Ho Kee Cafe: Authentic Hong Kong Cafe Fare in San Gabriel

Always on the lookout for great, authentic Hong Kong food in LA, I was excited to find recently several of my favorite staple dishes and drinks at Ho Kee Cafe!

Like most fantastic food finds in the SGV, Ho Kee firmly focuses on their food vs. ambience, though the cozy space does have its own charming touches like roof-facades over main counter areas inspired by traditional temple architecture.

My favorite dish here is the revelatory Wonton Noodle Hong Kong Style ($8.95) - the best wonton noodle soup I've had in LA thus far.  I'll ask for you to kindly excuse the blatant use of foodporn vocabulary here, but the measure of a good wonton to me are the ration of filling to skin, and then the quality of both as indicated by texture and flavor.  And Ho Kee's is fantastic on all fronts: super fresh, robust, springy shrimp with nice clean snap is in perfect proportion to the supple, thin wonton skin that is skillfully crafted so that it does not fall apart on pickup. 

The chefs let the fresh juicy savory sweet flavors of the shrimp shine through, with just a touch of pepper to spice things up to just the perfect level.

Noodles are perfectly cooked so that they are not too chewy/ tough and not too soft, but perfectly springy and clean, comforting soaked in steaming hot clear broth.

The cafe fare is ordered a la carte and readily available.  But Ho Kee also offers a 'Private Kitchen Menu' of higher end dishes that typically requires advance order.  However, when possible they will make a few of the dishes from this menu available without that pre-planning.  I was lucky enough on the night of my first visit to be able to try from the Private Kitchen menu: Razor Clams ($43).  I haven't seen these on many menus around town, and was excited to see that the preparation is similar to what I had at famed Tung Po at Java Road market in Hong Kong.

The slender beauties are steamed in clear broth and topped with fried garlic and scallions for punches of flavor and texture contrast to the soft yet structured clam meat. Below the razor clams, a layer of glass noodles to soak up all the delicious juices and flavors.  Pretty pricey, and not something to be repeated often, but beautifully cooked.  This one is best ordered with a larger group to share, so that you can order other dishes as well to experience.

Back on the regular menu, I'm also a fan of the Two Kinds of Meat ($12.95) plate, where you can choose from among their housemade barbecue items.  I chose roast duck and char siu.  The duck had flavor intensity, and fantastic crispy skin with a pleasing layer of fat below for that perfect crisp juicy umami explosion in your mouth. The barbecue pork was great as well, but not as unforgettable as the duck. For those who are singular in their love of certain barbecue meats, you can order single types too, like the Roast Duck Plate ($9.95).

Lastly, what Hong Kong cafe with any pride would not also offer a great milk tea?  Ho Kee offers a very fragrant, silky creamy milk tea that I love, and also another Hong Kong iconic drink, "yin yang" or Milk Tea Coffee Mixed (Hot) ($2.95) on the menu. I liked the milk tea better.

Most diners around you will be speaking Cantonese, a good sign of authenticity of cuisine - the restaurant is attracting those who have roots in Hong Kong.  And indeed, when I eat here it feels like home.

On a 7 point scale:

Flavor - 6 bites  
Presentation - 5 bites
Originality - 5 bites
Ambience -  5 stars
Service - 6 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$ (2 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 100% 

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Ho Kee Cafe

533 S Del Mar Ave, San Gabriel, CA 91776
Ph:  626.766.1076

 

Website: hokeecafe.com  
Parking: in attached open air parking lot (limited spaces) or street parking


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Sycamore Kitchen: Hatfield Pastries Half Price Starting 4:30pm Daily!

Hatfield's, the restaurant, has been on my To Do list for forever, yet somehow I still haven't made it there.

But just down the street, in a far more casual, laid back "urban bakery-eatery" by the same power-couple-chefs Quinn and Karen Hatfield, I could pop in for a quick, affordable bite.

The space is industrial-rustic, which does give it a 'colder' vibe even in the perpetual SoCal sun on the patio - not a soothing place to linger for hours chatting with friends or people watching, but a comfortable enough spot to grab quick pastries and coffee.

Last week, on a Saturday afternoon, I stopped by close to closing due to sheer laziness - which will no doubt be repeated many times in future since it was rewarded by a fantastic deal!  Apparently, starting at 4:30pm every day that Sycamore Kitchen is open, all their pastries are 50% off til closing (5pm).  Makes sense as a quality control measure, as the pastries won't keep til the next day anyway.

