Tag: beverages

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The Roast Truck Takes A New Route To Reach Coffeelovers

The Roast Truck - Foodzooka Splat Feature

If you crave a cup of joe that’s better than the break room and closer than the crowded coffeehouse, The Roast Truck may bring a stroke of luck. Stocked with single origin coffees, signature lattes, and authentic French croissants, this cafe on wheels offers a mobile solution to your finicky caffeine fix.

Before rolling out The Roast Truck, owner Justin Fishman had learned many aspects of coffee making as a sales representative for a coffee service company, supplying office break rooms with quality blends. So he can relate to office workers who go out of their way for a good cup of coffee.

“Just to get out of the office and get a nice treat—or even on the way in or after lunch—it really impacts their morning or their afternoon. So, that’s a big part of this truck,” said Justin.

The Roast Truck - Coffee and pastries (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Coffee and pastries (Foodzooka)

All the coffee drinks on The Roast Truck are brewed with beans from Los Angeles roaster Caffe Luxxe, known for their handcrafted coffees and handpicked fair trade sources. “They really stood out because it’s the best espresso I’ve ever had in my life. And they’re an all around good company to work with and learn from,” he said.

The drip coffees on The Roast Truck use Caffe Luxxe’s single origin beans, which each come from a specific grower without getting mixed together with beans from other places. This gives each coffee a pure taste, with a flavor profile that’s unique to its particular farm source. Justin brews batches based on what’s in season and changes the lineup every three months, referring to these selections as their “rotating tap.” The summer featured Guatemalan and Ethiopian coffees, and current brews are made with beans from Costa Rica and Sulawesi.

The Roast Truck - Caffe Luxxe drip coffee (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Caffe Luxxe drip coffee (Foodzooka)

Espresso blends from Caffe Luxxe also make their way into several drinks on The Roast Truck menu. The cappuccino, confidently named “That Cappuccino,” is an 8-ounce drink of doubleshot espresso and frothed milk. Rather than burying the espresso under a thick cap of stiff foam, The Roast Truck baristas craft a “wet” version of cappuccino, which mixes some of the foam into the espresso with plenty left to create an artsy flourish on top.

It may seem impractical to swirl a heart, swan, or rosetta atop each frothy cup given the truck’s brisk pace of service, but Justin thinks it reflects the effort the barista puts into crafting the drink. “I see it as kind of like a stamp, a signature of care for that specific cup,” Justin said.

The Roast Truck - Latte art (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Latte art (Foodzooka)

Among The Roast Truck’s selection of foam-designed drinks, the most popular is Primo’s Spanish Latte. It’s made with an ounce of sweetened condensed milk, cinnamon, double espresso, and steamed milk, finished with a sprinkle of cinnamon on top. “If you’re in the mood for something a little bit different, a little bit sweeter, then the Primo is a good one. People really enjoy it a lot. When they start to get it, it’s the only drink they get afterwards,” he said.

On the spicer side, the Turmeric Latte will wake up your taste buds and widen your eyes with its yellow hue. This drink adds a light mix of turmeric, ginger, and black pepper to the steamed milk along with a double espresso shot. “Our espresso has a lot of chocolatey taste to it. So, it gives the Turmeric Latte an almost gingerbread taste,” Justin described. “People are always pretty impressed with, not only the look of it with the yellow latte art, but the taste of it as well.”

Though a handful of cafes offer beverages with turmeric for its health benefits, the characteristic bitterness of the spice makes it an acquired taste for some. Justin overcomes this by using a liquid concentrate made from fresh turmeric by local spice maker Hector Luna. This liquid turmeric blends in smoothly with the milk, unlike the powdered spice. The Roast Truck also offers a version of the turmeric latte without the espresso shots, called Liquid Gold. This caffeine-free option is more vibrantly yellow and served with contrasting red petals of saffron floating on top.

The Roast Truck - Liquid Gold Latte (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Liquid Gold Latte (Foodzooka)

The Chai Latte and The Dirty Chai with espresso benefit from a similar alchemy. Instead of a chai powder, The Roast Truck uses a liquid chai concentrate also made by Hector. This customized spice blend allowed Justin to control the balance of sweet and spicy with tongue-tingling notes of cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves.

“It’s more like an authentic Indian chai,” said Justin. “It has a little bit more of that spice to it, instead of being an over-the-top sweet chai.”

The Roast Truck - Dirty Chai (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Dirty Chai (Foodzooka)

All lattes can be served on ice as well, making The Roast Truck a welcome arrival year-round. If you prefer a classic cold brew, the truck makes their Epic Cold Brew with espresso beans steeped for 24 hours, infusing a bit more caffeine than regular coffee. Because Caffe Luxxe roasts their beans on the light to medium side, its smoky flavor is naturally bold and smooth without tasting burnt or acidic.

Another lively cold coffee option is The Bubbly Roast. A doubleshot of espresso is poured into iced sparkling water, creating a fun coffee-flavored fizz of carbonated bubbles rushing toward the rim.

The Roast Truck - Bubbly Roast (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Bubbly Roast (Foodzooka)

To complete your cafe experience, The Roast Truck offers a selection of delectable pastries from Pascal Patisserie & Cafe in Woodland Hills. This European-style bakery was recently recognized for having among the best croissants in Los Angeles by the online magazine, Frenchly.

