This has been one. crazy. month so far, and it's far from over. This past month, I packed up and moved (temporarily) ~400 miles to Los Angeles for a short four weeks. During that time, I drove three round trips between the Bay Area ↔ Los Angeles and 2 side trips (to Pomona and Davis), racking up a total of roughly 2500 miles behind the wheel. I gave five (different) talks at five different universities and really slept no more than five hours every night (on good nights). And, of course, there was the main reason that I moved: launching a new research project with a collaborator at UCLA. Anyways, I did say it's been crazy, right?
Given this breakneck schedule, I really didn't get to explore as much of the wonderful LA food scene as I would have liked, but I did make sure to carve out a bit of time one Thursday evening to visit one of my favorite bakeries in the city: Huckleberry in Santa Monica. The reason I wanted to go on a Thursday evening was because it's the one night a week that they turn their attention from pastries and breakfast to dinner. And oh.my.gawd, the Thursday evening dinner at Huckleberry was amazing.
Served family-style, we had dates stuffed with curry mascarpone for amuse bouche, followed by a huge bowl of bright cucumbers, fennel, olives, and frisee tossed in light and (at the same time) velvety mustard dressing. For the main came this big platter of some of the best fried chicken I've ever had, perched atop a bed of white bean cassoulet, which was this hearty, thick, warm-your-soul tomato-y and bacon-y stew. Uh! so, so good! Dessert was simple and sweet, with softly macerated raspberries ladled over an ultra-flakey egg-custard-filled tart. (Their dinner menu changes every week.)
As I said, this month is far from over yet (okay, fine technically, an extended month, but all the days are blurring together at this point). I'm off to the UK next! Tea and scones, here I come!
More details in subsequent posts, after I'm able to get more sleep, I promise. :)
Can't beat fried chicken + slaw!
ReplyDeleteI live so close and I haven't been to Huckleberry yet! There are so many places to eat here, that I hope you can squeeze one more great place in! Also, I'm not fan of scones here (they can be sooo dry and tasteless), but they really know how to do it in the UK!
ReplyDeleteWhoa. Crazy month is right! And I thought I was busy, haha! We're moving next month and while I'm looking forward to being out of this apartment, moving is just always so stressful. This place looks INCREDIBLE. Definitely going next time I'm in town...
ReplyDeleteGotta love fried chicken!
ReplyDeleteWow that is some schedule. Huckleberry is one of my favorite restaurants. We don't live close enough to visit for a mid-week dinner but I'll have to put it on my list of to-do's. If you're ever there again, buy a tshirt. One of the softest I've ever had...and who doesn't want a shirt that says Coffee and Donuts or Bacon! on the back?
ReplyDeleteGeez louise, girl! Talk about a whirlwind. That being said: a) I *love* Huckleberry and their brunch options. My go-to for a slow Sunday morning. b) UCLA--welcome to the land of the Bruins! Guess we're in the same 'hood nowadays, definitely a small world :) hope you're loving your time here!
ReplyDeleteI love the sound of this place - anywhere that serves their food in the middle of the table for everyone to help themselves is a winner in my book!
ReplyDeleteI hope we get to eat at huckleberry the next time we are in LA!
ReplyDeleteOh wow. This place looks amazing!
ReplyDeleteHi Stephanie, I've been a long-time reader/admirer of your work but haven't commented before now. I'm from LA and am currently living in London and am so excited to hear that you're coming to the UK! Will you be giving any talks or leading workshops during your trip? It would be amazing to meet you! :)
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