Philippe's

Philippe's, or "Philippe the Original" (/fɪˈliːps/fi-LEEPS)is arestaurantlocated in downtownLos Angeles,California.  The restaurant is well known for continuously operating since 1908, making it one of the oldest restaurants inLos Angeles. It is also renowned for claiming to be the inventor of theFrench dip sandwich.
The restaurant has been located at 1001 NorthAlameda Street, on the edge ofChinatown, in the Historical District of Los Angeles, two blocks north ofOlvera Street, and close toUnion Station, since 1951.
Philippe Mathieu emigrated fromFrancetoBuffalo, New York, in 1901, moving to Los Angeles in 1903. He opened adeliwith his brother, Arbin, shortly after arriving. In 1908 he opened his first Philippe restaurant at 300 N. Alameda Street, where he servedroast beef, roast pork, roast lamb, liverpâtéandblood sausage. Mathieu's restaurants were in L.A.'s traditional Frenchtown neighborhood, which was razed to buildLos Angeles City Hall.
In 1911, the Mathieu brothers opened the New Poodle Dog French Restaurant at 156 North Spring Street. The New Poodle was a white tablecloth restaurant, and after two years, they closed it and opened another inexpensive place at 617 North Alameda. In 1918, Philippe moved the restaurant to 246 Aliso Street, where he first served his French dipped sandwiches.
In 1925, to avoid frequent rent increases, Mathieu bought his own property at 364 Aliso Street. Two years later, he sold the restaurant to a lawyer whose name is unknown, who failed at running the restaurant. A few months later, in 1927, Mathieu bought back the restaurant and sold it to brothers David and Harry Martin,making good on his promise to his wife to retire at 50; Mathieu died in 1960 at the age of 72. The Martins and their in-laws the Binders have run Philippe's ever since.  John and Richard Binder took over running the restaurant following the retirement of their fatherWilliam "Bill" Binderin 1985.
From 1927 to 1941, Philippe's was open 24 hours a day. In 1951, the Martins moved Philippe's to its present location at 1001 N. Alameda Street due to the construction of theHollywood Freeway.
Cole's Pacific Electric Buffetclaims to have existed before Philippe's, but Cole's closed for renovations in March 2007 and reopened in December 2008.Philippe's claims to be the longestcontinuouslyoperating restaurant in Los Angeles.
The restaurant is featured inVisiting... withHuell HowserEpisode 413.
The origins of the French dip sandwich have been debated for many years.Cole's Pacific Electric Buffetalso claims to have invented the sandwich in 1908. There are three versions of how Philippe's French dipped sandwich originated:
Originally, Mathieu referred to this as a dip sandwich. The restaurant was colloquially known as "Frenchy's", which eventually developed into a "French dip sandwich".
Philippe's is a traditionaldelicatessen-typesit-down restaurant, having old-fashioned traditions such as rows of tables shared by several parties,wood shavingsscattered on the floor,darkbrownwooden walls and floor, and newspapers from historicalU.S.events that happened from the time the restaurant opened to the 1980s.  Wall-mounted displays are dedicated to circuses, and to the history of railroading Los Angeles, from the Los Angeles Historical Railroad Society. The building has two stories, both with tables for eating, and is located one block away fromUnion Station. Theskyscrapersof downtown are not visible from the restaurant (at street level), despite its proximity.
The restaurant is famous for attracting hungry patrons from all walks of life, from poverty-stricken, to working class, to the city's elites.  At peak times, customers often find themselves standing in lines that can be ten deep as they wait for waitresses to prepare their meals at one of the serving stations at the restaurant's counter.  Meals are servedcafeteria-styleon paper plates, and customers carry their food on trays to their tables.  The egalitarian effect of the restaurant has been noted, as people from various economic strata bump elbows at the long communal tables and ask each other to pass the jars of Philippe's homemade mustard. In 2008 theLos Angeles Department of Public Healthordered the traditional mustard jars and spoons to be removed from the tables as unsanitary; after a brief controversy, the jars were replaced by plastic squeeze bottles, and the mustard was restored to the tables.
In addition to their main attraction of French dip sandwiches, other old-fashioned foods are served, including freshly madesoups,beef stew,chili, baked apples, andpickled pigs' feet.Sides include potato salad, macaroni salad, and coleslaw.  Jars of purplepickled eggsare arrayed on the counter.  Healthier menu items, such as turkey sandwiches andsalads, were added to the menu following Bill Binder's retirement in 1985.
Philippe's serves cans ofsoft drinks, freshly brewediced tea,lemonade, coffee, select wines, and beer. Homemade wine was once available. The current owner, awineaficionado, added a small selection ofCalifornia winesto the menu. Philippe's was famous for serving cups of regularcoffeefor 9 cents, in honor of old-fashioned prices. On January 25, 2012, it was announced that on February 2 the price would be raised to 45 cents. Prior to this, the price was last raised from 5 cents in 1977.
On its 85th, 90th, 95th and 100th anniversaries, French dip sandwiches were sold for 10 cents and coffee for 5 cents for a few hours during its celebration.