So, I kicked off with a Oatmeal Brown Butter Scone ($3 regularly) , and an Apple Galette washed down with a glass of  Vanilla Cafecito ($3.75).

I had actually been looking forward to trying the sour cherry buttermilk scone, and settled for the oatmeal brown butter only because they were out of the sour cherry one - I should know by now not to settle for substitutes, but the oatmeal scone was too grainy in texture for me.  The apple galette was tasty, but not as buttery and flaky as the foodgasm-inducing ones at Chaumont.

As I was headed to San Antonio the next day for work, and foresaw lots of heavy Tex Mex in my future, I decided to temper all the carbs with a pay-it-forward detox Market Salad ($13). 

Sycamore Kitchen is known for their pastries, but since I only had a day in LA between two almost back to back business trips, I decided to give the salad a try.  It came in a giant bowl with pears, apples, golden beets, mix of leafs - I loved the taste of every element, which were farmers market fresh - except for the parsley which added a slightly overly pungent herby flavor.

But because I couldn't pass up the 50% off deal, and knowing it would be slim pickings the next day at LAX for gourmet pastries - I stocked up on the signature Salted Caramel Pecan Babka Roll ($3.50), and two mini Brown Butter Date Mini-Bundt Cakes ($2.75 regularly)

The babka is much lauded across the board by critics and blogs as far as I'm aware, but it was much too heavy of a sugar bomb for me - I am a much bigger fan of the lighter, more subtly sweet mini-bundts. 

All in all, the pastries were not mind-blowing, but very good for the price (and especially after 4:30!) and I will be back to try other things from the extensive pastry case next time I'm in the neighborhood!

On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 5 bites  
Presentation - 5 bites
Originality - 5 bites
Ambience -  4 stars
Service - 5 stars
Overall experience - 5 bites
Price - $ (1 bite mark)
Probability of return visit - 90% 

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Sycamore Kitchen
143 S La Brea Ave  Los Angeles, CA 90036
Ph: 323.939.0151
Website: thesycamorekitchen.com

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1MB Travels: Singapore: Ya Kun Kaya Toast

Fact: Susan Feniger did not invent Kaya toast. I know that may be a little hard for some to accept, but so are many things in the world that are simply, truth.

The original kaya toast was invented by a husband and wife team in Singapore:  Ah Koon was an enterprising young man who arrived at 15 years old to Singapore as an immigrant who did not know anyone. He started as an assistant at a coffee stall, learned the trade then saved to open up his own in the 1940s - an inspiring tale of tireless hard work, endless optimism and passion for serving good food to the community.  He eventually married and his wife perfected a homemade mix of egg and coconut to be spread over her husband's charcoal-grilled toast.   Ya Kun is apparently what the coffee stall's name evolved to as sounding similar to the owner's name. 

Kaya, as the spread is called, quickly became the stuff of legend - and Ah Koon and his family built an empire of coffee stalls with the same cozy, neighborhood food stall vibe only now with dozens of locations all over Singapore including many franchises.

On our holiday trip to Singapore, we were lucky enough to find that there was a Ya Kun Kaya Toast stall right across from our hotel!

It was a quick service set up: you order at the counter, find yourself a seat, and they call you when your food/drinks are ready.

You can order a la carte or breakfast sets - we chose to go with the Kaya Toast breakfast set ($4.50SG ~$3.60US) that came with a stack of toast with butter and kaya spread, 2 'soft-boiled' eggs that are really more like poached, and a hot drink.  The toasts were pieces of thin, wheat bread that are charcoal-grilled for nice smokey flavor which goes really well with the subtly sweet coconut-egg kaya spread. 

My mom actually reminded me that we used to eat the Hong Kong version of kaya as kids - that I LOVED but had no idea was the now famous kaya! The HK version is made by Yeoh's and is a translucent orange, smooth, light and very sweet.

Ya Kun's kaya is more of a translucent golden color, light more subtly sweet.  A delicious, nuanced spread that made me fall in love with this version as an adult.  As for the toast, I would have wanted more substantial pieces, but these made for a nice light breakfast (on a second visit, I got the french toast which was fantastic).  I'm not at all a coffee connoisseur, and on the first visit I got hot Horlicks (a malted drink again a childhood fav in HK, so glad to see that they served it at Ya Kun!); on the second visit I tried their iced coffee, which had a very fragrant aroma that was a perfect start to my morning.

