la.foodblogging

Spot: Zen Zoo Tea Cafe
Where: Hollywood & Vine Complex, across the street from ArcLight Cinemas, adjacent to Border’s, across the corridor from Schwab’s
What: The Hollywood branch of Zen Zoo is a few months old while its Brentwood-based predecessor is 5 years old. The cafe’s slogan is: “A bit of Zen in the Zoo of Life.” Beverages range from a copyrighted list of iced teas offered with boba; barley tea espresso drinks; a range of lattes (chai, matcha, YerbaMate), and frappes.
Why: I walked into the empty store looking for Hungry Cat a few days ago and the idle cashier politely pointed me in the right direction. Her expression stayed with me. If I had a three month old store, and people walked in largely to ask for directions to a more hyped spot, I think I’d be sad. I vowed to return and give Zen Zoo a try.
Eats: I ordered a big, fresh flavorful Ginger Chicken Salad, served with wasabi vinaigrette made with squeezed lemon juice, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, garlic and a hint of wasabi. ($8.46). I also ordered three shrimp potstickers. ($4.23)
Drinks: Snake ZenFusion® (green tea, passion fruit); Boar ZenFusion® (green tea, mango). ($3.78 p/regular drink)
Thinks: The salad was terrific — greens really fresh, dressing is tasty, and it’s a nice size. I don’t think I’d order any of their dim sum again. It has a defrosted vibe to it. The boba tea drinks are good, but the pearls were a little too soft for me.
Chance of Returning: It’s pretty likely that I’ll go back for more. I still want to try Zen Zoo’s barley tea espresso and Chrysanthemum Blossom Silver Needle white tea. I really enjoyed my salad. The manager mentioned to me that the Hollywood branch has a larger selection of food and drinks than Brentwood, which is fine, since I never, ever go to Brentwood. There is a small room with cushioned seating on the second floor that looks like a good place to discreetly caffeinate and snack before an event at Cineramadome or ArcLight. Also a good spot for a casual lunch if you’re in that part of town. ZZ’s not tops but it’s worth a try since you may find something you love.

Zen Zoo Tea Cafe
1517 N. Vine Street
Hollywood
323.962.9969