Yogen Früz

A new frozen yogurt chain (from Canada) has entered Los Angeles! Unfortunately, it is located in Beverly Hills. It is for this reason that I waited until Sunday evening to go check it out. The company has been around since 1986 and plans to open 1,000 more stores across the nation over the next decade.The place is small with very limited seating. Their big “thing” is blending the yogurt and the fruit via machine, which isn’t anything new (Humphrey Yogart has the same type of machine for their mixing). But, the majority of their yogurt is prepackaged and individually wrapped like popsicles. At this point in time they have one soft serve flavor and that is called Probiotic Soft Serve on their website, which means that it is the same as Original/Plain/Tart.

I was very interested in the packaged yogurt. The have a variety of package flavors: lowfat vanilla, lowfat chocolate, nonfat vanilla, and nonfat no sugar vanilla (the green packages in the picture). On the wall they have a picture of the Matcha Green Tea Blend. I chose that in Lowfat Vanilla flavor with some mochi topping. They use actual matcha green tea powder and blend it with the yogurt. The yogurt was not as sweet as I am used to, but it certainly was creamy. I am unsure how I feel about the matcha green tea powder because it made the not-sweet yogurt taste even less sweet by adding a bitter component. I am guessing that the workers there have not learned to master the yogurt blending yet and this is why the taste isn’t perfect nor is the cup aesthetically pleasing. The mochi pieces were also not very sweet and less gummy than most other yogurt places; completely different in taste and texture than any other yogurt store’s.

In the end, it was new and interesting. I am sure people will enjoy it and it will become popular especially as an alternative to other yogurts. But personally, I will give it time to work out it’s kinks before I go back.

Yogen Früz
9401 Brighton Way
Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Diddy Riese

If you are willing to drive and hunt for parking, Westwood is a great place for ice cream/frozen yogurt. Diddy Riese is a popular place for their inexpensive but delicious treats. You wait in line (there is more often than not going to be a line), make your order, quickly receive your order and then pay. It’s fast paced and there is very little seating in the small establishment, but that’s okay because Westwood is the type of place you can wander around. They use Dreyer’s ice cream and have the following flavors: french vanilla, cookie dough, rocky road, mint chocolate chip, strawberry, chocolate, espresso chip, butter pecan, strawberry cheesecake chunk, peanut butter cup, chocolate chip, and cookies & cream. They make fresh homemade cookies everyday: chocolate chip, chocolate chip with walnuts, oatmeal raisin walnut, sugar cinnamon, white chocolate chip, peanut butter, double chocolate with nuts, candy, chocolate with white chocolate chip, white chocolate macadamia nut. For $1.50, you can purchase an ice cream sandwich. In the picture above is one chocolate chip cookie hugging peanut butter cup ice cream while reaching over for it’s dissimilar friend the chocolate white chocolate chip cookie. Best friends forever. In the picture below is on the left two chocolate chip cookies and espresso chip ice cream and on the right is two chocolate white chocolate chip cookies and mint chocolate chip ice cream. Cash Only.

Diddy Riese
926 Broxton Ave.
Westwood, CA 90024
(310) 208-0448

Scoops

Salty White Chocolate and Black Sesame. I know, I repeated the Salty White Chocolate, but it’s so good! They made a great pair together. The Black Sesame was a soft and subtle toasty-sweet taste. It was the quieter one of the two flavors.

Winner: Salty White Chocolate

Scoops
712 N Heliotrope Dr
Los Angeles, CA 90029
(323) 906-2649

Angelato Café

One would think that by the ocean in a state where there is constant sunshine and warm weather, there would be infinite ice cream / gelato/ frozen yogurt locations. Sadly, this is not the case in Santa Monica. My roommate and I stopped at the one gelato place near the Promenade called Angelato Café. Gelato is the Italian version of ice cream but with significantly less butterfat than ice cream making it less solid and frozen (melts more quickly in your mouth), gelato is of a higher density because it is produced without the addition of air, and it is served slightly warmer (10-15 degrees less) than ice cream. All three differences gives gelato a richer, more full flavored taste than ice cream.

Angeleto offers an array of standard and unique flavors of gelato, sorbetto, tofulati, yogurt, and sugar free products. There is supposedly over 100 flavors but I was not counting. I ordered a strangely amazing combination of Green Tea Gelato and Chocolate Grand Marnier. Although this is not as good as what you would find in Italy, it is still creamy and rich. I especially enjoyed the Green Tea Gelato; it was a treat to taste this flavor in any form other than Soy Dream or Pinkberry. Cash Only.

Angelato Café
301 Arizona Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90401
(310) 656-9999

Tutto Tutti

I recently read on the LAist that Tutto Tutti on Melrose is the best frozen yogurt in Los Angeles. Those are some brave words! Naturally, I had to check this place out. All their yogurt is organic and from the pyramids of Horizon Organic Nonfat Yogurt tubs (which you can kind of see in the picture) I am guessing that is the yogurt they use. They do not have a website up yet, but here is what I gathered from just being there.

