Bocca:  Steakhouse Fusion Lounge
Encino, CA

I can’t think of a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon then relaxing over lunch and a glass of wine.  And save a few minor drawbacks, Bocca in Encino, offered just that.

My boyfriend and I got to Bocca around 1pm and found the restaurant e-m-p-t-y…empty!   I felt sad for the place.  With it’s clean line, modern feel and inviting atrium and patio, this spot is perfect for a leisurely lunch (and probably a romantic night out too.)

We were greeted right away, and since we had our choice of tables, picked a nice spot by the window.  The wine list was decent, if not overly inventive.  I had a glass of Savignon Blanc, a perfect choice for a balmy Sunday nosh.

We browsed the menu, and while I’m always a little scared when the offerings are all over the map, as was the case with Bocca, they call themselves a “fusion” steakhouse and lounge, so I reserved judgment.  I just wondered how well one can do Antipasto, Tuna Tartar, and Mini Beef Tacos. Instead of a standard appetizer I started off with the Creamy Wild Mushroom with Hazelnut Soup.

For $6.00 it was a decent portion. I wasn’t in love with the way it looked, but then again, it is pureed mushrooms, what can you expect? The flavor was really nice.  Rich, meaty, earthy.  If I had eaten nothing but that, I would have left satisfied.

We also ordered a sandwich which came with a side salad.

It was a very decent sized portion.  While it was a very simple salad, I will say the greens and veggies were exceptionally crisp and fresh.  The balsamic vinaigrette was also creamy with a good tang.  Since their sign says they are a steakhouse, and since we weren’t prepared to scarf down a full steak meal, we compromised and got the Steak Sandwich. For around $12 we thought it was a pretty nice size.  They also served bbq and steak size on the side.  And if you love sauces, for the dippin’, like I do, this is a nice touch.

We ordered it medium rare and it was cooked perfectly. The roll and veggies were also really good.  I just found the seasoning a bit lacking, there was nothing about the flavor of the meat that made it a stand out.  I felt I could have seasoned it better at home.   

Since we only tried 3 things, I can’t truly give this place a 100% thumbs up or thumbs down.  I liked the feel of the space, but do love the energy of a bustling restaurant, which Bocca lacked.    I will certainly give it another try, going on another day, at a traditionally busier time.  And next time maybe I’ll get crazy and order something Mexican, something Italian and something Asian inspired!  When I do I’ll report back here asap. 

Bocca - Steakhouse/Fusion/Lounge
16610 Ventura Blvd.  Encino, CA 91436
818.905.5855

Step inside this restored 1928 Spanish mission-style cottage, located on Riverside in Toluca Lake, and you might think you’ve been transported to somewhere in the exotic Spanish or Latin American countryside. D’Caché is a lively restaurant where they serve modern Latin-fusion cuisine, tapas and fine wines and great drinks. Try a fresh Columbian mojito made from Aguardiente and fresh mint or raspberry, melon and strawberry mojitos and margaritas.

The converted house has medium-sized dining rooms and secluded patios with comfy sofas to lounge on underneath white draperies. The back patio also has a pretty fountain. Out there, the two-seater tables are made from huge, polished discs of wood, hand-hewn from a large tree they had to lop down in the backyard. These beautiful tables are remarkable!

D’Caché also has a smoking patio and inside there is a small private room with a ‘U’ shaped couch and a TV. Perfect for a laid-back board meeting.

Before I get to the outstanding cuisine, one feature of the experience is the Rumba Gipsy and world music performances every night. The live entertainment starts at 7pm and goes until 9.30pm or so, Tuesday ’till Saturday evenings.

I went on a Wednesday evening and the musicians were incredible. Bandidos de Amor, a talented trio of flamenco-style guitarists and singers, sounded a lot like the Gipsy Kings and played plenty of boisterous music of that flavor.

So, to start with drinks, any Spanish restaurant worth their salt had better offer sangria. At D’Caché they concoct an exotic blend of three wines with gin and perfume it with cinnamon and brandy infused apples. Also their wine list is fairly extensive and features wine from Chile, Argentina and Spain as well as domestic varieties, all priced at around $8-9 per glass, bottles also available.

We started with the soupe du jour – wild mushroom soup ($9). This was unctuous and incredibly rich and delicious; a caramelized-sweet, smooth soup that was fragrant with truffle oil. Just fantastic!

With only twelve appetizers and eight entree dishes on the menu, you can tell the kitchen does it all well. We started with a serving of three large empanadas ($12) filled with slow-cooked shredded pork and dressed with a confetti of mango salsa. Lovely! Other appetizers to snack on include tapas such as Patacones con Cerviche – shrimp cocktail over fried plantains – or a variety of pizette.