Despite the now huge empire, Ya Kun's slogan somehow still feels very authentic "The Toast that binds...kinship, friendship, partnership".  The lovely guy behind the counter (who actually looks like Ah Koon per the photos on the wall, but obviously isn't him) whose name I somehow never got, was super friendly, asked us about our visit and remembered and asked us about Hong Kong on the second visit.  If I lived there I could imagine myself going to Ya Kun as a morning ritual!

Though the vibe is still very personal and nostalgic, Ya Kun is now clearly a modern company.  That prides itself on constantly coming up with new fun ways to serve kaya including Kaya Cheese Toasts, the aforementioned french toast, and butter sugar toast.  And an apparent local favorite, kaya on buttered soda crackers.

They also have a small merchandise area that sold souvenir jars of kaya in cute little boxed sets, as well as cookies made with kaya butter. 

 

One of my favorite things to do when travelling is to fill at least half of my suitcase with local specialty snacks and foodie finds, so that when I get home I can relive the great food memories and hang on to my vacation for just a little bit longer (and to make the return to 'normal' life a little bit more bearable).  So, I stocked up on the little jars of kaya (just $6US for two 75gram jars in a cute lil gift carrier!) as well as cookies.  Now a few weeks in to my return to LA, I treat myself to kaya spread over toast every once in a while - every bite brings me back to that little coffee stall in Singapore, having breakfast with my parents and as happy and carefree as a 5 year-old again, and that puts a smile back on my face.

I hope I don't run out of kaya anytime soon - but when I do maybe I'll finally go to Street for my fix, and to see if their version lives up to the hype.

[Deal alert: For those who are staying in Singapore a few days, and lucky enough to be close to a Ya Kun coffee stall - be sure to pick up a Ya Kun Rewards card.  Get a stamp for every beverage purchased, and get a free hot coffee/tea after collecting 8 stamps]

[For more photos and stories from our trip to Singapore, check out the album on my Facebook page.]
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Singapore
Ya Kun Kaya Toast
The Central, 6 Eu Tong Sen Street, #01-31, Clarke Quay, Singapore
Ph: +65 6534-7332
Website: yakun.com
Facebook: facebook.com/pages/Ya-Kun-Kaya-Toast

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L'Epicerie, Royal/T: A Tale of Two Breakfasts in Culver City

Have I ever mentioned that I love Culver City?  It's the best of both worlds: small town feel with the rare-for-LA pedestrian culture, yet super accessible from most parts of the city.  Add to that the rapid rise of chef & market driven fare, in well designed but intimate and unpretentious spaces, and you've got all the ingredients for success. 

By happy happenstance, on a friend's recommendation, I recently switched to a mechanic right by Culver City.  So when I had to take my car to the shop a few weeks back, I was excited to actually have great options for places to spend a few hours while waiting for repairs to be done - and within walking/ bus distance!

Since it was early in the morning, my first stop was at L'Epicerie for breakfast.  L'Epicerie is a combination of cafe+restaurant+gourmet market, serving up European inspired cooking, set within a cozy corner space. 

Despite an impressive fine-dining pedigree (Michelin-starred restaurants in France under such legendary chefs as Alain Ducasse and Guy Savoy, and most recently at helm of fine dining venue RH Restaurant at the Andaz hotel), Chef Sébastien Archambault's goal with L'Epicerie is to offer a taste of Southwest France in an accessible, relaxed environment. 

I loved the airy, sunlit venue - however, the L'Epicerie houses 3 sections within a small space, that are not immediately clearly defined (at least in my non-morning person semi-groggy state).  Which led to a not so idyllic experience to start - with car repairs taking a large chunk of my monthly budget, I went for the cafe fare, and after placing my order at the counter, received a number marker and was advised to sit anywhere (food to be brought over when ready).

As a blogger, I went on autopilot, gravitating to the window and natural light for photo-taking.  Within a minute, a voice shouted out from the tapas bar, clear across front of house: "You can't sit there - you bought from the cafe, you need to stay over there".  I immediately apologized and moved over to the 3-4 table cafe area.  Then I realized that was rather rude for her to shout across the space like that - I did not intend some unmerited 'upgrade' to the restaurant, but simply did not register a separation between the restaurant and cafe.  It was so early in the morning that I was one of only 3 parties in the entire space, so it wasn't a matter of taking up a table that was needed.  It was an honest mistake, and it didn't feel great to be treated like a second-class citizen who was trying to 'sneak by' to 'first class'.  She could have taken a nicer approach and achieved the same result of moving me over.  Bad customer service aside, I tried to enjoy my morning by focusing on the food.


