Cole's Pacific Electric Buffet, also known as Cole's P.E. Buffet, is a restaurant and bar located at 118 East 6th Street in the Historic Core of downtown Los Angeles, California. It is the oldest restaurant in Los Angeles that has operated at same location since its founding.
Cole's claims that the French dip sandwich was invented at Cole's the year it opened. Nearby Philippe's makes the same claim. Some[who?] have suggested that Philippe's is correct, as the sandwich was named "French" dip because of the restaurant's proprietor's French heritage.[1] According to carvers at Cole's, Henry Cole first dipped the French bread in jus at the request of a customer who had recently had dental work. The bread was too hard and it hurt the customer's teeth, so Henry dipped the bread to soften it. Other customers requested Cole do the same for them - and thus the French dip was born.[2]
The restaurant shut down for remodeling on March 15, 2007. The new owner was claimed the restaurant would reopen in time for its 100th anniversary in January 2008,[4] however, the project was delayed[5] and did not reopened until December 2008.[6] Cole's original tables were removed and reportedly moved to the developer's corporate headquarters above Clifton's Cafeteria as part of this renovation.[citation needed]
The restaurant announced on July 7, 2025 that it would close on August 3, 2025, with no plans to reopen.[7] The closing date was later moved to September 2025,[8] and then again to November 1 due to an influx of customers following the July 7th announcement.[9]
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