Pennsylvania: Longacre’s Modern Dairy

Longacre’s Modern Dairy is a family owned and operated business in Barto, Pennsylvania. In 1920, John S. Longacre would wake up, milk his dairy cattle, and then deliver the milk to neighboring towns by a horse-drawn wagon. In the 1940s, the Longacres built a dairy on the corner of their farm and started to make their own ice cream. In 1996, they went organic. Today, the dairy on the corner of the farm is the Dairy Bar, which is where my Dad, brother, and I went to have a nice ice cream treat.

The taste of their ice cream is unlike any other I have tried and ranks very high in my book. It is rich and creamy (but not sickenly rich like Coldstone’s and fresher than store quality). Also, knowing that it is organic makes it taste even more delightful. On the wall there is a long list of flavors (probably over 30) that makes it incredibly hard to choose just one.I wanted to order the Garbage Sundae, a combination of 10 flavors and 10 toppings. Instead, I ordered the large cup of 3 flavors: Cocoanut Custard*, Banana, and Cake batter. Even though I am not a huge fan of cocoanut, I do love custard ice cream. The cocoanut custard is egg custard flavored ice cream with shredded cocoanut throughout. The banana ice cream is made with real bananas (helping me reach my recommend daily amount of fruit). My favorite was the cake batter. I could eat this flavor all day. It was sweeter than the other two flavors in my cup, for obvious reasons. Across the board, the flavors were fresh, creamy, and matched up to their flavor name perfectly. I highly recommend trying it out. Even if you are not in the mood for ice cream, I encourage buying your local milk here. The nonfat milk tastes richer and fresher than the milk you buy at the store and it’s organic!

*I know how to spell coconut. However, Longacre’s spells it “cocoanut.”

Longacre’s Modern Dairy

1445 Route 100
Barto, PA 19504

Get Directions(610) 845-7551

Pennsylvania: Landis Store Hotel

Landis Store Hotel is one of my favorite restaurants in Pennsylvania. No lie! I have been going there with my family since I was a child. It is always a delightful treat to visit when I am in town. The restaurant is located in the hills of Berks County and is not the easiest place to find, but that just makes it all the more special. The history of the restaurant is interesting. It started as a hotel in 1800. In 1853, it added a general store and post office. Then in 1952, it was purchased by the Henshaws who kept it as a general store and bar until 1970 in which it was then turned into a restaurant. In 1975, the Henshaw’s daughter and son-in-law, Janet and Gary Henshaw bought the restaurant and remain the current owners. The executive chef, Marilyn Flannery, has worked there ever since I can remember, and makes the most amazing dishes. And this most recent trip was no exception!

I started with the Caesar Salad. This is one of my favorite salads. It is flawless; the lettuce is crisp, the Parmesan is fresh, and the dressing is homemade. It does not include anchovies, but that is okay. It is a big salad, but that just reassures you that you are getting enough vegetables in your diet. For my main course, I ordered the Saute Flounder with Shrimp, Garlic, and Wine. In retrospect, I feel guilty about ordering the flounder because they are an overfished species. I do not recall the last time I ate flounder though, so I’m not too terrible (I hope). The tomatoes were in season and tasted fresh and juicy. The garlic wine sauce was subtle and did not dominate over the taste of the flounder or the shrimp. The meal was delightful and every bite was better than the next. Every main course includes your choice of two vegetables. I chose the zucchini with almond and mint, and the corn fritters. I would never have thought of combining zucchini with almond and mint, but each taste worked well with one another. I would even make it at home. A fritter is any kind of food coated in batter and then deep fried. I don’t know how popular they are in Los Angeles, but to me they seem more common on the East coast, at least in Pennsylvania (think apple fritters!). They taste like creamy summer fresh corn little pancakes. Like most things fried, you can’t go wrong.

Dessert was the best part! My Dad and I ordered 3 different desserts because we are crazy. We ordered: Strawberry Ice Cream, Chocolate Cheesecake, and a Chocolate Mousse Torte. Yes, so much chocolate! The strawberry ice cream was homemade and tasted less creamy than it did fruity. This refreshing and lighter taste went well in between the rich chocolate bites of the cheesecake and torte. Neither my Dad nor I could pin point which chocolate dessert was better because they were both amazing! I recommend to anyone that visits to at least try one dessert, if not three. You are probably thinking I’m a little piggy, and granted I do have my moments, but I can assure you that these desserts were not finished during one sitting because they were so wonderfully rich. A lot of restaurants fail at being incredible at both main courses and desserts, but this is not the case here. They are always above and beyond.

Note: They are not open every night. I suggest calling ahead.

Landis Store Hotel

4 Baldy Hill Rd
Landis Store, PA 19512
(610) 845-2324

Pennsylvania: Shorty’s Sunflower Cafe

Shorty’s Sunflower Cafe is a hidden gem in one of many boroughs of Eastern Pennsylvania. The people who work there and/or own the place are some of the most friendly people you will meet in the area; always a warm smile on their face and a full pot of coffee in their hand. I have been going there for at least six years now. The food is always filling and delightful, never once have I left disappointed. The prices are great too. The one downside is that they are closed Monday and Tuesday and accept only cash.

