Inside Lucy's El Adobe Cafe with Lucy

There’s some secrets Lucy Casado won't tell, such as the recipe of her salad dressing or her age, but as matriarch of the famous Lucy's El Adobe Cafe, she will fondly recall her experiences running the restaurant she opened in 1964 with her late husband Frank.

The restaurant is known around Hollywood as one of the long-standing businesses to cater to the town's famous and influential.

Lucy and her late husband, Frank, have nurtured and fed over the years, many customers back in the days before they became famous – from Gov. Jerry Brown to Jimmy Webb to Jackson Browne to the Eagles.

Lucy loves music and Frank loved politics, both loved people. Whether it was Bobby Kennedy, Morley Safer or Neil Young, all were warmly welcomed into the gentle glow of Lucy’s dining room, where one wall is filled from table to ceiling with photos of famous friends. Politicians on the national and local level, rock musicians, broadcasters, movie stars – all are represented on Lucy’s wall of fame.

But even without this celebrity cache, Lucy is known for her cooking. All of her popular dishes - such as the enchiladas verdes, or her classic chili relleno – are from recipes she picked up from her mother, growing up in south Texas.

Lucy’s is also entirely without pretension; though it’s right in the heart of Hollywood, on Melrose across the street from the Paramount Studios lot, it’s a place where executives and extras can stop for a meal.

“You don’t come to Lucy’s for the scene,” said rock 'n' roll photographer . “You come to feel at home, to have some great food and be with friends.”

You can also come for the margaritas. Since opening, Lucy’s has expanded several times, and these days there’s a thriving outdoor patio bar and dining area, where customers can order classic margaritas and dine in the cool of the evening.

Frank's political connections

Photos of Bobby Kennedy under glass next to the cash register speak to the breadth of history in this place. Lucy's late husband Frank, who died in 1990, was one of the founders of the Mexican American Political Association, and used the restaurant often as a site for political meetings and rallies.

“Frank cared about politics,” Lucy remembered while sitting in one of her famous booths, sipping Pepsi. “I cared about music and people, and that all came together here. When Bobby [Kennedy] ran for President in 1968, Frank was there for him, and we had a few rallies for him here.”

Other famous politicians who have eaten at Lucy’s include former senators, mayors and presidents like Ronald Reagan, Hubert Humphrey, Ted Kennedy, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Richard Riordan and Los Angeles' current mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa.   

"Eating at Lucy's and getting her blessing is almost a rite of passage in L.A. politics," wrote L.A. Times columnist Steve Lopez.

A haven for budding musicians

Her blessing also went a long way in ensuring success for countless musicians.

Jimmy Webb, songwriter of  classic songs such as “Wichita Lineman,” “The Highwayman,” “By The Time I Get To Phoenix,” and many others, considers Lucy’s his second home.

“When I first came to town,” Webb remembered over the phone from his New York home, “I was 21, just starting out, didn’t know a soul. Frank and Lucy welcomed me with open arms. To them I was a success before I was truly a success and that success might not have happened without their support.”

Like the members of the Eagles and other musicians who had yet to make their mark in Hollywood, Webb ate frequently at Lucy’s gratis. “Frank and Lucy have always been very giving, very generous people. They were my family when I had no family in Los Angeles. They gave me my home.”

That home has recently been appointed with a grand piano in one of its newly expanded rooms. The instrument is a gift from Webb.

“He needed a piano when he’s in town, so be bought one to go here,” Lucy said proudly. “Every time he’s in town, he comes and plays and eats too, of course.”

Webb has immortalized Lucy’s in song on more than one occasion, most famously on Lucy’s favorite Webb tune, “Adios,” which was recorded by Linda Ronstadt with Brian Wilson, and features the line, “Drinking margaritas all night in the old cantina."  

Like many artists who have become successful since coming to Lucy’s, Webb continued to come during the years of his early L.A. success, and continues to throw parties at Lucy’s whenever he returns.

According to Lucy’s daughter, last time he was in town he had a party with many friends. People ate, drank and sang around the piano all night. The bill was more than $600, but Lucy refused to let Webb pay.

“No, not my Jimmy, no, he doesn’t pay,” Lucy said. “He’s family. Jimmy, Jackson and Jerry – they’re my boys.”

It’s a phrase Lucy returned to several times during an interview almost like a mantra: “My boys.”

She's referring to Jimmy Webb,  Jackson Browne and Gov. Jerry Brown, who was a good friend to Frank and Lucy back before his first term as governor.

Long before there was news on the wire that he would run again for the office he previously held from 1975 to 1983, Lucy was telling everyone he was coming back.

The Jerry Brown special

“Jerry Brown is a good man,” she said. “He cares about people, and he cares about California. His father was a great governor, and he is even greater. He’s an ethical man. Honest, which is rare.”

Brown is the only celebrity with the distinction of having a dish named after him on Lucy’s menu, the Jerry Brown Special, which is a chicken and rice dish in a rich ranchera sauce.

“Jerry used to love to come into the kitchen,” Lucy recalled, “and would help himself to whatever was on the stove – a little rice, some chicken, some sauce. So we decided to make a dish for him that had his favorite things in it.”

Though legend goes that it was Lucy who introduced Brown to Linda Ronstadt (the two were a couple for a short while), it’s something for which she doesn’t want to take credit.

“Linda loves it here, she’s come here for years. She’s from Tucson, and she knows good Mexican food. So it’s true that she and Jerry met here, but I didn’t introduce them – they did that themselves.”

Getting to know Jackson Browne

Jackson Browne is the third of “Lucy’s boys,” whom she beams with the pride at his mention.

“Jackson!,” she said. “What can I tell you about Jackson? Everyone knows – he’s a great man. Of all the rock stars and musicians, nobody does more for other people – more benefits, more charities – than Jackson. Nobody. He’s brave. He will march on picket lines. He will protest. He will be there. There aren’t many like him. He cares, and he shows up.”   

She remembered the time Browne was briefly imprisoned for participating in an anti-nuke rally. Soon as she heard, she raced to the prison to be there when he was released. “As soon as he saw me,” she remembered, "he smiled and called out, 'Lucy! Did you bring the enchiladas?'”

Surviving the economy

Like all restaurants in Los Angeles, Lucy's has been impacted by the poor economy, as food prices continue to rise while people's ability to dine out decreases.

"It's been slow many nights," she said. "People can't afford to eat out as much as they used to."

On a recent Thursday night, although the main interior dining room was less than half full at 6:30 pm, the patio bar and dining room were both filled to capacity.

"I have always kept this room the same," Lucy said, referring to the main room that houses her wall of fame. "But I've added on so that we can keep bringing people here. You need to. If you own a restaurant, you do what you need to do." 

She's also allowed her restaurant to be used as meeting places for visiting luminaries, as when the Dalai Lama came to L.A. "We fed him and almost 200 that day," she remembered, proudly showing off photos of the Dalai Lama dining on enchiladas. Asked if he enjoyed Mexican food, she laughed and said, "Very much so!"

While talking, countless customers, young and old, stopped to greet Lucy, many voicing the same message: "Thank you for keeping this place going."

"You're very welcome," she said. "Thank you for coming here. As long as you keep coming, I'll be here."

Though sources tell us she's in her 80's, Lucy, who lives only blocks away with her daughter, is at the restaurant every night.

“This is my home,” she said with a smile. “Where else would I go?”

Lucy's El Adobe Cafe is at 5536 Melrose Ave. Phone: (323) 462-9421