Posted September 1st, 2008 by Meg
Last Thursday, I visited 21 Choices with my roommate and friend. I was so happy to see that this time they had all six flavors and none were of the tart variety on the menu! I’m tarted out.
The flavors of the day were:
French Vanilla (98% fat free)
Dutch Chocolate (Made with semi sweet dark chocolate)
Iced Bailey’s (Made with coffee and Bailey’s; 1% alcohol)
Blushing Peaches (Made with peaches and strawberries; nonfat)
Junior Mint Chip (Made with Junior Mints, chocolate chips, and mint)
Oatmeal Cookies (Made with granola, cookie dough, and cinnamon).
They were also offering organic bananas and strawberries for toppings. I ordered the Oatmeal Cookie with chocolate sprinkles. It would have been even better if I chose cookie dough as my topping, but I figured the cookie dough taste was already in the mix. It was exactly like eating an amazing homemade oatmeal cookie. Thankfully, an oatmeal cookie without raisins. I also sampled the Jr. Mint Chip and had a tough time not ordering it. Ultimately, I decided that it was great as a sample, not overbearing in mint taste, but having more might be too much mint for me. Besides, it is hard to beat anything with cookie dough.
Note: Don’t be deceived by it’s sloppy look, it was delicious.
21 Choices
85 W Colorado Blvd
Pasadena, CA 91105
Get Directions(626) 304-9521
Posted August 15th, 2008 by Meg
I wish I could be doing more restaurant reviews, especially ones involving alcohol. But, this Sunday I am doing that half marathon thing, which means I need to take extra special care of myself. In the treat-your-body-nicely-so-it-won’t-screw-me milieu, I figured it is a perfect time to review tea. In one of my recent trips to Pasadena, I accidentally stumbled upon a tea shop.
I was headed to the parking garage to leave, but two birds caught my eye. Not real birds, but the two birds on the logo of a tea shop called Bird Pick. Looking less corporate than Teavana, but friendlier and more warm than Lupicia, I had to check it out. Immediately upon entering the store I realized how perfect of a store it is for Pasadena; the ambiance of the tea bar fits right in with the Old Town yuppy vibe. The location is also convenient because people will notice it when they are entering/leaving the popular parking garage across the street from the store.
While inside Bird Pick, a friendly soon-to-be freshman at UCLA helped me out. She offered to steep any type of tea I wanted to try along with giving me samples of teas she had steeped prior to my arrival. Everything I tried seemed very nice so I asked if they had any Tie Guan Yin. (My brother spent the greater part of the past year in Nanjing, but has finally returned to Pennsylvania.
One notable difference about him from the trip is that he drinks tea more often than ever before. Apparently he became quite fond of a Chinese oolong, Tie Guan Yin.). Although the girl was quite knowledgeable, she was stumped as to whether or not they sold it at the store. She explained that Bird Pick changed the names of some of their teas to make it easier to pronounce and remember. She asked the manager/tea expert guy, who was just as friendly and helpful as the girl. He was able to point out three different grades of Tie Guan Yin, which at the store is going by a very similar sounding, although not much easier to pronounce or remember, name: Tikuanyin (literally translates to Iron Goddess of Oolong). He also explained why they were graded differently; tea grading is very interesting because it is not as much about flavor and quality as it is to do with location/region of origin, garden of estate, elevation, and how it was picked and manufactured after harvest. I found that the Stash Tea website gives a more thorough description of different grades here. I bought the lowest grade of the Tie Guan Yin/Tikuanyin because it was the cheapest. I figure that if my brother likes it, I will buy him a nicer grade the next time I am there.
I only bought tea for my brother, but was given free samples to try out. Two in particular I really enjoyed: Royal One & 1 Green Tea and an Organic Green tea. The former is said to have a bittersweet finish, but I did not taste as much bitter as I did sweet. It was very pleasant and distinct. I was very hesitant about trying the Organic Green tea, because sometimes the word organic is placed on a label just so people will buy it, regardless of quality of the product. In all honesty, I was expecting it to taste like crap, but was pleasantly surprised by a smooth cup of green tea. It is the type of tea I could drink all day. I will probably buy the Organic Green tea and hopefully receive more samples next time I am at Bird Pick.
In regards to the other tea stores I mentioned: I would choose Bird Pick over Teavana any day of the week. However, I will always have a place for Lupicia in my heart (try their Tokio green tea!). It is an excellent tea store, but not surprisingly, more focused on Japanese teas. The Lupicia store is also in close proximity to where I live, making it more convenient for me to visit. If Bird Pick was just as close I would probably choose it over Lupicia because of the cute tea bar ambiance and the welcoming warm feelings.
Does anyone else ever feel guilty for not drinking green tea? I like all kinds of teas, but research seems to make green tea sound like #1 all time best tea for a person. I feel guilty when I drink other teas, even when the other type of teas have their own health benefits. I always think that if I am going to drink tea it should probably be green. Is this unheard of and am I crazy for feeling like this?
Bird Pick
10 South De Lacey
Pasadena, CA 91105
(626) 773-4372
Lupicia
10250 Santa Monica Blvd
Century City, CA 90067
Teavana
14006 Riverside Dr
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
Posted August 11th, 2008 by Meg
I strongly recommend visiting The Hungtington’s current exhibit, This Side of Paradise: Body and Landscape in L.A. Photographs. Go before it ends on September 15, 2008! I think if you have a Bank of America card, you get a discount (at least that is what I saw happen to a fellow patron). The photos definitely encourage thoughts about what has changed and what will remain the same in this crazy city. If you never do get a chance to see the exhibit, there is a book you can buy, which I am pretty sure includes the majority, if not all, the pictures found in the exhibit. It would be a great coffee table book.
I also recommend checking out the Conservatory while you are there, which includes four separate and distinct environments to walk around in: Tropical Forest Rotunda, Cloud Forest, Carnivorous Plant Bog, and Field Lab. (My favorite is the Tropical Forest Rotunda).
My boyfriend and I hung out in Pasadena after leaving the Huntington. Is it just me or is 21 Choices not offering as many flavor choices as they used to? Not only were there only 5 flavors instead of 6, 4 of the flavors are very simple such as chocolate, vanilla, a nonfat fruit, and the tart. This leaves room for just one crazy fun recipe instead of several. Oh well, they get points for using organic fruits.
After Pasadena, we went Downtown to MacArthur Park for a free Kung Fu Theater show at the Levitt Pavilion. We did not realize until we were already there that the targeted audience was children and not adults. It was amusing though, but sitting on the ground for so long was not.
The flavors of the day were:
They were also offering organic bananas and strawberries for toppings. I ordered the Oatmeal Cookie with chocolate sprinkles. It would have been even better if I chose cookie dough as my topping, but I figured the cookie dough taste was already in the mix. It was exactly like eating an amazing homemade oatmeal cookie. Thankfully, an oatmeal cookie without raisins. I also sampled the Jr. Mint Chip and had a tough time not ordering it. Ultimately, I decided that it was great as a sample, not overbearing in mint taste, but having more might be too much mint for me. Besides, it is hard to beat anything with cookie dough.