Usually, I order the yummy Southwestern Omelet, but on this visit I wanted to try something new. I ordered the Texas Eggs in a Hole: 2 eggs cooked in Texas Toast topped with jack cheese, salsa, and sour cream on top of their home fries. I did not know that “Texas Toast” is an actual type of bread and not just a gimmicky name. Texas toast is packaged bread that is pre-sliced at double the thickness. Contrary to the name, it has not been toasted. It is typically used for French toast or fondue. For this plate, it literally sat on top of the has browns, had 2 holes in it where the eggs were placed, and covered with the cheese, sour cream, and salsa. As you can see in the picture, they do not waste their holes, but instead put the circular pieces on top for decoration. The home fries are basically seasoned potato cubes sprinkled amongst a few other vegetables and salsa.

I did not think eggs were going to be enough protein for me, so I took a chance and ordered Scrapple with Apple Butter. Scrapple is best known in Pennsylvania, Delaware, South Jersey, and Maryland. If you don’t know what scrapple is, then prepared to be disgusted because it does not sound as great as it tastes. Scrapple is a conglomeration of pork scraps and trimmings (think hog offal; head, heart, and liver) that are combined with cornmeal and flour to make a mush that is then formed into a loaf like shape and fried. The meat is finely minced and so ground up that it does not take much effort to chew in your mouth. The taste differs depending on what seasonings are added and omitted, but there is no doubt that it is distinct and acquired. People in Pennsylvania generally enjoy it with apple butter, a concentrated form of apple sauce that is more of preserve in texture and shelf life. I found the scrapple with apple butter to be delicious and fulfilling. However, I do not think I could eat it everyday or live off of it. My brother and I also shared a piece of the best cornbread found in the East coast. Every bite is accompanied by a wonderful corn and buttery sweet taste that will leave you wanting more. In fact, before I had it at Shorty’s, I did not enjoy cornbread at all and still am always hesitant to eat it at different locations. So if you know a place with great cornbread in Los Angeles, let me know!

Shorty’s Sunflower Cafe

1494 N Charlotte St
Pottstown, PA 19464

Get Directions(610) 970-5111

Kitchen 24

My boyfriend and I recently went out to the much talked about Kitchen 24, a cute little restaurant in Hollywood. It gets it’s name from the fact that it is conveniently open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. The menu covers everything: breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, and booze. I had heard about them through a friend dining there for breakfast. They said it was wonderful, and when I looked at the menu, their breakfast certainly sounded appetizing. However, you will see below that I did not order the breakfast, but opted for a salad. I know, a little boring, but I’m on a journey to find the best salad in Los Angeles.

I was excited to order one of their many crazy cocktails. I was a little disappointed that vodka took over the majority of the recipes (was really in the mood for gin). However, this does not mean I was disappointed with my decision of a Verde Verda: muddle strawberries shaken with Basil & Veev served refreshingly on the rocks with a splash of soda. For those of you that don’t know, Veev is the first açaí spirit. Açaí (pronounced like “a-sigh-ee”) is a fruit that grows atop a certain variety of palm tree in the rainforest (the same tree that produces hearts of palm). This little berry is a powerhouse of antioxidants (yes, even better than pomegranates), making it a great fruit to eat. Veev is a pretty green company and for every bottle that you buy, they donate a dollar to the Brazilian rainforest, directly benefiting the farming communities that harvest the berries. Their organization is carbon neutral organization, partnering with the company ClimateClean to offset their carbon emissions. They are also the only distillery in America that is powered by renewable wind energy. Kudos to you, Veev! The recipe that Kitchen 24 used to make mine was crisp and clean in taste. It was only slightly sweet, definitely not as sweet as I expected it to be with the spirits and the fruit.

For dinner, I ordered the Salmon BLT Salad: grilled salmon, tomatoes, mixed greens, applewood bacon and potatoes, with a bacon buttermilk vinaigrette. I am new to eating salmon on salads, and usually prefer to have it alone and separate. I never would think to place bacon and potatoes on it either, but it worked so well that I might have to try it at home. I think the dressing made it go from just a good salad to a great salad. I also ordered some sweet potato fries for the table for comparative purposes. The fries at Kitchen 24 were good, but only came with ketchup. I do not think that sweet potato fries and ketchup pair well, but I am sure someone out there does. I strongly believe that F.O. and The Counter have the best sweet potato fries. They seal the deal of being best by including some type of sour cream spicy dipping sauce specifically for their fries.

Overall, the food is good and probably tastes even better at 2am after a night of drinking. It is in a perfect location to pick up the hungry drinkers too, being just down the block from Citizen Smith, Beauty Parlor, and many other bars. It is very small, so I assume that it can become quite cozy after last call, but probably well worth the wait.

