Chocolate Tasting at Edelweiss Chocolates

The event started with owner, Madlen Zahir, giving us a short talk about Edelweiss' history and about chocolate itself. For those of you who didn't know, Edelweiss has been a Beverly Hills landmark for over 60 years.

First, some history. The original owner, seen in a black and white picture on the shop wall, came up with the idea of chocolate covered marshmallows in the first place, which currently are Edelweiss' top sellers. In fact, she actually would make the marshmallow herself after hours, just to ensure the secrecy of the recipe.

After her retirement, the business was sold to a Swiss chocolatier, whose chocolate recipes comprises the majority of chocolates sold in the shop today. For 5 years, Shirley Jones took over but for the past few years, Edelweiss has been in the hands of the Zahir family.

Madlen also gave us a brief talk about how chocolate is made, which I elaborated on in the next few paragraphs to give additional information. First, the cacao beans have to be roasted so that their shells become brittle. Then they go through a machine that will remove the shells and remove the seeds which are now called cacao nibs. Now the cacao nibs have to be ground into a paste called "chocolate liquor."

Some "chocolate liquor" is pressed to remove cocoa butter, which is used to make white chocolate. Further processing turns it into cocoa powder, but it's the unpressed "chocolate liquor" that is used to make chocolate. To make chocolate, the manufacturer blends unpressed chocolate with condensed milk, sugar and extra cocoa butter.

This raw mixture becomes a coarse, brown dough called "crumb." The "crumb" needs now needs to be refined to make the chocolate silkier so it's pressed through giant steel rollers to do the job. You now have a creamier batter of chocolate; yet, it still needs to undergo still another process before it's ready to use. Finally, the chocolate can be tempered (heated) to give it a glossy sheen and smoothness and than used to hand dip various items in or poured into different kinds of chocolate molds.

After Madlen's introduction, we went into the chocolate factory and as she talked more about their chocolate making process and showed us the various "tools of the trade" so to speak, we started our tasting of 8 different chocolates which were:

- Dark Chocolate Caramallow (with an inside layer of marshmallow and caramel) - loved the thick layer of caramel and the sponginess of the marshmallow.

- Milk Chocolate Toffeemallow (with an inside layer of marshmallow mixed with toffee pieces) - a little too sweet for my taste, but I appreciated the toffee pieces.

- Geraldine (ground apricot with caramel) - My favorite of the bunch and with a great story. Apparently, this chocolate had caramel added to the ground apricot by mistake and it was such a delicious accident that they named this new chocolate after that employee who made that error, Geraldine. I really liked the combined flavors of tart and sweet.

- Dark Honeycomb Sponge Chocolate (burnt sugar and honey) - I liked the flavor, but burnt sugar makes for a harder candy interior so be prepared to take a hardier bite.

- Milk Chocolate Coconut Snocap (with moist coconut) - That coconut was definitely moist and better than any Almond Joy or Mounds out there.

- Alpine Snow White Chocolate Truffle (rolled in cocoa powder) - What was nice was that the white chocolate wasn't overly sweet.

- Dark Chocolate Turtle (caramel & pecans) - Apparently a fav of Katherine Hepburn and even mentioned in her autobiography. I really liked the sweet-slight saltiness of this chocolate

- Milk Chocolate Maple Pecan Cream - A favorite of Frank Sinatra and members of the Sinatra family to this day will send out boxes of these chocolates to family & friends. This was my least favorite just because it was just too sweet and sugary for my palate.

...but we weren't done yet....Madlen's husband, Steve surprised as with a 9th chocolate which was dark chocolate with a brandy liquer inside along with a cherry that has been soaking in brandy for 3 months. I normally don't like these types of chocolates, because I find them overally sweet, but this particular chocolate I wouldn't mind having a second piece of.

Some of the equipment we saw were over 50 years and almost as old as the shop itself. Madlen also showed us some of the various molds used to make their molded chocolates. One last bit of Hollywood history I'll mention before ending is that Lucille Ball, a faithful Edelweiss Chocolates customer actually used the chocolate conveyor belt that's part of the Edelweiss' factory as the inspiration for an "I Love Lucy" episode and I'm sure you know which one.

Overall, it was both a learning and tasty experience!