Main courses include Spanish classics such as a smoky and seafood-packed Paella ($32) and Pollo Catalan. They also offer seared blue fin tuna with a cilantro crust and a warm salad of asparagus and greens.

Brazilian-style Lamb chops, crusted with pistachio pesto ($42), were perfectly cooked. The basil and truffle oils almost gild the lily, but the red wine reduction cuts through the rich sauce like Zorro!

Everything was very rich, so order wisely, but like a siren’s song, the best flavors of all Latin cultures at D’Caché will call you to return again and again.

Valet and street parking available.

D’Caché Restaurant, 10717 Riverside, Toluca Lake, between Lankershim and Cahuenga.
(818) 506 9600.
Open 5pm ’till midnight, Tues - Sat.
Sunday and Monday – only open for special events.

Okay, I don’t usually get excited about sandwiches. They’re not really my… thing. It’s not that I avoid bread or anything, it’s just that I tend to prefer my carbs in pasta form, or as roasted or fried potatoes.

So —
you’ve gotta appreciate it when I go nuts about this new sandwich I tried.

Backstory: My hands-down, all-time favourite lunch place in the east Valley is healthyca (fyi – it’s pronounced ‘health-i-ka’). I already reviewed them a couple of years ago.

Well, I am excited to report that healthyca has just launched a fresh new menu. I tried one of their new sandwiches on Friday and it was Oh. My. God. Fantastic!!

Portobello Mushroom on home whole wheat ciabatta (i.e. baked in-house, gentle readers) with beets, chevre, walnuts, roasted tomato (with a bit of a spicy kick!), black olive tapenade, lettuce and I sub’d grilled onion instead of raw red onion.

The complex flavour profile and combination of this heavenly sandwich was just a knockout. It was so damn good, I went back and got it again the very next day they were open (Monday). Remember - I said I don’t go for sandwiches very often.

Okay, having said that, I actually really like hot sandwiches. So, I love the variety – about thirty choices – at my new local sandwich joint Press Panini. Generally if I’m gonna have a sandwich, I’ll make a toasted ham, gruyère and pineapple one at home on my own panini maker (don’t laugh!) The benefits of now having a place around the corner that does Italian-style pressed sandwiches is (1) the variety, (2) the convenience – it’s a walk-up window and you can eat there or take it home, (3) it’s great for when you don’t have enough ingredients at home to put a lunch together and (4) um, there isn’t a (4)… BUT while the French-style bread roll they use at Press Panini is great in its own way, they don’t offer a whole wheat option at all, and I just can’t do white bread… Also, I probably won’t be craving hot sandwiches during this sweltering summer that often, either, which is too bad for them because I am sure I am not alone.

Anyway, Press Panini offers a rather extensive menu of a vast variety of hot, pressed sandwiches – all priced at $9, with a ‘kids’ size available for $5 – as well as tasty soups ($6) and big salads ($10). They do a meal deal of a sandwich (all are on their long, white panini bread roll) plus a side of soup, salad or chips and a regular sized drink for $14. I couldn’t go past the classic Caprese which was a tasty and simple combination of fresh mozzarella, sliced tomato and fresh, whole basil leaves, all dressed with a piquant balsamic dressing.

My guy opted for the classic Prosciutto with provolone cheese, tomato and romaine lettuce and dijon mustard as well as that same balsamic dressing. Mid-way through our lunch I asked for his opinion. “Can’t talk. Eating.” came the brusque reply, but when he had devoured the lot, the comment was “Delicious!”

Another great one we’ve tried since is the Olive All-Over with brie & parmigiana cheese, sliced kalamata and black olives, portabella mushroom (how do you spell that?!), fresh spinach leaves and tapenade. You can see it’s quite similar to my new fave from healthyca.

In any case, with the new and fantastic sandwiches, as well as their incredible salads and new fresh juice combos, healthyca is looking mighty tempting for that occasional lunch run. You can eat there, pick up food to go or they now deliver all day, within a certain radius, so tip the driver well!

The sandwiches at healthyca are all priced around $9-10 and also come pepperoncini and pickles and a small side salad – choose from new potatoes, wild or herbed rice, fresh fruit cup, quinoa or baby greens with house dressing. I generally opt for their incredibly tasty quinoa side salad.

Trust me – you just gotta try that killer sandwich!

Chef Maki’s small shopfront, industrial-type kitchen (in NoHo) churns out some of the hands-down, most delicious and fabulously healthy food you will ever taste. I’m not kidding! So, even though they have a new menu, a lot of their popular items are still available, such as the noho sausage sandwich, which is a homemade, free-range turkey sausage on a house-baked sesame roll with tomato, mustard, house-made mayo (the real deal, meaning egg yolks and good olive oil) also lettuce, grilled onion and their own divine fresh pesto sauce. It’s a hefty and satisfying lunch for $9.50.