Note: I have just started my journey for the best salad in Los Angeles. Until I have tried a good number of salads, I cannot decide as to yet which salad ranks supreme in my book.

Kitchen 24

1608 N Cahuenga Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90028

Get Directions(323) 465-2424

Scoops

A minor goal in life right now is to have tried every flavor of ice cream offered by Scoops. So far, sooooo good! It is my new favorite place to return to. I do not think I will ever grow tired of their ice cream.

Twice in the past month I have been to there. The first time I ordered a One Scoop + One (4 scoops): Brown Bread, Green Tea and Coconut, Salty Dulce de Leche, and a vegan Lingonberry. I have had the Brown Bread ice cream before and always enjoy it’s Grape Nuts sweetness. The Green Tea and Coconut was not as tart as I expected (probably because of all the Pinkberry and Frogo I have had lately). The coconut was very subtle to me, but I still loved the green tea taste. I enjoyed the flavors greatly and would order them all again. The Salty Dulce de Leche might have been my favorite. It was a salty sweetened milk candy taste. I was hesitant about the vegan ice cream, especially since I have no idea what Lingonberry is supposed to taste like, and was combining it with non-vegan flavors. It turned out to be a creamy delightful flavor that worked well perfectly with the other flavors; much better than Soy Dream and all those other soy ice creams you can buy at the supermarket.

The second visit I ordered a One Scoop + One: Chocolate Raspberry, White Chocolate with Pomegranate Swirls, Strawberry Balsamic, and Peanut Butter & Dates. In comparison to the aforementioned One Scoop + One, these four flavors grouped together worked a little better with one another. The Chocolate Raspberry was rich and strong in flavor as if I were actually eating raspberries with a dark chocolate sauce. The pomegranate swirls in the White Chocolate with Pomegranate Swirl actually tasted like it was made from pomegranate and not just a high fructose flavored syrup. The Strawberry Balsamic was a light pink delight of creamy goodness with tiny pieces of real strawberries that gave it’s fresh strawberry flavor. The dates in the Peanut Butter and Dates gave the scoop an amazing thicker texture that teamed well with the subtle peanut butter flavor.

During both visits the service was very friendly and accommodating of my urge to sample everything and indecisive nature.

Scoops

712 N Heliotrope Dr
Los Angeles, CA 90029

Get Directions(323) 906-2649

Little Next Door

I recently met up with an old friend at the cafe, Little Next Door. The place is an adorable lunchtime deli-cafe and marketplace extension of it’s neighbor, The Little Door. The Little Next Door focuses on serving a wide range of international treats. Not only do they cover the basics such as dinners, salads, sandwiches, soups, breads, and wines, but they also have an extensive list of house-made jams and preserves that you can purchase in their marketplace.

I ordered the Moroccan Mint Iced Tea and the Little Next Deal (choice of soup, half sandwich, deli salad, and a macaron). I took the waiter’s recommendations and chose the soup of the day, a peach gazpacho. I thought the peach was going to make the soup very sweet, but it ended up to be a subtle fresh minced peach combined with more dominating tastes of herbs, tomatoes, and onions. In the center of the soup bowl you can see a green herb trapped in an ice cube which I thought to be a clever addition to the cold, refreshing dish.

For the half sandwich I chose the Ahi Tuna Tartar, hummus and fennel on house-made whole wheat pita bread. Look how adorable it is! I never would have thought about putting tuna and hummus together, but they pair well together especially with the addition of flavorful fennel. For my deli dish, I chose the Trio of Beet, which was beets accompanied with Roquefort cheese and toasted walnut. The beets were refreshing and light. My friend ordered the Smoked Salmon with tatszike/tzatziki (cucumber yogurt) sauce and arugula on two brioche buns. I did not try his, but you can see that it looked amazing and he did state in his own words that it was delicious.

For dessert, we were given two macarons, one strawberry and one mint. Note: A macaron is not to be confused with a macaroon. The macaron is a traditional French pastry that is made of egg whites, almond powder, icing sugar and sugar. It comes out of the oven in the shape of a meringue-like dome with a flat base. They are usually cut in half and filled with a sweet ganache making them look like little colorful sandwiches. I am guessing that the ganache they used in the strawberry one was with one of their own homemade preserves. These little guys were delicious; slightly crunchy on the outside, while moist and chewy on the inside.

Afterward, we made a quick walk down the street to Joan’s on 3rd for some coffee. love Joan’s. I got the iced coffee, and this is how it looks with my cream and sugar.

Little Next Door

8142 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90048

Get Directions(323) 951-1210

Joan’s on 3rd

8350 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90048

Get Directions(323) 655-2285

The Best Way to End the Day of Your First Half Marathon

After running a half marathon, walking around Balboa Park, eating a large quantity of amazing food, and car ride home to Los Angeles, there was only one thing left I needed to make the day complete.