For the next week, I’ll be writing short posts on the meals I enjoyed during a two-week vacation in my native California.
There’s a bar in Long Beach that recognizes what every pickled egg in this country is missing: chilies.
Rather than submerging its hard boiled eggs in beet-tinted brine, Joe Jost’s imbues them with the heat of Santa Fe Grandes. The result is a poor man’s caviar with one hell of a bite: The comfort-food quality of each hard-boiled egg rides a neon yellow wave of tartness and spice, and a quick dusting of black pepper and service on a bed of pretzels turns this classic bar food into a bar food classic.
That’s not the only thing classic about the joint. The oldest operating bar in Long Beach, Joe Jost’s has been serving for almost a century. The house’s $3.50 “schooners” of cheap American beer (formerly East Side Old Tap, then Pabst Blue Ribbon, now Busch), $3 Polish sausage sandwiches on steamed rye, hot dogs, liverwurst, and freshly roasted Virginia peanuts join its pickled egg to create a bar menu that will never go out of style. My spell at Joe Jost’s is best cast on a weeknight, starting with a pickled egg and a schooner of Shiner Bock, following with Joe’s Special sandwich, and finishing with pints over a game of shuffleboard.
Joe Jost’s
Joe Jost’s pickled egg recipe
2803 E. Anaheim St.
Long Beach, CA 90804
562.439.5446
That looks awesome. Do you eat it by skewering the egg with a pretzel stick and taking a big bite?
Just had some pickled eggs in a sandwich at Saltie the other day and now I’m craving other places in the city that serve them. Any leads? I should probably just make them myself.
Funny thing there; I don’t really get the urge for pickled eggs when I’m in New York. For whatever reason, it’s more of a Los Angeles food for me. I’m guessing Jewish Delis and The Pickle Guys?
have you ever tried a beet-pickled egg? the color alone makes me want to try one, but i have a feeling it probably tastes awesome too.
I’ve indulged in the classic beet-pickled egg, and it is fantastic. The flavor tends to be much less aggressive and a bit earthy, which is perfect when taken with a few pickles and a classic deli sandwich.