My Perfect LA Saturday

I have a new appreciation for Saturdays, Sundays and Fridays. You guessed it! For the first time, um, in a long time, FoodFlirt90210 has a full time, 9-5 J-O-B in the real world. And, it just happens to be in the only burgeoning industry around ... social media. Yes sir, (or madame) I spend all day on blogs, Facebook, & Twitter so my own personal online endeavors have suffered a wee bit. But the blog must go on, so on I will go ...

This past Saturday I rolled out of bed around 9:30 not wanting to waste my precious drops of weekend goodness, threw on some workout clothes and hit the street ... meandering. I sometimes go for walks, often go for runs, but rarely do I allow myself the unequivocal luxury of meandering. I strolled down Burton Way and crossed La Cienega, heading towards one of my favorite foodie spots in LA, Joan's on Third. The cafe au laits are smooth and made properly, with thick, creamy microfoam. (This is embarrassing but I had a dream last week that I was hired to visit every Starbucks in America to teach the baristas how to make microfoam and was appalled to learn most did not even know what that term meant.) Joan's offers so much more than some of the best coffee in Los Angeles. Think Dean and Deluca before they became a household name. Divine pastries, eclectic cheese, and charcuterie, all brazenly overpriced but somehow, sometimes, worth it.

Somewhere between home and Joan's I was side tracked by something I love so much about LA: Banana Trees. I just can't get enough of the tropical R&R vibe they give off 365 days a year. And have you ever seen a banana tree flower?! If not, you're in for a non-edible, calories free treat mon amie.

I finally made it to Joan's and ordered my much anticipated cafe au lait and a Maple Spice Cupcake.

While waiting in line I started snapping photos for this blog and got in trouble ... no pics aloud indoors at Joan's ... whoops! Better to ask forgiveness, am I right? To my au lait I add 2 teaspoons of the divine cocoa powder they have along with a dash of cold, whole milk and one raw sugar pack. Stir, sip, smile, sit and enjoy the people watching.

Post coffee and journal writing, I decide to save my cupcake and walk across the street to this tiny travel book store that looks straight out of a movie. I buy a birthday card for my ex-fiance and am not sure why I feel the need to do so. It read Ubuntu ... an ancient African word meaning, "I am what I am because of who we all are," and "Humanity to others." If you like this info read my other blog.

Card in hand, I took third street back home passing a few more of my neighborhood go-to spots ... Bread Bar for good coffee, great Alpine Cheese bread and friendly service. Third Stop for weekday happy hour, above par bar food, and LA singletons. And last, Cafe Angelino for simple, reasonable Italian fare. Very good pizza and Caesar salad.

Ah ... LA, I'm in love with you still after 6 years.

~XOXO~ Foodflirt

RESTROOM REPORT

Quaint, Shabby Chic and Old Fashion - LIKE don't LOVE

LAMILL COFFEE CO.~ 9

I finally meandered over to Silver Lake to experience the much talked about coffee boutique, LAMILL (pronounced lah-mill). This is not, let me repeat NOT, your average, cater to the masses, grab your daily cup o' Joe and go coffee shop. No ladies and gentlemen, LAMILL takes the art of coffee to a pristine new level. Their caffeinated concoctions have been carefully calculated, formulated and are ever so thoughtfully constructed right before your eyes. This is a place to visit when you want to indulge in a divine brunch and linger over ridiculously decadent coffee that you’ll crave for the rest of the week. If I lived in Silver Lake, this spot would become part of my lazy Sunday morning ritual.