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601764686605

Edelweiss Chocolates
444 N Canon Dr
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
(310) 275-6003

http://www.edelweisschocolates.com/

Gelato and Sorbet Tasting at Bulgarini Gelato

This summer has been scorching, which is why, I was more than happy to be at Bulgarini Gelato last August to experience delicious gelatos and sorbets at a tasting I set up with the shop. The tasting started off with owner, Leo Bulgarini, giving us some history about how Bulgarini Gelato came to be. What many may or may not know is that he and his wife, Elizabeth spent two years back and forth in Italy trying to someone who could teach them the art of making gelato from scratch. This was actually quite a difficult task since the majority of the gelaterias are industrial. Finally, they met a third-generation retired gelato maker and spent two months with him learning the craft.

Afterwards, they came back to the US and started small with Leo selling his gelato from carts at a local movie theater in Pasadena as well as at the courtyard of the Pacific Asian Museum. Eventually, they were able to open a small courtyard shop in hilly Altadena, which is where we all were that day.

After the talk, we were shown this amazing gelato maker that sits in the corner of the shop. It's over 50 years old and built to last. In fact, that old-timer actually made one of the sorbets that were part of our tasting. As we crowded around that machine, Leo let us peek in as it was mixing and then we watched as he scooped some out with a large white paddle into a container. Then he showed us a large plastic container of fresh kiwi juice that he poured back into the maker to make another batch. Leo mentioned earlier about only using only fresh ingredients in his recipes. You can't get any fresher than fresh kiwi juice. You could even see the seeds in the liquid.

Finally, we sat outside in the shade to start our tasting. The first one up was the pistachio gelato. Before we dug in, Leo told us that the pistachios are directly from Italy and while he could have gone the less expensive route and used California pistachios, he felt that the Italian pistachios were better quality. He even mentioned that to save costs that there were some gelaterias in Italy that would actually use California pistachios as opposed to locally grown nuts. Now that's what I call nutty.

If you love pistachios than the pistachio gelato is a dream come true. The nuts are actually ground before being mixed into the recipe and with every lick; you get a taste of nutty goodness. After consuming this first gelato, Leo actually had us taste the pistachio paste and while giving out a sample, he told us that when the pistachio quality is where it should be, the paste should have the consistency of peanut butter and it certainly did that.

Next was the Kiwi Sorbet, which had a smooth and creamy texture and knowing that it was just made that day was actually cool. As for the flavor, I really liked its hint of tartness. By the way, the difference between a gelato and sorbet is that gelato tends to contain egg yolks and contains less air, which makes it less dense than regular ice creams. Sorbets contain no dairy and are like a creamy ice because it's churned until it's smooth.

Soon after came the Crema de Caffe Gelato. I'm not much of a coffee drinker, but I could see myself starting off the day with a scoop of this as opposed to the liquid version. After the coffee gelato, we were hit with a gelato and sorbet whammy, all in one cup. On the top was a Chocolate-Orange Gelato and it topped a Golden Plum Sorbet. Let me tell you that plum sorbet was so tart; it felt like I was eating a lemon. I actually thought that it was too tart even for me who tends to like that flavor profile, but when eaten with that chocolate-orange gelato, it was a pretty good pairing. The combined tart-sweet-citrus flavors that came as a result of this duo were actually fun to eat.

There were two more to go and the next on the rotation was the mango sorbet. It was sweet, fruity and it really did taste like a fresh mango. It was definitely quite refreshing. Last, but not least, was the Zabaglione Gelato, which was made up of custard cream and Marsala wine. This was the first time I've ever had gelato or any kind of ice cream where wine was one of the ingredients and I have to say that this Zabaglione was a hit with me. With each spoonful, you could taste that wine, but instead of the "bitterness" I was expecting, it added a softer, more rounded fruit flavor to the custard cream.

Overall, this was a great tasting and Leo was a great host and gave us lots of information. I was already a fan of Bulgarini Gelato, but even more so after this tasting.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601672651941/

Bulgarini Gelato
749 E Altadena Dr.
Altadena, CA 91001
(626) 441-2319
http://www.bulgarinigelato.com/

Indian Ice Cream and Shaved Ice Tasting at Saffron Spot

On a warm July afternoon, I had set up a unique tasting at Saffron Spot, an Indian ice cream shop in Artesia. For those of you who don't know anything about Saffron Spot, first, here's some background.

In April 2001, Mumbai native Smita Salgaonkar started Neemo’s Exotic Ice Creams in her adopted home, northern Orange County, naming her operation for an amalgam of her daughters' names. With the success of Neemo's behind her, she also opened Saffron Spot, in Little India. She named her shop Saffron Spot in honor of the valuable spice that seasons several of her flavors.