In the mood for a classic, I went with the 3 Organic Egg Omelette ($10) - you can choose 3 ingredients to go in from an extensive list: I chose smoked salmon, bacon and mushrooms.  This turned out to be one of the best omelettes I'd had this year - with every ingredient tasting so fresh that I could imagine the meal at some farmhouse in the French countryside, where the chef literally just plucked the eggs from the mother hen and the mushrooms from the field. 

On the side: a fresh salad lightly dressed with vinaigrette, for a perfect breakfast plate at a fairly reasonable price. 

In keeping with the farm fresh theme, I loved my Raspberry Smoothie ($5) with raspberry, strawberry, granola and fat-free yogurt.  Delicious.  It was also nice to stroll through the very small but eclectic market, checking out their cheese selection (includes French cheese of course, as well as 'local' notables such as Cowgirl Creamery) and European snacks that are hard to find elsewhere in LA.  A small case of pastries included Parisian style macarons.  There was also a table by the wine racks that could be nice for a small group of aficionados.  Overall (initial rude service aside), I enjoyed breakfast at L'Epicerie, and made a mental note to come back another time to check out restaurant offerings.

With a few more hours left to kill, I decided to grab a second breakfast (and pay the calories forward by walking up the street) at a place that I'd heard a lot about, that would offer amusement for my remaining time - Royal/T. 

Royal/T is also a hybrid space, but of a very different tone - it's part art gallery+store+cafe, with heavy modern Japanese influence. And waitresses in cosplay. Yep, you read that right. More on that later.

Located up the street and somewhat removed from the hubbub of downtown Culver City, Royal/T can be easy to miss if you're not looking for it. The storefront is encased in green shrubbery, with just a neon pink crown atop the entrance to note its presence.

Once inside, bright and airy with wide open skylights, there is a fun merchandise area on one side, and an art exhibit to the other.
The art exhibit was pop culture inspired and playful, lots of fun to look through and made for a unique, cool and interesting setting for the cafe.

As was the merchandise area - I could imagine this store being plucked from Tokyo and placed with all elements intact into Royal/T. It was entertaining to look through the quirky products, including tote bags that transform into backpacks, Kubrick bears and an illustrated "Children's book for grown-ups" titled "Everybody dies - don't feel bad" that was funny and poignant at the same time.

Meet Phoebe, a graphic design student
working part-time in the cosplay cafe

 Aside from the store and art space, there was the cafe, which is inspired by Maid Cafes in Japan - and represents LA's first Japanese-inspired cosplay cafe.  Waitresses are dressed and styled as if they are anime french maids.  You might think this would be uncomfortable for some, but the waitresses I saw/met that day seemed to enjoy it / relish being in character. 

Though the menu looked interesting (e.g. Green tea soba noodles, Kabocha Squash Ravioli), unfortunately I was still too full to have any actual food, so I opted to go liquid breakfast for my second 'meal'.  Royal/T has a wall of loose leaf teas, but the barista on duty recommended that as a first time visitor, I should try their signature Royal/T Milk Tea ($4.50), made with black tea, rose petals, pieces of fruit and vanilla brewed with soymilk.

The tea came in a french press pot, was really fragrant, with pronounced floral / fresh fruit notes, in a sophisticated way, not the sickeningly sweet flavors a la mass branded tea bags or lesser cafes that are not tea-focused.  It was well balanced, served at just the right temperature, and made deliciously smooth with the steamed soymilk - this was milk tea served the Asian way.  Loved this and would come back another day to try the High Tea Set service as well, which includes "assorted savory canapés and desserts on 3-tiered tray" with a pot of tea of your choice for $19.50. 

I had picked up a free magazine from the front of the store, and was left in peace to leisurely enjoy my tea/ read for a blissful hour or two. 

Afterwards, I discovered a whole back gallery with additional exhibits, up the ramp past the restroom, and did a quick walkthrough before heading out to pick up my car.

