Chris 'n' Pitts began in Lynwood in the 1940's. At one time, there were over twenty Chris 'n' Pitts restaurants scattered across the Southland; now we are down to only three. The recent announcement that my local Chris 'n' Pitts (near Disneyland) had closed down was enough to get me searching for the last three remaining restaurants. As of this posting, I have visited two of them. I looking for someone brave enough to travel into Downey for #3.
Most restaurants that were founded in the 1940's undergo some revisions throughout the years to keep up with the current trends. They will upgrade the facilities, offer trendy new menu items, or perhaps design a flashy new menu. Chris 'n' Pitts hasn't done any of that. Consequently, walking into Chris 'n'n Pitts in 2011 is like walking into Chris 'n' Pitts in 1951. The Chris 'n' Pitts in Bellflower is designed to look like a log cabin straight out of Lil' Abner... if Lil'Abner had built his cabin in the middle of a car lot.
The interior was the same motif: faux log cabin, with lots of wood paneling...
I love the menu. They have pictures of all the main entrees. Have you ever ordered an item because the picture in the menu made it look so good? Then, when you got the item, it looks less appetizing than it did? No fear of that happening here! These are not flashy, Hollywood-type pictures... No, these pictures are the actual items, as if they were taken with someone's Brownie camera. Here are a couple of photos straight from the menu (and two of my favorite entrees, by the way):
MMMMM... Parden me, I got distracted. Anyway, This night I ordered the ribs. You can get them with the reguler Chris 'n' Pitts barbecue sauce or "Hawaiian Style." I got both. The Hawaiian glaze is a little sweet but good. The Chris 'n'Pitts BBQ sauce is adequate. I've had better, but I've had much worse.
The steaks are also great here... They have a charbroiled, fresh-off-the-grill taste. I also recommend anything breaded. Of course I do. Big surprise. But here, the breading is perfect, light with a touch of flavor. And the country gravy they use is a perfect compliment to whatever it's on. There are many country gravys I don't care for, as they are too heavy and they often overwhelm the food. Not so here.
I couldn't end the post without a picture of the Chris 'n' Pitt's sign at night... a beacon for comfort food:
Joe,
ReplyDeleteWent to the Chris & Pitts in Downey today, because I remembered going to the one in Downey when I lived there 30 years ago. It is just like I remembered, and very good. I had the Texas Barbecue sandwich, which was delicious and very filling. I was just going to write about it for my blog, and was doing a bit of online research. Big crowd there, too, so I imagine that it isn't going anywhere.
What is your blog? Please send or post the link so i can check it out. Thanks for commenting!
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