Canoga Park.. No wait! Don’t click away! Sure Canoga Park, California doesn’t have the best reputation but it isn’t because they aren’t trying. I’m pretty sure what happened is as the neighboring communities improved (West Hills, Chatsworth, Warner Center, Northridge), Canoga Park continues to stay true to its “historic” heritage so it’s not improving as fast as others, keeping rents cheap but making progression slow. Sadly, some restaurants and shops have changed their listed city to not be associated while still being clearly within city limits. The city is overall safe and loaded with small businesses, many that have been around for decades, yet it is the housing that is in desperate need for improvement. On the surface or even just by name, Canoga Park is often scoffed at and ignored. They have recently repaved many of the streets, including laying brick crosswalks, offer ample public transportation options (including a large, airy biking/walking path), and hosts a Farmers Market every Saturday with live music (Check out the unique sound of Oak Street Blues who often play there). My older sister (who doesn’t make it into nearly enough of my blogs) moved away from this area at the end of 2017 but still holds a strong connection to it. She tells me whenever they host a street fair or holiday parade which is more often than any other city in the vicinity.
My sister still follows the city’s goings-on and in the ‘related stories’ to a news break, she found an article on a newly opened crepe and boba shop. On a side street next to a party supply shop, the recently opened Itty Bitty Cafe boasted boba tea, smoothies, fresh juices, coffee, and crepes with free WiFi and a welcoming community driven feel. My ears perked up and I told my sister that we should meet there as soon as we can to check it out.
After a couple of weeks of busy schedules, the husband and I met up with my sis at the cafe for some pre-dinner drinks and a snack. A little known positive attribute about Canoga Park is how most of the streets are lined with parking meters but a large portion of businesses offer free parking behind their establishments.
The cafe lives up to its name as there are 2 tightly squeezed tables inside and a window bar with some tabletop games sitting against a wall of windows creating a very hot interior. A single table and most of the chairs outside were being used by some other customers but the minute they left, we took over a nice shady spot on the side of the building. The shop seemed to be run by a lone girl whose stature matched the header on the front of the building. She was to bursting at the seams, bubbling about, while giving me all my options.
“Everything is made to order. All the milk tea flavors can be added to the iced coffees. We’ve only been open about a month (as of March 2019).”
Big sis ordered a Nutella smoothie, the husband ordered a guava milk tea, I got an iced coffee with vanilla and begged the others to split a crepe with me.
As stated, everything was truly made to order, which meant we waited a long time for the single employee to complete our order. Lucky for us, there was only one other guy in the shop at the time and I think he was just a friend of hers. My sis was unimpressed with her smoothie as it had a gritty texture, like powder not fully mixed in. The husband and I liked our drinks but there was nothing special about them. The matcha crepe with Nutella filling I finally chose was the exact opposite of all the descriptions I’ve made so far. It was colossal with its edges pouring over the full sized paper plate. It had a very light matcha flavor and oozed Nutella with every bite. The menu boasts so many items and I am curious of all of the offered flavors. I feel my review is mixed but leaning toward a positive light. Across the street is a charming used bookstore with towering walls of previously read and lovingly collected vintage books for reasonable prices. The older gentleman that runs Next Chapter Books usually sits silently unless you have a question. He then becomes like one of the aged encyclopedias in the glass beneath the register. Additionally, on the same street are several thrift shops, a small performance theater, lots of restaurants including a vegetarian/vegan place with a market called Follow Your Heart that has been there since the 1970’s. There seems to always be a reason to go to Canoga Park and this micro cafe with big personality and varied menu is just another opportunity to check out this underrated, terrific town.
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| Menus, Menus, Menus! So many choices! |
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| Art plastered the entry wall. |
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| Tiny board games for a tiny shop! |
