Bennigan had its start in Atlanta in 1976, but in the early 1980s they were everywhere. Although defunct in the U.S., Kenny Rogers Roasters is still flourishing in Asia. He later sold the establishment to a pair of LAPD homicide detectives, who were still running it when L.A. Times food writer Jonathan Gold swung by in the '90s. Jean Trinh, 17 Essential Restaurants in Los Angeless Chinatown. We have over a decade of experience creating beautiful pieces of custom-made keepsakes and our state of the art facility is able to take on any challenge. The restaurant became known for hosting celebrity clientele, walls adorned with caricatures, and the unique building, which was shaped like a bowler hat. A restaurant where you can see Hollywood memorabilia seems like a '90s kids dream. To the delight of vintage fans, not to mention location scouts, they updated the space to its current retro-meets-modern perfection. This California farm kingdom holds a key, Six people, including mother and baby, killed in Tulare County; drug cartel suspected, Im afraid for her life: Riverside CC womens coach harassed after Title IX suit, New Bay Area maps show hidden flood risk from sea level rise and groundwater, Who would execute a baby? Due to fickle consumer trends and high rent, many beloved restaurants have been forced to call it quits over the yearssome even after decades of success. A much-beloved Westside institution with Ohio-style burgers served in a humble diner-like stand along Pico, the Apple Pan makes consistently good sandwiches and pies. But were including it here anyway because LA wouldnt be the same place without it. Mel's Drive-In (Howard Hughes, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, and Billie Burke all used to pick up their mail here.) 15 Classic American Desserts That Deserve a Comeback, Kenny Rogers Roasters is still flourishing in Asia. Those were the days. var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest(); In its earliest days, the hotel's ground-floor restaurant attracted clientele like James Dean and the Keystone Kops. We prowled around Little Tokyo, discovering restaurants specializing in eel, wonderful little noodle joints and sake houses that served mysteriously delicious snacks. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Whether you are in their delicious skins of red potatoes or the iconic Irish tower O'Rings, Bennigan was a success in the 1980s. Serving perhaps the greatest pastrami in America, Langer's is a fantastic diner in Westlake offering everything from reuben sandwiches and corned beef to matzo ball soup and lox. Sure, the food isnt anything particularly special (and comes at Beverly Hills prices), but for a fun breakfast in the area, this place cant be beat. The 19 Essential Dive Bars in Los Angeles, 17 Los Angeles Restaurants That Are Stuck in Time. In the mid-80s, Nicolino & Sons Deli and Bakery closed and reopened in Cathedral City as Nicolinos Famous Italian restaurant (now owned by Papa Nicolinos son Mark and his wife, Rhonda), serving authentic Italian dishes like manicotti, hand-tossed pizza, and made-to-order desserts. The Beverly Hills Hotel is a shining beacon of pastel pink luring tourists and their cameras, but while we recommend you stay far away from The Polo Lounge (the restaurant with the lowest rating in Infatuation history), the downstairs Fountain Coffee Room is another story. Our obsession with health food certainly isnt what put us on the map. In 1991, country singer/songwriter Kenny Rogers ventured into the fast-food business. By the 1990s, it needed a revamp. } else { WebLone Ranger Restaurant; Ontra Cafeteria; Juniors Delicatessen I; Nickodell; Ollie Hammonds; Ponderosa; Ships Coffee Shop; The Bagel; Porterhouse Bistro; Andres of The Best Restaurants In Hollywood. The nautical-themed restaurant that served up unbelievable deals on seafood (as waiters wore colonial garb, no less) was scattered across the country. Just like many malls and retail stores, restaurants like Chi-Chis, Bennigans, Beefsteak Charlies, and Steak and Ale are now closed. The chain expanded across the country, with locations in high-traffic places like Times Square in New York City. Here's The Best Restaurant Buffet in Every State. 