Bob's Big Boy

The Scene – The jaunty orange-and-white umbrellas, flashy neon, flat roof and vaulting sign have been beckoning L.A.'s hungry masses for more than 50 years. It is the oldest surviving member of the Bob's chain (the original was in Glendale), and is now a national landmark. Nab a counter seat and listen to locals recount Big Boy stories from their youth or squeeze into a comfortable booth. – – The Food – The Big Boy combo is a piece of Americana--a salad and a drink accompany a juicy double-deck burger served on a soft sesame roll with thinly shaved lettuce, cheddar…

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Editor's Tips

When to Go:: A classic car show is held every Friday night, 5pm-10pm, in the back parking lot. Saturdays and Sundays, 5pm-10pm, Bob's hosts carhop service.
The Extras:: The drive thru is open Monday-Thursday from 11am to 10pm.
Know Before You Go:: Order dinner salads "heavy on the blue" (dressing on the salad and on the side) perfect for carrying on the Bob's tradition of dipping fries into it.

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User Reviews (45)

ambiance	100.0% positive	“waitresses are nice, quick, atmosphere is very humble, i can see it geting quite packed and loud on weekends though.” “As you enter the parking lot the ever vigilant Big Boy greets you with a smile and a beautiful burger.” “The atmosphere is great and the old pics on the wall make for great lookey-loo-ing around this L.A landmark!” “The weekend has retro carhop service, which is so much fun, and the Friday car show has brought out the likes of Jay Leno more than a few times.” “The food here is good, not great, but something about the atmosphere and the comfort factor of the food make it a great experience.” “But, this location is cool if you are a car nut.”
drinks	100.0% positive	“This has got to be the best coffee shop around.”
food quality	77.63000011444092% positive	“Great quality food at competitive prices!” “once great burger and menu is no more.” “The Chicken Parmegena is decent, the milkshakes are thick and tasty, and their sandwiches are good.” “Bobs gave up fresh cooking their food, and also gave up their unique seasonings and salad dressings decades ago.” “After the food arrived we ended up eating some of the worst stuff I have ever had.” “You know it really gives you a terrible feeling when you read about other people's delimmas such as finding a small live worm crawling around on the veggies in their food.” “The food isn't the healthiest, but the service is good and the food normally comes out fast.” “Love the food, Hate the croud” “The club sandwich is pretty good and also the tortilla soup.” “As you enter the parking lot the ever vigilant Big Boy greets you with a smile and a beautiful burger.” “is not gourmet meat, nor served in a trendy bistro, with beautiful people and organic, home made anything.” “In-N-Out may be the best "fast" food burger, but nothing beats the Original Big Boy Combo!” “Right in the middle of consuming my favorite bacon cheese burger my 5 year old daughter grabs our immediate attention saying, "There's something moving on the purple vegetable (purple onions)!” “but if the burgers were the same I could still rate this place great.” “love this place for breakfast and its not bad for a classic burger and fries.” “have eaten at the best in the world and from Haut cuisine of Paris to all the" best Burger places in the world.” “ordered the new york steak, can honestly say it was a pretty damn good steak for 11.50 with all the sides and salad!” “We go Sunday nites for the car hop service, and always drive away wondering why they let the quality food go for a bland, pre-cooked line of tasteless fare.” “I'm a pushover for the blue cheese dressing, and bacon burgers are my favorite.” “The food here is good, not great, but something about the atmosphere and the comfort factor of the food make it a great experience.” “This is a great historic place to get a late night meal.” “The double meat patty burger wasn't that great either.” “The food here is incredibly good, as is the service, and all at a reasonable price.” “Those were the good old days and the good old burgers with a Cherry coke.” “The food quality is so poor, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.” “Their vegetarian burger is utterly disgusting.” “The very