They have six flavors:

1. Virgin - Plain Organic Yogurt

2. Double Wonder - Sea Salt and Caramel mixed in with Plain Organic Yogurt

3. Seven - 7 Healthy Whole Grains Blended with Plain Organic Yogurt

4. Super Bee - Ginseng, honey infused in with Plain Organic Yogurt

5. Freckle Snow White - Black Sesame Seeds and Plain Organic Yogurt

6. White Velvet - Vanilla Organic Yogurt

Along with their unique flavors they also have different toppings: Balsamic Raspberry Reduction, Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce, Balsamic Berries, Banana Nut Berry, Candied Walnuts, and probably a few more that I don’t not remember. No kiddie cups here, one size fits all. The yogurt starts at $4.50. If you add 1 “layer” (topping) you add 1.00 to your total. If you add 2 “layers”, you add 1.50 to your total. If you add 3 “layers” you add 2.00 dollars to your total. Yes, they take credit cards! But, you can’t tip on the receipt, if you’re into that sort of thing.

I sampled and enjoyed all flavors, but one really stood out for me. Call me boring, but I ordered the White Velvet with Balsamic Raspberry Reduction and Banana Nut Berry (more of just Bananas and nuts). The White Velvet is creamy and thick. Out of all the yogurt places I have tasted, this is on the more custard side of textures (which I love). The vanilla is sweet and subtle, but stands out (especially in comparison to the other flavors made with plain yogurt). I greatly enjoyed the balsamic raspberry reduction and thought it worked well with both the bananas and the yogurt. I hope to go back again. It is organic, delicious, and they have a parking lot! Don’t be fooled though, there are approximately 8 parking spots with 10 minute only signs AND the lot is shared with a California Chicken Cafe. So it might be one of those just go at night when street parking is free places. They also have organic coffee, but I forgot to look at that menu because I was so excited about frozen yogurt. In the end, I cannot say that it is the best frozen yogurt in Los Angeles, but I can say it certainly does rank high in my book. It’s worth checking out.

Tutto Tutti
6803 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90038

Get Directions(323) 939-9424

Silver Lake: Local

Seriously, the name of this restaurant is Local. Even though it is not local for me, Local is worth the trip. Local has been open since September 2nd, 2008 and was only breakfast and lunch until a few days ago, now they also serve dinner. Local was opened by the executive chef behind Cobras and Matadors, Jason Michaud. Through internet research I have found out that Michaud is one cool guy; along with working in restaurants for the greater part of his life he was also a drummer in the metal math bands Spilth and Men of Porn. Metal math is experimental rock that is mostly guitars and drums and is complex, atypical rhythmic structures including irregular stops and starts, angular melodies, and dissonant chords. The mission statement behind this restaurant is genuine: committed to using local, organic products as much as possible. Local goes beyond just food and also uses antiques for furniture, energy efficient lighting, glassware (no plastic table cups), and the food for takeout rides in biodegradable plastic plates, bowls, and cups (made of potato and/or sugar cane, like these!). Bad ass.

It sits somewhere between Silver Lake Lounge and Dusty’s on the other side of the road on Sunset. I made my visit on a Wednesday at approximately 12:00pm. For lunchtime it wasn’t as packed as I thought it was going to be, but there was still a good number of hip Silver Lakers (or is it Silver Lakians?). It is the type of restaurant where you order at the counter, take your number, find seating and wait for the food to arrive. However, there are servers around to refill your water, get you silverware, napkins, condiments, or anything else you might need. It is a small/medium sized restaurant. Everyone that was working there (which were all guys) were above and beyond friendly and were obviously passionate about the restaurant. I think this is important to stress because when people show that they are invested and care about what they are doing (in general, not just food), it makes the whole experience much more enjoyable for everyone involved. Good tingling feelings. I was told that it gets packed on the weekends - I hope that they are just as friendly and outgoing under crowded conditions!

As you can see there is an organic salad bar. The fact that this salad bar is organic makes it a million times better than any other salad bar I have been to before (Whole Foods). After getting the recommendation for my meal of “everything is good”, I decided upon the Rocky Jr. Free Range Chicken Sandwich and an Iced Coffee. On the menu, there is no description of what is in the Rocky Jr. Free Range Chicken Sandwich, so it was an exciting surprise! Rocky Jr. is a free range, younger chicken that weighs on average three and half pounds and roams in spacious growth houses (not outside because they are young and partially feathered). The chicken is cooked with herbs and joined with fresh, perfect tomatoes, daikon sprouts, pickles, and sprinkled with salt. It sits between a bun that I don’t recognize but tasted like Hawaiian bread (yellowish insides) with sesame seeds on top. It was a big sandwich, one that requires two hands to eat. At first intimidating,  after the first bite it becomes a challenge you want to take on and conquer. Instead of fries, I opted for a salad with a roasted red pepper purée on the side. It was all delicious. The salt really made the flavors in the tomatoes and pickles pop out. I would order it again. The iced coffee is made from Alessandro beans. Unfortunately, I cannot find anything on the internet about Alessandro coffee; let’s hope it’s organic too! (Free refills on Iced Coffee).