The salads are all big, hearty and super delicious. Ranging from around $9 to $11, some new additions include the ratatouille salad with baked eggplant, roasted tomato, grilled zucchini, peppers and onions, glazed walnuts, fresh herbs and blue cheese ($9.10). I can’t wait to try the avocado caprese with fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil oil (that you pour on yourself) plus avocado, purple onion and baby greens ($9.24). All salads come with a dressing (chose from ten, including low-fat citrus and lime cilantro) as well as the same small side salads they serve with the sandwiches.

Maki offers several delicious ices teas and juice combinations all packed with various ‘superfoods’ such as mangoes, mint, or antioxidant-strong blueberries. He even adds a hint of cayenne along with pineapple, grape, orange and ginger in the fighter drink. All the food there is healthy, delicious and affordable, using high quality, mostly organic ingredients and produce – even the salmon is wild caught. All of Chef Maki’s food that I’ve sampled has been great. This is high quality and healthy fare.

Kinda like ‘stealth health’…

I also tried one of their delicious juices (mango, mint, orange melon and lemon) but it was tuff to drive home with the juices… even thos I didn’t spill any, I was petrified I would. (I always zip over and pick up.)

If healthyca isn’t already your favourite place, then it probably soon will be. Or please comment and tell us what your fave is!

healthyca
4724 Lankershim Blvd, just S of Camarillo, close to the Blue Moon nightclub, NoHo.
(818) 505 1037.
Fax (818) 505 1037.
Open Monday to Friday only, 11am-6pm, [coming soon – ’till 9pm]
Catering available – (818) 693 2778.
Website is under construction.

Press Panini
4389 Tujunga Ave, just S of Moorpark, Studio City.
(818) 487 2564
Open 9am–9pm.
Delivery available.

A sister restaurant to the one on La Cienega, and situated beneath Romanov Restaurant, Prana Café is a welcome addition to Studio City (even if some of us miss the Albano’s Pizzeria place it supplanted).

Indoor seating is along the west wall, opposite the closed in but windowed kitchen, is reminiscent of the old Out Take Café layout. Subtract the irritatingly squeaky swinging doors to kitchen and it’s very comfortable to dine inside.

The decor is pleasant and warm, featuring large, live bundles of lucky bamboo along the wall. Comfy wicker arm chairs face the chocolate brown leather banquettes, offset by thin cream and brown striped fabric. The ceiling is painted a deep red hue with sculpted paper light fixtures in cream giving a soft light overhead. Add the sun flooding in from the front outdoor patio, set back from Ventura Boulevard, and you have a really cosy vibe.

Their menu offers sandwiches, salads, burgers and wraps, all ranging within $7 to $14.00. You can get breakfast items all day long, including buttermilk pancakes ($7), “crispy” french toast ($9), homemade granola ($7) and scrambles (rather than omelettes) ($9-$12).

Their eggs benedict include classic ($12) and smoked salmon ($14). I was especially impressed with the hollandaise sauce that accompanied my crab cake benedict ($16). Everything on the menu is made in-house, and it shows. Arriving on a huge, square ceramic platter, you get two toasted muffin halves with a crab cake and poached egg on each. The yolk is delightfully runny, as it should be, and there is no trace of nasty vinegar. Smothering that is the divinely thick and golden hollandaise sauce; a perfect blend of the piquancy of lemon juice with the rich yolks and butter. The crab cake is quite fishy but good and meaty, speckled with corn kernels and tiny pieces of red pepper. This meal also comes with a giant and golden hash brown, severed into a curious semicircle, which makes me wonder where the other half got to (not that I needed it!) I found the hash brown to be a bit too oily and too darkly fried, but then again, I am not a hash brown aficionado. At the center of this platter is a delicate little nest of alfalfa dressed with a tangy vinaigrette.

The Mediterranean Wrap ($13) is an inspired blend of slightly spicy shrimp with the crunch of fresh cucumber and the tang of yoghurt. It comes with french fries that are perfectly salty and crisp, although you can opt for salad greens or fruit.

The chef gives us a sample of the crepes that will feature on the menu of the Russian Tea Room, opening next door to Prana Café later this month. The French Connection is a little on the crispy side and stuffed with soft, ripe banana slices and smooth chocolate sauce. Savory as well as sweet crepes are already available to patrons of Prana.

The only weakness here is the coffee, which arrives in a large, attractive glass mug. The latte is, understandably, milder than the cappuccino. But the cappuccino is too bitter and the foam too airy. At Prana Café they would do well to employ experienced baristi who are expert at creating the necessary microfoam for a milky espresso drink worth returning for.

