Pink's

Pink's
709 La Brea
LA
323-931-4223

Pink's is known for it's hot dogs and the stars who come to Pink's. I think Pink's is very overrated.

I got there and the line was down the sidewalk and around the corner. I decided what the hell and waited in line. The wait took about 40 minutes on a Saturday night. I got the 10 in stretch chili dog and the Chicago Polish.

The 10 in stretch had chili, mustard, and onions. The hot dog was pretty good. Decent snap but the chili isn't anything to write home about. I would much prefer heating up some canned chili and putting it on top. The stretch chili dog is $3.10. I think Cupid's is a much better deal.

The Chicago Polish had mustard, relish, onions, tomatoes and lettuce for $3.55. The polish was mild but WAY overcooked. It was very tough eating the polish. The toppings were fresh but the Chicago polish is something I would stay away from.

If you never been to Pink's, you must go just to experience the place. But the hot dogs themselves aren't anything special. If you are at Pink's catch the northbound Metro bus on La Brea to the Hollywood and Vine station. Take the red line to Hollywood and Highland. Then walk to Skooby's. A much better hot dog without the long line.

The Pig-Closed

The Pig
612 N. La Brea
LA CA 90036
323-935-1116

The Pig bills itself as Memphis style BBQ. It maybe Memphis style but it doesn't compare to Jay Bees BBQ for the best Memphis style ribs in LA. I ordered the 5 bones of the St. Louis style spare ribs for $10.28.

The ribs lacked a true smoke flavor. I thought I was eating Tony Roma ribs. They were a little too tender. Again falling off the bone is too tender for my tastes.

I like the Smokin Spicy BBQ sauce. Maybe the best BBQ sauce in LA. The Pig's regular sauce is way too sweet. But the ribs overall are just OK though the portions are big.

I went on a Saturday and there was a gorgeous woman eating there alone. Not sure what's wrong with her but somebody that gorgeous shouldn't be eating alone at any time.

Parking can be a problem on La Brea. The Pig is on La Brea about half a block south of Melrose. The Pig used to have a location at City Walk but that has closed.

The Beach Pit BBQ

The Beach Pit BBQ
1676 Tustin Ave.
Costa Mesa, CA
949-645-7487

The Beach Pitt BBQ is owned by the son of former Baltimore Orioles and California Angels Doug DeCinces. (The Angels were called the California Angels when DeCinces played for them thus the name)

But just as Doug DeCinces could never replace Brooks Robinson, Tim DeCinces should NOT own a BBQ restaurant and try to pass if off as real BBQ.

I walked into the Beach Pitt and went inside to the counter. The man behind the counter asked "For here or to go?" I said "I'll eat here" He replied to take a seat anywhere outside and he'll take my order.

So I go outside find a table and sit and wait. And wait and wait. I must have waited 15 minutes before he came out to take my order. What the hell he was doing, I have no idea. NOBODY was in the restuarant.

Well he finally comes and I order the big portion of the ribs for $11.95 with sauce on the side and a double order of cole slaw. What is really stupid about the pricing is that the "bigger portion" is $13.95 and you only get one more rib. While the cost per rib is about 50 cents cheaper when you get the "bigger portion" it's still not my idea of a good value.

I wait about five minutes and the order comes out with the sauce on top of the ribs. I told him, I ordered sauce on the side. He takes it back and I get a new order of ribs with sauce on the side. If he would have bought back the ribs with the sauce wiped off, I would have walked out. That has happened at other BBQ restaurants before. But he didn't so I start in on the ribs. Big mistake.

The ribs were way too tender, like they were over cooked. I wish this myth of falling off the bone tender, would stop. When ribs are fall off the bone, it's too done. They didn't have any real smoke flavor and they were same of the smallest ribs I've ever had. The sauce is good. A nice flavor that would enhance a good piece of ribs. Too bad the Beach Pitt doesn't make a good piece of rib.

I would not go back to the Beach Pitt. The service is terrible. Nobody is there and I wait 10-15 minutes for somebody to take my order??? What the hell? Prices are a little high and the ribs are terrible. Not a good combination.

The Stand

The Stand
17000 Ventura Blvd
Encino
818-788-2700

The Stand is a hot dog place on Ventura Blvd. Every Monday, after 5pm, at The Stand is $1 Stand Dogs. I decided to try The Stand. I went in and the place was almost empty but by the time I left it was starting to get packed. I ordered three Stand Dogs. Mustard and onions, stand corn relish, and stand red sauce.

The hot dog itself lacks any natural casing which means no snap when you bite into the hot dog. But otherwise the hot dog is very good with a nice flavor. The toppings are fresh. Mustard and onions my regular hot dog was good.

The Stand corn relish takes a little getting used to. As you can see from the picture there is a lot of corn but it really doesn't belong on a hot dog.

Not a big fan of the Stand Red Sauce either. The red sauce is almost like ketchup.

