Philippe the Original
In the Dark Ages, when I was young, my father used to take the family to Philippe The Original – a sandwich shop near downtown Los Angeles known for its French dip sandwich. The French dip was delicious, but certainly one of the attractions for Dad was also the price.
As I recall, at that time the sandwich cost only 50 cents.
A few days ago I visited Philippe’s and paid $11.50 for that same French dip sandwich. And I don’t think it was just a lapse of my memory, but it seemed there was more bread and less beef than before.
Not only that, but the entire place seemed to have lost much of its former glory. It’s a casual place where you order at the counter. On the day I visited, there were only a few customers and yet the place was still set up with the post and rope stanchions used for controlling the long lines from yesteryear. The ropes traversed back and forth about five times, and with all the lanes vacant it made the space seem empty. It was a bit depressing.
Tom Wolfe wrote that “you can’t go home again.” By that I assume he meant your childhood home is never the same as in your memory. I experienced this firsthand when I went with my dad to visit Canarsie, a suburb of New York City where he had lived as a child. Dad was in his eighties by then and he was distraught to discover that the entire neighborhood had been converted into a large beer distillery.
“I will never come back here again,” he said.
I’ve lived most of my life in Los Angeles – since 1940. I still remember my mom driving on the brand-new Hollywood Freeway near our home and telling me that she couldn’t wait until I could drive so that she wouldn’t have to. That was fine with me (as I assume it would be with most sixteen-year-olds).
So, if you find yourself enjoying a night out downtown in Los Angeles, Philippe The Original is right across from Union Station, and has been open for business for more than 100 years.
Despite inflation, less beef, and fewer crowds, I think Dad would still enjoy eating his favorite sandwich there, with a generous side of their potato salad.
Alan