La Villa Basque, Who has been?

[Burger Boy]

In my leisurely sunday afternoon drive I drove past La Villa Basque on Soto & Leonis. Never noticed it before but it looks like it has been there for ever. Has anyone been or experienced it? Looked at their website and reminded me of a Taix's or something similar. Is it worth the time and calories to try it out?

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La Villa Basque
2801 Leonis Blvd, Vernon, CA 90058

[Foodandwine]

actually there is a coffee shop type version off the back parking lot as well, Its a go to spot if you work in the area.. Its pretty good, I like the counter in the coffee shop version when I am solo..

[Peripatetic]

Great photos of this place from a blog post I came across a few years ago:

http://retrorenovation.com/2008/08/24...

Awesome.

[JTea]

I worked in the area for many years, and love will47's take. VB was for a long time the place to go for special lunches. Special because it was dark, with leather banquettes and metal silverware, fancier than Joe K's deli, Mike's Hockey Burger, and the special prices for a slab of ribeye and mashed potatoes. A decent place for that area. Plus it gave the now-convicted city fathers a place to hang out. A better option by far: Il Treno, 54th & Santa Fe [checking the addy I see a post that it Closed?! How? It was great and it was always packed. A moment of silence... OK, at about 67th & Santa Fe is Avila's El Ranchito, solid mex fare with a big fish tank and homemade tortillas. And across from the Farmer John mural at Bandini & Soto is a decent fish place. But you may still go to VB, just to imagine that you're an extra in a scene from Pulp Fiction, and to hear the waitress call you 'hon'.

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Mike's Hockey Burger
1717 S Soto St, Los Angeles, CA 90023

El Ranchito Restaurant
3401 S Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90007

[RicRios]

Il Treno! Still remember that one. As you said, it was always packed, and by the big fish. Joe K was also an alternative hangout. Sadly, they all went downhill together with the big schmatte industry. Actually, the downslope started with NAFTA, late 90's. By early 2000s the entire area pretty much went bust. Knitters, dyers, converters, factors, you name it. First moved to TJ, Hermosillo, Puebla & such, then way beyond. I also used to visit VB, which was ( is it still? ) owned by Leonis C. Malburg, long time major ( owner? ) of the City of Vernon.

[Das Ubergeek]

I've been. It's not actually Basque-as-in-Basque; it's Basque-as-in-Bakersfield and I save my Basque-as-in-Bakersfield for my infrequent trips to Bakersfield.

[Burger Boy]

Is that different than Basque in Barstow?

[Das Ubergeek]

Aucune idée. I've never had Basque in Barstow. We either eat with family in Victorville or we go have one of those awesome burgers in Nipton.

[Burger Boy]

I was being silly, sorry

[will47]

The place really has a great feel, like somewhere you'd go to have an afternoon drug deal in a movie or something. I couldn't eat most of the food (vegetarian), but my feeling is that the food is nothing special for the prices they charge... but it is worth going to just for the experience. They keep pretty short hours (mostly weekday lunch, I think). I used to work a little bit down Soto from there, so I've been several times (not for a number of years, though).