The regular price of the Stand Dog is $2.95. A bit on the high side but for a $1 they are well worth it. I would only come back on Monday's but would stick to regular toppings like mustard, onions, tomatoes, and regular relish.

Good service and they do have TV's so you can watch Monday Night Football. They also have $2 draft beer specials on Monday.

Rubin's Red Hot-Closed

Rubin's Red Hot
15322 Ventura Blvd.
Sherman Oaks
818-905-6515

Rubin's Red Hot is across Ventura Blvd from the Sherman Oaks Gallery. Rubin's was made from part of the L train from Chicago. When you're at Rubin's you almost feel like you're in Chicago.

I tried the Chicago Polish for $3.96. The polish is topped with mustard and kraut. First off the bun was an onion bun with some poppy seed. So not off to a good start. An onion bun? Come on, all poppy seed bun. The polish itself was lacking any flavor. The toppings were fresh, I really liked the sauerkraut. But the topping mean nothing when the polish is a bland piece of meat.

The service is good but the parking is terrible. The next time I go, I would park in the Gallery and walk to Rubin's. But I won't have to worry about that since I won't go back.

The Wiener Factory-Closed

The Wiener Factory
14917 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks
818-789-2676

The Wiener Factory is one of the best hot dog places around!!! The service is great. I ordered the all beef-mustard, relish, and onion dog for $2.75 and the chili cheese dog for $3.15.

WOW both of them were great. The hot dog itself has the right blend of spices and has a nice snap. The only think I didn't like is they use brown mustard instead of yellow mustard. Next time I'll remember to tell them to use yellow mustard. The toppings were all very fresh and I really enjoyed my first taste of a Wiener Factory Hot Dog.

The chili cheese dog is just overloaded with chili, cheese and onions, a steal at $3.15. The chili was a little bland, not spicy which is good for my tastes. The cheese and onions were nice and fresh.

I really enjoyed going to the Wiener Factory. Great service and great food. My favorite hot dog stop along Ventura Blvd!!!!

My Brother's Bar B Q-Closed

My Brother's Bar B-Q 21150 Ventura Blvd Woodland Hills CA 818-348-2020 They only serve baby back ribs at Mr. Brothers. Stepping into My Brothers is like stepping back in time when Love's Restaurant was around. Mr Brothers has the same decor as the 1970 and 80's Love Restaurant chain. We got their in time for the early bird special and I got the baby back ribs. The baby back ribs are OK though they are not smoked at all but for $12.95 they are a good deal. The ribs were a little too well done for my tastes. Some ribs were almost burnt. The BBQ sauce was just too sweet. I got fries and the garlic mashed potato. Fries were done just right. The mashed potatoes were OK. Service was very good. I wouldn't go back to My Brothers. Update January 19, 2011 I know I said I would never go back to My Brother's Bar B Q, again and that is still true; I wouldn't go back for the BBQ ribs. But, I read that My Brother's serves broasted chicken and I wanted to try it. I believe My Brother's is the only place in the San Fernando Valley, that serves broasted chicken. I got the half broasted chicken, $8.25, a la carte. The chicken is suppose to be cooked to order, but I wasn't that impressed. It wasn't as juicy as other broasted chicken that I have tired. I did like the crispy skin, but this was an average example of broasted chicken. Service, for to go orders, was terrible. When I walked in, a young girl was sitting down, talking with her friends. She didn't bother to get up and greet me or the couple who came in right after. She just sat down and asked if she could help me. The couple, who came in after me, was dining in, and she told them, to pick any seat. Again, never bothering to get out of her seat. Terrible first impression. I asked to make sure they had broasted chicken and she said yes. I then asked how is that sold, by the piece, as a meal, etc? She finally got up, got a menu and told me "How about I give you the menu and you can see for yourself." Nice, friendly service. While waiting for the broasted chicken, a man came in to pick up an order of broasted chicken. I asked him how the broasted chicken was. He said very good but the service, sucks. I agree. Broasted chicken takes 15-20 minutes to cook. I was waiting about 10 minutes when my order came. The terrible host said they had made extra chicken. I felt the box and it was hot and when I opened up the chicken it did seem as though the chicken had been cooked within the past few minutes. I would not go to Mr Brother's again. The terrible service and the average broasted chicken.

Mr Cecil's-Sherman Oaks-Closed

Mr. Cecil's
13625 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks 91423
818-905-8400

Mr. Cecil's in Sherman Oaks is the suburban BBQ. What is suburban BBQ? A place that thinks cooking a piece of meat in an oven and drowning it with BBQ sauce makes it BBQ.

I ordered the 1/3 rack of St. Louis Style Ribs for $9.69. Not worth it at all. The ribs lacked any kind of smoke flavor. The liquid smoke they used must have wore off. :) The ribs were tender. The bbq sauce was one of the best I've had, a nice blend of sweetness and spice. The 1/3 rack doesn't include any sides.

I would not go back to Mr. Cecil's though I will go to their West LA location on Pico and try it.