Category: Foodie Friday

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Gratitude Beverly Hills: Clean vegan eats with creative cocktails

What is the difference between a Cafe Gratitude restaurant and the new Beverly Hills spot called just plain Gratitude? Both offer delicious, organic, vegan food with a dose of self-empowering messages — but only the latter boasts a full bar.

So though I rarely drink, when I stopped by the newish Beverly Hills spot for happy hour with Esther of e*star LA fame, I had to try the cocktails.

And in regular Gratitude-style, these cocktails are the most healthy-sounding cocktails ever. Case in point: the Black Magic gets its black from activated charcoal! The cocktail might not be all that detoxifying though, since it also contains a good amount of rhum agricole, along with fernet, chaga sarsaparilla, and lime, and comes topped with a cluster of mushrooms — yes, real mushrooms — growing out of a big ice cube.

That cocktail wins the prize for creativity. For fruitier fare, there’s Escape — a refreshing summer drink made with fresh pineapple, coconut water, and Diplomatica Reserva Rum — and One In A Melon — a tequila drink mixed with watermelon puree, lime, Himalayan salt. Basically, the cocktail ingredients sound like raw juicery concoctions — just with alcohol added in.

My favorite drink though was the Outer Sounds Sauvignon Blanc: a dry New Zealand wine with notes of lime and gooseberry. And my favorite happy hour eat was Light-Hearted — a.k.a. the Chef’s Seasonal Pizzetta — a gluten-free, dairy-free pizza that’s actually delicious! The einkorn and kamut flatbread was soft and pliable, the vegan cheese creamy, and the dusting of toasted coconut flakes a sweet touch.

For a lighter meal, get the Honoring (Mediterranean Tapas) or Fearless (Korean Collard Spring Rolls). The former lets you spread zucchini cilantro hummus, spiced tomato chutney, hempseed tabbouleh, kalamata olives, and gremolata on raw flax crackers; the latter gives you your greens wrapped over oyster mushroom bulgogi, avocado, cabbage, spicy pickled vegetables, and kim chee, with sesame wasabi dipping sauce on the side. It didn’t taste very Korean to me, but it still made for a delicious hand-held salad.

I’ll be back to try the loaded heirloom potato fries next time — available in nacho, Hawaiian, and Bollywood styles. Happy Hour at Gratitude happens weekdays from 3 pm to 6 pm.

Gratitude. 419 N Canon Dr, Beverly Hills.

Earlier: 5 healthy Korean dishes to try in Los Angeles — with matching reads

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American Tea Room: Best matcha spot for writers

There’s nothing quite like lounging by a lush green living wall to make the hot muggy weather seem alright. The summer swelter feels just a part of a tropical paradise, where you’re on vacation to soak it all in.

That’s the feeling I get from American Tea Room, whose downtown arts district patio boasts a 25-foot living wallscape. It’s a great place to sip iced tea and spend a few hours working on a novel — equipped with free wifi and fire pits wired for USB charging.

I liked it outside, but the heat-averse can opt for the spacious, air-conditioned tea lounge — right next to the 30-foot bar crafted from reclaimed wood. The popular summer drink here seems to be the cold Green Tea Tereré, a pretty layered drink with OJ and lime at the bottom, sweet matcha green tea on top, served with a slice of blood orange.

Being a creature of habit though, I opted for a matcha soy latte: rich, slightly sweetened, and energizing — but, alas, with no latte art. There’s ceremonial matcha too for purists, Himalayan butter tea for the adventurous, and regular espresso drinks for the diehard coffee drinkers. If you get hungry, pastries, chocolates, and a small selection energy bars will tide you over.

This is a spot I’d go to all the time, if only it were closer to me! I’ll have to drop by the less distant Beverly Hills shop, though it looks a bit smaller; American Tea Room also has a third spot in Newport Beach.

Since I’m mostly a coffee and juice person, this tea shop was really a new discovery for me. Are there other tea places great for getting writing done? Let me know in the comments —

American Tea Room. Downtown Arts District: 909 S Santa Fe Ave. Beverly Hills: 401 N. Canon Dr. Newport Beach: 549 Newport Center Dr.

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Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: Central LA

Picky writers can’t just go to any coffee shop. We need good working spaces with comfy chairs and tables. We need decent wifi and electric outlets for our laptops. We (or at least I) need good reading light. And we like to be able to hang for a few hours without feeling like we’re overstaying our welcome.

Which is to say — I’m really putting together this best coffee shops list for me.

I often find myself stuck in a part of town I don’t know very well — usually before or after some event — because I don’t want to drive home until after rush hour ends. Now (or more accurately, soon, when I finish this 5-part guide covering most L.A. neighborhoods), whatever area of Los Angeles I happen to be in, I know where I can stop to read or get some writing done while I wait for traffic to clear.