Some of the flavors you'll see at Saffron Spot are unlike anything you'll ever see at your local Baskins Robbins or Cold Stone Creamery. Sure, you'll see ice creams like mango and lychee, but chikoo and kulfi are words that may not be in your vocabulary. Chikoo or Sapodilla, by the way, is a fruit similar to a well-ripened pear and Kulfi is made with boiled milk and amazingly enough, no eggs. Kulfi can be flavored with pistachio, cardammon, saffron and other ingredient ingredients.

Other items on the Saffron Spot menu include golas (Indian version of shaved ice), falooda ice cream drinks (flavored milk mixed with rice or wheat noodles, basil seeds and topped with ice cream) as well falooda "sundaes" (ice cream topped with the noodles, basil seeds and syrup) and so much more.

The event started with Owner, Smita Salgaonkar, talking about some of the things I mentioned above. She also talked about how with the heat in India reaching record temperatures, everything we sampled as a part of our tasting would be considered street food because at every corner, you'll see carts selling a variety of these frozen treats to help cool down the populace. Another cultural aspect of the ice cream she mentioned is that it's a very popular dessert at Indian weddings.

For our tasting, we sampled:

- 4 different types of Indian ice cream - Saffron Silk, Kulfi, Mango and Banana Cardamon

**All the ice creams had a rich, creamy consistency. I found the Banana Cardamon a little too sweet for my taste, but I really enjoyed the fruitiness of the Mango.

- Rose Falooda Ice Cream Drink - rose milk with noodles and takmaria (basil seeds) topped with rose ice cream

**This ice cream drink reminded of me Halo Halo (a Filipino shaved ice dessert), without the ice. In Halo-Halo, you have things like sweetened fruits and beans and when the condensed milk is poured into it, you're both drinking and eating your dessert. That's what I did with this Falooda drink, at times sipping and other times slurping the noodles and chewing on the basil seeds.
I think there were a couple of people who were put off by the work into consuming this ice cream drink, but I personally enjoyed it. It was a very refreshing drink, more so than the ice cream on its own.
- Malai Gola (Shaved ice served with Malai(cream), rose syrup and nuts)

**The Gola is something you can get without the Malai cream, but we got the version with the cream. It's funny how many desserts are so similar to each other across different cultures. The Malai Gola also reminded me of Halo-Halo because of the shaved ice and cream aspect, but without any of the additional ingredients other than the nuts that topped the ice. Of everything we sampled, this was my favorite treat. It was just sweet enough without being too rich.

- 4 different types of Kulfi (a popular dessert made with boiled milk): mango, pistachio, malai cream and malai cream with peanuts

**By the time we got to the Kulfi, I was actually pretty full, which surprised me, because it wasn't if we ate large helpings of anything, but I think it did have to do with the richness of the ice creams. The Kulfi was very dense. When ordering the Kulfi, you normally would get a slice as opposed to a scoop. Of all the flavors, I'd have to go with the mango again, just like the mango ice cream earlier that I found so appealing. Even though mango kulfi was hardened, when I ate a piece and it melted in my mouth a bit, I could taste the mango juice and it was delicious.

Overall, this event really gave me even more of an appreciation of Indian ice creams and I really wish that there was a Saffron Spot closer to me, but have car, will travel. Considering all the tasty dining options in Little India, it's not that much of a hardship to go there for a meal, followed by something cold and sweet at Saffron Spot.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601665367002/

Saffron Spot
18744 Pioneer Boulevard
Artesia, CA 90701
(562) 809-4554
http://www.saffronspot.com/

Jitlada Thai Cuisine

For the past couple of months, the buzz around all the foodie blogs and message boards has been about the spicy Southern Thai dishes at Jitlada. So one night, a friend and I decided to have dinner at Jitlada. Like everyone else, I brought a printout of the write-up that Eric, a Chicago blogger, did about this restaurant which included his recommendations and translations of all the dishes. See link below:

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=13933

Thankfully, with the newfound boom in clientele, we saw that since Eric's visit, the owners had that section of the menu translated. Yay us.