Owner Mikayel Israyelyan seems to know what he is doing, having found success with the elegant Republic Lounge on La Cienega as well as the opulent Romanov upstairs. As my dining companion observed, “You certainly never walk away from any of his places feeling hungry.”

There’s no higher praise than that in my book.

Prana Café
12229 Ventura Blvd.
Studio City, CA 91604
Tel: (818) 301 7616

Open for breakfast and lunch, daily.

The food at AOC as a whole was good, our wine was good, the cheese was great, and they were accommodating to the BF’s vegan-ness, which is always a nice thing. I wouldn’t mind going there again, maybe for our next anniversary to try some of their other cheeses. I saw that they had something called a Stinking Bishop cheese from England that I’m curious to taste.

Now that my Grandma has passed I don’t get Greek food cooked for me nearly as often as I used to.  I still cook something Greek at least 3-4 times a month, but once a year I know there is a place I can go, to get home cooked, quality, Greek food. 

That place is the Valley Greek Festival hosted by St. Nicholas Greek Church in Northridge.

Every major city, it seems, hosts a Greek festival at some point in the summer, but for my money, the Valley version is one of the best.  There is a large Greek community in Northridge and Reseda and the food here is all homemade by loving hands, of members of St. Nich’s Greek Orthodox Church.

If you do go here are my suggestions:

Loucanico:  Greek sausage, grilled and served with a hunk of bread, feta, some lemon and kalamata olives.  This is delicious with a little sip of Ouzo on the side.

Greek Chicken is going all day on large open grills.  It’s served with rice, salad, bread, feta and other fixins.  I like their version, it’s really well made, so if you’ve never had it, give it a try.  For me, I find Greek Chicken is so easy to cook at home, I often go with the dishes, that, due to their complexity, I don’t often cook at home…like…

Pastitsio or Moussaka:  Pastitsio is like a Greek Lasagna made with bechamel sauce.  I’ve made this on numerous occasions, and let  me tell you it’s a bitch to make!  Their version often dries out a little bit, but it’s the nature of the beast.  It’s still worth a try.  The nutmeg flavors in the rich sauce are so damn yummy.   Their Moussaka is delish as well, and usually not as dried out.  I love egg plant, don’t you??

The Gyro (pronounced “Year-oh”  not “Jeye-ro  or Guy-ro”) is also really fab.

For desserts, well, when it comes to Greek desserts they’re all pretty much some version of flour, nuts and honey (my Nouna would kill me for saying so, but people, it’s true!).
The ladies of the church, though, create something crazy, like 48 THOUSAND pieces of pastry.

The most fun dessert, hands down, are the handmade Loucoumathes. 

Little donut holes they cook right in front of  you!  Yum.  I feel so sorry for the poor soul who has to man this station on a hot day.

When you are done eating, you can dance…

watch cooking demonstrations…

play games and shop.  It’s just a nice atmosphere, and for me, I always get a little nostalgic, for my childhood, when big Greek family gatherings where a regular thing in my life.  These days, I still embrace my Greek-ness, and my friends (my extended family) have embraced it with me. 

I plan on spending a good few hours at the festival this weekend, and I’ll let  you know how it went.

Click here to check out The Valley Greek Festival website
 

Photos courtesy of Valley Greek Festival Website

Tarzana has a lovely European-style café restaurant that is one of the best kept secrets in the Valley. The only reason I am telling you about it because I want it always to be there, but please don’t tell everyone you know or we’ll never get a table!

Located right next door to the Corbin Bowl, in the corner of a large mall, is Nona Café and Restaurant, a little slice of the Mediterranean that offers some truly fabulous and seriously affordable food.

First things first, you have got to start with their sangria, either red or white. I’ve tasted both sangria, but far prefer the white. It is a little on the sweet side, but it has some delightfully peachy high notes. If sangria’s not your thing, they also offer wine and soju cocktails.

By far the best things on their fairly large menu are the tapas, and for once, the portions are generously sized.

One dish I always get is the creamy, dreamy burrata with roasted tomatoes ($5). For those of you who haven’t already encountered this heavenly dish, burrata is a very soft, yielding and exceptionally fresh version of mozzarella cheese mixed with cream. Yep, cream. The outer shell is solid mozzarella while the inside contains both mozzarella and cream, giving this Italian delicacy its unique soft texture.

I also love their ahi tuna tartar ($7), which is a generous portion of chopped, raw tuna served with scallions, piquant ginger and crisp sesame crackers. Their seared hamachi tuna is paired with avocado dip, ‘supreme’ sections of ruby red grapefruit (meaning the pith and membrane removed, with just the tender fruit remaining) and drizzled with citrus ponzu sauce. They do several middle eastern-inspired and fantastic shrimp dishes, including crisp rock shrimp with lemon aioli ($7) and a wonderful grilled shrimp served with plump pearls of Israeli couscous, fried leeks and spicy carrot puree ($7) – incredible!

