AmericaJR.com [ FOOD: Bobby's Detroit Coney Island is now open in La Quinta, Calif. ]

by Jason Rzucidlo

americajr@americajr.com

WATCH: Interview with Bobby's Co-Owner Linda Locklear

WATCH: Interview with Customers at Bobby's Detroit Coney Island

LA QUINTA, Calif. -- Since the Detroit Free Press published a story called "The decline of the dog?" on Dec. 15, 2011, things have changed significantly. I would invite the newspaper's restaurant critic to make a return trip to southern California. Coney Dog L.A. opened last June on Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood. Now, another restaurant called Bobby's Detroit Coney Island, has opened its doors along Highway 111 in La Quinta, Calif. It serves all of the Motor City favorites such as coney dogs, Faygo pops, Vernors ginger ale along with Sanders hot fudge sundaes and cream puffs.

"We decided to open the restaurant because we missed the taste of the Motor City," said Linda Locklear, co-owner of Bobby's Detroit Coney Island. "I grew up in the restaurant business and grew up eating coney dogs and All-American classic items like your burgers, your reubens and your clubs. We felt that this area needed a little bit of the Midwest flair here so we brought it here. Hot dogs and chili are shipped in from Detroit. Our hot dogs are all-beef with the natural casing so when you bite into it, it's got a nice little snap. The chili is a beanless chili."

It is safe to say that Detroit-style coney dogs are on the rebound. While the Coney Dog restaurant in L.A. is owned by celebrities, Bobby's Detroit Coney Island restaurant is family owned and operated. The Locklear family moved from Livonia, Mich. to southern California nine years ago.

"We make patties daily, our corned beef is cooked in-house," the co-owner added. "We make hashbrowns the old-fashioned way where we boil, peel and slice them. The only thing that's not homemade is our chili and hot dogs. Faygo pop and Vernors were started and bottled in Detroit. We have that item shipped over here. Sanders used to be an ice cream parlor back in Michigan. They bottle and can their hot fudge, which we also have shipped out here. Our prices are affordable. Our menu prices start and $1.99 and the highest item we have here is $7.99."

Other than the coney dogs, the most popular menu items include the patty melt, the Greek salad, onion rings and petulla, which is an Albanian-style of fried bread.

"I've been here about 15 or 20 times, I come here a lot," said former Detroit resident Jeffrey Feig, who now lives in Indio, Calif. "I ordered the basic coney island: hot dog, chili, mustard and onions. It doesn't compare to any other coney island restaurant, it's the best one. The chili, you can't get anywhere else. I compare it a lot to Lafayette Coney Island. There's one in L.A. that opened up. We were going to make road trips to go there then we found this place. We just love it here. The prices are just normal prices. You can't put a price on Detroit. I think it's great location. I wish it were in Indio, where I live."

Bobby's Detroit Coney Island also offers another Motor City favorite, sliders. Those are basically hamburgers with onions and pickles with cheese by request.

"This is about our forth or fifth time dining here," said customer Ron Lamack from Sac City, Ia. "We come pretty regularly. The fish and chips were just excellent. The prices are the best I found, very good. It's very easy to find. It's very clean, the people are very friendly."

Weekly specials include Meatloaf Mondays, Hot Turkey Tuesdays, Boneless Red Wing Wednesdays, Taco Thursdays and Fish Fridays.

"We come in here every Friday and sometimes we come in the morning for breakfast," said customer Garry Sage from Indio, Calif. "We like the place very much, very good food. I ordered a cheeseburger with extra cheese and a bowl of chili. I haven't tried the coney dogs yet, but my son has. He likes them. I eat a lot of hamburgers. The prices are very fair. It's a good location. If people don't know about it, it's kind of hard to find. I always just tell people they're straight across the street from Costco."

Another popular dish at Bobby's is Diana's Dog, which is a hot dog with chili and grilled onions.

"We ordered the fish and chips," said customer Judy Pellersels from Sac City, Ia. "I liked the batter, it wasn't real heavy and I liked that so it was good. The coneys are a little bit messy, but I really enjoyed it. I had the chili dog. That's why we come, the good prices, the good service and the cute waitresses and the chatter we've been having with them. So it's been fun. I think it's perfect for us because we're just on Jefferson. It's real quick to get here just about five minutes. It's a good hometown atmosphere, we enjoy it."

Desserts include milkshakes, Sanders hot fudge sundaes and Sanders cream puffs.

Bobby's Detroit Coney Island is located at 79630 Highway 111 in La Quinta, Calif. Hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Fridays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Most menu items are between $5 and $10. The restaurant accepts cash, VISA and MasterCard. Vote for Bobby's for Palm Springs Life's Best Breakfast in the Valley by visiting mybestofthebest.com/ballots and click "other."

For more information about Bobby's Detroit Coney Island, visit facebook.com/pages/Bobbys-Detroit-Coney-Island or call (760) 347-2200.

The logos of General Motors, Chrysler and Ford are painted on the wall.

The quote "A taste of the Motor City in the Desert" is painted on the wall above the counter.

A "Motown" sign is hanging on the wall.

One of the waiters wore a Detroit Red Wings t-shirt


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