Best Hot Fudge Cake EVER, no other restaurant compares, though one cannot have a Big Boy Combo and fit in a Hot Fudge Cake in the same visit, way too much food.” “And they have the best onion rings I've ever had--just the right amount of grease and taste.” “The first, of course, was back in the 60s when it was the destination of teenyboppers who helped create the brilliant pairing of fries and blue cheese dressing.” “Awful food.” “Well I have to say that Bob's Big Boy is a great place to have a good decent meal.” “just finished telling my mother-in-law about Bob's Big Boy on Riverside Drive and raving about their delicious burgers when the unexpected just seems to happen on the worst of times.” “would have to say Bob's food, not necessarily great, probably borders somewhere between good and very good.” “The burgers are still great.” “ordered the Chili Spaghetti which was alright, but my friend ordered a Big Boy burger and it is -- to this day -- the best burger in its price range that I've ever had.” “won't say they are the best burgers in the world but something about "growing up at Bobs" has me continuing to come back.” “Also the food is delicious they a good variety to choose from the menu.” “don't recommend the philly cheese steak though.”
menu variety	100.0% positive	“once great burger and menu is no more.” “Also the food is delicious they a good variety to choose from the menu.”
overall	100.0% positive	“Read for yourself, most all the other reviews say what they should, that this is a great place to eat so give it a try and have some lunch and a bit of nostalgia sometime.” “Well I have to say that Bob's Big Boy is a great place to have a good decent meal.” “This is a great historic place to get a late night meal.” “Bob's is a great place to take a group.”
return potential	100.0% positive	“won't say they are the best burgers in the world but something about "growing up at Bobs" has me continuing to come back.”
service	71.4300012588501% positive	“The food isn't the healthiest, but the service is good and the food normally comes out fast.” “Immediately we informed the waitress, who was of good service, and she called the manager Patty.” “is not gourmet meat, nor served in a trendy bistro, with beautiful people and organic, home made anything.” “When we finally got our check, the waitress felt so bad and also added her discount to our check.” “The food here is incredibly good, as is the service, and all at a reasonable price.” “You know it really gives you a terrible feeling when you read about other people's delimmas such as finding a small live worm crawling around on the veggies in their food.” “waitresses are nice, quick, atmosphere is very humble, i can see it geting quite packed and loud on weekends though.” “The weekend has retro carhop service, which is so much fun, and the Friday car show has brought out the likes of Jay Leno more than a few times.” “We go Sunday nites for the car hop service, and always drive away wondering why they let the quality food go for a bland, pre-cooked line of tasteless fare.” “Other wait staff acted too cool to be of service.” “Carhop service, gotta love it!” “Yes, you have to wait for a table, but I suppose that is an indication in itself on how much people STILL love Big Boy!” “Foodlover 52s review above is from a myopic manager with the company who will run it into the ground with bad quality like they did before.” “Good prices, usually a 10 Spot will about cover it, minus the tip that is appropriate for the pleasant service.”
value	100.0% positive	“Good prices, usually a 10 Spot will about cover it, minus the tip that is appropriate for the pleasant service.” “Great quality food at competitive prices!” “The food here is incredibly good, as is the service, and all at a reasonable price.” “ordered the Chili Spaghetti which was alright, but my friend ordered a Big Boy burger and it is -- to this day -- the best burger in its price range that I've ever had.” “The value is good too.” “This store is fantastic and definetely worth a visit.”
wait time	75.0% positive	“This would have to be one of the worst meals I have had in a long time and would ask everyone to stay away from this restaurant if they want to have a pleasant evening” “waitresses are nice, quick, atmosphere is very humble, i can see it geting quite packed and loud on weekends though.”