In regards to what is organic and what is not, it varies week by week because large shipments of organic food is not common right now in the restaurant world. The guy I talked to about organic food said that they try their best and want to go completely organic, but at this point in time they have to make do with the situation. The price of organic food is high, thus the prices on the menu are higher. My meal totaled to be around 17 dollars.  I know, pricey, but it really is not too much more than most trendy Los Angeles breakfast/lunch places, so I don’t think it should be a big deal if you go to other expensive places already. If you look at it as being preventative maybe it will make you feel better: paying extra now so you don’t have to pay later in health and medical bills. Go to Local!

Local keeps things interesting; check out what I found in the bathroom! The statue/boy definitely scared me at first, but then I laughed about how creepy it is.

Here are some poor quality pictures I took of their menu (like all my pictures, click on them to make larger):

Local
2943 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(323) 662-4740

Hours
Breakfast and Lunch: 9am-3pm
Dinner: 5pm-10pm
They take credit cards!

Vampire Weekend

Last Thursday my roommate and some old friends went to see Vampire Weekend at the Wiltern. Before the show, we stopped at Casa Bianca in Eagle Rock and got some of “the best pizza in Los Angeles.” I have not tried enough pizza in the city to know if this statement holds true, but I do know I like their pizza. I ordered the Wheat Crust with Cheese and Eggplant. I was expecting the eggplant to be cubes or slices that were baked in with the pizza, but they turned out to be isosceles triangles that were either fried or just soaked in some oil before they were baked on top. Regardless of how they were cooked, it worked well with the wheat crust. I don’t know if I will get the wheat pizza again though because it was a little too dry for me. Sometimes in the battle between health and tastiness, you should just go for the tastiness. I learned my lesson! My roommate ordered a medium pizza Half Tomato, Garlic, Artichoke and the other Half Mushroom and Sausage. I got to try a piece of his, and the Tomato, Garlic, Artichoke tasted so fresh!

After dinner we headed over to see Vampire Weekend perform at the Wiltern. For those of you know familiar with Vampire Weekend, they are an “indie” band from NYC that formed after they graduated from Columbia while working full time jobs. Although they fall under the “indie” genre, it’s not your typical indie, not to my ears at least. Nicholas Thorburn (The Unicorns, Th’ Corn Gangg, Islands, Reefer, and Human Highway) calls them “trust fund frat rock,” but I don’t really agree with that….Maybe we’re thinking of different frats. They are bouncy, lyrical, happy, and remind me of summer. The song that gets played most on the radio is A-Punk:

Three interesting facts:

1. They became popular through blogs; Yay, the power of blog!

2. They were on the cover of Spin Magazine (March 2008) with the caption: Year’s Best New Band BEFORE their debut album was released!

3. They were dubbed “the Whitest Band” by Christian Landor, the creator of Stuff White People Like in a Salon.com interview (click on the link to read their interview! I especially like the last question: “The white people who like your site — are you just giving them another way to feel self-congratulatory? “)

It was their second night there and they played a fun set. It was short, but sweet. Even though they do not have many songs to perform (they only have one album under their belt), it seemed like everyone knew them, creating a warm sense of unity. Or something. They did play a few songs that have not been released yet which I found to be catchy and a sign that their next album will have at least one good song on it. As you can see in the picture of the stage, I was not close nor did I try to push my way to the front.

One part of the night that I especially enjoyed was the part where I finally REGISTERED TO VOTE! Yay! Right when you walk into the Wiltern there is a table of people making sure you have registered to vote. I know that in a few short weeks I will be bombarded with numerous jury duty summons, but it’s worth it! I read recently that California has slightly more than half a million registered voters now than it did four years ago. Registering totally got me pumped up! If you haven’t registered, go HERE. In California, the deadline to register to vote for an election is 15 days before each local and statewide Election Day, so that would mean the absolute last day you can register is October 21th, 2008. Anyway, that’s all I’m saying; I don’t care who you vote for or why you’re voting for so-and-so, I’m still going to make fun of you for the other decisions you make in life (like that ridiculous hat you wear every so often….) So you might as well just do it.

Casa Bianca
1650 Colorado Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90041

Get Directions(323) 256-9617

The Wiltern
3790 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90010

Get Directions(213) 388-1400