Then there’s the lamb and mint kabob with pine nuts and tahini ($7) or sautéed salmon with refreshing cucumber, medjool date and walnut salad and saffron emulsion ($7) as well as a few LA small-plate standards such as shaved fennel salad ($5) or beet salad with chevre, tangerines and marcona almonds ($6). Their full-sized salads are enormous and well-priced, averaging around $11. A variety of sandwiches are also available. They bake their own irresistibly delicious bread and make their own desserts.

It’s all truly wonderful and eclectic cuisine. So far, I’ve been back about four times as there are so many different small plates to sample.

Breakfast looks fantastic, too, and is served until 2pm (take that fast food joints!), and as late as 3pm on weekends. Everything from the usual suspects of egg white or wild mushroom omelettes or even portobello mushroom benedict ($12) to buckwheat or berry waffles or blueberry oatmeal pancakes ($10) to an intriguing-sounding Oatmeal Crème Brulée (also $10).

Indoor seating is warm and pleasant, but they also have a large patio. Best of all, there is plenty of parking available.

At Nona they also have live music some evenings during the week. You might wanna call and find out. One Thursday night we were expertly entertained by a duo of guitarists, one of whom had played with Carlos Santana.

Love this place!

Nona Restaurant & Café

Open 7 days a week
Breakfast until 2pm, ’till 3pm on weekends
Lunch, dinner and tapas bar ’till late

19598 Ventura Boulevard, Tarzana CA 91356
(818) 881 9855

Bottom line: Yum.

This is the food I love to eat. These are fresh, well-seasoned, unpretentious, and simple dishes borne of a deep hunger within, not of some intellectual curiosity or misinformed science project — I walked out of Ford’s Filling Station last night at 11 pm holding my stomach, half asleep, a blissfully contented cow in a curiously contented meadow.

The six of us, unaccustomed to the Iberian dining hour of 9 pm, were pretty spent and famished by the time we arrived after a long day at the lab. They were a little behind, they said, so we didn’t get seated until about 9:20, when we were placed smack-dab in the middle of the main room with a decent view of the hot plate and (glimpses) of Ben Ford. He looks a lot like his dad.

The jamon serrano flatbread (red bell peppers, cremini, mozzarella, parsley?) first course was, as I remember saying, “better than it should have been.” By that I mean it was obscenely good, because, you know, I’m a sucker for cured ham. It had that savory unctiousness, smokiness, and herbiness that tastes of a good hearth, or rather the warmth from a good hearth around which we huddle during the heart of winter. So what if it’s only in the low 60s outside — dare I say that this was home run?

Four of us ordered the roasted lamb loin as a second course (with green beans, quinoa-wheaty goodness, and caramelized leeks). I’d say that this was “just” a solid dish, losing out in the end only because of its temperature and relative fattiness. Given the sheer number of covers they probably had last night it’s a wonder they even got them out of the kitchen as fast as they did. It was a hair overdone for my taste (i.e. not bloody enough), but sufficiently lamby to satisfy my whetted palate from the earlier dish, an aptly-titled “appetizer.”

After polishing off some of my compatriot’s plates as well, I was pretty full at this point (did I mention that the portions are massively generous?). But it was time for dessert! They had run out of crème brulée, so we had a mixture of apple crumble and Toblerone ice cream orders that, it seemed, none of us could finish. You could tell that we all wanted to add to the already-brewing orgy of good flavors in our bellies but were simply unable to do it due to space limitations.

I guess that’ll have to wait for next time.

[Photo of Natas Pastries]

Hi cake lovers! I did a lot of legwork recently and have come up with a bit of a guide to some of the best bakeries in the mid-East Valley, meaning from Encino to Studio City, keeping close to Ventura Boulevard.

This is by no means an exhaustive nor definitive report.

Which LA bakeries are your flat-out favourite places to go to satisfy your sweet tooth?
Which ones did I miss?!

BAKLAVA FACTORY ^

Middle eastern treats, such as their specialty baklava, are worth the trip. Their Mediterranean-style baklava are bundles of flaky layers of buttered fillo pastry, stuffed with either crushed or whole pistachio nuts, walnuts, cashews or plain, and drenched in light sugar syrup with a touch of lemon juice. Priced at $9.99 per pound, that’s about $1 or so per piece. Also available are an almost unlimited array of Middle-Eastern treats, including osmallieh (nut and honey cakes), maamool (rose water shortbreads), ghourabieh (butter cookies), barazek (crispy sesame and pistachio cookies) and so on.

