LA

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Superba Food + Bread – LA – Sunday 19 October 2014 – Breakfast

Big Boy Breakfast

Big Boy Breakfast

The sight of a splendid white La Marzocco machine at one bench and a bench full of pastries and cakes at another was enough to momentarily snap me out of some incredible jetlag. We had just arrived in The States with a few hours in LA before getting back on a plane to Boston and my amazing cousin had picked us up and brought us to heaven on earth.

Not one of us had been for brunch this early in memory. We were so early we had to wait until 9am to see a brunch menu. We waited in the knowledge the pastries and cakes would not be going anywhere! Besides, the coffee was enough for now. Really beautiful deep savoury espresso. I was at home on the other side of the world at Superba Food + Bread.

The airy cafe is carefully designed, glass with green frame combining with wooden beams in another version of stripped back warehouse, with plenty of seating outside too. Behind my back I hadn’t noticed how busy it had gotten as we chatted to my cousin. She had earlier spotted Nicole Richie but that was nothing compared to hearing some stories of a famous rock band she met in Nice just weeks before!

We turned to the menu and it is split into toasties, breakfasty things and lunchy things. Sascha chose from the toasties, getting an open scrambled with cheese that she said was great. Catherine had the breakfast sandwich which had a beautiful slow cooked egg, delicious linguica sausage, braised kale, and pain au lait. I almost ordered that too but instead went for Paul’s Big Boy Breakfast.

The big breakfast was two fried eggs, a large piece of sourdough toast, bacon steak, kale, hot sauce and maple syrup. The sauces came separate which was good and the hot sauce had particularly good punch that became addictive with the eggs. The bacon steak was smoked beautifully to get a deep flavour, classing up from the usual.
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The service was helpful and relaxed, and the personality of the cafe was confident – assured of the quality on offer. The pastry chef explained the cakes on offer at the front in detail and I was sold.

It was 10am in LA but late at night in Melbourne so there was no guilt in ordering a sparking wine! As we finished off our glasses we all shared two cakes. The Chocolate Delice was described as decadent and indeed it was with salted caramel oozing out of the chocolate exterior. The Superba Candy Bar was the best though! Layer upon layer of chocolate, soft and inviting, and melting away delightfully with each bite.

On a perfect sunny morning it was easy to see why the crowd had flocked here but I have the feeling that it would be just as inviting on a cold wintry day.

Superba Food and Bread on Urbanspoon

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AOC – Los Angeles – Sunday 22 June 2014 – Breakfast

Hanger Steak and Eggs

Hanger Steak and Eggs

This is part of a collection of short reviews from my travels around the USA in June.

To a tourist, AOC feels like the quintessential LA brunch experience. Looking around, it is hard to see how a local would dispute this statement.

The reason we are here is we have been brought. Sascha is my cousin, but cousin or not, there must be a level of trust bringing a tourist into the fold. I have no idea where we are, but I like it; and I like the option of cheap valet parking too!

Brunch in LA at AOC is quite different to what we are used to in Melbourne. For a start, you can actually book! I forgot the novelty of not waiting 10-15 minutes for a table. Next, thankfully, there is no lycra or exercise gear. Everyone looks like eating (and drinking) is the objective and not a bonus.

Bloody Mary

Bloody Mary

It might be a weekly occurrence for some here though there is still a sense of occasion. When the food comes out you can see why. It’s huge and comes with way too many perfectly roasted potatoes, but the hanger steak and eggs is delicious! The steak itself is nicely seasoned, really flavoursome, and cooked properly, escaping any chewy texture. Not something I would ordinarily order for breakfast but I would eat again. The Bloody Mary is terrific too!

We finish with an incredible dessert, too difficult to describe but the flavours work beautifully – the creme fraiche softening the hit from the cumquats and the blood orange and pistachios balancing the flavour and texture. The main thing I miss from Melbourne, with only a little over a day left of our trip, is the immaculate coffee. AOC delivers a nice cup of joe but nothing more.

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There is a great deal to like about AOC, and other great brunch places in the States. To add to that, the differences are refreshing. Melbourne does the best breakfast in the world, but it could do with some refined brunch restaurants to add even more breadth to the portfolio.

AOC on Urbanspoon