All in all, a fun time in Culver City - with two very distinctly different spaces and cuisines, but both equally enjoyable and appreciated.  Knock on wood I won't be needing car service again anytime soon (my wallet hurts just thinking about it), but if I do, thanks to places like L'Epicerie and Royal/T, I won't be dreading it quite as much.

 [For more pictures from both locations, check out my album on Facebook]


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L'Epicerie
9900 Culver Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90232
Ph: 310.815.1600
Parking: Free in building

Website: lepiceriemarket.com
Follow on Twitter: twitter.com/LEpicerieMarket
Look for reservations: OpenTable.com



Royal/T
8910 Washington Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232
Ph: 310.559.6300
Parking: Street meters

Website: royal-t.org
Follow on Twitter: twitter.com/RoyalTcafe


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Vosges Boutique - Haut Chocolate for Cold Winter Day

It doesn't very often rain this hard in LA.  Yes, it's November, but we have been spoiled with continuing sunshine for the most part - and until today I haven't had to dig out the old fleece-lined, waterproof, zips up over nose, nearly ready for nuclear winter ski jacket.  Today it poured down so hard I could hardly hear traffic beyond the pounding on my car as I drove; on many streets the backwash from storm drains swallowed sidewalks whole; cars parked by the (now invisible) curb were on the verge of floating away in bumper-height water.    

LA doesn't deal very well with unusual weather conditions.  I don't deal very well with unusually bad weather conditions.  But holing up in my apartment, I knew, would only give me cabin fever.  So I pulled on my ready-for-almost-anything-double-lined ski jacket, my no longer fashionable but perfect for this weather Uggs, and headed out in search of that which makes everything better - even in the dreariest downpour of grey - hot chocolate.

And if I'm going to risk pneumonia and/or a 10-car pile-up, might as well do it for really good hot chocolate. So good it's spelled haut - at the newly opened Vosges boutique, whose owner and chocolatier Katrina Markoff was an apprentice at El Bulli.

I first became a fan of Vosges chocolate when I almost literally stumbled onto a display of them around the checkout aisle at Whole Foods 5, 6 years ago - and fell in love with the sweet/savory Mo's Bacon Bar. According to legend (i.e. her bio printed on the back of Vosges chocolate bar boxes and/or on the Vosge site) - Katrina studied at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris before launching on a world tour that started with an apprenticeship with the inimitable Ferran Adriá. Her journey inspired the concept of travelling the world through chocolate, bringing global ingredients to gourmet chocolates with the stated goal to use her creations to raise interest and awareness in different cultures.

Apparently all Vosges boutique locations take inspiration from different cultures as well - and this latest branch in Beverly Hills draws from Moroccan design aesthetics.

The gorgeous yet cozy space has a lofty and elaborately painted ceiling, with ornate white stone arches at each end of the retail area, which is in turn bookended by cafe seating area and counter/kitchen.

The retail area is lined with shelves of gourmet chocolate bars ($7.50 each, buy 5 get 1 free!), truffles as well as fun boxes of chocolate-powered baking mixes like a bacon-chocolate chip pancake mix ($12) and ultimate chocolate chip cookie mix ($18).  They also have a chocolate dipped tortilla chip and chocolate toffees. 

 It's a somewhat interactive experience with bowls of generous samples for select items and bell jars displaying more exotic ingredients in their original form like star anise, curry powder, goji berries etc.

I loved the cafe spaces, with its Moroccan / French flair and delicious sounding blackboard drink and food specials (surprisingly affordable, especially for a Beverly Hills venue!)

There are three hot chocolates ("Chocolat Chaud", $5 each), two of which are more classic: Parisienne (tahitian vanilla and dark chocolate), Aztec Elixir (chili ceylon cinnamon) and a third, which I went for, that is more unique called Bianca (with white chocolate, lavendar and lemon myrtle).

The Chocolat Chaud Bianca was lovely, served steaming hot in a large ceramic bowl, though a bit of an acquired taste - the first sip reminded me a little of lotion due to the floral and citrus notes.  But as the initial disorientation wears off quickly, it's a smooth, nuanced and unique hot chocolate drink. 

(Coffee lovers note they have Blue Bottle drip coffee for $4! Other drinks include gourmet teas and "cocoa water")

I wanted to try their Love Goddess Cake with ancho & chipotle or chillies, with Mo's Bacon chocolate ($6) but unfortunately they did not have it today.  So I went for the Armenian Apricot & Saffron Pot de Creme ($6) - which ended up going perfectly with the hot chocolate, with its well balanced sweet / savory/ tart flavors, and subtle crunch of sugar crust with hefty, juicy pieces of apricot on top.