So on to our meal! Between my friend and me, we chose 6 dishes from the Southern Thai menu. We started off with their rice salad, Khâo Yam "Songkhla", which was a mound of steamed rice topped with either finely crushed dried shrimp or shrimp crackers and fried coconut and surrounded by a veggie assortment. Along with the dish came a tamarind sauce. This was a nice starter with lots of great flavors and textures. How can you go wrong with fresh, crisp veggies, the salty-sweetness of the two toppings plus the sweet heat of the sauce? You really can't.

Following the rice salad was an entrée that definitely left a fiery impression, more so than any of the other items we ate that night. On the menu, you'll see this dish as Khanõm Jiin “Meuang Khon” 5 Náam 3 Dâng. The ingredients of rice vermicelli and fish balls seem innocent enough, but it was the very hot curry sauce that made my taste buds sit up, sing and take notice. Wow! I can almost feel my mouth burning again, just thinking about it.

Accompanying this noodle dish were both fresh and pickled vegetables. The addition of the veggies to the noodles actually helped cut down on the heat. On their own, the noodles and the sauce may be too much of an overload for the non-spicy eater, so the vegetables may actually be your lifesaver if you still want to take a chance on this dish.

From the fiery depths, we "cooled" down a bit with the arrival of our Néua Tàet Dìaw / Néua Sũwan or dried/fried beef jerky. The meat was definitely chewy as beef jerky should be; yet, it still retained some tenderness as well. Try taking a bite of the meat topped with both the red onion and the cilantro that comes with this dish. The beef jerky already has great flavor, but the onion and cilantro just makes it that much better.

Spicy comes back to town with the appearance of the two wet curries we ordered. The first one up was Kaeng Kûng Wùa Thùa, a spicy, turmeric-seasoned curry with shrimp and jicama. I was surprised to see jicama as an ingredient since I tend to associate that ingredient with Latin cuisine or fusion cooking, but it added a little juicy crunch to the dish, which I liked. Between the shrimp and red bell peppers, this curry dish was more on the sweet side, but still packed a delicious punch.

The second curry dish we tried was Kaeng Tay Poh Plaa Châwn Hâeng or a Southern Thai-style curry with dried mudfish and water spinach. What I found the most unappealing about this dish was the dried mudfish, which had a weirdly gummy texture to it. I would have preferred if the fish was just fried. Of everything we tried, this was my least favorite dish. That's not to say that it was bad. While the sauce had the heat, the flavor wasn't there for me, especially in comparison to the previous dishes we already tried.

After what was already a 5 entrée marathon, our Plaa Thâwt Râat Phrík, which is a deep-fried fish “smothered” in sweet chile sauce arrived. You have your choice of fish and we opted for the sea bass. The little bit I sampled before we just had it wrapped up to go was amazingly tasty and although the sauce described itself as being chile sauce, I didn't find it to be spicy at all, just packed with lots of flavor. If I wasn't so full, I would have poured the sauce over my rice and went to town.

In fact, I enjoyed the food so much that I went back a couple of days later and tried a couple other menu items, although not on the Southern Thai menu. I had their Coco Mango Salad which is sliced mango, shrimp, lime juice, onion and chili with also a bit of coconut water. Wow, what a great salad. You get tart, sweet, and a little bit heat all in one bite. Since I was too full for dessert the first time I visited, this time I didn't pass it up and had their mango with sticky rice. Double Wow! This was the best mango and sticky rice I've ever had. I don't even have words. Just try it! You won't regret it.

Overall, our meal that night was fantastic and I can see why this new Southern Thai menu of Jitlada's is getting all the raves. If you haven't already, don't pass up a meal from this unique menu. You will definitely be a faithful convert.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601644786108/

Jitlada Thai Cuisine
5233 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 663-3104

Cafe Verde

I'm not normally much of a sandwich person, so when I have one that is tasty, I have to tell people about it. Thanks to Wendy T for taking me to this little treasure for lunch and by little, I'm not kidding. The interior of Cafe Verde is small and can probably fit about 16 to 20 people and that's pretty much it.

As for lunch, I started off with a non-alcoholic cranberry mixed drink, which was nicely tart and quite refreshing. For my meal, I opted for their chicken salad with pico gallo. First off, I have to say that I love that the bread was toasted. Also, they were nice to let me switch out the housemade potato chips that normally comes with their sandwich with a salad.

When I finally took a bite of my sandwich, I was just over the moon over that chicken salad. The addition of the pico de gallo was absolutely wonderful. I really enjoyed the fresh juicy bite of the tomatoes and the small bits of cilantro added a nice flavor dimension. The chicken was tender and moist and considering that it was white meat, that's a pretty good accomplishment.