Earlier:
* Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: Westside
* Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: The Valley
* Best coffee shops for writers in Los Angeles: Northeast LA
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West Hollywood: The Assembly. 634 N. Robertson Blvd.

This is a coffee shop for the minimalist writer. The clean aesthetic calms and clears the mind! Add in the little vases of succulents and the cute outside courtyard area, and The Assembly wins the award for the most photogenic cafe in the L.A. area.

A small decaf soy latte will cost you $6.50, served in a pretty ceramic cup. There are also juices and snacks for sale; the wifi and ambiance are free —

Hollywood: Insomnia. 7286 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles.

I have a real soft spot for this coffee shop because I spent so much time here in my teens and twenties, when I lived near the area. Insomnia’s pretty old school: well-worn but comfy sunken couches, cash only policy, a late midnight close time, stale day old pastries cocooned in saran wrap sold for a buck. It may also be the last coffee shop in L.A. with no website —

This place has some serious regulars, who one and all seem to be eavesdropping on conversations to add to their screenplays — even more so than most L.A. coffee shops! It has somewhat terrible reviews on Yelp due to the Korean owner who can come across as curt and impatient — but she’s always been nice to me….

Third Street: Verve Coffee Roasters

Like its downtown location, this Verve spot is a joint venture with Juice Served Here, my favorite juice shop to write in. It’s a bright, spacious place with both super-healthy raw superfood snacks and sugar-and-gluten-packed pastries.

I recommend the $8 juice flight for both variety and hydration while you write —

Larchmont: Larchmont Bungalow. 107 N Larchmont Blvd, Los Angeles.

This popular coffee shop-restaurant is great for getting some writing done before a reading at Chevalier’s down the street. I think they’re best known for Red & Blue velvet pancakes but I got the gluten free quinoa ones — tasty but very heavy!

This is a big place with lots of indoor and outdoor seating where you can stay for hours, eating more and more things.

Koreatown: Document Coffee Bar. 3850 Wilshire Blvd. #107, Los Angeles.

Get a hojicha soy latte here! Hojicha is a roasted Japanese green tea with a lovely nutty taste — and this cute little cafe in Koreatown is the place that introduced me to it.

This is a smallish but cheerful place with a well-populated communal table in the middle where millenials sit staring into their laptops with headphones on while completely ignoring the people on either side of them. It can be a good setting for serious writing!

Downtown LA: Cognoscenti Coffee. 1118 San Julian St., Los Angeles.

I discovered this place because I needed to caffeinate right before a Soulcycle ride next door. This spacious cafe felt like a quiet, ideal spot for writing.

The cafe also doubles as a little shop of locally made goods, with soaps, candles and other little desirables. And yes, the soy latte got me through my workout!

Los Feliz: Bru. 1866 N. Vermont. Ave., Los Angeles.

Bru has the benefit of being right down the street from Skylight Books — so you can get a little writing done here before rewarding yourself by buying some books. The place has a simple aesthetic, friendly baristas, and good wifi.

Earlier:
* Juice Served Here: Best juice shop for writers in Los Angeles
* 11 best bookstores in Los Angeles for writers

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3 Summer smoothie bowls for every diet — to match your current read

Summer is my favorite season because it’s the time for all things cool: sundresses, Shakespeare in the park, and smoothie bowls for breakfast.

If you follow me on Instagram, you know I like to match my smoothie to my current read. Want to do the same while procrastinating on that novel you’re working on? Here are three recipes to get you started!

Yes, three recipes — not one — because if you’re like most Angelenos, you’re likely avoiding one macronutrient or another for some strange personal reason. I won’t judge. Pick from high-carb, high-fat, or high-protein — all options raw, vegan,and gluten-free, of course.

The directions for all three bowls are simple: blend the base ingredients in a high speed blender, then top with the toppings. About the matching part: Basically, all three bowls have a neutral-colored base — which you can then give color by adding fruits or greens or cacao, then more color by adding toppings of your choice ranging from more fruit to granola to shredded coconut.

For all the carbs: Strawberry nice cream bowl

Think no one eats carbs anymore? Think again! High carb low fat — or whole starch low fat — is a thing these days, as evidenced by the popular #hclf and #wslf hashtags on Instagram, mostly deployed by millennial vegan fans of McDougall Diet.

Base
1.5 frozen bananas
5 frozen strawberries (or fruit of desired color)
1/3 c water or more for desired consistency

Toppings
Fresh strawberries and bananas
Shredded coconut

For good fats: Blueberry chia blast bowl

This bowl is very low on sugar and carbs, and is made with a trifecta of good fats — avocado, chia, and coconut. Super creamy and filling!

