Sweets and Streets

Pop quiz!

What do The Everly Brothers, Frank Zappa, and Tom Petty have in common?  If you said they're all dead, you would be wrong.  Don Everly is still alive at the time this blog is published.  The correct answer is... They all have songs featuring California's famous Ventura Boulevard.  The celebrity street is featured in songs, music videos, films, television, and video games.  Of the 18 mile long stretch of road that runs on the other side of my apartment, a quarter of a mile down sits a mom and pop (mom and son, in this case) bakery that is a sweet spot to the Hollywood big shots.  Articles showcasing the likes of Tom Cruise and Donnie Wahlberg boasting about Doan's Bakery hang on the walls like a proud grandmother's Picture Day gallery.

Two of my teacher friends came to my house and in the warm 90 degree sunshine, we took the famously sung about 'walk down Ventura Boulevard'.  Hanging under the awning of the bakery's large window front in welcoming scroll is the word 'Coffee' adjacent to the friendly Doan's Bakery mascot.  The shop is run by Washington state native, Karen Doan and has been in business since 1983.  An oversized picnic bench sits in the center of the dine in area surrounded by an eclectic mix of seating options as well as a red micro bistro set for kids.  Bright art, fresh flowers and plants, and fun signage gave the dining room a sense of home.  The domed case containing the baked goods acted as both the register counter and partition to the on-site bakery.  Inside the case was a blissful selection of cakes, cupcakes, and pastries.  After the owner gave each of us a taste of her handcrafted lemon cupcake filling, as amazing as it was, we all defaulted to our instinctual choice: chocolate.  As the last chocolate croissant, sitting at 8 inches long and 3 inches across, called for a split between my girlfriend and I, our other friend snatched up a chocolate cupcake lined with white chocolate chips inside with cream cheese frosting and a rich ganache topping.  To complement our sweets, I ordered a hot mocha latte, my girlfriend had a cold mango tea, and the other teacher enjoyed a hot latte with a nice layer of foam.  My coffee was decadent.  The chocolate flavor over shadowed the coffee and when I reached the bottom of my cup, there was half an inch of ooey gooey dark chocolate goodness.  I only wished I had ordered cold coffee instead of hot, as the air conditioning was losing its fight against my sweltering self.

Business came and went while I listened to my teacher friends discuss they various perks and downfalls of their careers.  One taught in another country and the other taught just down the street.  I was learning about pushy parent techniques while a couple came in and worked with the owner to create a custom wedding cake at the counter.  A couple of teenagers came in for iced coffees as I found out about what kind of degrees and credentials are needed in various countries around the globe.  I had a brief time working in a school years ago and was interested in hearing all about what was the same and different since my time with kids.  

We spent a significant amount of time there, stalking the foot and road traffic on the historical thoroughfare.  The owner added new covered cake stands filled with treats which my friend soon noticed contained one of his favorites; red velvet cupcakes.  He made a comment about possibly choosing that instead of the chocolate if he had seen it prior.  Sweet Mrs. Doan then packed up one of those colossal red beauties for him to take home and enjoy at no charge.  Touched by the gesture, my friend immediately hopped on his phone to give a glowing online review.

For 35 years, this family run, sugar heavenly stop, has done quite well on the street that is also home to the Valley's first golf course (1922), and that acted as a walking memorial path for the late Tom Petty.  Delicious desserts and fair trade, freshly roasted coffees, served with a family feel, will bring me back again for sure.