Roaming around Los Angeles on the quest for quirky places to eat we hit The Bucket in Eagle Rock. This tiny place is famous in L.A. It was opened in 1935 by a Julio, who – according to some old timers – was quite the guy. You did things his way, or else. Julio is not around any longer, the place has new owners, but with the eatery he also sold the recipes for his famous burgers, the Julio Shrimp and his secret spicy sauce.
So there we were, sitting outside in the newly added patio (before that, the place seated barely 10) and were ready to order. One Bucket Burger, one Julio Shrimp, fries. For drinks we ordered a Coke and a Red Bull. The Coke arrived, but I was informed that they were out of Red Bull. Right, I said, then I’d like a coffee, please. Whereupon the charming server said: “No coffee machine, no microwave, no ice – it’s The Bucket.” That is not something one hears too often in these parts of the world. I settled for a water without ice, which is exactly what I am always drinking.
Then we waited for the food. That’s something else unique to The Bucket – there is a wait, because the food is always freshly prepared. But once it arrived, it was as good as we had heard. The burger was juicy and meaty and the Julio Shrimp was quite an adventure: two shrimp, butterflied, stuffed with crab meat, wrapped in bacon and deep fried, served with the secret spicy sauce. Well, well.
Another place one can highly recommend for eating outside the box; and drinks without ice.
Oh, drool. Not being able to have a regular hamburger is one of the worst parts of being gluten intolerant. I work around it by just having the fixings with no bun. It’s one of the reasons I loved Barney’s.
When Dan comes home from LA, he always goes through Phoenix, and stays a couple of days with a good friend. The next time, he swears he’s going to go here just to say he’s been. If he does, I’ll try to remember to tell you what he says about it.
Hoert sich sehr lecker an.
That is so funny, Karen – you can’t eat the bun, I won’t eat the bun. And no cheese on a burger. And not fries to go with it. I am the despair of every burger person.
Ist auch lecker, Bluemle – nur sehr mächtig durch die Frittiererei. “Julio’s Shrimp” liegt einem eine ganze Weile im Magen. 🙂