At first I was curious … why didn’t this opulent coffee palace open somewhere chichi like Beverly Hills? Why boho-chic Silver Lake? This seems to be an ongoing blog debate. My 2 cents? I think it’s the distinctive artsy types, the gastronomic gurus, the “French palate” patrons who will truly recognize and appreciate the quirky artistry occurring daily at LAMILL … and those people are found in neighborhoods like Silver Lake. In BH, people would have given this fantastic establishment plenty of business without scoffing at the $5 latte, but I live in Beverly Hills and let me tell you, a restaurant does not have to serve high quality food to be a success in the 90210 area code. (Not always, but often, BH diners are far more concerned with who is eating at the restaurant than with how the food actually tastes i.e. the Farm of Beverly Hills, Il Pastaio, and Mr. Chow.) Silver Lake is unusual as is LAMILL and I think they compliment each other.

When you walk in, there’s a tempting pastry case filled with scones, muffins, croissants, etc. Before we even sat down my boyfriend ordered a canele to be sent to the table. The two room restaurant was bustling with people high on platinum caffeine. The eccentric décor almost out shines the coffee … almost.

Color scheme: gold brass, deep teal, robin egg blue, grey black and blood red. Picture custom French wall paper depicting mythological scenes and vintage chairs covered in exotic, vinyl animal skin such as ostrich and crocodile. It’s anything but boring and somehow sets the right mood for coffee chemistry. Sitting at our window-side table for two, we perused the bible of a beverage menu and munched on the incredible canele. The outside was terrifically crunchy with a soft, creamy center similar to vanilla bread pudding.

We wanted to try the coffee spheres, but were told they were still in the creation phase and not yet available. (I felt like I was in Willy Wonka’s Coffee Factory.) As alluring as the “Jelly Doughnut Coffee Drink” sounded, we both ordered our usual, café au lait with skim milk, just to test this $5 version against the hundreds we’ve had elsewhere. Derrek wanted to add house made chocolate sauce and real whipped cream to his au lait. Uh oh! Order something not listed on the menu? Confusion ensued. Our very patient, sweet waitress summoned a guy in charge of coffee creation and he kindly explained that their drinks are made from precise recipes with exact ratios of milk to coffee etc. (BTW there was no attitude while explaining why they are so particular about the drinks … each person was gracious and sincere.) Much to my surprise, he finally agreed to bring the chocolate sauce and whipped cream on the side. Both were devastatingly delicious and the chocolate sauce was far closer to a velvety ganache.

To achieve the perfect 50/50 ratio that makes up a café au lait (half drip coffee, half steamed milk) the coffee creator poured both the coffee and milk simultaneously, into the cup, table side. Necessary? Nope. Elaborate, indulgent, and fun? Absolutely! My café au lait was smooth and creamy with no trace of burnt beans whatsoever. At LAMILL, the coffee is not pre-made. Each cup is brewed as it is ordered. Can you say FRESH? My only qualm was that by the time everything was poured, admired, and sugared, the beverage had lost that piping hot quality.

Knowing the menu was created by the esteemed Chef Michael Cimarusti of Providence, I was equally excited for the food. I ordered baked eggs that arrive with a sinfully generous amount of fresh crab meat on top, accompanied by perfectly crisp, perfectly buttered, toast. (Perfection is the predominant theme if you’ve not noticed.) The dish was sprinkled with chives which I assumed were just a garnish, but they added a piquant flavor profile to my already heavenly breakfast.

Derrek opted for scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, asparagus, and chives … a sumptuous display of simplicity at it’s finest. I floated out of LAMILL feeling blissful and content, with a sheer appreciation for the effort put forth to create a superior coffee+food experience in Los Angeles. (I did return weeks later. The “kinda like crème brulee” banana dessert was average at best but the liquid center lollipops are luscious).

NEAT FACTS about LAMILL
La Marzocco espresso machine
$11,000 Clover coffee machine that brews single cups to order
Siphon tableside coffee service (popular in Japan)
Food as exquisite as the coffee
Similarities to Starbucks: ZERO … thankfully
Serves room temperature water (more easily absorbed)

LAMILL COFFEE BOUTIQUE
1636 Silver Lake Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
323-663-4441
Hours
Tuesday-Sunday
7:00AM-7:00PM
Closed Monday