Posted November 11th, 2008 by Meg
Me: What do you want to do today?
BF: I don’t know, what do you want to do?
Me: I don’t care, whatever….
BF: How about we get some coffee?
Me: Intelligentsia??!??!???!
BF: Yeah…
Me: You’ll drive??????
BF: Only if you buy me a cup of coffee.
Me: Deal!
And that’s how I ended up with a bag of Kurimi, Ethiopia Yirgacheffe. Usually it’s my idea to go out and procure beans, so I was pleasantly surprised to hear my boyfriend suggest it as a Saturday adventure. Especially since it meant there was less of a chance he would be cranky about driving and gas.
Flavor: Floral, honeysuckle
Acidity: Citrus, juicy
Finnish: Subtle, spice
Kurimi is a shy coffee. A soft, clean, citrus (think lemon/lime and orange) start that turns into a spiced cocoa taste which hangs out for awhile until you’re next sip. At first I had reservations about the citrus taste, but as I continued sipping, the cup opened up to me and told me it’s secrets, allowing me to recognize the beauty from sweet beginning to the calming and resonating end.
Intelligentsia
3922 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90029
(323) 663-6173
Posted October 20th, 2008 by Meg
I recently was able to get a bag of Intelligentsia’s Itzamna, Guatemala. In Yucatec Maya mythology, Itzamna is the name of an upper god and creator deity that supposedly lives in the sky. The meaning of the deity’s name is unclear, but could refer to a large lizard or Caiman (itzam) or to a liquid such as dew (itz). Aspects of the god were sometimes designated by the epithet “Itzamna Kauil,” which could mean ‘the powerful’.
Flavor: Chocolate, red apple, date
Acidity: Buoyant, well-rounded
Finish: Walnut, nutmeg, butterscotch
Even though the harvest season is from January to April, the coffee tastes like you should be drinking it during the Fall season. Immediately at first sip, I taste the red apples which turns into a sweet slightly spicy taste, which quietly disappears. Not a shy exit, but a confident exit. As if the flavor just came to say hello, compliment you on how good you’ve been looking, and then be on their way out. Because of the transition from loud, pleasant taste to quick and polite exit, I was left wanting to drink more.
Counting down the days until Intelligentsia opens in Venice….
Intelligentsia
3922 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90029
(323) 663-6173
Posted September 24th, 2008 by Meg
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!
Posted September 13th, 2008 by Meg
A few weeks ago I went to Intelligentsia to buy some fresh coffee beans. I arrived relatively close to closing time so it was not busy. The one worker behind the counter, whom I can only describe as “the guy with stretched ears”, was very friendly and helped me through a delicious dilemma: get the Flecha Roja, Costa Rica beans or the Itzamna, Guatemala.
I decided on the former, secretly hoping that when I run out of Flecha Roja, the Itzamna will still be available and in season. My decision was based simply on the appeal of the supposed molasses finish.
Flecha Roja, Costa Rica:
Flavor: Black cherry, red grape
Acidity: Balanced, tangy
Finish: Crisp, punctuated, molasses
My palette was able to pick up the cherry and grape flavors on first sip. It did taste balanced and slightly tangy. I was also able to taste a hint of molasses in between sips. However, I was surprised and delighted to find the coffee to taste better after letting it cool down! The blossomed flavor becomes more pleasant and balanced, the finish becomes gracefully punctuated, and the molasses hints are more apparent and no longer just between sips. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed these beans and would not hesitate to buy them again.
In 1779, Costa Rican coffee production started in Meseta, an area with near perfect soil and climate conditions for coffee plantation. Costa Rican coffee is Coffea arabica, a species that is indigenous to Ethiopia and Yemen. Arabica coffee is believed to be the first species of coffee to be cultivated and is considered to produce better coffee than other popular commercially grown beans such as Coffea canephora (robusta). Coffee production has played a key role in both Costa Rica’s history and economy. In 2006, coffee was the third cash crop export (first and second going to bananas and pineapples, respectively). The largest coffee growing areas are in the provinces of San José, Alajuela, Heredia, Puntarenas, and Cartago. The provinces of Costa Rica are subdivided into 81 cantons. One San José canton in particular, Tarrazú, is where my Flecha Roja beans were cultivated. This canton is notorious for making great beans. More specifically, my bag of Flecha Roja came from a cooperative called Coope Dota. At the Intelligentsia site, I learned that this coop is very successful and efficient on all levels of production (eco/labo/etc). I’ll drink to that!
Interestingly, I found that the Costa Rica agricultural institute, Centro Agronomico Tropical de Invetigacion y Enseñanza (which translates as Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center; CATIE) has an amazing program that focuses on coffee and the research and development of coffee technology.
Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea
3922 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90029
Get Directions(323) 663-6173