“Their almond croissant is the best croissant I’ve ever had. And I’m not saying that just because I sell it. It’s truly amazing,” Justin raved. On his way to the truck’s spots in West LA, he picks up an assortment of plain, almond, and chocolate croissants, along with some Nutella and cinnamon rolls, all of which tend to sell out quickly.

The Roast Truck - Pascal Patisserie pastries (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Pascal Patisserie pastries (Foodzooka)

You can find The Roast Truck in the mornings, usually parked at UCLA near Westwood Blvd and Le Conte Ave on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. On Tuesdays and Fridays, they’re near Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (Robertson Blvd and Alden Dr).

“There’s something special about street vending, bringing that quality product to the public,” Justin said. “That’s a lot of fun.”

The Roast Truck - Owner Justin Fishman (Foodzooka)
The Roast Truck – Owner Justin Fishman (Foodzooka)

To track down The Roast Truck on evenings and weekends, click their Foodzooka profile below and follow them on social media. You can also submit a request to book the truck on their website.

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Tortoni Caffe Tangos With Argentina’s Coffee Culture

Tortoni Caffé - Foodzooka Splat Feature

Though it bears a conspicuously Italian name, Tortoni Caffe is a new coffeehouse that brings a subtle Argentinian ambiance to Sherman Oaks, from the yerba mate and empanadas on the menu to the painting of tango dancers on the wall.

Such cross-cultural cues may seem obvious if you’re familiar with the famously historic Café Tortoni in Buenos Aires, which inspired the naming of this Ventura Blvd arrival. Having come from Argentina, Tortoni Caffe co-owner Daniel Avaca saw the name as a sign of good luck for both its longevity and multicultural legacy. The Café Tortoni in Argentina was founded in 1858 by a French immigrant, who had named it after an earlier one established in Paris by an Italian immigrant.

“So, we as Argentinians moved to the US, and we opened a cafe called Tortoni. We are continuing the chain,” said Daniel.

Tortoni Caffé - Sherman Oaks (Foodzooka)
Tortoni Caffé – Sherman Oaks (Foodzooka)

With its red brick facade, high ceiling, cozy seating, and tempting snacks, Tortoni sets an easygoing, sociable atmosphere that differs from the impersonal coffee chain scene of rushed pickups and reclusive laptop warriors. The cafe aims to create a welcoming gathering place that connects with the local community.

“We want to establish relationships with people. We become part of the daily lives of our customers,” Daniel said. “They appreciate the experience of sitting with an espresso or a cappuccino served in a porcelain cup, not a paper cup.”

Tortoni Caffé - Espresso (Foodzooka)
Tortoni Caffé – Espresso (Foodzooka)

This point is emphasized by the Tortoni-branded porcelain cups lining the top of the espresso machine in various sizes made for espressos, cappuccinos, and other styles of coffee. For all their coffee beverages, Tortoni chose to use beans from Santa Cruz roaster Verve, because of its reputation for sourcing directly from farmers and paying them fair prices. “Plus, it’s very good coffee,” Daniel said.

When he initiated this venture in 2016, coffee was something Daniel loved to drink but didn’t know how to make. So he enrolled in the American Barista and Coffee School in Portland, Oregon, where he received a crash course in all things coffee. Among the familiar list of coffee drinks at Tortoni Caffe, the piccolo is also known as “cortado,” a commonly ordered style in Argentina which adds steamed milk to an espresso shot to make a 4-ounce beverage.

Tortoni’s tea selection comes from Palais des Thes, along with an imported traditional Argentinian yerba mate. Grown in northern Argentina, this indigenous nutrient-rich concoction contains caffeine and often provides an energy boost, but without the jitters. It tastes similar to green tea, but slightly more grassy. Tortoni serves it hot or cold, making their cold-brewed version with orange peel for a refreshing hint of citrus flavor.

Tortoni Caffé - Yerba Mate (Foodzooka)
Tortoni Caffé – Yerba Mate (Foodzooka)

From the food menu, the lunch items, pastries, and snacks at Tortoni are made locally and curated by Daniel’s business partner, Natalia Primo. Many items including baguettes, sandwiches, and brownies, come from Bread Lounge, a bakery in downtown LA’s Arts District, known for making everything by hand and using natural yeast. Since Bread Lounge has a loyal customer base in the San Fernando Valley, Tortoni also offers a closer location for residents to pick up popular items like challah loaves.

To incorporate some traditional Argentinian eats, Tortoni serves savory empanadas with options including chicken, beef, spinach, and ham and cheese. The empanadas, along with several choices of quiche, come from Carniceria Latina in Glendale. “We sell more empanadas than sandwiches,” said Daniel.

Tortoni Caffé - Empanadas with chimichurri (Foodzooka)
Tortoni Caffé – Empanadas with chimichurri (Foodzooka)

Included with the empanadas are little cups of chimichurri sauce, made in-house with parsley, garlic, and olive oil. It’s prepared in small batches every two to three days so that it not only looks fresh, but tastes fresh. Tortoni also sells their specialty sauce separately in larger amounts.

