Burger Joint’s Burrito Recipe Was Cooked Up From Kosher Beginnings

As I mentioned, Caltrans intends to erect a building on the downtown site of the landmark Kosher Burrito stand, and, alas, the bulldozers arrived the other day to clean the eatery’s plate. But don’t sell your Pepto-Bismol stock yet. You can still buy the tortilla brick of pastrami, chili, onions, pickles and mustard at John’s Burgers a block away on 1st Street.

Not that owner John Kim is capitalizing on his rival’s downfall. “We’ve served a kosher burrito for 20 years,” he said. And from whom did he learn it? “My sister-in-law’s husband,” Kim said. “He owned the Kosher Burrito back then.”

The weird world of fashion: Today’s exhibits (see accompanying) include:

* A clothing store with a catchy name on the island of Bora Bora (snapped by Jerry Lewine of Agoura Hills). I guess it was stocked with really baggy swimsuits.

* A good place to buy a suit of armor (snapped by Gerald Jones of L.A.).

* And, a shop that sold Phil Proctor’s daughter something, but he can’t figure out what it was.

A true sun worshiper: Teacher Terri Lau writes that one of her colleagues freely admits attending church in a swimsuit as a kid--all the better to make a quick dash to the beach afterward. The other parishioners not only weren’t startled but didn’t even notice. Reason: She was attending the drive-in service that Emmanuel Lutheran Church of North Hollywood used to offer in the 1950s and 1960s.

Further proof that sex sells: I knew the phone companies would offer almost anything to gain new customers. But even I wasn’t prepared for the come-on that Lloyd McDaniel of Costa Mesa spotted (see accompanying).

Traveler’s advisory: Barry Socher was researching home rentals in Switzerland via the Internet when he found the following comments about one farm:

* “The living/sleeping room has a table on the most beautiful spot with full view over the lake, the mountains, the village and the neighbor farmer.”

* “As we are on a farm, animals are difficult and have to be discussed.”

Unclear on the concept: Tom Mantke saw a TV commercial in which a truck is being chased by a flying saucer but escapes into a tunnel.

“The UFO is aiming a tractor beam at the vehicle, apparently trying an abduction,” Mantke said. “In the fine print, the commercial says, ‘Do not attempt.’ ”

Asks Mantke: “Does that mean if aliens try to abduct you, you should let them?”

That was my strategy years ago, Tom, and it worked out well. After they reformatted my brain to notice crazy signs and weird typos, they let me go.

Unclear on the concept (cont.): As one who is weary of tailgating trucks, every time I watch that commercial I root for the flying saucer.

miscelLAny: Louise Wilson of Claremont was lunching at a Chinese restaurant when her husband received this fortune in his cookie: “Promote literacy. Buy a box of fortune cookies today.”

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Steve Harvey can be reached at (800) LA-TIMES, Ext. 77083 and by e-mail at steve.harvey@ latimes.com.