A tasty treat at Charlie’s Chili

Gay Wassall-Kelly

“It’s still the best chili in town,” claims Art Gronsky of Balboa.

“We have eaten here for over 30 years,” Balboa’s Mitzi and Howard

Wells say.

Newport’s Lee Otis adds, “I remember when it opened behind

Delaney’s -- you couldn’t get in the joint.”

Tony Vasi of Newport Beach remembers: “In the ‘60s, all of us kids

used to go to Charlie’s early in the morning to sober up after the

bars closed. Everyone there would chow down on their famous chili

cheese omelets. You know, that gut buster is still on the menu?”

It was rumored that Balboa Island was the first location of

Charlie’s Chili. But Jim Jennings, Balboa Island historian,

vehemently says, “No!”

Gronsky, former owner of Arts Landing, Edgewater -- now the

Newport Landing restaurant -- and Balboa Pavilion, clears up the

tale.

Gronsky laughed as he said: “Pete Torres was the originator of

Charlie’s Chili -- let me tell you about this guy! Torres came to

work for me in the mid-’50s, launching his cooking career as a galley

cook on one of my fishing boats, the Frontier, skipper Spike Taft.

His bill of fare was quite a drawing card for all aboard.”

Gronsky wasn’t too sure whether the fishermen on the Frontier were

there to fish or eat!

Torres loved chili and always made it from scratch. He slapped it

onto anything edible: eggs, hot dogs, burgers, over corn bread, fries

and apple pie upon request!

Locals kept asking Torres where they could get his chili on dry

land. So when Torres left the Frontier in the ‘60s, he went in search

of a place to “cook up” his chili, since there wasn’t a restaurant

that had a decent bowl.

Torres found his first home in 1967 on the water, next to Davey’s

Locker on Lido Peninsula -- formerly Delaney’s, now the Bluewater

Grill -- and opened Charlie’s Chili.

Torres opened early in the mornings for the fishermen. Word spread

fast, with locals filling Charlie’s to standing room only. Torres

found it necessary to move from his little chili house to a larger

home.

There was a space right beside Newport Pier. He stayed there for a

few years, moving across the boardwalk in 1972.

There, Torres had room to really expand -- not only his menu, but

seating. He even opened 24 hours a day. Morning, noon or night, the

place was packed.

He was going to try to franchise by opening another in Costa Mesa,

near 22nd Street and Old Newport, but it didn’t work out. Torres was

the draw and he couldn’t be two places at once.

In 1987, Torres sold the Newport Pier location to the Farmanfarmai

family.

“We haven’t changed the menu, but a big change is a new generation

comes in to eat,” manager Sean Farmanfarmai says. “We have lost our

late-night crowd and are more family oriented.”

Today at 7 a.m., a group of men known as the “coffee clutch”

gather and sit in front of Charlie’s. These “Clutchers” tell everyone

that they like the summer the best with the bikinis, and they love to

shoot the breeze -- politics especially, how Newport Beach should

really be run, but also the stock market and dirty jokes. Plus, they

enjoy the ocean breezes.

Running the show is Bob Boudinot, 78, who now lives in Costa Mesa.

“I knew Torres well,” he said. “I went to Newport Grammar School

and used to work in the tackle shop that was next door to Charlie’s!”

Why is “Charlie’s Chili” so popular after 40 years?

“Charlie’s becomes kind of a family habit,” the Wellses say.

“Their kids used to eat late at night, they enjoy early mornings.

Plus, besides the chili, Charlie’s serves biscuits and gravy like no

other.”

* Do you know of a person, place or event that deserves a

historical LOOK BACK? Let us know. Contact Jennifer Mahal by fax at

(949) 646-4170; e-mail at jennifer.mahal@ latimes.com; or mail her at

c/o Daily Pilot, 330 W. Bay St., Costa Mesa, CA 92627