Cousin Vinny’s Cafe

Not sure why this place is still in business. Do you like bread? Then you’ll love there sandwiches. Love styrofoam take out boxes then you’ll love their sandwiches. Light on food high on prices for what you buy.

This is my 2^nd review and I still am not impressed. Had the pastrami sandwich. It had very little taste. Last time had the Philly cheesesteak and that wasn’t that good either.
I don’t see what the rave reviews are about.

This is one of the hidden gems in the South Bay. Their chicken club sandwich is awesome, as are their wings, chicken fingers, and burgers.
However, I must say their French Dip is the best I’ve ever had. It literally melts in your mouth.
Advice: Go crack a beer open next door at the Anza while you wait for your food.

Awesome find!!! GREAT wings, Philly cheesesteak & onion rings!

Let’s start with with the Wings — great size and flavor — I think you need to eat them there. Chicken Tenders, probably the best I’ve had, amazingly good. Fish & Chips, pretty darn good — got them as takeout, I think they would have been better if we ate them there, not their fault though… Steak & Cheese is awesome, however not your typical Steak & Cheese, more of a marinated steak and not thin as in «shaved», but it’s excellent. All in all this is a great place and I would highly recommend it.

The owner is from Buffalo. So you guessed it, great wings. Make that awesome wings. BW3, Hooters, etc, do not even compare. Super friendly, and great service as well!

We were originally heading to the Tomato Pie after we frequented Anza Hardware and discovered it was closed. At 1115am? Damn! I heard it was good eats, oh well.
My bride, being much observant than I than I pointed to Vinnie’s across the street. Yes!
Bride had a egg salad with onion rings and I the french dip and they were great!
We’ll be back again soon!
p. s. There is a full bar next door for those wishing to imbibe!

I’ve eaten here twice now and had chicken dishes both times:
Grilled chicken sandwich with macaroni salad
Chicken tenders.
Both times, chicken was cooked fresh to order and cooked well. Juicy and tender, awesome. The sandwich itself wasn’t amazing as far as flavors, just fresh and lightly seasoned. The mac salad wasn’t memorable.
But the chicken tenders… I’m a man who lives his breaded and fried boneless pieces of white meat chicken and these people are after my heart. The chicken is hand dipped in batter (just like Carl’s Jr., OMG!. ugh) which I would guess is the same they use for their Friday fish fry because it’s an English fish n’ chips style batter that puffs up, is crispy but not crunchy and gives a little chewiness. Quick hit of salt when they come out of the fryer and they’re ready to go. unless you’re me and ask them to toss the tenders in their buffalo sauce. So so good, they didn’t make it home before I plowed through them. Portion size was hefty, I’m guessing about a half pound.
Both times, service has been good and efficient, owner’s always friendly and so was the new staff member.
Can’t wait to go back and get more chicken strips.

My wife and I were both getting hungry and neither of us had any idea what for, so we said, next place that catches our eyes, we look to the right noticed this lil hole in the wall. I had the Philly and she ordered the BLT. The service was friendly, the food was pretty good, there is not a lot of space inside, worth the stop.

My friends and I ended up here for lunch on a recommendation for the Philly Cheesesteak. I had seen the place a couple of times while in the area but never had a reason to go there before today. We went and all 4 of us ordered the same thing. When the food arrived it was served fresh and very hot. I would definitely go back again for the Philly! I definitely want to go back again to try some of the other offerings.
This is a husband and wife operation, and they have been open for about 1 year now. They recently won an award from The Daily Breeze for best burger but I have yet to try a burger from here. Seating is VERY limited as there are probably a total of no more than 10 chairs in the entire place.
SPECIALS:
Wednesdays — 2 for 1 Philly Cheesesteaks
Friday — Fish and Chips OR Fish Tacos
Saturday — $ 0.50 chicken wings

I was given a gift certificate from
and looked up places in the area that would take it, and this was one of them. So I went to this place expecting average food but was surprised to find incredibly delicious food that was freshly prepared and served hot off the grill. I ate the Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich, which was really good and also had the egg rolls, quesadilla, onion rings, and mozarella cheese sticks. It was all junk food, but delicious junk food, which I love! The people there were friendly (they spoke to me and my guest while prepping the food). The only other place that I can think of that is just as good is Grunion’s, so if I’m ever craving good comfort food, I have two places to go. I will definitely go back to Cousin Vinny’s.

Food is ok, but the owners are not clean at all. We asked for burgers. The lady took out the beef patties from the fridge and put on some gloves to handle the meat. Right before she grabbed the meat to make patties, she went to the register, got some money to give to someone as change and without thinking about washing her hands, goes on to press the patties. Then, she notices that she has no tomatoes and sends the other cook out to buy some. He comes back and gives a tomato to the lady. She cuts it without washing it and puts it inside the burger. And of course the guy does not even think about washing his hands when he comes back from the store. Also, the lady handles food, pens, paper and money all at the same time while wiping her hands on her pants. Will not go back!

My wife and I were looking for a quick burger type place in our neighborhood and stumbled on this place. I ordered a Philly Cheesesteak Sandwich with fries. I was not disappointed. The sandwich was really good. They use the thin sliced rib-​eye and give you plenty of onions and peppers on a good crusty roll. The fries were hot and crisp. Since it was Saturday night, they had a .50 wing night and they were also better than expected. The sauce had a definite mustard taste in addition to the usual hot sauce.
Don’t let the appearance of the place fool you, it is really quite good!