Here's a shot of their menu so far - I can't wait to go back and try the cake, Saffron & Rose Petal Sugar Cookies ($3) cheese and chocolate plates ($9) and affogato ($4)....

First impressions count, and Vosges was a ray of sunshine on a truly dreary day.  I love initmate and well designed spaces without the pretentiousness, and Vosges (today anyway, all staffers at hand were warm and friendly) - fit that bill.  I could see myself going back to meet up with friends, or on my own, for afternoon tea or dessert, as a pit stop on the way to/from the Beverly Hills Cheese Store :)

[For 25+ photos from my visit, check out the album on my Facebook page]

Have you tried any of their other cafe fare or specialty chocolate items? If so do share in comments below!

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Vosges Haut Chocolate - Beverly Hills
311 N. Beverly Dr., Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Ph: 310.275.3621

Parking: 2 hours free parking at 345 Beverly Dr (between Brighton and Dayton, entrance next to Williams Sonoma store)

Website: vosgeschocolate.com
Twitter: twitter.com/VosgesBeverlyDr
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Olive & Thyme - It's About Time for Here-to-Stay Gourmet in Burbank's Bermuda Triangle

There's a vortex in Burbank around Warner Bros., Disney and NBC, roughly bordered by Olive, Alameda and Pass, where many ambitious food venues that dared venture seem to vanish quickly without a trace.  Exhibit A:  French 75, which became Savannah before disappearing forever.  Exhibit B:  Three generations of white linen, wine listed Italian restaurants that cycled through so quickly that no one even remembers any of their names, on the corner of Riverside and Kenwood.  Exhibit C:...Actually, maybe that was about it, at least in the last few years.  Gindi Thai, Arnie Morton's and Studio Cafe Magazzino are pretty much the only chic/more upscale/cute spots offering creative/finer/fresher fare, that have stood the test of time within walking distance of  the three studios in this pneumatic triangle.  Don Cuco's is great for the occasional lunch or happy hour, but a decidedly casual dining space with a delicious but fairly standard menu, and the thighs and waistlines of image-conscious studio folks can only handle so much Mexican over time.  Mo's has good salads and crazy good warm chocolate chip cookie dough pie, but is fast, casual fare that is relatively spendy, and falls just outside the triangle.  There's also Sweetsalt and Arde's Bistro, which I love, but also just 'out-of-bounds' - when you only have an hour for lunch and you're wearing heels - you'll lose a good chunk of both walking, or spend too much time driving over and circling for parking before you can even get in line to place your order.  There are some amazing eats on Tujunga and Ventura (not to mention Portos on Hollywood Way), of course, but all again outside the triangle.


Into this vortex, Olive & Thyme bravely dove headfirst on Tuesday this week.  As the immediate mob of studio and local folks converging upon the place - almost like survivors of Oceanic 815 upon their first discovery of edible fruit / marine life (or an all-engineer frat upon the rare new girl in class) - would attest, it seems like they have been waiting forever for Olive & Thyme to arrive.
In their first few days, Olive & Thyme's resident chef estimates they served hundreds per day at lunch, and the cozy space continued to be packed at dinner.

There is just something special about Olive & Thyme that has not been seen inside the triangle these last few years.  The cafe / marketplace has a decor that is clean, sleek and chic without being intimidating or at all pretentious - spacious yet cozy and intimate at the same time.  There are white marble countertops, a rustic wooden picnic-style communal table, a lovely center-island wine/beer/coffee bar, glass cases of freshly made salads, gourmet cheeses, charcuterie and fresh made desserts, and shelves of packaged gourmet goods from artisan chocolates, flavored marshmallows, cookies and butter waffles, to tins of imported toffee, to house branded jars of spices - it's our very own Joan's on Third, in the heart of studios central.  Top that all off with cute decor items for sale, like Tocca candles.
    
You feel instantly relaxed when you step into Olive & Thyme (crowds aside, as I was able to finally experience at dinnertime tonight when most studio employees have fled en masse back to their westside homes).  And owners Melina & Christian Davies (the nicest couple!) intend it to be a neighborhood hangout, a place that inspires and that locals who live to eat can love to come, versus a fueling station for utilitarian sustenance.