On the sweeter side, Tortoni offers an Argentinian treat called alfajores, made by Sweetshop, a baker in Upland. These blonde baked confections look like delicate cookie sandwiches. A thick layer of dulce de leche is spread between two cornstarch-based butter cookies and finished with a dusting of coconut flakes around the edge. It’s a crumbly combination with a light sweetness that melts in your mouth and pairs well with coffee. When Daniel offers samples to inquiring customers, the reactions are enthusiastic. “Once they try it, then boom!” he described.

Tortoni Caffé - Alfajor (Foodzooka)
Tortoni Caffé – Alfajor (Foodzooka)

Natalia is still experimenting with the menu and plans to introduce new items in the future, including more aspects of Argentinian cuisine that are not well represented in Los Angeles. With Daniel having managed several local restaurants before, including the first Argentinian restaurant in Los Angeles, Gaucho Grill, he knows that some compromises have to be made to bring authentic flavors that appeal to local tastes.

But beyond the menu, perhaps what truly conveys the Argentinian essence is the people behind Tortoni. Daniel’s wife Karina and Natalia’s husband Gonzalo Cullen are also key partners running the cafe, giving it the aura of a family business. They aspire to make this former office space a cozy coffee hangout where the baristas aren’t just order-takers, but people who remember your name and your order.

“I think the main component of Argentinian coffee bar culture is the Argentinian culture itself, how we interact with people, how you suddenly become friends with someone you just met,” Daniel explained. “Without that human component, it wouldn’t be an Argentinian experience.”

Tortoni Caffé - Interior (Foodzooka)
Tortoni Caffé – Interior (Foodzooka)

For cafe hours and updates, click the Foodzooka profile below to find the Tortoni Caffe website and follow them on social media.

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Almond GoodMylk. It Does A Latte Good

GoodMylk Co. - Foodzooka Splat Feature

There’s almond milk, and then there’s almond GoodMylk. Crafted by the Los Angeles-based juicer formerly known as Made With Love Wellness, GoodMylk is an artisanal brand of cold-pressed, organic almond milk that has caught on with local coffee shops in search of a better dairy alternative.

While baristas have long fulfilled requests for non-dairy creamers, lattes, and cappuccinos with soy and almond milk, the latest crop of so-called “third wave” coffee shops have grown more discerning about what goes into their brews. With their reputation for investigating the source and quality of every coffee bean and tea leaf, they’re applying similar scrutiny to find premium dairy and plant-based milks.

“There are many people who want almond milk. They just don’t know that they want a better almond milk,” said Brooke Rewa, owner of GoodMylk Co.

GoodMylk Co. - Served at Alanas Coffee (Foodzooka)
GoodMylk Co. – Served at Alanas Coffee (Foodzooka)

Brooke versed herself in the benefits of raw, cold-pressed juices and almond milk for her own health when she became vegan. Almond milk is often a staple of vegan diets as both a beverage and an ingredient in recipes. Though widely available at grocery stores in refrigerated cartons or in shelf-stable boxes, most brands must use a number of stabilizers, preservatives, sugars, and other additives to extend the shelf life and tweak the flavoring.

“I started looking at the ingredients because I was trying to cut out processed food, and I realized there were all kinds of junk in almond milk. So I started to make it myself at home. And once you taste that, there’s no going back to the store bought stuff,” she said.

Brooke had already been selling organic cold-pressed juices as a vendor at the Mar Vista Farmers Market four years ago, when inquiries about almond milk persuaded her to add it to her lineup. Growing demand allowed her to open a permanent storefront location nearby on Washington Blvd. As she was able to increase production, she soon needed a commercial facility to create larger batches of the almond milk.

GoodMylk Co. - Almond milk flavors (Foodzooka)
GoodMylk Co. – Almond milk flavors (Foodzooka)

While Brooke’s method of making almond milk continues to be the same as it was when she made it at home, it’s now on a bigger scale. The raw almonds are soaked overnight, blended with a natural flavor (honey, vanilla, etc.), and then pressed and strained through a filter. The key is to avoid heating the milk or nuts throughout the process. “You’re trying to keep as many of those micronutrients and enzymes as possible. But if you pasteurize it, you’re killing those micronutrients and enzymes,” she said.

She went on to explain that the sprouting mechanism that occurs when these raw almonds are soaked makes GoodMylk more digestible for those who may be less tolerant of other almond milks, as the enzyme inhibitors in the nuts that typically interfere with digestion are released during the soaking process.

Because California almonds are required by law to be heat-pasteurized or treated with a fumigant, the organic almonds used for GoodMylk are sourced from Spain and Italy, where they’re sold raw and unpasteurized. “They’re picked off of a tree and put in a box for us,” said Brooke.

This attention to maintaining a pure and unprocessed product would not go unnoticed. When Blue Bottle Coffee came to Los Angeles, it was the first coffee company to ask about getting GoodMylk wholesale for their shops. The Oakland-based roaster ordered 20 gallons a week, which prompted Brooke to formulate an exclusive coffee shop version of GoodMylk to serve the needs of espresso drink makers: the Barista Blend. Now GoodMylk is used in lattes across more than 50 coffee shops throughout Los Angeles and Orange County.

“It was made to pair really well with coffee, so there’s no overpowering taste. It’s lightly sweetened, so it kind of reminds you of dairy,” she said. “And it foams really beautifully.”