I went here a couple weeks ago when my brother came into town for spring break. This place was the bomb! I live in a city with very few «hole in the wall» places so I am always happy to help the little guys and help my belly be happy :) anyway, I ordered the beef dip and my stepmom ordered the Philly cheesesteak and we split them. Both sandwiches were sooo delish! The bread was unbelievably fresh and the meat was good too. Plus they didn’t skimp on the au jus like a lot if places. My brother got the lava burger or volcano burger (you get the idea) and this thing means business! The patty is stuffed with cheese and it will explode if your not careful. My brother didn’t wait for the cheese to «settle» because he had just gotten off a 6 hour flight so all the cheese exploded. So be careful!
Aside from the food being fantabulous the owners are awesome! Kristy and vinny made sure we had all the ranch our hearts could desire and were just nice people. I highly suggest you try this place out! You will not be disappointed!
And did I mention they won best burger in the local newspaper?! Ya, you know you want to go now.

This place is located right next to the old Anza Inn bar. They have a pass-​through window to serve patrons of that bar. There are only 3 deuces and a 4 seat counter inside. They do have a picnic table on the sidewalk out front. This place opened 6 months ago and this place already has the claim to having the best burger in the south bay for 2011. I had the cheeseburger and fries. I thought it was good, but not the best. You can’t make that claim when you are serving krinkle cut fries that resemble ore-​ida frozen fries and the burgers are probably frozen patties that are thawed before they go onto the grill. If Vinny’s was in the category for using prepared products (frozen processed fries and patties), then I think they could win that category because they did make a killer burger under those circumstances. They definitely can’t win the gourmet hand cut fries and hand formed patties category.
The burger is served with mayo, mustard and ketchup. I told the owner they should mention that on the menu because most people don’t like mustard on a burger. I like it with Best Food’s mayo and no ketchup or mustard. I want to be able to taste the beef and those two condiments tend to mask the beef flavor. The burger today was still good with all those condiments.
I asked for the meat to be medium and they did a great job making it medium. It was nice and pink in the middle. The meat is dense consistant with an over-​formed patty. That’s typical of a frozen patty that’s thawed. The meat is over worked in the processing plant which results in a leaner texture. Not much fat oozing out of this patty. They built the burger perfectly. Most places don’t realize the cheese should be against the top bun and the meat should be against the lettuce, tomato, onions and dressing on the bottom bun. Vinny’s does make a good burger with processed ingredients. I would come back and have this burger again. I just can’t call it the best of the best.

Awesome bacon cheeseburgers, french dip and cheese steaks. Def will be back. Ps loved the Lucy memorabilia :)

Where to go for a genuine Philly Cheese Steak and good service? Go to Cousin Vinny’s.
It seems like everyone on Unilocal has an opinion on the dive bars, ramen, kalbi and tacos. The Philly Cheese Steak just doesn’t seem to be able kick up much controversy on Unilocal.It may just be changing trends but I still remember listening to a couple of guys from Philly lamenting that a good Philly Cheese Steak doesn’t exist in LA. So, what’s a good Philly Cheese Steak or the better question is what’s a genuine Philly Cheese SteaK? This Satureday we mosied over the Cousin Vinny’s Café to find out directly from Vinny. After all Vinny’s, the Philly transplant, boasts the «Original Philly Cheese Steak»
Cousin Vinny’s Café is a tiny joint with a tiny sign. The sign is so small that I must have drove by Cousin Vinny’s for months without knowing that Vinny’s was there. It was only after seeing a review on Unilocal that I knew to stop in for lunch. That Saturday Vinny manned the café solo. That included cooking, cashiering and waiting on tables, the counter and the ordering window that connected Vinny’s to the dive bar next door. Yet will all his responsibilites Vinny found time to banter a bit about what it means to be a real Philly Cheese Steak and still served up a great sandwich. As Vinny explained, they did not offer Cheese Whiz as an option for their Philly Cheese Steaks, provolone was their cheese of choice. Now, not being a Philly Cheese Steak afficianado I found it hard to imagine Cheese Whiz as the preferred choice over provolone… or for that matter any cheese other than maybe velveta. I happily took my Philly Cheese Steak with melted provolone. A cheese that, at least as applied by Vinny, highlighted the tasty steak and the fresh hoagie bun. The sandwich came with a side of fries for $ 8.50, not cheap but then again neither were the fresh and tasty ingredients that when into making it.
Next time? Vinny’s menu also boasts of «The Best French Dip. Around» — how could I resist?

Stopped in here recently for an order to go. I liked the mozzarella sticks, but the marinara that came with it was stone-​cold out of the refrigerator. The meatball sub would have been good if it weren’t for the fact that there was a lot of fat and gristle in the meat, which I detest. I don’t like to have to examine every bit of what I’m eating. After seeing what another reviewer wrote about the owner taking out the trash, handling raw chicken, then making food w/​o washing his hands, I probably will not be back here. They are nice people but stuff like this drives me crazy.

I stopped in a week ago on my way to a UFC party. The place is very small two tables and a counter. The staff was very nice and made me feel at home. I think they were the owners. I ordered the buffalo wings and the chicken philly cheese sub. The problem started when the owner brought out the trash and then started preparing the raw chicken without washing his hands and no gloves on he then proceeded to prepare the sub without washing his hands. They need a course in how to handle raw food and the dangers of cross contamination.

Great food, great menu, great prices. What more would you want? Classic dishes include original and chicken Philly cheese steaks, French dip, Marinated chicken «Speidies» and steak sandwiches are only a few of the ample menu selections and the Buffalo wings are authentic and the best around! Burgers, burritos, fish, shrimp, diet plates and much more. Great appetizers too. Dine in or pick-​up, catering services and delivery available. Oh yeah, stop next door at the Anza Inn for a libation too!