Having worked in the produce industry for 11 years, I also really appreciate it when the greens in my salad look and taste fresh and thank goodness there wasn't a heavy hand with the dressing in the kitchen. Limp leaves are just a waste of dressing and not appealing at all.

Overall, it was a good lunch. The service was spot on. Our food arrived promptly and our water glasses were always filled. What more can you ask for? I definitely look forward to checking out more of their menu at another time, perhaps dinner one night.

To see pics, go to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601652634533/

Cafe Verde

961 E Green St

Pasadena, CA 91106

(626) 356-9811

Wraps 360

With everyone always in a hurry, drive thru eating/beverage establishments are now the norm, from McDonald's, In-N-Out, Starbucks, Baskin-Robbins and even Krispy Kreme. In the little town of Monrovia, you can now add Wraps 360 to the mix where the dining options are definitely much more healthy than what you would get at your local burger joint.

As the name of this food stand suggests, the menu consists primarily of different wraps, but there also sandwich and salad options as well. If you have a thirst, the beverage choices include soft drinks, teas, juices, smoothies and various coffee concoctions.

For my first time lunch there, I went for the Mango Smoothie and their Club Wrap. When I ordered the Mango Smoothie, I was asked if I preferred it blended with milk or juice. I thought it was cool that you had a choice and that way, those of you who are lactose intolerant can still enjoy a fruit smoothie without any problems.

When my Club Wrap arrived, it was a thing of beauty. Everything looked really fresh. The lettuce was crisp. There was no "browning" on the avocado. The tomatoes looked beautifully red and juicy. Other ingredients included grilled chicken, a house cream dressing, swiss cheese and turkey bacon wrapped in a tomato basil tortilla. You can choose either fruit or salad as your side and I chose fruit.

What was also interesting is the way the ingredients were wrapped in the tortilla. It was almost like a funnel shape where the food was "fanned out" on one end and the other end was narrow. This funnel shape made it easier to hold the wrap and I noticed that less food fell out when I bit into it.


As for how it tasted, I really enjoyed every bite. Fresh ingredients mean better flavor; however, there are two things that I didn't like. First, while the grilled chicken was moist and tender, it was a little salty, not so salty that I stopped eating it, but enough that it bugged me.

Second, after I came home and looked at the menu, I noticed that in the Club Wrap description, there were two ingredients listed that were missing in my wrap and those were pineapple and sprouts. I honestly didn't miss either of those ingredients because what I had was filling enough, but if you're going list ingredients for a dish, you should follow through with all of them.

To end, except for those two things I mentioned above, I'd say that my meal was there was pretty good. I'm actually not normally a sandwich/wrap kind of person, but whenever I'm in the mood, I'd give Wraps 360 another try.

Wraps 360
127 West Foothill Blvd.
Monrovia, CA 91016
(626) 358-4540
http://www.wraps360.com/

To see pics, go to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601461421190/

The Enchanted Rose Tea Parlour

Last Month, I had tea at a quaint tea room called The Enchanted Rose Tea Parlour in San Dimas, CA. Walking into this space, you'll see hats, boas, teapots, tea cups and of course tea tins fill the shelves that line up against the walls and pastels are definitely the color palette of choice.

For about $20, including tax and gratuity, we did the The Enchanted Tea. First off, we selected 4 different teas, 3 hot and 1 iced, to share. Once the teas started arriving, we also got our first course which was a little cup of fresh fruit.

Following the fruit came the blueberry scones along with cream and preserves. Those scones were absolutely wonderful. Soft, moist and cake-like, I savored every bite and I liked the fact that with every bite, I had a taste of blueberries.

For our third course, you had a choice of soup or salad and I opted for the salad which was a spring mix blend with apples and topped with a raspberry-Vidalia onion vinaigrette. I liked the tart-sweet flavors of the dressing, but felt like they drowned my salad with too much of it. Limp greens are not too apealing, so you may want to ask that they give you the dressing on the side.

Now out comes the sandwiches and each of us gets 4 and they were:
- chicken salad with almonds on a mini croissant

- ham and swiss cheese on 3 seed oat bread

- pineapple and pecans on Hawaiian bread

- carrots, celery and cheddar on wheat bread

All the sandwiches were quite tasty. The filings were just great. I especially liked the pineapple and pecans as well as the chicken salad with almonds. The one negative I will mention is that the bread for the last two sandwiches weren't as soft as they could have been. They were a little hard, almost as if they were toasted, but I don't think they were. Chocolate dipped strawberries also came out with the sandwiches.

