With the pandemic ending in the U.S., a lot of us are itching to get out and travel, including me. As we plan for our next trip, we thought we’d try one without ever leaving home so we donned some big sunglasses and an oversized sun hat, put down the top of the Miata and took off to see the sites in Burbank, my current home town.
As far as home towns to travel in, Burbank’s a fun one to visit, even if you’re there almost every day.
Burbank is the media capital of the world. As Hollywood’s backlot, the city is home to the world’s largest media studios, the Walt Disney Company, Warner Bros., Netflix’s Animation, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network along with hundreds of smaller studios. And, right next door is Universal Studios. It’s been said that almost every American-made film has made its way through Burbank somehow, either through film, sound, music or editing.
In the beginning, almost a hundred years ago, the talkies began with pop up filming happening all around town. Mary Pickford, Bette Davis and Humphrey Bogart were seen around town. And, the closing scene in Casablanca was filmed at the Hollywood Burbank Airport. During the years, movies such as Back to the Future, Argo, La La Land and Apollo 13 were all filmed within the streets of Burbank. This doesn’t include the thousands of television shows filmed and still being filmed. Prior to COVID, Burbank was issuing around 1,600 film permits each year and this doesn’t include studio filming.
Staying in Burbank makes sense if you want to see Los Angeles. The Hollywood- Burbank Airport is smaller than LAX and a lot faster. I can leave my office and be walking up to the gate in less than 20 minutes and that includes parking.
We started our staycation in Downtown. Artelice Patisserie (117 N. San Fernando Blvd.) has recently opened and they create beautiful, single or shareable desserts for the Oscars along with incredible croissants and macarons. I’ve been looking for a reason to splurge on the calories and this is the perfect reason. For breakfast, I ordered a Persian Princess croissant filled with orange and rose flavors. I expected it to be good but that first bite, ooo la la, it was eyes roll back into my head, delicious.
Next up was driving through town looking at places where movie scenes were filmed and comparing them to the film clip at that location. The iconic Back to the Future scene where Marty McFly hops on his skateboard and grabs on to the back of the truck was filmed at a Burbank Burger King. I have driven by this Burger King many times but never realized that it was THAT “Burger King.” From there, we also visited Larry’s Chili Dog, used as a backdrop for The Office and serving scrumptious looking hot dogs. We stopped in the Ugly Mug right next door to check it out as they have great reviews from coffee drinkers followed by Handy Market where He’s Just Not That In to You filmed was next. They have a huge butcher shop in the store. And, I had to drive by The Wonder Years house. Last stop had to be Warner Bros. gate 2 where the Blazing Saddles scene with them riding out the horses was filmed. Here are just some of the film sites within Burbank.
Burbank has four famous coffee shop restaurants that are stuck in the 50’s and they all serve large portions when you are craving comfort food. I’ve been to them all and it’s like going back in time, which means they are often used for films set in the 50s. These include:
- Frank’s Coffee Shop where Larry Crowne and CSI was filmed.
- Tallyrand, the subject of an episode of Huell Howser
- Lancers, which is in the same parking lot as Burger King
- Bob’s Big Boy where Heat was filmed and the Beatles once ate in the booth on the right before you go into the back area. There used to be a sign but someone keep stealing it. Every Friday night, they have a classic car show where people just show up to talk, grab a bite and show off their cars
- Burbank Airport was the site of the last scene from the Casa Blanca
There are a few boutique hotels in Burbank and two of these have a very retro style. For a full list, go to Visit Burbank. For our staycation, we selected the Safari Inn. It was built in 1955 and hosted a slew of shows including Apollo 13, True Romance, Lethal Weapon 3, Parenthood, The Closer, Coach Carter, the Partridge Family, Six Feet Under, Desperate Housewives and more. I love the drive-under-the-patio entrance and the neon sign. The rooms have been fully updated are nice. I had packed a cooler of gin and tonic mixings, which we drank by the pool as we took photos. The next hotel on my staycation list is the Tangerine, another retro-style hotel in Burbank.
Our last stop of the day was dinner at the Smoke House. I love this restaurant for its romantic connection with film along with its food and service. Many movies have been film here including La la Land and Argo and the walls are filled with photos of famous people who have eaten here. Both Jay Leno and George Clooney use to hang out after filming on the Warner Bros. lot across the street and Clooney named his production company after the Smoke House.
While we didn’t get to everything in Burbank on our staycation, here are some other ideas if your visiting.
Warner Bros. Tour: This tour is currently stopped due to COVID but hopefully, will soon return as they’ve just built a new tour center that hasn’t been used yet. You get to see sets, enter studios and spend time in the museum. The Friends fountain really isn’t in New York, it’s here along with the set from Gilmore Girls and Big Bang Theory. I’ve been on the tour three times and it’s always fun.
Universal Studios: They have reopened to California residents and have limited attendance. Universal is adjacent to Burbank.
Horseback riding: Yes, you can ride horses in the middle of LA into Griffith Park and from the LA side, you can ride up to the Hollywood sign.
Vintage Shopping: In Magnolia Park, there are a number of vintage and eclectic shops, some sell clothing that has been previously used on film sets. Also, here, is world famous Porto’s restaurant that offers delectable desserts and Cuban food. And, Morphe with reasonably priced make up and brushes.
Downtown Dining: Downtown Burbank has all types of food offerings. The City has also installed an 8’ bronze Batman statue and many murals that are perfect selfie spots. The Burbank Town Center and one of the top three AMC theaters in the world is also here.
There are two more DC Superhero statues that have been added since this initial post. They are Wonder Women in front of the Warner Bros. Tour Center and Green Lantern at the Empire Center.