Base
1/4 avocado
1/4 c chia
1/3 c almond milk or more for desired consistency (or other milk of choice)
1/2 c blueberries (or fruit of desired color)
vanilla, cinnamon, and stevia or other sweetener to taste

Toppings
Fresh bananas and figs
shredded coconut

For protein: Creamy chocolate banana bowl

This stuff seriously tastes like chocolate ice cream to me. Experiment with different protein powders until you find one you love; I like vanilla rice protein powder because it’s easy on the digestion and fairly neutral in terms of taste. if you use a chocolate flavored protein powder, you can skip the cacao. I adapted this bowl from a recipe by Paleo in Heels, who’s got lots more smoothie recipes on her blog!

Base
1 frozen banana
1 c frozen cauliflower
1/4 avocado
1 Tb cacao
1 serving vanilla protein powder
1/3 c almond milk or more for desired consistency (or other milk of choice)
vanilla, cinnamon, and stevia or other sweetener to taste

Toppings
strawberries
shredded coconut
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Now you’re cool for the summer. Let me know if you try any of these —

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Taste New York in L.A.: 5 new restaurants

I’ve declared June New York month because I’m in New York right now on my east coast book tour!

I’ve been so excited about this trip that before flying out, I actually prepped by checking out New York restaurants that recently opened in Los Angeles. Apparently the west coast is the place to be if you’re a chef, because a whole bunch of new yummy spots have sprung up. Here’s how my pre-NYC tasting tour went:

by chloe. 2520 Glendale Blvd., Silver Lake.

I’d put by chloe on my list of places to visit in New York after reading a review in The New Yorker last month — then googled it to find out L.A. already has its own location, right next door to a 365 by Whole Foods.

The review recommended veggie burgers and fries with the house made beet ketchup, but all that sounded heavy because I’m more of a salad for lunch girl. So I got the Spicy Thai Salad — which with quinoa, edamame, almonds, and a very sweet-and-sticky apricot-sriracha glazed tempeh ended up being really filling. I’m glad I asked for no wontons and peanut dressing on the side because all that with the tempeh glaze would have been way too much!

Afterwards I was too full to be tempted by the delicious-looking vegan treats — but my friend Ian got this tiramisu cupcake and made me jealous —

As a sidenote, has anyone else noticed that The New Yorker’s suddenly started reviewing a lot of vegan restaurants lately? Did the magazine get a veg restaurant reviewer?

The Butcher’s Daughter. 1205 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice.

This very popular vegetarian eatery on Abbot Kinney often has a wait — but the food is worth it. Just visiting the restaurant’s Instagram page full of avocado toasts will make you drool. When I went, I got the macro bowl — forbidden rice, black beans, roasted veggies, and hummus on arugula with an egg and a hunk of avocado — and for dessert, the juice flight, which comes with four cold pressed juices of your choice.

The Venice location’s an open, airy space with lots of sunlight — which is to say that to me, The Butcher’s Daughter seems very Californian. Perhaps New Yorkers just like to eat the same stuff Angelenos like to eat — Namely, avocados.

Erin McKenna’s Bakery LA. 236 N. Larchmont Blvd., Larchmont.

My NY-in-LA tasting tour had a third vegetarian-friendly spot: Erin McKenna’s Bakery. This cute bakery’s not only vegan but also gluten-free, soy-free, refined-sugar-free and kosher.

Unlike the pristine prettiness of Sprinkles or Vanilla, Erin McKenna’s embraces a homier look, with cupcakes that look proudly hand-iced and not-quite-uniform. I think donuts are the most popular items here, but I had to get the double chocolate crumb cake — a generous slice of moist decadence.

Baohaus. Far East Plaza, 727 N Broadway #130., Chinatown.

Edde Huang’s Baohaus is famous for its pork belly baos — but the three veg places I visited must have had an effect on me. When I got up to the order counter at this tiny, mostly to-go spot, I saw a flyer that said “vegan managers meal @ baohaus L.A. only!” and on the spur of the moment, ordered that.

This was a mistake. The dish was basically supposed to be a fried tofu rice bowl — served with eggplant salad, peanut cucumbers, stir-fried Chinese broccoli, and garlic chili cabbage over a bed of cauli-rice. I was mostly excited about the eggplant salad — but when I got my compostable bowl, there was no eggplant to be seen. On top of that, the tofu was very greasy, and the oily-spicy flavors of the veggies really, really didn’t go well with the slightly soggy cauli-rice.

Squished inside an old, noisy mall in Chinatown, this spot, though new, is rather run-down looking and unpleasant to eat in, with harsh fluorescent lights and aluminum countertops. All in all, I’m not interested in repeating this experience, but I did learn an important lesson: If a place is best known for pork, don’t order the vegan dish.