17145 Ventura Boulevard, Encino
on the north side of Ventura, just E of Plaza D’oro.
(818) 414 4413
Stores in Encino, North Hollywood and Glendale.
Open 9am to 8pm, Monday – Sunday

BEA’S BAKERY ^

Black and white cookies, splendid chocolate eclairs in various sizes, cakes and fruit tarts of all kinds, this fantastic neighborhood bakery has been delighting generations of dessert lovers. A popular item is the strawberry shortcake, made daily with fresh cream and plump berries, ($3.35 per slice). Other specialties include buttery rugelach, shiny brown, perfectly baked challah bread, cinnamon-infused babka, chocolate pudding-filled cake and butter cookies. Specialty cakes can be pre-ordered. At 16″ by 24″, a full sheet cake of almost any combination of cake and filling will serve around 100 people and cost $172.00.

18450 Clark Street Tarzana
just nth of Ventura Blvd, off Reseda
(818) 344 0100
Open 7am–8.30pm, six days per week. Sundays they close at 7pm.

BELWOOD BAKERY

Tucked away in the Coldwater Curve Shops on Ventura in Studio City, this unassuming little bakery offers excellent breads, cakes, standard pastries and – best of all – individual homemade quiche. Their most popular item, at lunchtime, is their chicken sandwich.

12634 Ventura Blvd., Studio City
just E of Coldwater Canyon
(818) 755 8853
Open 6am to 6pm every day, on Sundays they close at 4pm.

BIG SUGAR BAKESHOP ^

Here you’ll find a vast variety of treats and cakes of all shapes and sizes, from little squares of fudge or small peanut butter buckeyes as well as brownies and slices as well as two person pies (such as chocolate mousse or apple crisp) and slices of cake (such as German Choc and Red Velvet) and even whole cakes. You can completely satisfy a small to medium to large craving, depending on how you feel that day. Love the coconut, the mocha and the hummingbird cupcakes.

They even have a daily blog with info on the specials of the day – how cool is that?

12182 Ventura Boulevard, Studio City
between Laurel Canyon Boulevard and Laurel Grove Avenue
(818) 508 5855
Open Tues to Thurs, 10am to 6pm; Fri and Sat, 10am to 7pm; Sunday 11am to 6pm.
NOT open on Mondays.

EILAT CAFÉ

This kosher Israeli café (their own bakery is across the road but no longer open to the public) features a lot of breads, including seedless rye ($3.25), seven grain loaf ($4.50), whole wheat, olive bread and baguettes ($1.29), even a multi-seed baguette for $2.25. From their vast assortment of pastries and cakes, their fruit tarts are highly sought after. Individual 3″ pies are $3.75 each, a 9″ fruit pie will serve 10-12 and costs $27.00.

12519 Burbank Blvd., North Hollywood
(818) 762 1900
Open Mon to Thurs 6am - 11pm, Fri closes at 4pm
Sat 9pm-1am
Sun 8am-11am

HANSENS CAKES

Creating impressive specialty cakes for weddings, baby showers and birthdays, Hansens cakes will surely be the crowning glory of your event. With almost two thousand different designs to choose from, including kid’s party cakes, floral cakes and even three-dimensional extravaganzas, Hansens strive to deliver a memorably delicious and artful cake centrepiece that will delight your guests.

18432 Ventura Blvd, Tarzana
just E of Reseda
(818) 708 1208
Open Tues to Fri, 10am to 6pm; Sat 10am to 5pm
Closed Mondays.

L’ARTISTE PATISSERIE AND FRENCH RESTAURANT

This little French lunch place bakes their cakes, bread and pastries on site and offers virtually everything from muffins and croissants to freshly made baguette sandwiches and salads. Mushroom soup and fancy omelettes are popular menu items. In the glass display cabinets, the colorfully glazed fruit tarts are eye-catching while the multi-flavored macaroons ($1.95 ea), such as lavender, orange-cinnamon, coffee, hazelnut and pistachio, are of restaurant quality. Red velvet cupcakes are also big sellers.

17312 Ventura Blvd, Ste A., Encino
at the SW corner of Louise Avenue
(818) 386 0061
Open 7.30am to 4pm, seven days a week

LAYERS CAKES DESIGN STUDIO

Dramatic specialty and wedding cakes that taste as good as they look, you can schedule a tasting at Layers Cakes and the designers will help you develop a cake from a concept into something spectacular. They’re willing to blend flavors, such as alternating layers of hazelnut and tiramisu or chocolate and lemon.

Designer Janelle thinks of everything, such as advising against buttercream frosting for a summer outdoor reception. Affordably priced, these fancy cakes come highly recommended.

