Juli Popp sits elbow to elbow with other diners at the horseshoe-shaped counter at Chili John’s, digging into a bowl of spicy hot stick-to-your-ribs chili made from a 130-year-old recipe.
“You know how people really play with chili recipes and you get pumpkin chili and lots of weird stuff?” says Popp, a paralegal at Disney. “This chili is just real beef chili. It’s so good.”
If only more customers like her would dine here.
Chili John’s is Burbank’s oldest restaurant, but after 79 years, a slowdown in Hollywood production is putting it at risk of closure. Since the owners announced their dire financial situation in March, they have been trying various measures to rescue the business, including opening a taproom and hosting themed events.
“We knew we needed to reinvent ourselves, because the restaurant was basically just dying a slow, painful death,” says Steve Hager, who owns the eatery with his wife Claudine Hager.
A bowl of Chili John’s spicy “original beef” over spaghetti with a slice of lemon icebox pie. Photo by Megan Jamerson/KCRW.
A Wisconsin entrepreneur named John Isaac founded the first Chili John’s in 1913. Then his son Ernie moved west and opened the Burbank location in 1946. Today, customers can order chili over spaghetti noodles or rice, and if the cayenne kick has them in a puddle of sweat, regulars suggest the lemon icebox pie for dessert.
The Hagers took over the restaurant 10 years ago, knowing the success of the business was tied to its location near Hollywood studios — even Walt Disney ate here. Now as entertainment jobs dry up, many regulars are unemployed and cutting back on spending, says Hager. “Even my friend that has a salon a couple doors down, she's slow.”
Hager used to pad slow sales months by renting out the restaurant for filming. Pre-pandemic, he booked about 10 productions a year, he says, but with filming numbers at a crisis level in the Greater LA area, last year he had none, and this year only three. Now he uses most of his U.S. Coast Guard pension to cover the restaurant’s bills.
Earlier this year, they soft-opened the Taproom at Chili John’s on weekends in hopes that it would appeal to the changing neighborhood.
The taproom and its $7 pints are why Sean Malony is a new regular. He stops by weekly with coworkers from Apartment D Films, a nearby stop-motion studio he co-owns.
“It's so small-town and cozy, and nice to come to after a busy work week,” he says while ordering lunch.
On May 21, Malony came for a midday meal because Chili John’s declared it David Lynch Day.
Adam Fix, the taproom bartender, got the idea because the restaurant appears in season three of Twin Peaks. So on this day, every slice of pie came with a free cup of “damn fine coffee” — an homage to the show’s character Agent Cooper. Fix has also done other TV theme nights at the taproom, like X-Files and Star Trek.
Jamie Thompson (left) and Billy Swanson Jr. decided to come for lunch after hearing the restaurant was at risk of closing. Photo by Megan Jamerson/KCRW.
One person determined to do his part to boost sales is Billy Swanson, Jr. He drove from Anaheim for his monthly chili fix, and arrived wearing a black Chili John’s t-shirt and a wide grin.
Swanson grew up in Wisconsin, going to the original Chili John’s. Then at age 13, his family moved to California and became patrons of the Burbank restaurant.
“I'm pretty old, but you never get too old for Chili John's chili,” says Swanson, a 74-year-old retired teacher.
Still, only a dozen people were chowing down at 12:30 p.m. on a Wednesday in late May. Pre-pandemic, it wasn’t uncommon for there to be a line out the door, says Hager.
“Burbank loves this place. They just need to remember to eat here,” says Hager. “It's not a museum. It's a restaurant and we need our customers.”