Send in the clowns!
Philippe’s opened its doors in Los Angeles in 1908. According to company lore, founder Philippe Mathieu made the first French dip when he accidentally dropped a French roll into a pan of au jus and served it up to a local policeman who was in a hurry. The cop returned with hungry friends in search of more “dipped” sandwiches, and so a culinary legend was born. Philippe’s relocated to its current location on Alameda Street in 1951 when the 101 freeway came through. And although Mathieu sold the business in 1928, Philippe’s remains a family-owned restaurant serving the same classic fare of flaky-crust French dips made with sliced roasted meats, spicy mustard, and purple pickled hardboiled eggs on the side.
Communal seating allows for interesting dining mates, whether they be LA’s finest, fans from Dodger’s Stadium, neighboring Chinatown locals, downtown artists, or the general mishmash of humanity that makes Angelenos. Line up at any one of the ten stations at the big front counter, and a so-called carver will pull together your order, serve it up on a paper plate and send you shuffling over the sawdust floor, loaded tray in hand, to find a seat. You’ll find beer and wine, including a selection from Los Angeles’s San Antonio Winery, on the menu as well.
Info
Address 1001 N Alameda Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012, +1 213.628.3781, www.philippes.com, customerservice@philippes.com | Public Transport Gold Line to Chinatown Station, then a .3-mile walk | Getting there Free on-site lot and metered street parking | Hours Daily 6am–10pm| Tip The Los Angeles Railroad Heritage Foundation maintains a rotating exhibit of miniature trains in the back room of Philippe’s.
Long red-topped tables with wooden stools line the front room of Philippe’s, while booths are available in the back, where the walls are lined with pictures of clowns and circuses. In the 1940s, veteran Happytime Circus man Paul Eagles started going to Philippe’s every Monday. Soon, fellow clowns and circus performers began joining him, launching a tradition that lasted for more than four decades, well into the 1980s. The Big Top veterans no longer meet, but the photos and memorabilia pay tribute to their carnival legacy. Who knew there were so many carnies in the area? Enough to pack the back room at Philippe’s.
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