I actually thought that the chocolate dipped strawberries were the dessert, but out came what the owner referred to as Fluff and in this case, Peach Fluff. It was a very light, airy and refreshing sweet treat, perfect for a hot day. The ingredients were fresh peaches mixed with angel food cake, cool whip and jello. This is definitely one of my new dessert favorites.

As the tea started winding down, we were eventually presented with the bill, but along with the bill came pink chocolate roses. They certainly didn't want us to leave hungry.

Overall, this is nice little tea parlour and to get everything we did just for $20, I'd say that this was definitely one of the more affordable teas I've ever been to and one hopefully, you'll check out yourself if you happen to be in the Eastside.

The Enchanted Tea Rose Parlour
120 W Bonita Ave Ste G
San Dimas, CA 91773
(909) 394-4588

Aunt Rosa Lee's Mississippi Soul Food

My culinary experience with "Soul Food" is pretty limited. I've had my share of what may (or may not) be considered soul food dishes in the past like fried chicken, collard and mustard greens, macaroni & cheese, hush puppies, but usually at places that refer to themselves as Southern, Cajun or Creole restaurants.

I've never been to an eating establishment where the words "Soul Food" were actually part of the restaurant name until I had dinner at Aunt Rosa Lee's Mississippi Soul Food restaurant awhile back and for some reason, I really had high expectations for a fantastic meal.

The dinner started off with what was either corn bread or corn muffins. Unfortunately, they were more burnt then they should have been. That wasn't a good start.

For my entree, I ordered a mini-dinner plate, which consisted of a meat item and two sides and believe me, mini was a misnomer. There was enough food for two people. I can't imagine how much food the regular dinner plate came with.

My meat of choice was the artery blocking fried pork chop smothered with gravy and for my two accompaniments, I chose the collard greens and macaroni and cheese. When my meal arrived, it was looking and smelling good. I was more than ready to dig in.

I started with the mac and cheese. (sigh) I was hoping for a cheese fest, but this side had a cheese sauce instead that was so thin, I didn't really get any cheesy flavor. The collard greens were underseasoned, but I just added my own salt to taste, so that wasn't a big thing.

As for the pork chop, my first bite of meat and gravy was wonderful, especially that gravy. Yummy! The second bite was just as good, but after a couple more bites, the food just seemed really salty. Perhaps, the salt that was meant for the collard greens hit the pork chop instead? Regardless of why, I certainly wasn't motivated to eat any more of the meat.

In general, I was disappointed with my meal at Aunt Rosa Lee's, but if I were in the neighborhood, I wouldn't mind trying again and only because I really liked that gravy. If it wasn't for the heavy-handed salt shaking, that pork dish would have been awesome from start to finish, so I think there's hope for better things. Also, the fried chicken that a couple of my dining partners had ordered looked and apparently was really tasty, so I wouldn't mind having a go at that as well.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601217707487/

Aunt Rosa Lee's Mississippi Soul Food
2781 S Western Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90018

(323) 733-8586

Bananas - Mexican Beverage Shop - CLOSED

When you walk into Bananas, your eyes immediately go into color over drive. From the bright red, green and orange wooden chairs to the fluffy bright yellow couches in the corner of the room to the multi-colored walls, it feels like several buckets of paint exploded and went every which way. In fact, one of the walls does look like paint splotches were thrown upon it.

Once your peepers adjust and you make it to the counter, you'll be able to order any one of several Mexican beverage specialties that are for sale at Bananas. There's the Diabilito Chilemon which is fresh squeezed lime juice blended with shaved ice, sugar, salt, chamoy and comes with a tamarind stick or the Escamocha, which is fresh squeezed orange juice poured over a mix of fresh fruits and veggies, including mango, grapes, cucumber and jicama. You can also order any variety of licuados, agua frescas, liquados, etc.

Hungry for something more substantial? Than order a torta and/or soup for a quick bite and if your sweet tooth needs satisfaction, there are desserts and sweets displayed either in the case or in baskets on the counter that will do the trick. If that isn't enough, you can also order fresh fruit baskets as gifts for business or pleasure.