GoodMylk Co. - Served at Kiffe Kafe (courtesy)
GoodMylk Co. – Served at Kiffe Kafe (courtesy)

Because GoodMylk is made with more almonds than other plant-based milks, its higher fat and protein content gives it the ability to foam. This past June, Brooke hosted a Mylk Latte Art Throwdown event to promote GoodMylk’s plant-based pairability with espresso and matcha. Held at Alana’s Coffee Roasters in Mar Vista, 62 baristas came to compete for prizes. About 300 spectators were treated to a festival atmosphere with lawn games, locally made vegan food, a beer garden hosted by LA Aleworks, and vodka cocktails mixed with juices from GoodMylk Co.

“We wanted to show these baristas that you can do really cool things with our almond milk,” Brooke said. The Mylk Throwdown also marked the launch of a new product: flash frozen pouches of concentrated Barista Blend, branded for wholesale. This repackaged option allows coffee shops to order and store larger quantities for longer periods. Because freshly made raw almond milk must remain at 41 degrees and only has a shelf life of five days, coffeehouses had been reluctant to place large orders and would often run out of almond milk. The new packets make GoodMylk more accessible to more shops, and the flash freezing doesn’t affect the taste or compromise the quality.

“Flash freezing happens super quick; there’s no degradation of the nutrients and the product,” said Brooke. In the freezer, the pouches have a shelf life of six months.

GoodMylk Co. (courtesy) - Wholesale Barista Blend concentrate
GoodMylk Co. (courtesy) – Wholesale Barista Blend concentrate

So far, some of the other coffee shops and cafes in the Los Angeles area using Goodmylk include Refined Grind, 10 Speed Coffee, Espresso Cielo, Civil Coffee, The Conservatory, Chaumont Bakery, Kiff Kafe, Gracias Madre, Gjelina, Uplifters Kitchen, Bardonna, Green Table Cafe, and La Colombe Coffee.

The portability of the pouches means they can go far beyond Southern California. Brooke plans to expand GoodMylk into San Francisco in August and break into Portland and Seattle in the fall, eventually working its way over to the East Coast by next year. The product even has potential to be sold directly to consumers.

“Hopefully, it will go to retail, and you can go to your freezer and have homemade almond milk at home,” she said.

Although the Barista Blend is currently only sold wholesale, you can buy fresh bottles of GoodMylk at the shop in Culver City or at the farmers markets in Mar Vista, Studio City, and Pacific Palisades, all held on Sundays. There you’ll find up to 10 different flavors of almond GoodMylk to choose from, including vanilla, chocolate, coffee, strawberry, matcha, and lavender. Pint-sized bottles are handy as a quick beverage, or you can take home quart-sized bottles for your smoothies, granola, desserts, and other non-dairy recipes.

If you’ve built up an appetite or need a post-workout pickup, try a Mylkshake. These drinks have a base of almond milk plus several more satisfying and filling ingredients such as pistachios, cashews, dates, goji berries, and coconut meat. You’ll also get the benefits of additional nutrients such as chlorophyll and astragalus, and turmeric. “There are a lot of healthy fats and proteins in there. They’re pretty hardy,” Brooke said.

GoodMylk Co. - Mylkshakes (Foodzooka)
GoodMylk Co. – Mylkshakes (Foodzooka)

GoodMylk Co. also continues to create juices to address specific health aspects, such as anti-inflammation, promoting healthy skin, balancing hormones, and boosting energy. Some of the choices include Glow (pineapple, cucumber, spinach, kale, apple, and probiotic), Inflammation Flush (pineapple, orange, red pepper, cilantro, cucumber, celery, lemon, habanero, and probiotic), and Heart Happy (beet root, beet greens, apple, chaga, chia seeds, lemon, ginger, and probiotic).

Aside from the beverages, the boutique features a number of nutritional supplements and health and beauty products, some made exclusively by GoodMylk Co. and some from other local vendors. A few edible goodies made by local artisans are also available, such as bite-sized date morsels from Magic Dates and salted caramels from Freedom Farm.

GoodMylk Co. - Local artisanal snacks at the retail shop (Foodzooka)
GoodMylk Co. – Local artisanal snacks at the retail shop (Foodzooka)

Toward the back of the shop, you can even get a cyrotherapy treatment in a chamber that blasts your body with liquid nitrogen nearing -250° Fahrenheit. This brief jolt of ultra-low temperature is thought to stimulate blood flow to help heal problematic areas.

All of the products sold at GoodMylk Co. have a similar theme of improving your health. “You boost your immunity and your overall health, your longevity, your vitality,” Brooke said. “There are so many great side effects to go along with getting into this type of lifestyle.”

For shop hours and info, click the Foodzooka profile below to find the GoodMylk Co. website and follow them on social media.

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Harajuku Taproom Brings The Beer And Bar Foods Of Japan

Harajuku Taproom - Foodzooka Splat Feature

The original Harajuku Taproom in Japan is known for pairing creatively modern craft brews with traditional Japanese small plates. Now, the newly opened Harajuku Taproom in Culver City is replicating the formula, combining the intricacies of Japanese craft beer and pub foods.

