Chaos and Junk: Barney’s Beanery

When you walk into Barney’s Beanery you are hit with many things; colors, sounds, smells: chaos. From the license plates on the ceiling, motorcycles on counters, televisions at every booth and the psychedelic English bus in the middle of the restaurant; Barney’s Beanery is a cacophony of sensory experiences. Their menu alone can make you hold your head in your hands; over 700 items to chose from.

When I asked the owners, brother and sister David Houston and Lisa Bledsoe, a Pasadena resident, if it was their idea to serve that many items; it wasn’t. The original Barney’s Beanery kept adding menu items and not taking anything away, eventually it became the menu it is today. David and Lisa have done a little tweaking, however the menu is pretty much as it was in the 60s when the Beanery was under its original ownership.

The original Barney’s Beanery was started in 1927 by John “Barney” Anthony on Route 66. Many of the license plates that decorated the premises were a symbolic gesture from some of the visitors coming to California to make a better life; they left their old life behind by leaving the license plate of their home state at the diner. Barney was also known to pull license plates for collateral on unpaid dinners. Over the years, Barney’s Beanery evolved into a place where Hollywood came to eat and think. Actors, writers and other Hollywood elite frequented the diner. Janis Joplin had her last beer there, and Jim Morrison was thrown out for doing what he did best, being Jim Morrison.

Since buying the original Barney’s Beanery, David Houston has made few changes to the decor of the diner; he did however open additional restaurants. This brings us to Pasadena, the newest location. With over 700 items on the menu what do you serve a person who wants to review the food? I left that choice up to David and Lisa.

First I was served the signature French onion soup, the recipe unchanged since the beginning. The broth is hearty and rich. It is served with croutons and a not too thick coating of Swiss cheese on the top, which is then put under the broiler. I found the soup delicious and for a change easy to eat. No long strings of cheese to stick to your chin or drip down your front.

The next thing we were given was a Belgian waffle and chopped Italian salad. Now, I will admit that the transition from onion soup to Belgian waffle was a tough one, but I managed, cleansing my pallet with tropical iced tea. The waffle was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, served with butter, syrup, fresh strawberries and whipped cream because as Lisa said, “it’s so much fun to have whipped cream,” I agree.

As we were tasting our waffle, we had additional dishes brought; a foot-long chili cheese dog (and I do mean foot-long) with fries and onion rings and a Barney’s Favorite Combo Pizza.

I was in a quandary what to try next. Since Barney’s claims to have the second best chili in Los Angeles I was curious, so I tried the chili cheese dog. I found the chili to be very meaty, not too spicy with a curious taste I could not identify. I was told by Lisa that all the spices are fresh including the chilies and you could certainly tell. The hot dog was split and grilled and served on a roll with melted cheese over all. The fries were battered, with a crispy coating on the outside, tender and fluffy on the inside. Onion rings were hearty rings of onion in a crispy batter, not so crispy as to tear your mouth apart just enough for a pleasant crunch.

The pizza was next on my agenda. We were told by Lisa, that the crust is hand-made and the pizzas made to order so a little wait is involved. We were served the Barney’s Favorite Combo, a blend of pepperoni, sausage, peppers, onions, mushrooms and homemade sauce. What struck me most was the sausage, nice medallions, slightly spicy. The combination of tastes was a perfect foil to the thin crust.

I finished with the Italian chopped salad, fabulous. Chopped romaine lettuce, provolone cheese, salami, mortadella, olives, roasted peppers and tomatoes all served with a tangy Italian dressing. Sort of a bite-sized antipasto.

If you’re looking for gourmet food you won’t find it at Barney’s. The food it straight-up Americana; hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, soups, pizza, burritos, salads, pastas, potatoes the list goes on.

The Beanery also serves breakfast all day for those who missed it. Menu prices range from $1.50 for corn on the cob to $175.00 for Barney’s Champagne Breakfast consisting of a giant chili cheese dog and a bottle of Dom Perignon. Seriously, most menu items are in the $6.00 to $12.00 range. All the food is made with fresh ingredients, all made to order. As the menu says “If we don’t have it-you don’t need it.”

They have a full bar with over 40 beers on tap and close to 200 imported and domestic beers to chose from. They are open from 7:30 a.m. – 2:00 a.m., seven days a week. Food services stops at around 12:30 a.m. Barney’s Beanery is located at 99 East Colorado Boulevard in Old Pasadena. For more information call (626) 405-9777 or log onto www.barneysbeanery.com.