07/27/10

Get your burgers somewhere else!

by poeticdestiny8

I was very excited to visit a piece of my childhood. My boyfriend and I went to have some Lunch this past Sunday afternoon. It wasn't busy, yet the front booths were occupied. As we walked in,one of the two girls at the front pointed at a booth for us to take and being accustomed to casual dining, had no problem with not being walked to our table. We sat for a while chatting and reminicing about our Bob's experiences as children and noticed that we hadn't received menus yet. We looked around and waited for someone to come by to ask. One waitress made two trips to two of the three tables to one side and I turned and notice a second waitress tending to the tables behind us. Another server was staring off into space at another section and the two girls up front were still doing something at the register. After about 10 minutes, I notice a manger walk out and suppose that he may walk by to draw his attention and instead he stood up front for a while then quickly crossed the restaurant with a slight glance and no recognition that we had yet to be attended to. I clocked in two more minutes then we got up and left. No apology, no acknowledgement.

Bob's Big Boy in Burbank obviously doesn't need our business, therefore, I suggest you have your burgers somewhere else.

PS- the single star should be no stars but I'm required to give a rating

Pros: Wouldn't know.
Cons: Worst Service Ever!

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05/07/10

Great place open late

by CS3

This is a great historic place to get a late night meal.

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06/16/09

Worst Food I have had in memory

by DrBiped

What a horrible experience this was. After getting our drinks we found out that the ice tea tasted like water. Then after waiting for 20 min we got our order taken.

After the food arrived we ended up eating some of the worst stuff I have ever had. The burger I got was a defrosted, reheated, hunk of flavorless junk. The fries with them where freezer burned.

My girlfriend got a piece of garlic toast topped with flavorless turkey and out of a jar gravy. Mash potatoes which where just that. Mashed up potatoes with nothing else in them. and a side of cold slaw that was just chopped up cabbage in water.

This would have to be one of the worst meals I have had in a long time and would ask everyone to stay away from this restaurant if they want to have a pleasant evening

Pros: The Lighting
Cons: Everything else

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05/02/09

Nostalgic Burbank Burger Location

by RockinRick

A classic burger hangout in Burbank, I've been going here with friends since junior high school days. I'm a pushover for the blue cheese dressing, and bacon burgers are my favorite. I have not ordered much other than my usual... bacon cheeseburger, fries, blue cheese dressing, and a chocolate shake. I won't say they are the best burgers in the world but something about "growing up at Bobs" has me continuing to come back.

Pros: Plenty of Parking unless lot filled w/classic cars
Cons: What could be bad about eating meat, bacon, and chocolate?

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01/23/09

A definite landmark restaurant that still thrives

by Foodlover52

You know it really gives you a terrible feeling when you read about other people's delimmas such as finding a small live worm crawling around on the veggies in their food. But, considering burgers do have tomatoes, onions, and lettuce, actually this could easily happen at any restaurant offering this kind of product or similar fare but, did two different people in their group really need to review with the same exact complaint on the same day? If you accidently ate it before seeing it, I'm sure it wouldn't hurt you, but at least it wasn't something worse, like a c**kroach. I've been a customer of this specific Bob's location since the late 1960's, for more than 30 years. I can say I've never had an experience like this and even if I did, it wouldn't stop me from going again. Another diner complained that the food no longer tastes like it once did including the salad dressings among other things. I still eat here a couple times a month and the selections I have eaten still taste to me, like they always did. Yes, I'm sure there have been minor changes over the years but not enough to make a big difference. I happen to know that certain products like their Bob's special relish and the salad dressings have been made to secret recipes since their introduction years ago, they have no reason to change them. Read for yourself, most all the other reviews say what they should, that this is a great place to eat so give it a try and have some lunch and a bit of nostalgia sometime.

Pros: Great original double deck burgers, historical experience, nostalgic ambience
Cons: Parking on Friday classic car nights, long waits during busy meal periods

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Editor's Tips

07/27/10

Get your burgers somewhere else!

by poeticdestiny8

05/07/10

Great place open late

by CS3

06/16/09

Worst Food I have had in memory

by DrBiped

05/02/09

Nostalgic Burbank Burger Location

by RockinRick

01/23/09

A definite landmark restaurant that still thrives

by Foodlover52

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