13944 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks
(818) 784 3918
Open hours – by appointment only.

LEDA’S BAKE SHOP ^

Some people think the mini cupcakes Leda’s Bake Shop should be called ‘teaspoon-cakes’ as they can be devoured in two bites. These cute and elegant morsels ($1.50), in various, fancy flavors, boast three layers; the moist cake, followed by a dollop of caramel (in the dulce de leche) or ganache or curd, finally topped with a divinely rich buttercream frosting. You can also buy ginger scones (crumbly, but nice) and various cookies. Custom made cakes mimic the cupcakes with their three layers of cake, filling, butter cream frosting, in various combinations, including vanilla, raspberry, lemon and hand-shredded coconut. A tall, six inch decorated round cake will serve 8 to10 ($50) while a twelve inch cake will serve 40+ ($135).

13722 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
(818) 386-9644
Cross Street: Woodman Avenue
Open Tues to Sat, 10:30 to 6pm
Open Sunday between 10 to 11am for custom order pick ups

LE PAIN QUOTIDIEN

This organic bakery and communal-table café offers sandwiches, soups and artisan breads. Pop in on Sunday morning for flaky, buttery organic croissants and perfect individual brioche. Their cakes are exquisite – fruit tarts, cream-filled buns and fancy gateaux.

13045 Ventura Blvd., Studio City
just W of Coldwater
(818) 986 1929

Open every day at 7.30am. Kitchen closes at 6.30pm, while the bakery closes at 7pm.

MRS. BEASLEY / MISS GRACE LEMON CAKE

Right next door to Office Depot, in the same center as Tony Romas, is a fabulous little bakery that offers one of the best deals in town. On Fridays they give away one of their “bundt cake of the week� with every purchase of any of their bundt cake.

Famous for their lemon cakes, they offer other flavors such as Key Lime and California Orange. Their deliciously rich Chocolate Fudge and Walnut bundt cakes are made with two kinds of decadent chocolate. The rippled outer shell is hand-dipped to create a candy-like taste sensation. $29.95.

6″ and 8″ round cakes and larger sheet cakes are available as well, priced from $20.00 and up.
Most popular? Their chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting.

16571 Ventura Boulevard., Encino
Between Balboa and Havenhurst
(818) 995 1987
Open 8am to 6pm, Monday – Sunday

MY LITTLE CUPCAKE INCORPORATED

Some people swear by their ‘Death by Chocolate’ cupcake ($2.75), but the ‘Hi-hat’, with its chocolate cake and grainy, sugary marshmallow topping dipped in chocolate, just didn’t do it for me. If I am going to treat myself and eat cake, it had better be worth the calories. With so many bakeries in our area to choose from, I’m afraid My Little Cupcake has to be bottom of my list.

If you want to try them for yourself, be advised – parking can be tough, so head around to the alley just north, behind the store.

11925 Ventura Blvd., Studio City
just E of Laurel Canyon
(818) 985 2253
Open 7am to 7pm, Sunday – Thursday, 7am to 5pm Fridays.
Closed Mondays.

NATAS PASTRIES ^

This authentic bakery features home-style Portuguese pastries based on traditional recipes dating back to the 17th Century. Unique to Los Angeles, Natas offers a whole host of cakes and fancy pastries, both savory and sweet.
Their signature pastry, natas, is a crème brulée-type custard filling inside a crisp and flaky puff pastry shell that provides a delightfully crunchy foil to the luscious creamy filling. This is the true taste of Portugal.

13317 Ventura Blvd., #D, Sherman Oaks
just W of Fulton
(818) 788-8050
Open Tues to Sat, 7am to 9pm; Sunday 9am to 6pm
Closed Mondays.

NICOLOSI PASTRY SHOP ^

Remember the hit man’s advice in The Godfather? “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.� People drive from all over LA for this Italian bakery’s cannoli. The little pastry tubes are only stuffed with ricotta cream filling or vanilla or chocolate custard once you order them in the store, ensuring the fried pastry shell remains crisp. Small are $1.50, larger are $2.00. This cute bakery has a handful of little tables in their picture window, each one elegantly lace and glass-topped, as well as a wedding cake display in the shop corner. Other Italian specialties include cream puffs, biscotti in various flavors and amaretti, pignoli and fig cookies sold by the pound.

17540 Ventura Blvd, Encino
(818) 789 0922
Open 9am to 6pm, Tuesday – Saturday, Sundays 10-4pm, Closed Mondays

UNIQUE PASTRY

Chocolate strawberry shortcake and the Italian delicacy tiramisu are the most popular gateaux at this Jewish bakery, which has a small café next door.

