to go back and enjoy a burger there. Also, as much as buffetbuster and I both enjoy visiting college campuses, we spent no time exploring nearby Cal Tech. Sounds like just one more reason for a return visit.

Funny you should post that today, TTM..Bob made homemade bread over the weekend, and while we enjoyed the warm bread with butter, the toast we had today was awesome!
By the way, BB-I think Mariton and I are on the same page with most foods-I , too would have scraped most of the frosting off those cupcakes.......I will never, never miss a meet up with you two again.....

When I was young my grandmother would sometimes bake bread when I visited and I really looked forward to the toast...a lot of people consider it more of an afterthought when it comes to breakfast but for me exceptionally good or bad toast can make a real difference.
 
And anyplace that'll serve a fresh burger for breakfast is A-OK with me!

Friday November 23, 2012 (cont.)
 
The first local attraction we decided to go visit was Griffith Observatory, for the science, for the beautiful art deco building and for the views of the surrounding area.  Unfortunately, it seemed half of Los Angeles had descended onto Griffith Park on this day.  I'm still not sure what exactly what was going on, but as soon as we entered the park, we were being diverted by road closures and signs saying the parking lot closest to the observatory was full and you had to find parking elsewhere.  Which would have meant a long uphill climb on a hot, humid day, which I wanted no part of.  So, we headed for Hollywood instead.  Which was a huge mistake.
 
We parked one block away from Graumann's Chinese Theater on Hollywood Boulevard and walked over.  The mass of humanity around here was overwhelming and claustrophobic. 


All I wanted to do was a snap a couple of photos of movie stars hand or footprints in the cement, but there was so many people around, either other tourists or hustlers wanting money, that the experience was truly awful.  Which sucked, because this was the first time Mariton had been here.  It wasn't a complete loss, since I did get to see some of my favorites, like Peter O'Toole

(Lawrence of Arabia is my all-time favorite movie), William Powell

and fellow Western PA born movie cowboy Tom Mix.

I know this will sound like an exaggeration, but you really couldn't go 30 seconds without someone trying to get you on a tour bus of Hollywood and the stars homes or some hip-hop artist giving away a free CD of his music (but he would appreciate a donation, of course).  And then there were the people dressed up in famous character's costumes harrassing you, asking if you want your picture taken with them.  You know, for a donation, of course.  Sorry Harry Potter, if I didn't get my photo taken with Catwoman, I'm sure not getting photographed with you.
 
Just because I was brought up to be polite, I was constantly replying "No thanks" and eventually just "no".  TTM was just shaking his head at me.  Eventually, I learned to just ignore them, which wasn't easy to do, but the only way to keep your sanity.  We got out of there, walking down Hollywood Boulevard, checking out all the famous people with their own stars.  And yet it was still every 20 feet, "Hey, how about a bus tour of Hollywood?  Would you like to see the Stars homes?"  As much as I enjoyed the seeing star of one of my favorite actors and actresses (like Jean Arthur!),

the experience was again, awful.
 
We did pass by Roadfood favorite Musso & Frank,

but we didn't have appetite to stop in and enjoy a meal.  Eventually, we got as far as Hollywood & Vine and got a good view of the famous Capital Records building. 

Of course, we had to hang out at the famous intersection of Hollywood and Vine
 

to see if any of us would get "discovered".  Unfortunately, it was not to be.  Hard to believe Hollywood could say no to this. 

Obviously, they don't know talent when they see it! 
 
On the way back to the car, I had another first time experience.  The nice people in one storefront wanted to know if we wanted to come in to see a doctor to find out if we qualified for medical marijuana.  Yeah, under no circumstances will I ever walk down Hollywood Boulevard again.
 
Not ready to eat yet, but wanting to get out of the heat, I suggested a ride along beautiful Mulholland Drive.  Yeah, this was another bad idea.  Mariton, who doesn't normally get motion sickness, did get car sick from the constant back and forth from all the turns.  She was quite happy when we got to the famous overlook at the east end of the road, where you get a great view of the Hollywood Bowl down below,

with Los Angeles in the distance. 

And of course, the obligatory photo of the Hollywood sign.

 
After all of this, we were finally ready to do some eating!      

 
BuffetBuster -
 
Wow! I need to put Pie-N-Burger on the "to do" list!  That is a great looking burger!   Those pies also look great, especially the thin-crusted boysenberry.  
 
 On the home fries, it seems that a lot of places serve them not crispy enough ... at east for my taste.  I like 'em pretty crunchy.    I have made it a habit to always ask for home fires or hash browns to be "well done".    
 
Getting hungry.  Keep the reports coming !   :)
 
 
Glenn
 
 

Fifty bucks, Grandpa. For 75, the wife can watch.

TTM-
Considering the great photos I have of you, this report is going to get real boring after you leave.

Nice gams there, Kit DeLuca.  Like I always say, ya gotta have a goal.  Do you have a goal?

Thank you both for a glimpse into Pie 'N Burger

I've been trying to get there (and Musso & Frank Grill) for years.  Both so close yet I've never been to either.
 
When friends visit from out of state and want to see Grauman's Chinese Theater (I refuse to call it Mann's or whatever it is called now) it isn't a problem for me.  I drop them off at a place I can pull over and then circle the block until they're finished seeing everything they want to see.  It's a horrid area!
 
When I was a kid my uncle owned a gift shop (souvenir) directly across from The Chinese Theater.  We used to be able to walk "The Boulevard" with no worries or cares.  Times were different then.  His building was torn down for a highrise that now pales in comparison to those around it.
 
Looking back is fun.  Didn't realize then that having lunch at The Roosevelt coffee shop was anything other than having lunch.  We used to dine with B actors quite often.
 
Did you drive up Beachwood Drive for an up front and personal view of the revamped Hollywood Sign? 
 
 

I forgot to add...  Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles is a to do once type of place.  Not the best at anything other than being famous for being famous.

I am the straw that stirs the drink.

annpeeples-
And you know that Mariton and I would love to meet you sometime, too.  How I went this entire calendar year without a trip to Milwaukee is a source of great shame for me, but it won't be repeated in 2013!
 
TnTinCT-
Looks like you were able to squeeze in some serious Roadfood spots during your business trip to Los Angeles.  Nicely done!
 
Paul-
That is quite an ambitious and fun trip you have planned when Roz graduates.  Looking forward to hearing all about it at Glee Club.
 
mar52-
No, I didn't know anything about Beechwood Drive or I would have definitely driven up.  Oh well, there will always be a next time.  We do have a visit to Roscoe's coming up and it was where we had our one celebrity sighting.  Maybe the area around Graumann's isn't always that overcrowded, but I should have known better than go there on a day when most people are off.  Why weren't all those people out shopping on Black Friday!  

 
BuffetBuster -
 
We ran into the same problem you did with all the crowds around Griffith Observatoy.  (Same weekend a year earlier.)  We ended up parking far away, and didn't want to do the hike, so I took out the telephoto lens to shoot some photos from across a small valley.   I have a lot of non-food photos from that trip that maybe I'll post in the off-topic section.   
 
No celebrity sightings for us at any restaurants, but we did see Jay Leno's Sunday evening show at the Magic and Comedy Club in Hermosa Beach.    It's a great place to see Leno, as it's all stand-up comedy, and you don't need to wait half the day in line as you would at is Burbank show.  You buy tickets, show up, and go right in.  All seat are pretty close to the stage.    He is there most Sundays, and he uses part of the show as a test for new material for his upcoming week.   
 
Glenn
 
 
 
 
Glenn