What to Know
- El Cholo Restaurant marks 100 years on Tuesday, Oct. 24
- Combo #1 — a rolled beef taco and cheese enchilada, plus rice and beans — will be $1 at all El Cholo Restaurants on Oct. 24; dine-in only, one order per person
- The original Western Avenue eatery has been celebrating throughout 2023, with special happenings, like the chance to eat free if you're 100 years old (or older)
When you are a restaurant with a seriously devoted fandom, the sort of diners who can name everything in their favorite combo plate, and probably every other item that appears in every other combination plate on the menu, you need to begin your milestone-focused fun early.
And so El Cholo Restaurant did just that: The Mexican Restaurant, a local landmark that was founded by Alejandro and Rosa Borquez as the Sonora Café on Western Avenue in 1923, launched a line-up of great specials and celebrations a full year ahead of its centennial.
Those included a deal for patrons who've passed their own centennials — they are invited to dine free at El Cholo all year long — and other notable happenings.
Get top local stories in Southern California delivered to you every morning. >Sign up for NBC LA's News Headlines newsletter.
One of the major moments was the pomp-filled renaming of Western Avenue and 11th Street in late March 2023, an event that brought out a host of restaurant luminaries and Los Angeles dignataries.
The new name is Alejandro and Rosa Borquez Square, a moving ode to two people who created a lasting and beloved legend in a city that has seen too many eateries come and go.
Now the big day is here and the Western Avenue eatery is ready to throw a foodie festivity, one that will drop the price of the classic Combo #1.
It'll be priced at just one dollar, if you're a fan of the filling plate — it has a rolled beef taco and cheese enchilada, in addition to those all-important rice and beans — so stop by and enjoy one.
El Cholo will have a "limited menu" on Oct. 24, but plenty of favorites will be available for purchase.
This joyful and delicious special will be available at the Western Avenue original, as well as around Southern California, including the El Cholo locations in Anaheim Hills, DTLA, Santa Monica, La Habra, and Corona del Mar.
There are a few things to know — this is a dine-in-only deal, for starters — so start here.
Showing further support during this festive occasion is absolutely a possibility: El Cholo is taking this momentous event to help pediatric cancer research at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. Here's how you can play a part.