Sweet Chick. 448 N Fairfax, Los Angeles.

This contemporary southern comfort food place is known for fried chicken and waffles — so of course that’s not what I got. Why be normal? Also, I just really don’t digest gluten well, and fried chicken often tastes to me too — fried. This time though, my meal worked out well! The Grilled Octopus — with gochujang BBQ, peanuts, and lime radish on Charleston Gold rice — was warm and comforting and delicious with savory spicy tang.

Keep in mind that in the afternoons, Sweet Chick serves ONLY chicken and waffles; the full menu is available only at mealtimes. But at any time, you can enjoy the hip hop on the speakers and the full cocktail menu —
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Maybe I’ll revisit the New York locations of these restaurants and see how they compare while I’m on the east coast! And when I come back, I’ll try some of the more formal NY-in-LA restaurants that have also opened up in the last year:

* Beauty & Essex. New American.
* Tao. Pan-Asian.
* Rao’s. Southern Neapolitan Italian.
* Serafina Sunset. Casual Italian, with a focus on thin crust pizza.

Been to these yet? Let me know your recommendations in the comments.

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5 trendy spots for healthy meals on the go in Los Angeles

Don’t have time to nori-wrap your tempeh bulgogi or to slice-n-bake sweet potato toasts for your paleo tartine? Indulge your love of health fads and fusion food alike at these healthy to-go spots this spring.
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Kye’s. Santa Monica: 1518 Montana Ave.

This sunny spot is the home of the Kyerito — which is basically a leaf or nori-wrapped breadless burrito. A special slip wrap keeps the warm stuff from touching the wrap part, so nothing gets soggy.

I loved the Tempeh Bulgogi Kyerito — a Korean-fusion deal with gochujang, kimchi, tempeh, rice, plus veggies and herbs, all wrapped in romaine. Most of the ingredients are local and organic too.

Kye’s also offers salads and soups — plus vaguely healthy sounding desserts like vegan black bean brownie and kabocha pie I hope to try one day —

Honey Hi. Echo Park: 1620 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles.

If you’re headed to an event at Stories or 826 LA in Echo Park, stop in at this organic and local, no refined sugar or gluten spot for a bite to eat. I recommend the breakfast bowl, made with sweet potato hash, pastured turmeric poached egg, Niman Ranch uncured bacon, greens, avocado, herbs, sumac, and smoked paprika.

The place also has sourdough tartines, sandwiches, juices and smoothies, and all the currently trendy health craze drinks: bone broth, reishi hot chocolate, bulletproof coffee, and more.

Erewhon: Three locations: Venice, mid-city, and Calabasas.

Once, I zoned out while driving west on Venice to a reading at Beyond Baroque, overshot it, spotted Erewhon, stopped in to eat a paleo tartine — and forgot about the reading. The sweet potato, greens, bacon and egg combo was delicious!

I got a green juice in a reusable glass bottle and a kelp salad too and ate everything in the sunny patio by this health-conscious grocery store and deli. The day was warm and the food was perfect.

The downside: Lunch cost me $30. Also, I missed the reading —

Sweetgreen. 8 locations around the city.

This popular salad-and-bowls chain’s been expanding like crazy across the country. Back in February, I had a Pesto Portobello bowl in Santa Monica — then flew to Washington DC for the AWP Conference and had another one. It’s a tasty warm dish: quinoa, arugula, roasted chicken, portobello, corn, chickpeas, and spicy broccoli tossed in pesto vinaigrette.

Sweetgreen takes local and seasonal seriously. At each location, a chalkboard lets you know where exactly the ingredients for your meal came from.

That does mean that some dishes will come and go with the seasons — so get them while you can! This OMG Omega bowl is a perennial though, and one of my favorites: arugula, baby spinach, cucumbers, tomatoes, basil, avocado, roasted steelhead and nori furikake, tossed in miso sesame ginger dressing.

Frozen Fruit Co. Santa Monica: 729 Montana Avenue, Suite 2.

Okay — Soft serve ice cream perhaps doesn’t qualify as a healthy lunch on its own. But the tasty stuff at this place makes for a healthier dessert option! Frozen Fruit’s ice creams are basically just frozen and blended fruit — no dairy, gluten, or white sugar — with a few other clean ingredients.

And the concoctions are surprisingly creamy and tasty! The chocolate flavor — made with coconut milk and cacao — is my favorite. The place offers a bunch of toppings, from carob chips to the more delicious real chocolate chips, though I didn’t try those. Just the ice cream was enough.

Earlier:
* Best place for oysters after shopping at Alias Books: Plan Check
* Melrose Station: Best speakeasy hidden behind a bookcase