15 Fantastic Glendale Restaurants Worth Checking Out, 28 Classic Restaurants Every Angeleno Must Try, Summer 2017, A South LA institution thats been around for a quarter of a century,Watts Coffee Houseis the true definition of a warm community gathering space. The restaurants also known for tableside spinning salads tableside, live music, and classic car showcase in the parking lot. Our Mexican restaurants had always served salsa, but compared to the kim chee sitting on the tables in some places in Koreatown, it was hardly even hot. (Elina Shatkin/LAist), A version of Eggs Benedict made with bacon, spinach and avocado alongside hash browns at Nick's Cafe, located just north of Chinatown in Los Angeles. Sure, the service is less than attentive and the house cocktails should generally be avoided, but you wont care when youre drinking beer, eating fried chicken, and sitting where Don Draper and Joan Holloway sat. The neighborhood around the diner, meanwhile, has seen plenty of changes. 17 Fantastic Salads Worth Ordering in Los Angeles, 15 LA Restaurants That Perfected Takeout and Delivery, 13 Hot New Brunch Spots to Check Out in Los Angeles, Throwback to LA's best old school eateries and dives. While the assortment of soups and triple-decker sandwiches bring in the out-of-towners, longtime diners tend to go for more comforting dishes: think fall-apart stuffed cabbage rolls filled with tender beef and covered in a sweet and sour sauce, plump sides of kishka, and steaming potato knishes. Corky's Restaurant & Bar in Sherman Oaks, seen shortly before it closed in December 2019. And for more throwbacks, don't miss these 16 Beloved Restaurants Only '70s Kids Will Remember. Built at the height of car culture, designed with Space Age flourishes to symbolize the progress of a new era. Another example of a wild 90s restaurant interior that persists is Wolfgang Pucks Chinois on Main, whose colorful interior by Barbara Lazaroff seems to be untouched by time. American bakery chain, La Petite Boulangerie or "little bakery," did indeed start out small, with only two stores in the beginning. Opened in 1966, this legendary Boyle Heights restaurant has tremendous bean-and-cheese burritos that were immortalized by the late food writer Jonathan Gold. In any case, the current building became Cindy's in 1948 along what was then Route 66, which explains its roadhouse vibe. But the idea soon caught on and Chi-Chi's couldn't compete. $17.95 . In the first place, our city tends to have such large concentrations of people that restaurants can thrive without catering to an American clientele. Our favorite area, though, is the back room: its usually the least crowded and feels the most like the kind of place you wouldve seen Frank Sinatra fall off his barstool. Founder Loyal Damon sold his chain of candy stores to open this Polynesian-designed restaurant, passing on ownership and its famous cocktail recipes to his son Loyal Jr., wife Donna, and daughter Jennie. Beefsteak Charlies was a well-known restaurant chain based in the New York metropolitan area, which grew to over 60 locations in the early 1980s. But, sadly, Dubrow's closed in the late '80s, as the trend of diners began to die down. 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If your main priority is having an extremely fun restaurant experience, Dan Tanas is your place. 1986 Most restaurant reviewers contributing to John Marianis Coast-to-Coast Dining Guide report that their towns have better restaurants and a wider selection of But in the '90s, Casa Bonita was a Mexican chain that could be found in Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas. After renaming it the Hollywood Hills Cafe, they spent $50,000 turning it into the kind of spot A-listers like Nic Cage and Brad Pitt might want to visit. Even though Shor reopened a year later, the restaurant's heyday had passed. Dan Tanas is the quintessential Hollywood hangout. The eatery was not without controversy though, as the name is a derogatory slang word used towards African Americans. advice every day. Located on Seventh Avenue, The Stage was one of the most popular delis in New York City after being founded in 1937 and was known for having a menu full of Broadway-inspired dishes. When it comes to eating, the 80s were L.A.'s decade. Though many of these restaurants are closed, there are still plenty of classic LA restaurants that are still very much open. Naka's Broiler In 1982, the company was bought by PepsiCo and expanded across the United States. (Guzzle & Nosh/Flickr Creative Commons), Rae's diner in Santa Monica. NOW: The restaurant remains mostly the same. If you get hungry, theres a very good Taiwanese bar menu filled with dishes like cold sesame noodles, dan dan mian, and dim sum. Hearkening to an era of stiff martinis and big chops, Golden Bull received a second chance at life with new ownership under Mark Verge, who operates Ashland Hill and Margos in Santa Monica. Most of us couldnt get enough of it; before the decade was over Los Angeles was the Thai restaurant capital of the country, with virtually hundreds of little Thai places dishing up mee krob