cole's french dip

i am definitely a fan of downtown. one reason is that they have a lot of my favorite bars. but also because it's the one place where you get a true feel of historic los angeles. andcole'son 6th street truly gives us that. it has been around since the early 1900's and was l.a.'s first public house.cole'shas happy hour 3-7pm monday - friday and all night on tuesdays. you can get a half french dip and fries for just $5, $5 wells, $3 schlitz beer, and $8 specialty cocktails. i love their specialty cocktail

not very good. i was excited to try the original french dip atcole'ssince it was supposedly the "first" and was invented there. turns out i was very disappointed in the experience.

the limited menu pretty much has french dip sandwiches (with beef, pastrami, turkey or lamb) for around $6. cheap, yes, but you get what you pay for. the beef in my sandwich was very, very tough, and while the sandwich was loaded with cheese, it didn't melt. the bread was as hard as a rock, and the fries were nothing special and were cold.

the worst part of the meal was the au jus with the sandwich - it had this really funky taste to it . it was so bad that i asked for another cup, thinking that the one i got was old or spoiled. nope, guess not! the second cup tasted the same. bleh.

the restaurant has a sort of "dumpy" charm to it as it feels like you are eating in the basement of an old speakeasy.

the bottom line is that the food just isn't that good. skip this place.

i was in downtown los angeles the other day for a seminar, and we decided to stop atcole'sfor lunch. in the heart of downtown, it is right next to one of the newest and hottest lounges - the association. . . i'll save that for another post. . . with sel

a visit to cole's. on tuesday, march 10, 2009, my brother jesse and i came tocole'srestaurant in downtown los angeles. jesse is a native of southern california and had been ranting and raving about "the place that originated the french dip sandwich." i have been living in texas and eating french dip sandwiches for years, and i had heard aboutcole'sfor years, so when i finally made it to los angeles after forty years of waiting and dreaming, there was only one place to go for lunch!

after paying several dollars to park nearby, we made our way to your restaurant. although the place was not crowded at the time, we waited for several minutes before anyone greeted us or seated us. we ordered two beef french dip sandwiches, one side order each, and drinks. the total of the bill came to over $40.00.

imagine my surprise when my sandwich came and the beef was too tough to chew! the side orders and drinks were fine, but the main course-the much heralded french dip sandwich-was a huge disappointment. i managed to find a couple of small slices of meat that were edible, but the vast majority of the sandwich was left on the plate, untouched. when we pointed this out to an employee who identified himself as the manager, his only response was to blame the lack of quality on the kitchen and say, "oh, well…maybe it will be better the next time you come."

let me assure you that, after my brother dropped nearly $50.00 on parking, sandwiches that were tougher than saddle leather, and a lackadaisical manager whose idea of placating a dissatisfied customer is a reference to (and a hope that) future visits will be better, there will not be a next time. with all due respect, the customer service sucks.

cole's may or may not have originated the french dip sandwich. the same claim is made by philippe's, and the point is really moot. but for the record, the french dip sandwich i had at philippe's the next day was incredible. when i return to los angeles next year, i will return to philippe's. conversely, i will not only avoidcole'slike a terminal illness, but i will encourage as many others as possible to do the same.

i'm glad i got to see the oldcole'sfrench dip before it was re-done by downtown nightlife impresario cedd moses with a menu update from grace's neal fraser. two years ago , it looked every bit of its 100 years old, in a cool but dusty way. but moses was