Restaurants in Burbank

Four Corners Tavern Group encompasses eight kitchens and many times that number of taps, but it started in just one establishment, Schoolyard Tavern & Grill. There, Executive Chef Jim Hoban helped develop a menu of upscale, creative bar food, including falafel burgers, korean steak tacos, and hand-tossed pizzas. As the group expanded, Hoban exported his menu to new establishments. Each location's chef enhances the selection with his or her own spin on the general concept. Though the flavors vary from location to location, the sister venues' promises remain much the same: creative fare, extensive beer lists, and flat-screen TVs playing sports while wearing the proper safety gear.

Chili's was founded in 1975 after owner Larry Lavine converted a former Dallas postal station into the original burger joint. Since then, Chili's all over the world have spread the original restaurant's quirky sense of humor, emphasis on hospitality, and flavorful fare. They even uphold traditions such as flipping a framed photo upside down, imprinting the saltillo tile floor with dog-paw prints, and staying open during Tell Your Coworker A Lie Day. Chili's menu has a wide selection of Southwestern eats and drinks, including fajitas, quesadillas, and several flavors of margarita, as well as classic American fare such as burgers and baby back ribs slow-smoked and slathered in barbecue sauce. Committed to using its resources to help those in need, Chili's has partnered with St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital and raised more than $30 million for the hospital in the past four years.

Modeled after hotel-lobby bars of yore, Motel Bar cops the décor of yesteryear and combines it with a menu of American eats, creative cocktails, and signature motel martinis. Servers ferry trays of burgers, flatbread pizzas, and pub-fare appetizers through a glitzy lounge with exposed-brick walls, vinyl seating, and hanging cylindrical lighting. The eatery's outdoor terrace allows claustrophobes to sip cocktails in peace and lets staring-contest champions challenge the sun.

Blue Frog's Local 22 appeals to the locavore quadrant of taste buds by partnering with local, self-sustained farmers and butchers and serving a lengthy list of Midwestern bottled and draft brews. The bar adds a Chicago spin to its signature burgers with options such as the Pilsen Pride and the Loop, all founded upon hormone-free Angus beef. Inside the bar, ample seating and flat-screen TVs abound for toasting hometown teams, and quotes from Chicagoans such as Al Capone and Bill Veeck line the walls. During Chicago's warmer months, a sidewalk patio opens, allowing diners to watch the people and cyborgs disguised as people walking by on Hubbard Street.

Pinkys pays homage to its Windy City location with a vintage tough-guy logo and a menu of Chicago-style polishes and gyros. Daily specials include classics such as catfish strips, a Maxwell Street-style polish, and barbecue-rib tips. Containers of croutons and thousand-island, blue-cheese, or creamy-ranch dressing sit on the side of meaty salads, ensuring that dishes get the partner of their choice, unlike most cops who live on the edge. Diners can round out their meals with a side of sauce or wash down each bite with a milk shake.

With a unique policy that asks patrons to pay after they’ve finished eating, as well as house-made soups priced according to the temperature outside, Eppy’s Deli makes it clear that it does things a bit differently. The New York–style sandwich makers fill marble rye and onion rolls with classic sliced corned beef, pastrami, and various menu offerings dressed in a wide array of mustard varieties. Breakfast time layers plates with omelets, bagels, and fresh lox. With hearty sides such as mashies and gravy and mac 'n' cheese, diners can get a taste of good homestyle cooking without the pulpy aftertaste that follows chewing on old family photo albums.