18385 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana
just E of Reseda, on the north west side of the mall
818 757 3100
Open 7am to 7pm, Sunday – Thursday, 7am to 5pm Fridays.
closed Saturdays

VIKTOR BENE’S CONTINENTAL BAKERY

This bakery specializes in European-style treats for every occasion and is a great place for fancy cakes of all shapes and sizes, including Sacher Torte and St. Honore. Some people swear by their babka’s – available in coffee cake or cinnamon and raisin ($5.95).

Viktor Bene’s Continental Bakery is located at Gelsons supermarkets in Encino, Sherman Oaks and North Hollywood and elsewhere in LA.
6am - 10 pm daily, except for Sundays – 7am opening time.
Gelson’s Market – 4738 Laurel Canyon Blvd.
North Hollywood, California 91607
(818) 760-2897
Encino – 818 783 4844

For over a year I have driven past a nice-looking venue (at 11334 Moorpark, just east of Tujunga) where a posted sign promised “ZenChi – Coming 05.â€? Eventually the sign was changed to read “Ok….2006.â€?

Funny! At least these restaurateurs have a sense of humour.

Well at long last ZenChi Cafe has opened its doors, just making its 2006 date by the skin of its teeth.

The first thing you notice about ZenChi is the massive and serene stone Buddha statue that greets you as enter their main doorway. The decor has a decidedly Asian influence, featuring dark stained and glossy wooden tables and chairs, stylishly unadorned. A bustling open kitchen dominates the wide front room, while there is a more intimate dining room off to the left hand side. Patio dining is also available.

Chef Manuel Castro (formerly of the Parkway Grill) concentrates on Asian-fusion dishes at this full-service restaurant. The black napkins indicate they have their eye on the business lunch crowd. Indeed, the lunch menu is well chosen for swift one-hour dining, while the dinner menu seems a bit more leisurely.

The starters range from $8 to $12, with offerings such as Thai pork spare ribs ($8), sesame kobe beef satay sticks with asian slaw – very tender and delicious – ($9) and sufficiently meaty blue crab cakes with citrus aioli ($12). At lunchtime you can partake of the ZenChi Sampler and get a little taste of vegetable dumplings, baby crab cakes and crunchy calamari.

On the lunch menu, the $10-11.00 sandwiches and burgers come with a choice of fries, curry sweet potato fries or asian slaw, and while the curry sweet potato fries were shoestring thin and delicious, but there was no discernable curry present. The usual suspects are here; albacore tuna burger, bbq pork rib sandwich, turkey burger with avocado and caramelized onions.

The salads are substantial and tasty, arriving as a mountain of multicolored greens and vegetables on a square white plate. I especially liked the insalata misto (mixed green salad) which at lunchtime ($7.95) came with powerful nuggets of blue cheese, little cubes of tomato, sliced shiitake mushrooms and water chestnuts that add a satisfying crunch. The so-called “shaved� red onions in the salad were actually sliced, and a bit too pungent for my liking. I’d remembered how much I’d liked the raspberry vinaigrette during a previous dinner visit and the kitchen very obligingly substituted it for their usual balsamic vinaigrette, so I was all smiles. You can also get chinese chicken or shrimp salad ($11.95 and $13.95, respectively), classic caesar with rosemary croutons and wild salmon, seafood or wood-fired sirloin salads.

The only sticker shock was experienced at dinner, when my foodie companion opted for the Thai-glazed Lamb Chops entree with rosemary pesto and mashed potatoes. These were very good, but seriously priced at $25.00.

From their full bar they feature martinis and cocktails made with Korean Soju as well as mojitos and margaritas ($8.50). There are typical martinis such as apple, lemon drop and even a few daring ones such as lychee and pomegranate.

A crisp Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio was reasonably priced at $8 while the mellow St Jean Pinot Noir was $9.00. In fact, none of the wines by the glass cost more than $10 and – best of all – all come in a voluminous wine glass with a generous pour. For bottled wines, the prices are as conservative (we’re talking Ralph’s-level boring) as the selection.

I hardly ever notice service, whether it’s bad or good. I sometimes get annoyed if the check seems to take forever to arrive. That’s because when I’ve decided it’s time to leave, I don’t like to mess around. But this wasn’t the case with ZenChi. Above all, the service was really attentive without being intrusive.

At ZenChi they offer valet parking, but unless you’re teetering in stiletto heels, you should be able to find a parking place on the local streets nearby.

Bottom line – while ZenChi is a welcome addition of decent yet not exciting cuisine to my ’hood, its low-key ambience left me craving more of a vibey scene.

ZenChi Cafe
11334 Moorpark St.
(Tujunga Ave.)
North Hollywood, CA
818-760-3890

Open Tues – Sun, 11.30am–9pm