For my first visit there, I tried the Banana Raspado, a shaved ice drink with banana syrup topped with freshly sliced bananas. While I liked the addition of the bananas, the drink was overall too sugary sweet for my taste.

I took home a Mango-on-a-Stick and yes, it really was on a stick as well as the Fruit de Gallo which had a mixture of mango, pineapple, watermelon, jicama and cucumber. Both were topped with either fresh squeezed lemon or lime juice as well as salt & chile and definitely appealed to my love of tart-sour-spicy flavors, especially when they're combined with fresh fruit and veggies.

When I went a second time, I tried the Cucumber Agua Fresca, a combination of cucumber, water and sugar blended all together. Now that was quite refreshing and something I'd definitely get again, especially on a hot summer day. Since I hadn't eaten yet, I decided to try one of their Tortas.

I settled for the Carne Asada Torta that was filled with refried beans, lettuce, tomato, cheese, avocado and jalapeno. I've never had a torta before, so I wasn't quite expecting the large roll this sandwich came in, but surprisingly, I ate the whole thing up. Suffice to say, I was pretty hungry.

I wouldn't say that this was the best sandwich I've ever had, but it was filling and other than the carne asada meat itself being a bit chewy, all the ingredients came together to satisfy my palate, especially the jalapenos which added a nice kick. :)

I think that Bananas is a great alternative to all the Jamba Juices out there. You get drink combinations that uses ingredients that aren't as mainstream and flavors that offer something a little more unique. I certainly will be returning and am looking forward to trying more items from their drink menu.

Bananas
1345 Huntington Drive

Duarte, CA 91010

(626) 359-6309

(Closed)

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157601199326952/

All'Angelo - CLOSED

While I like Italian cuisine, I don’t generally go out of my way to choose it for a restaurant outing, but when I do, the food has to be really outstanding for me to want to return. There’s been a couple that I liked and would go back if I was in the mood, but so far, there’s only been one that has made me a repeat customer for over 3 years. With my recent dinner at All’Angelo, my short list of favorite Italian restaurants definitely increased by one and rightly so.

Our evening started with our group ordering a record 8 appetizers. Suffice to say that everything was described so deliciously on the menu that the orders couldn't stop coming out of our mouths once our waiter showed up, pen in hand. Of all the appetizers that graced our table, I sampled three of them and Mama Mia, they were absolutely wonderful.

First, there was the Octopus Carpaccio with Tomatoes in Pizzaiola. The presentation alone was very eye-catching with a beautiful geometric pattern of thinly sliced octopus lying delicately across the plate. After taking a bite, I was happily surprised at how tender and moist the meat was. My previous experience with octopus was eating it as part of a Korean casserole and at that time, I found it to be a tasty, but very chewy experience.

Second, I delighted over the creaminess of the Timbale of Cauliflower with Mascarpone Sauce and I really enjoyed the Grilled Radicchio, which was both slightly bitter, but also had a hint of sweetness from the caramelization that occurred from the grilling.

A highlight of the evening was the salumi plate filled with delicious meats freshly cut from their vintage slicing machine displayed proudly next to the bar. By the way, we had to order this off the menu and at $25, it was worth it.

For my entrée, I had the Crusted Venison Loin, Wild Mushroom Ragout & Gnocchetti and it was wonderful. The venison was cooked perfectly. It was tender, moist and didn't have a strong gamey taste to it and was complemented by the lovely "woodsy" flavor of the wild mushroom sauce.

I also had a bite of the Calmaro Stuffed with Shrimp & Eggplant in Tomato Stew. Once you get over the shock of being presented with "stuffed torpedoes", it was quite tasty and thankfully, the squid was prepared just right without any chewiness to the meat in evidence.

There's always room for dessert and my meal ended with the Caramelized Meyer Lemon & Polenta Pudding with Lemon Sabayon. I've done my share of dessert eating over the years, but this sweet offering is decidedly one of my favorites so far. Its nutty, tart-sweet flavors combined with a textured-creamy consistency really made my taste buds sing and while I never like to order the same thing twice when I re-visit a restaurant, I may have to make an exception in this case.

Overall, the food was absolutely wonderful as was our service, which was both prompt and friendly. Like I said earlier, All'Angelo certainly won me over and is one Italian restaurant that I will be visiting on a more regular basis, or at least, as much as my pocket book will allow.

All'Angelo
7166 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90046
(323) 933-9540