On the menu: many fresh salads (including farro with roasted beets and curried chicken salad), sandwiches, and soups, as well as breakfast items.  There are also blackboard specials and Intelligentsia poured coffee (!!!).  The Sulawesi poured coffee ($4.50) was a great way to kick off the evening for me.  Sitting at the marble-countertop bar allows you to get the 'show' - and as one-part of the hands-on owner-couple prepared the beverage, he explained that the coffee is slow-hand-poured, in two phases - first run to heat and release the aromas from the grind, second run to further hydrate and allow the liquids to overflow through to the pot below.

And all the effort pays off - the coffee was smooth, rich-bodied and fragrant, and best of all served in a soupbowl-sized mug (so European)!

All I have to say is, sorry, Starbucks loyalty program - but I've met someone else.


Earlier in the day, a coworker had recommended the Braised Short Rib sandwich ($13)  - which I did not get to try as the wait was too long - (45 minutes the last two days we tried).  So that was the first thing on my mind for food - besides the farro with roasted beets, which was unfortunately already sold out when I arrived.  The sandwich arrived on a branded wooden platter - with ever so tender and flavorful short rib, sweetened by caramlized onions, and a slight kick courtesy of a splash of horseradish creme fraiche.  Bookended by La Brea Bakery country sourdough.  Delicious with a side of cornichons and pickles.  Yes, $13 is more than I would normally pay for a sandwich, but it was braised short rib inside the triangle, dammit, and it was fresh, and good, and sizeable - I was stuffed after just the sandwich, as dinner.  And I would rather spend that amount on an Olive & Thyme sandwich than a run-of-the-mill burger from Mo's (yes they have a burger bar concept, but pretty much all the ingredients at the bar are standard fare).  I asked the chef what his favorite items on the menu were, and this sandwich is one of them.  The other is the Middle Eastern Chicken sandwich ($12) with hummus, harissa, tomatoes and aji sauce on grilled pita.  Would definitely return for lunch, especially as a treat for myself on more hectic days.

Though I was full, I couldn't leave without trying one of the treats from the visual smorgasboard that is the dessert counter at the far end of the bar.  And I was enjoying  conversation with the engaging / nice in a great laid back way Davies.  And they both have such interesting backgrounds - Melina worked for Warner Bros. on the Matrix movies, and co-produced Gothika, before deciding that she wanted to focus on her true passion, food!  Christian is a jetsetting accessories designer by day for Nike. 

But I digress - back to the food.  Since I was in the mood for something not overly sweet, Melina recommended the Durango Cookie or the Carrot Cake ($6), made from scratch daily by Valerie of Valerie Confections.  I went for both - the cookie for the nibs and toasted almonds (to go), and the carrot cake for the presentation and photo opp.

The carrot cake was good, with rounds of cake sandwiching a carrot spiked cream cheese center, topped by a dollop of cream cheese frosting and candied carrots - but I would have enjoyed it more if it was just a little lighter in texture and perhaps served warm. I also had my eye on a multi-layer berries n' cream cake, which I aim to try on my next visit.  And the mini chocolate bars.

By the time I finished my lovely dining experience, it was past closing time, but Melina / Christian and team did not at all try to hurry any of the remaining patrons - though they've had 12-16 hour days all week and I am sure ready to go home and crash out!  Their passion for their new business and goal to raise the bar on gourmet fare for the community are clear - they saw a need for higher quality eateries in their neighborhood, and went for it.  The two were constantly not only checking on their chef and the food, but also adjusting music levels to provide a nice audio backdrop while ensuring people were still able to enjoy their conversations, and of course checking on their guests all through the evening - if they were exhausted, as they should be, they didn't let it show.

It may only be the first week, but from what I can see, all signs point to Olive & Thyme being one of the rare few that will not be lost, but with every indication of being able to emerge victorious in the Burbank Triangle.  Personally I wish Melina & Christian's little new neighborhood gem enduring success!  If you live/work in Burbank and haven't been to Olive & Thyme yet...time to get up and go!



On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 6 bites
Presentation - 5 bites
Originality - 5.5 bites
Ambience - 6 stars
Service - 7 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$ (2 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 100%

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Olive & Thyme
4013 Riverside Dr., Toluca Lake, CA 91505
Ph: 818.557.1560
Website: oliveandthyme.com
Twitter: twitter.com/oliveandthyme
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