Philippe the Original and the French dip argument

Philippe the Original has been making sandwiches in downtown Los Angeles since 1908. The floors are covered in sawdust, the tables are shared, and the counter has been feeding the city for more than a century.

Who dipped first

Philippe Mathieu opened the shop in 1908. The restaurant's own account is that in 1918 he was making a sandwich for a policeman when he dropped a halved French roll into the roasting pan's drippings. The officer took it anyway and came back the next day for another. The restaurant puts it carefully today, saying Mathieu claimed the distinction of having created the French dipped sandwich.

Cole's, which also opened downtown in 1908, told its own story of a dipped roll. Neither claim is documented beyond family and house lore. Cole's closed in March 2026 after 118 years, which leaves Philippe's as the last of the two claimants still serving.

Three families, one counter

Mathieu sold the business in 1927 to the Martin family, and their descendants, the Binder and Downey families, still own and run it. In 1951 the restaurant moved from Aliso Street to its current spot on Alameda Street, reportedly to make way for the Hollywood Freeway.

The dip is the reason to come. It is built over about thirty hours from beef and vegetable stocks combined with the roasting juices. The house mustard is made fresh in-house and is known for how hot it is.

• Open daily, 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
• Breakfast until 10:30 a.m.
• Order at the counter and find a seat at a shared table