Los Angeles already has a number of these Japanese pubs called izakayas, where sake is a central drink, but this is the first one in the area to double as a beer taproom. In other words, it’s the first United States showcase floor for Baird Brewery, a leading craft beer company that was founded in Japan.

“This is the only place outside of Japan where you can have access to the full breadth and depth of their product line on tap,” said owner Adam Guttentag. Harajuku Taproom offers 19 selections from Baird Brewery on tap, several of which are seasonal and will rotate throughout the year.

Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) - Beers on tap
Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) – Beers on tap

Including a few guest beers from California, the taproom has a total of 22 taps, offering flights that let you sample four brews at a time from 4 oz glasses. The bar also offers a customary sake menu with hand-crafted selections from small Japanese breweries that you can try in a triplet of 2 oz tasters.

For Adam, the LA launch of this project was born from his long-time friendship with Bryan Baird, founder of Baird Brewery with his wife Sayuri. The couple both studied the essence of beer brewing in California before setting up shop in Japan. Since opening its first taproom in 2000, Baird Brewery has become one of the largest craft breweries in Japan, where it has five taproom restaurants similar to the one in Culver City.

Baird Brewery leverages Japan’s produce and characteristic flavors, incorporating ingredients such as locally grown figs, plums, pumpkins, and wheat, which help distinguish the brand as uniquely Japanese. Its flagship beer, Wabi-Sabi Japan Pale Ale, is brewed with green tea and wasabi.

“So the idea is that when you drink the beer, you’re getting a multitude of flavors,” Adam said. “It’s very multidimensional. It changes as you drink it.”

Harajuku Taproom - Beer flight (Foodzooka)
Harajuku Taproom – Beer flight (Foodzooka)

To complement the flavors of the craft beer, look for the two specialties of the house: gyoza and skewers. The pan-fried gyoza are housemade dumplings filled with beef, pork, shrimp, mushroom, or Impossible meat, which is a plant-based product designed to mimic meat from the Impossible Food company. The taproom also has an Impossible meat stuffed shishito pepper.

Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) - Stuffed peppers
Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) – Stuffed peppers

The grilled skewers are also a must-have Japanese pub dish, commandeering a full page of Harajuku Taproom’s menu. Here you can choose from seasoned chicken, beef, pork, seafood, and vegetables, such as shishito peppers and mushrooms. Intrepid carnivores may opt to try the chicken parts, which include gizzards, hearts, skin, and the tailbone meat known as bonjiri.

Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) - Grilled chicken skewers
Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) – Grilled chicken skewers

Among the appetizers, you’ll find a few items that get a special taproom treatment. The edamame is sauteed in a reduction of the house’s own stout beer, and the karaage is a Baird beer-battered fried chicken. The full food menu also includes rice bowl dishes and rice balls filled with salmon or vegetables.

For dessert, the yaki banana sundae leads the list, served in a style that’s perhaps a nod to the restaurant’s namesake. Harajuku is a district in Tokyo well known for its risk-taking fashion trends. The Culver City chefs of Harajuku Taproom similarly gamble with the integrity of a banana as they cook it on the grill with the skin on. Precisely timed, the banana is warm but not mushy, cushioning several small scoops of vanilla ice cream with corn flakes layered in to add crunch. The sundae is topped with whip cream and pineapple chunks, then drizzled with chocolate sauce.

Harajuku Taproom - Yaki banana sundae (Foodzooka)
Harajuku Taproom – Yaki banana sundae (Foodzooka)

The restaurant’s street-facing wall of windows rolls up like a garage door, giving you the option to enjoy dining in the open air. Sports fans may elect to huddle around the bar to watch the TV screens flanking each end, or you can settle in the main dining area where the walls bear enlarged reproductions of the Japanese wood prints used to create Baird Brewery’s beer labels.

While other izayakas in LA are only open at night, Harajuku Taproom is open for lunch as well as dinner. Because the staff arrives early to prepare the food, offering lunch service was a sensible decision for Adam, and plans to start delivery are also in the works. Keep an eye out for $10 set menu specials, which includes a main item, soup, salad, and rice.

Harajuku Taproom - Mushroom gyoza (Foodzooka)
Harajuku Taproom – Mushroom gyoza (Foodzooka)

Having spent five years living and working in Japan, Adam recognizes that the izakaya experience is a different dining concept with a flexibility that he hopes will continue to gain momentum.

“It’s a type of eating where you don’t have to order everything at once,” he said. “You can order as you go.”

Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) - Culver City
Harajuku Taproom (courtesy) – Culver City

For restaurant hours and more info, click the Foodzooka profile below to find the Harajuku Taproom website and follow them on social media.

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At Rustic Kitchen, Comfort Foods Make A Comeback

Rustic Kitchen - Foodzooka Splat Feature

A family-owned gourmet restaurant within walking distance is a rare find in Los Angeles. So when Rustic Kitchen settled into Mar Vista’s residential Hilltop area in 2016, the neighborhood welcomed the cozy cafe and the perks of its included wine bar and market shop.

Rustic Kitchen serves what owners Noelle and John Fanaris call “comfort Americana” cuisine, with a multi-page menu that’s got you covered all day, from breakfast eggs to dinner drinks. While chef Noelle oversees the food, John, a lifelong wine connoisseur, is in charge of the bar.

