Need For Speed, Slows Down

In the years that I have been running this blog, I have found many supportive readers, who have taken an interest in not just the places I visit or my writing style, but even down to helping to suggest new places to try or offering motivation to keep putting out new content.  I love my casual readers just as much as my subscribed followers because just knowing that someone is enjoying my creative take on an action as simple as getting a cup of coffee makes my overly caffeinated heart soar.  But like with children, there is always a favorite.  When it comes to my blog, my very first subscriber has to be in my top three most appreciated readers, so when he offered to take me to check out a café he read about; I was excited to join my step dad for a newly discovered cup of Joe.

On the last cool morning of summer, my step dad picked me up in his Jaguar and we sped through the winding roads within the Santa Monica Mountains.  Though he drew up the rpm’s, the engine of the 2005 XKR convertible Jag stayed quiet as we accelerated along the curves of the hills and stopped at an unremarkable building.  Large print painted on the side of the wall claimed it was a market and café but the main marquee called this place Topanga Living Café. 

Upon entering, to the right is the restaurant’s counter, offering pastries and fresh pizza and salads.  Every other wall was either beautifully displayed with local artists creations or locally produced foods and coffee.  The menu boasted a clean eating feel with smoked salmon, kale with mushrooms, and falafel.  Everything displayed made my mouth water.  The Café had a laundry list of teas to choose from.  I will be returning to try Le Hammeau, a blend of lemongrass, mint, lavender, and some other herbal flavors that are my favorites.  It is available online through specialty stores but the delightful patio has just the perfect amount of space and quiet that begs to be sat in with teacup in one hand and drawing sketch pad in the other.  Even though our California drought has browned up the scenery, there are still ample evergreens and rocky cliffs to be captured in pencil while sitting among more local art (which is all available for purchase). 

My step dad and I ordered the Big Brekky and sat at a rounded wood table outside.  A closer look at the tables around us revealed marble topped sewing tables repurposed for diners.  I didn’t dare press the pedal to see if the mechanics on the old iron Singer table still moved but I was tempted to.  This tiny café had my creative left brain thinking and just being in the atmosphere gave me tons of artsy inspiration.  It must be this place, as my step dad noted he read celebrities like to dine here and I think there was a screenwriter at the table across from us.  Funky furniture and neighborhood crafts weren’t the reason we came though.  The coffee had excellent reviews.  I ordered a simple latte, which was light on both the creamy and coffee flavors but served so delicately, I wish I could have taken the dishware home with me.  My step dad must have still been in go mode as he ordered a double espresso followed by a macchiato.  Both delicious, as was breakfast! 

There are other place to try on the long Topanga Canyon street that goes almost from my front door to the beach, but as my step dad did his research to find a place for my readers to enjoy with us, Topanga Living Café had the most appealing menu to go with its great reviews.  I love suggestions from my followers including one I was just informed about that is close by that features coffee and…. fish.  But that is a blog for another day.

Latte

Double espresso

Macchiato

Big Brekky

It's All Greek To Me

Southern California is known for its vast and diverse museums.  Many of them in Downtown Los Angeles along Museum Row, oddball museums in Hollywood like the Museum of Death and Museum of Broken Relationship, some so fascinating with new exhibits arriving all the time that a person would have to make a full time career out of visiting them to see them all.  I have been to dozens of museums in my life here in So Cal, but this week was my first time to the J. Paul Getty Villa in Malibu, overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  It is uniquely packed into the cliff side adjacent to the miles of pavement that makes up just a small section of the Pacific Coast Highway.  The Getty has two properties; the Getty Center in Brentwood (L.A.), is the Museum with its meticulously manicured gardens, photography, and dazzling views of Los Angeles, and Getty Villa that houses antiques, restored artifacts, and all things Greek, Roman, and Etruscan.  The extent of my knowledge and interest on this subject has been Disney's animated feature Hercules, where Danny DeVito voices a satyr, leading this museum to be visited when my teacher friends invited me out for a day of acting like tourists.
Even though my enthusiasm for this period in history is minimal, any chance to broaden my knowledge is seen as a positive opportunity and I will gladly take it.  It's a scant drive through the curvaceous Santa Monica mountains that empties out at PCH, make a left and two streets up is the tiny driveway that is the unimpressive entrance to the Villa, then up the driveway to pay the parking fee.  The Villa is free, as is the Museum, but parking is charged in both places.  However, with the Villa, online reservations must be made in advance as to prevent overcrowding.  We didn't have reservations but we asked when we got to the gate and were granted admittance, assuming it was all due to flashing my beaming smile and giving a flirty wink.  Now that we were on the property, the scenery changed.  Large cobblestones cause the car to shake as we drove to the parking structure.  We were now surrounded in greenery and hedges.  We now ascended staircase after staircase, lines with roses and extended views of the property and Malibu.  There is a large outdoor auditorium in front of the entrance to the main exhibits.  Housed in individual rooms, some the size of an apartment bathroom, some the length of a horse stable, are carved statues, painted clay vases, and long forgotten forms of currency are displayed behind glass and out of children's reach.  There is one example, a formidable, ancient carved bear, all the stone was a beautiful white while a single paw was a greasy grey color.  The placard stated it was destroyed from decades of oils transferred through human touch.  As you make your way through the grounds, history meets beauty as you see the delicate hand carved statues and ceilings, some with gold inlay, painted mural walls, marble floors, and pools with human replicas displaying actions of a time past.
There is a modern section displaying new installations, a family center where children can act out Roman war scenes using shadows or design their own vases on paper or using washable markers on actual pots, and in the reasonably sized gift shop, there was a full wall of bookcases stuffed with a magnificent selection of books for all ages.
Above the gift shop is the cafe offering Mediterranean eats but only one style of coffee.  They had a separate menu boasting about the Afternoon Tea package available upstairs with the ocean as the backdrop.  I wasn't ready to drop $42 dollars for tea and cakes so the last option across from the cafe seating area was a little coffee kiosk.  One push button machines gave for many options of coffee and other hot beverages.  Being across the street from the cool water's breeze had me craving a hot drink.  My super foamy and slightly bitter cappuccino was exactly what I needed.  One of my friends ordered a simple iced coffee and the three of us discussed potential future museum visits elsewhere.  Seems my friends prefer more traditional museums so the Bunny museum in Pasadena is out but maybe I can convince them to join me Grammy museum.  Seems Los Angeles has a museum for everything.

"Hercules". I really enjoyed that the Disney Animated feature showed Hercules just as this original stature was poised, using Scar from The Lion King in place of this lion skin.  This is the Disney G-rated version of the Hercules statue.  According to the plaque, he had been all restored but one very obvious body part was missing still and no further information was given.

This was part of the family activity center where guests could come draw on the vases with washable markers.  The docent told us she enjoyed this two pieces so much that she didn't have the heart to erase them.  They look extremely historically accurate, down to the Captain America shield and MouskerToga.

"Modern Art" "#Clever" 

Lots of era appropriate plant life including ivy and olive trees.

The Pacific Ocean, so close, you can feel the salty air.

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.