Philippe The Original1001 N. Alameda St.
Los Angeles CA. 90012
213-628-3781
Philippe should really be named the Philippe the Copy Cat. I believe Coles invented the French Dip sandwich and Coles serves a much better French Dip sandwich.
I ordered a beef dip sandwich and a lemonade for $5.95. When ordering a French Dip the server will "dip" the bread in au jus though you can ask her to double dip the bread. That is something I don't recommend. The bread is just way to soggy even singled dipped, a double dip would make the sandwich a mess.
The beef dip I had was way too dry. Not impressed at all. The beef was very tough and like I mentioned dry. People say to add their hot mustard to the sandwich. Well if you have to add anything to improve the taste, it usually means it's terrible to start out with. The hot mustard is just 85% horseradish and 15% mustard. It does add something to the terrible French Dip, a bit of spice.
Philippe is very overrated. I won't go back. Since Philippe is a LA institution I think everybody should go at least once. But if you want the best French Dip get it from the restaurant that invented the French Dip, Coles.