“I’ve always felt that very few places that call themselves a wine bar actually deliver,” he said, which is why Rustic Kitchen offers 65 bottles by the glass.

On the food menu, you’ll find many childhood favorites upgraded with a homey gourmet flourish. “I cook very simply. I don’t like to overcomplicate recipes,” said Noelle. “I don’t like to put too many ingredients in things.”

Rustic Kitchen - Cafe counter and wine bar (Foodzooka)
Rustic Kitchen – Cafe counter and wine bar (Foodzooka)

The specialty of the house is the mac & cheese, the dish that started Noelle’s professional food career. Before running Rustic Kitchen, Noelle was a caterer who turned her macaroni and cheese recipe into a packaged product that made it to the frozen food shelves of 140 stores, including Whole Foods, Gelson’s, and Bristol Farms.

“We wanted to make something decent that you could get in the freezer section. Because anything you get in the freezer section looks really good on the picture, and it never tastes anything like that,” she said.

Noelle describes Rustic Kitchen’s mac & cheese as a drier variation that isn’t wallowing in a puddle of sauce. It’s baked twice to crispen the top while retaining a tender center. The taste is heightened with a hardy cheese foursome: gruyere, sharp cheddar, parmesan, and fontina.

“I think the combination of cheeses is what makes the difference,” she said. Another embellished version of the dish adds jalapeno and bacon, or you can cap your mac & cheese with a layer of lobster for an extra $8.

Rustic Kitchen - Four Cheese Mac & Cheese (Foodzooka)
Rustic Kitchen – Four Cheese Mac & Cheese (Foodzooka)

Along the same line of nostalgic comfort foods, chicken pot pie was another classic that Noelle wanted to revive. Instead of a traditionally heavy dairy sauce, the cream filling is thinned with chicken and vegetable broth. Influenced by her Italian roots, she also adds a taste of fennel.

On the lighter side of the menu are other personal touches. The Green Goddess salad is drizzled with a homemade green dressing inspired by the Seven Seas bottled version made popular in the ’70s. The butter lettuce, green apple slices, and pistachios complete the color theme with flavorful flair.

“We want people to walk away knowing it was very fresh with good quality ingredients,” said John.

Rustic Kitchen - Green Goddess Salad (Foodzooka)
Rustic Kitchen – Green Goddess Salad (Foodzooka)

Rustic Kitchen is also known for its sliders, of which the fried green tomato sliders are a standout for vegans and vegetarians. The tomatoes are dipped in soy milk and veganaise before hitting the frying pan.

Among the meatier options, slow-cooked short ribs make it onto the breakfast, lunch and dinner menus in various forms: in panini sandwiches, on sliders, or served over blue cheese polenta. The restaurant makes at least 10 pounds a day to keep up with demand.

Rustic Kitchen - Short Rib Sliders (Foodzooka)
Rustic Kitchen – Short Rib Sliders (Foodzooka)

The couple’s son, Jordan, also cooks for Rustic Kitchen, leaning toward multicultural flavors and complex recipes. “It’s a good combination because we have a really diverse menu,” Noelle said.  Also be on the lookout for seasonal specials, like the Corned Beef Rueben for Saint Patrick’s Day and the recent Shrimp Po’ Boy and Shrimp & Grits for Mardi Gras.

At the counter, a display case features a selection of pastries and desserts from nearby bakeries, including Rockenwagner Bakery, Hotcakes Bakes, and Jackie’s Family Bakery.

The back walls of the restaurant form a compact retail market lined with shelves of wine bottles, cheese and crackers, snacks, condiments, and even pints of ice cream. Locally made items in the shop include coffee from local roaster Groundwork, Country Archer Jerky, Laguna Salt, Heidi’s Salsa, and Cake Bams, which are desserty rice cakes covered with frosting.

“I really love supporting local businesses, so we have lots of products and drinks that are local,” John said.

Rustic Kitchen - Market retail goods (Foodzooka)
Rustic Kitchen – Market retail goods (Foodzooka)

The Fanarises have in turn felt support from the local community, particularly after one Sunday morning last May, when black smoke came through the vents, forcing a brunch crowd to evacuate the restaurant. Rustic Kitchen is one of six tenants at the end of a strip of businesses that share a common attic where the fire began. Nearly 120 firefighters arrived to extinguish the flames.

“We were standing on the street, hoping and praying that the place wouldn’t burn down to the ground,” John remembered.

Rustic Kitchen was spared from the flames, but not from the smoke and the deluge of water needed to put out the fire. In such cases, it can take more than a year to recover, if ever. With the help of insurance coverage, John and Noelle rebuilt the restaurant to look exactly the same and resumed business four months later in September.

After a few months of getting the word out that they reopened, Rustic Kitchen’s dining area, outdoor patio and bar are bustling again with regulars and new customers, who also come for the monthly wine tasting events.

“Now I feel like we’ve finally turned a corner,” John said.

Rustic Kitchen - Mar Vista (Foodzooka)
Rustic Kitchen – Mar Vista (Foodzooka)

For restaurant hours and more information, click the Foodzooka profile below to find the Rustic Kitchen website and follow them on social media.

