Lunch in Downey

[BunnieBear]

I have recently been called to work in Downey for a few months and need some lunch recommendations that are not fast food, but are relatively healthy, quick and inexpensive. I am only interested in going to NON-CHAIN restaurants. I am willing to drive to the nearby adjacent areas. I'm located near Woodruff and Firestone and Imperial Highway... Thanks in advance!

[slowrider]

Try Cuca's on Slauson - cross st. is Passons (across from Chase Bank).
I think it's technically Pico Rivera - not a far drive from Downey though.

[kevin]

what is cuca's

[slowrider]

It's a Mexican place........real down home cooking.......the Chile Colorado is really good........
Very strange place.....thrashed vinyl booths and a couple of the tables have small TV's chained to them.........
Almost seems as though some of the women who work there live in the back or something......they kinda keep their own hours, but are usually open by 11:30.
Food is really good and home-cooked style.

[Local]

I have a friend who worked at Rancho Los Amigos a while back- a colleague recommended this place ...El Salto del Frayle.

Their ceviche and escabeche de pescado was pretty good. My buddy had a shrimp fried rice w/ nuances of asian spices- the chef was supposedly Chinese/Peruvian. Saltido etc., usual Peruvian menu items also. Inexpensive, a small dive of a place, if it's still there.

7639 Firestone Blvd. Downey, CA 90241 [phone]

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El Salto Del Frayle
7639 Firestone Blvd, Downey, CA 90241

[nomo_fan]

Get the molcajete at Gloria's Cocina Mexicana.

[love2eat]

I asked a similar question in 2006. Here were the responses:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/304742

[BunnieBear]

Thanks! I'm not at that location anymore, but have to stop in occasionally. I'm just excited for the Porto's!!!! Of course, they don't even have a foundation poured yet, but I'm still psyched!

[Das Ubergeek]

In the meantime while you wait for Porto's to be built, try Tropicana Bakery on Paramount Blvd. Also a very good Cuban bakery, though without the massive range of products that Porto's had. I actually like their guava-cheese better than Porto's.

[RamFan]

Where is Porto's going to be at?

[Das Ubergeek]

8233 Firestone, at Downey St.

[BunnieBear]

I tried out Tropicana--good, very authentic. Maybe not somewhere I could go every day, if I wanted to still fit in a booth, but still yummy for a treat. I'll definitely try the guava-cheese next time. Thanks for the tip!

[kevin]

arthur's

[BunnieBear]

What's Arthur's?
I have tried Tropicana (cuban) and been to Sizzling Thai and lots and lots of bad fast food... I am really willing to drive to get something nourishing that isn't from a chain!

[kevin]

arthur's is an old fashioned coffee shoppe, with omlettes, burgers, sandwiches, you know the drill. but done pretty well. it's been there for ages. and your post about tropicana reminds me that they have a killer Arthur's OJ, not to be confused with the OJ on the menu. It's not a chain per se (his son owns a location of Arthur's Coffee Shoppe in Orange, but that is loads different than the original in Downey). There's also LA Chef Cafe for reasonably priced Cal-French cuisine in either Downey or nearby South Gate.

[BunnieBear]

I went to Arthur's (on your recommendation). Nice huevos rancheros...I was the only female in the joint, which was a little odd, but the OJ was great! Thanks!

[Will Owen]

As I go through there more or less frequently (we always take the Scenic Route from Pasadena to Long Beach) I'd like to know where Arthur's is. I do know about Pieloon; we've never stopped there but now we might. We'd just discovered Henry Moffett's when they shut down, and need a nice funky replacement.

[kevin]

arthur's is located at 8813 Lakewood in Downey.

[attran99]

My husband's family used to go to a diner-like place near the Stonewood Mall called Pieloon. They're prime rib was surprisingly good at a reasonable price. I've had their turkey dinner, which was fine, though not fantastic. Their pies, however, are quite good.
I can't remember if Sambi Japanese is open for lunch, but we've gone there for dinner, and the specials were at a really good value. I'm more of a fan of their cooked items than I am of their sushi.

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Pieloon
10822 Lakewood Blvd, Downey, CA 90241

Sambi Restaurant of Tokyo
8649 Firestone Blvd, Downey, CA 90241

[Das Ubergeek]

What about La Chiva Loca? You can have a torta ahogada -- the Mexican answer to the French dip sandwich.

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La Chiva Loca
7952 Firestone Blvd, Downey, CA 90241