cole's french dip

disapointed in l.a. i just moved to downtown los angeles in september of 2010 from bakersfield, ca. i was definetly excited about all the food i want to try out here. i was online searching for some great spots, and i heard about cole's..the originator of thefrenchdip..so i was on a mission to try it...i waited for my cousin to visit from philidelphia so he can also enjoy it and spread the news about it back home..but to our dismay the sandwich tasted like penis's roasted over a fire of herpes infested vaginas. very disappointed.....

according to carvers at cole’s, henry cole first dipped thefrenchbread in jus at the request of a customer who had had recent dental work. thefrenchbread was too hard and it hurt this customer’s teeth, so henry dipped the bread in order to soften it. other customers, with perfectly good teeth, saw henry dip the bread and requested that he do the same for them – and thus thefrenchdip was born.

cole'€™s may be known for itsfrenchdip, but it also serves up the kind of bloody mary that makes your mouth water just thinking about it. intensely acidic and very spicy, this bloody mary is all about cole'€™s famous atomic pickles. tomato juice gets a big hit of pickle brine and a good pour of vodka along with a pickle garnish and a crunchy celery stalk. add a celery -salted half rim, and this brightly flavored bloody mary will send your salivary glands soaring. why go? atomic pickles.

happy hour. finally got around to coles. came in for happy hour, and really enjoyed it. i was able to get $5.00 draft beer and grub. very good draft beer selection, got afrenchdip sampler with garlic fries. coles give you that old school feel, with old school happy hour prices. definitely will be back soon.

that have excellent cocktails and very goodfrenchdip. i like that they give you the au jus on the side so you don't end up with a soggy sandwich.

everything i could have asked for as an avidfrenchdip enthusiast! so good and you must try the spicy garlic fries!

good but probably not the best. we stopped here after hearing great things about thefrenchdips. don't get me wrong, it was good. i went with the pork option, instead of the usual beef. the meat, bun, and au jus were all tasty, but there could've been more pork on it. overall, the bestfrenchdip ever? probably not. still worth trying though.

i ordered sweet potato fries with it, and those were awesome. they had a garlic flavor which really added. i would definitely get them again. and the homemade mustard/horseradish sauce was so good that i ended up buying a jar for myself.

service was fine. prices maybe a little high, but not ridiculous.

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. and cole's on 6th street truly gives us that. it has been around since the early 1900's and was l.a.'s first public house. cole's has happy hour 3-7pm monday - friday and all night on tuesdays. you can get a halffrenchdip and fries for just $5, $5 wells, $3 schlitz beer, and $8 specialty cocktails. i love their specialty cocktail

cole'sfrenchdip. goodfrenchdip, probably not the best out there but it's a good eat, and it is a nice place with a good atmosphere. the service was very good as well. definitely a place to try due to all of its history. loved the sweet potato fries as well!

okfrenchdip and caesar salad. didn't like the cole slaw. glad i tried it but won't go back.

not very good. i was excited to try the originalfrenchdip at cole's since it was supposedly the "first" and was invented there. turns out i was very disappointed in the experience.

the limited menu pretty much hasfrenchdip 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.

a visit to cole's. on tuesday, march 10, 2009, my brother jesse and i came to cole's restaurant in downtown los angeles. jesse is a native of southern california and had been ranting and raving about "the place that originated thefrenchdip sandwich." i have been living in texas and eatingfrenchdip sandwiches for years, and i had heard about cole's for 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 beeffrenchdip 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 heraldedfrenchdip 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 thefrenchdip sandwich. the same claim is made by philippe's, and the point is really moot. but for the record, thefrenchdip 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 avoid cole's like a terminal illness, but i will encourage as many others as possible to do the same.

there's a hotly contested debate in los angeles that we will never get an answer to. no, it's not who made the best burger in la debate of apple pan vs father's office . nor it was a debate about whose cuisine reign supreme in melrose betweenfrenchvs ne

i'm glad i got to see the old cole'sfrenchdip 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