and pahd thai. Popular with celebrities and the social set, fans and photographers would frequently crowd the sides of the yellow awning just to sneak a peak at who was entering and exiting those signature wooden doors. Lots of it. But for nostalgic millennials still mourning the loss, the pain might be too much. With over 60 years under its belt, this Italian throwback knows what it takes keep the crowds coming for more. NOW: A new owner bought it and in the '80s turned it into the Lamplighter, a family-friendly local chain known for iglasses of red Jell-O and blue-plate specials. It became a dentist's office for most of the '90s, although much of the original exterior architecture was left intact. They restored the space to its original glory, maintaining many of the touches that made The Penguin so great. Steak and Ale was ahead of its time. Not that Los Angeles has room to talk. If youre looking to drink stiff Jack and Cokes and smoke without judgment in leather pants, this historic Sunset Strip fixture is the place to do it. Trip to Malaysia, anyone? For 33 years, this New York City family-owned, cafeteria-style institution served as a rallying point for hopeful politicians (both JFK and Ed Koch campaigned here), as well as a favorite dining destination for locals. It then changed hands several times without any major updates. All this started having an influence on our diet. The old freight yard site is now Los Angeles State Historic Park and rents are rising in Chinatown. Go-Gos rhythm guitarist Jane Weidlin has written about working at this Norm's in the late '70s (she had to wear a wig to hide her blue hair), and a photo of the restaurant is featured in the liner notes for Scottish power pop group Teenage Fanclub's 1995 album, Grand Prix. And for more throwbacks, don't miss these 16 Beloved Restaurants Only '70s Kids Will Remember. No-sugar-added recipes you'll look forward to eating. This renovated Culver City classic feels like a perfectly preserved relic from the 1960s: youll see dark leather booths, red table clothes, and wood-paneled walls covered in retro paintings. But fast forward a few years, and you'll see that the decade wasn't always kind. November 2019. Over the next decade, it saw huge expansion, which unfortunately was cut short by the '70s economic crisis. Fashion Cafe in New York City gathered iconic models together, like Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Elle MacPherson, and Claudia Schiffer to endorse it. And though it had fallen on hard times in the past, a massive refurbishment a couple of years ago brought it back to its glory days, complete with three separate bars, a dine-in train car, and a spacious rooftop. Your tax-deductible financial support keeps our stories free to read, instead of hidden behind paywalls. Where else would you find a Japanese restaurant serving food filtered through a Latin sensibility? Originally opened in 1959, the charm and kitsch of the place remains as strong as the drinks themselves. Musso & Frank Grill holds a historic place in Hollywood. EatThis.com is part of the AllRecipes Food Group, Published on September 14, 2020 | 10:00 AM. The chain never fully bounced back, but hung on for a long time. And while you can have a decent enough prime rib dinner here, the real move is to skip the dining room altogether and head right to the lounge. Dear John's. Three things. WebMay 23, 2013 - Old World Restaurant on the Sunset Strip in 1979. The epitome of an old-school steakhouse, Dal Rae in Pico Rivera dates to the 1950s and is most famous for its pepper steak. Maybe they're where epic movie deals were signed, iconic TV shows were filmed, or legendary actors got hammered after set. THEN: After serving in the Navy during World War II, the restaurant's namesake, Nick, returned to Los Angeles and built a diner near the charred remains of China City (the precursor to Chinatown). Musso & Frank Grill. You find it at places like City Restaurant, where Indian, Korean, Thai and Japanese dishes share the menu with the foods of France, Italy and the Americas. Losers included coffee shops, Cantonese Chinese and red-checkered Italian restaurants, and even sanctums of haute French cuisine. Black men, who formed the basic waiter corps of the 19th century, largely disappeared from restaurant dining rooms and kitchens, replaced by immigrants, white college students, and white women. Before the nights over, youll already be plotting your return. The waiters still wear red jackets and bow-ties, crab louie is still on the menu, and theres a vintage phone booth in a corner that youll absolutely want to take a photo in. 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