Eating Hollywood

Took a few days off last week and travelled from Baltimore to Burbank and Phoenix for some sun and fun. And a couple million calories. After landing at Bob Hope Airport on Thursday afternoon, we proceeded to hit the following in the space of about 36 hours...



Rubio's Mexican Grill: great West Coast Mexican chain that puts places like Baja Fresh to shame and shouldn't even be mentioned in the same breath with the likes of Taco Bell. Fantastic fish tacos come in either battered or grilled variety. Go for the Battered Fish Tacos Especial which feature shredded cabbage, guacamole, sauce and just a hint of shredded cheese.



Tommy's Original Hambugers: I've long been a fan of the multi-tiered burger so I was chomping at the bit to try this CA chain's vaunted chili burgers. Good but not great. Burger patty was thin and overcooked, chili was more of a paste than anything, and the other toppings (thick slice of tomato, raw onion chunks) got in the way. But if you're looking for an overweight single guy, this is the place to go.



Dougboy's: West Hollywood bakery/cafe eatery with impressively large and varied menu. Lunchtime service was slow as molasses but was worth the wait. Towering open face hot chicken meatloaf sandwich was served on homemade bread with just a hint of sweetness and topped with gravy, onions and sauteed mushrooms. World famous Red Velvet cake was worth it for the thick, creamy icing alone but didn't live up to its hyper hype.



In-N-Out Burger: Didn't get a chance to try these legendary burgers while I was in Vegas earlier this year, so they were at the top of my list. After trying a Double Double with Cheese it's easy to see why they have such a rabid following. Hot, fresh and tasty burgers that left me wanting more. As I said to Chris afterwards, "If I lived here all I'd do is eat these burgers and go see movies."



Pink's Hot Dogs: Another legendary area chain, I didn't think we were going to make it to Pink's until a friend mentioned it was around the corner from the next stop on the list, Pinkberry's Frozen Yogurt. After literally squealing with delight at the mention of its name, I got dropped off in front of Pink's while Chris and our friend waited for frozen yogurt. After about an hour wait, which one regular told me was pretty good for 10 PM on a Friday night, I ordered a Chili Dog and a Cole Slaw Dog. The former was perfect, a hot, juicy dog with just a hint of a snap as you bit into it, topped with tasty, meaty chili (far better than Tommy's), mustard and onion. The Slaw Dog on the other hand was a bit of a disappointment. The dog had the same snap but the slaw just didn't mesh. Since I didn't get a pic of our last stop, here's another shot of Pink's... and yes, that's the line on a Friday night.



Pinkberry's: I've said it before, I'm not a big sweet eater so the allure of Pinkberry's frozen yogurt was lost on me. (Which is why I stood in line an hour for two hot dogs and an Orange Crush.) I did have a plain with mango, raspberries and blueberries which was quite good, though I don't know I'd risk a $120 parking ticket just to try it out. Apparently, Pinkberry is all the rage in LA and the owner is planning to open sites in New York, too. A quick search on Pinkberry brought up this blog, which though a bit outdated shows the level of fanatic interest in the establishment and its froyo.