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Muddy Paw Coffee Nudges For Attention To Animal Causes

Muddy Paw Coffee - Foodzooka Splat Feature

If the thought of drinking coffee without cream and sugar leaves a burnt taste in your mouth, Muddy Paw Coffee may change your thinking. At their shop in Silver Lake, Darren and Natalia La Borie bring a coffee roasting artistry that makes their dark roast a top seller.

“Some people have never really had a good dark roast coffee black because they’ve gotten so used to adding stuff to it before they even taste it,” Darren said. “We joke that we’re bringing people back to the dark side.”

The other side of Muddy Paw Coffee is implied in its name. The shop not only welcomes coffee lovers and their pets, but also actively gives back to support local animal causes.

While the dog-friendly patio and frequent on-site pet adoption and fundraising events draw many customers who come for the animals, just as many are lured in by the quality brews.

“The majority of customers who return are coming back for the coffee,” Darren said.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Dark roast pourover (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Dark roast pourover (Foodzooka)

Darren’s coffee journey began 25 years ago in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where he and his brother Derek La Borie acquired a roaster and facility that became Port City Coffee Roasters. Derek continues to run their East Coast roastery and shop, which offers small-batch sustainable coffee in the New England area and online. Derek also supplies freshly roasted beans for Muddy Paw Coffee, which Darren and wife Natalia oversee along with all West Coast operations.

While cultivating their family business, the La Borie brothers picked up the nuances of the coffee craft from Italians who held generations of roasting experience.

“We learned how to roast by sight, sound, and smell,” Darren said.

With this intuitive hands-on approach, they’re able to achieve a dark roast that brings out the rich, smoky flavors of the beans without the strong bitterness and notes of ashtray associated with many commercial roasts.

For Muddy Paw, the Growler blend of beans is most popular—an Italian dark roast with a deep unified color and a sheen of oil. When smashed with a thumb, the bean cracks easily with no husk fragments, releasing a chocolaty fragrance.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Growler coffee (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Growler coffee (Foodzooka)

The specialty of the house is the cold brew espresso. For many caffeine outlets, cold brew coffee is often made overnight with a solid 12-hour soaking. However, Muddy Paw Coffee takes its time with the process, brewing their espresso over a three-day incubation period at room temperature, hidden away from light.

This espresso is used in the shop’s signature iced drink, Wag The Tail, blended with coconut water and a splash of milk. The combination energizes and hydrates the body, making it the preferred beverage for some customers before a workout.

“It’s also a great hangover cure,” Darren suggested.

In the shop and online, Muddy Paw sells several blends of regular coffee, espresso, and decaf, plus a few organic and fair trade single origin beans. They also offer teas selected by a local supplier, Convergence Health Teas. To flavor the drinks, Darren orders spices from Spice Station and bitters from Bar Keeper, both Silver Lake establishments.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Retail coffee bags (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Retail coffee bags (Foodzooka)

To pair with your java experience at the shop, Muddy Paw Coffee also partners with Los Angeles area businesses for their selection of treats.

The sticky buns are a top seller, which come from Breakaway Bakery on Mid Wilshire, along with other vegan, organic, and gluten free options. At the front entry, the display case greets you with a dozen tempting varieties of Nonna’s Empanadas. Several cookies, pop tarts, and other baked goodies are sourced from She Baked Me in Los Angeles. Croissants are made by Cafe Los Feliz.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Nonnas empanadas (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Nonnas empanadas (Foodzooka)

And, of course, you’ll find treats for dogs! Dog cookies are provided by downtown LA pet retailer Pussy and Pooch.

Between the dog and cat-themed beverages, the pet portraits on the walls, and the patio full of patrons with their furry companions, Muddy Paw effectively blends the love of coffee with a love for animals. Occasionally, this atmosphere can give first-time customers a mixed up impression.

“Some people come in thinking we sell coffee for dogs,” Darren admits with a chuckle.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Dog friendly patio (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Dog friendly patio (Foodzooka)

Since opening its doors in 2013, Muddy Paw Coffee has worked with animal rescues and nonprofit organizations to raise funds and awareness within local communities and neighborhoods. The brand’s motto is “Have a Cup, Save a Pup,” and portion of everything sold — from coffee to empanadas, and from tea to t-shirts — goes to local nonprofits supporting worthy animal causes.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Beverage menu and snacks (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Beverage menu and snacks (Foodzooka)

Muddy Paw has also created a means for nonprofits to raise additional funds through coffee bean sales. With the La Borie family’s coffee roasting resources, they can white label wholesale bags of beans for organizations to sell themselves, with $2 for every bag going directly to the nonprofit. To make this process even easier, Darren is working to build a customizable online sales platform that provides a stronger web presence for nonprofits.

The Muddy Paw mission extends well beyond the Silver Lake storefront. At this year’s annual CoffeeCon in downtown LA, the La Bories invited neighborhood cat rescue group Luxe Paws to join them at their Muddy Paw Coffee booth, along with two adoptable kittens. While the coffee crowd sampled Muddy Paw’s cold brew espresso drinks, the irresistibly playful kitties put a spotlight on Luxe Paws’ volunteer efforts to save, spay and neuter homeless animals.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Owner Darren La Borie at CoffeeCon LA with Luxe Paws (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Owner Darren La Borie at CoffeeCon LA with Luxe Paws (Foodzooka)

Though Muddy Paw supports many different animal causes and organizations, Darren sees a particular need to address the overwhelming number of stray animals in LA resulting from high sterilization costs, unregulated breeders, cultural barriers, and lack of awareness.

While he admits that seeing cats and dogs get rescued from shelters attracts more attention, he believes that educating people on why and how to get pets spayed and neutered can have a greater impact by reducing the potential for more strays in the first place. He points out examples including Spay4LA, a mobile spay-neuter clinic, and FixNation, a low-cost and free spay-neuter program that sterilizes as many as 100 cats per day. “We need more people doing the dirty work,” he said.

10 years ago when Darren started Muddy Paw, he was heavily inspired by the people he saw working to rescue animals and each other after Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.

“My mind went to all those animals that needed our help…and the unsung local heroes who were putting their lives at risk that needed our help as well.” He asked himself, “How do I help their cause?”

Selling Muddy Paw Coffee online was the first step he took to help to raise money for local heroes at a national level. Opening the storefront in Silver Lake was the next step to establish a physical presence and give more direct support to causes at a local level. Natalia has also been instrumental in expanding the brand and getting the word out.

Muddy Paw Coffee - Silver Lake (Foodzooka)
Muddy Paw Coffee – Silver Lake (Foodzooka)

In 2019, the couple will open a second Muddy Paw Coffee location in Eagle Rock, near the thriving business junction of Colorado Blvd. and Eagle Rock Blvd. Darren said they’re still finalizing plans, but the territory will be significantly larger than the Silver Lake shop. Rest assured, the new digs will first have to pass inspection by their own three rescue dogs: Abby (a pug-beagle mix), Santana (a Shar Pei labrador mix), and Maple (a pitbull-boxer mix).

“It’s going to be an oasis for dogs and coffee,” he said.

Muddy Paw Coffee (courtesy) - La Borie rescue dogs - Maple, Santana, Abby
Muddy Paw Coffee (courtesy) – La Borie rescue dogs – Maple, Santana, Abby

For hours and information on the Silver Lake and Eagle Rock locations, click the Foodzooka profiles below to find the Muddy Paw Coffee website and follow them on social media.

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Make Zooies Cookie Shop Your Pit Stop

Zooies - Foodzooka Splat Feature

To find one of the latest additions to LA’s batch of must-try cookie shops, you’ll need to pull into an unlikely place: a United Oil gas station. Zooies isn’t just a mere kiosk but a full-fledged bakery with a kitchen, display case, espresso station, and a frozen yogurt bar. The variety alone is impressive, showcasing 20 to 30 cookie flavors, plus several brownies, coffee cakes, and lemon bars made on site. Offering so many options on a daily basis is a multi-stage process that involves thoughtfully handcrafting batters and many separate cookie components, from marshmallow toppings, to graham cracker mixtures, to pumpkin or stewed apple fillings.

Zooies - Handmade cookies (Foodzooka)
Zooies – Handmade cookies (Foodzooka)

The gas station sees a steady stream of customers every day, which was a good enough reason to set up shop, says owner Arezoo Appel. It was a concept that worked for her at an Apro station in San Diego, and the recent remodel of this Cheviot Hills station presented a prime opportunity to bring her craft to Los Angeles. At this United Oil location, the We Got It! convenience store shares a third of its space with Zooies on the sleek and spacious ground floor of a modern metallic 2-story structure.

Zooies - Cheviot Hills United Oil (Foodzooka)
Zooies – Cheviot Hills United Oil (Foodzooka)

Zooies’ most popular seller is the Gooie, a cookie with crisp edges and a soft chocolatey center. Achieving this coveted balance of crispness and gooeyness took an insane amount of trial and error, Appel said, but was worth it in the end. She applies that obsessive focus to her other creations, such as the almond cookie that’s chewier than its Chinese restaurant counterpart, an apple pie cookie that closely mimics crust and filling, and the baklava cookie that screams authenticity with rosewater and pistachio.

Zooies (courtesy) - Cookies and coffee
Zooies (courtesy) – Cookies and coffee

These cookies can be enjoyed with plain or flavored milks from Rosa Brothers, a California family-owned dairy. Or you can pair them with coffee drinks made with beans from local roaster Caffe Luxxe. And for the diet conscious, Zooies makes a paleo chocolate chip cookie made with coconut flour and honey, and a diabetic friendly version made with Splenda. All baked goods exude their own flavors and textures without shortening or hydrogenated oils.

Zooies (courtesy) - Galettes
Zooies (courtesy) – Galettes

Now with a customer base making special trips to a gas station for her sweets, Appel wants to introduce some savory treats, starting with galettes. Her version of this French favorite is similar to a hand pie filled with meats and vegetables, perfect for hurried drivers who can conveniently pop in for fuel and pick up a portable gourmet breakfast or lunch to go.

Individual cookies range from $1.95 to $2.75, and are sold in packages of four, six, and 12. Buy a dozen and get $1.95 in store credit for your next purchase.

Zooies - Cookie selection (Foodzooka)
Zooies – Cookie selection (Foodzooka)

For more information and updates on Zooies, click their Foodzooka profile below to find their website and follow them on social media.