mmm-yoso!!!

Honolulu - Lunch at SXY Szechuan and the Honolulu Coffee Experience Center

After an evening of revisits, we awoke the next morning with...well, no major plans other than doing a bunch of shopping. We had reservations for dinner and needed to get the usual...you know Lupicia, Hawaii Cookie Company, a couple of stuffs we needed for this trip, etc. We had thought of driving to a couple of places but ended up not using the car at all during our stay at the Ala Moana Hotel! We just had fun walking around.

We started off needing some caffeine to start the day. There are a couple of places really close, but instead, I wanted to walk the couple of blocks over to the corner of Kapiolani and Kalakaua. This is where the  "main" location of Honolulu Coffee, which I used to have when my office was located in downtown. I hadn't had their coffee in ages and I guess now they are a major chain!

Another reason I wanted to visit was that old timers like me will remember when this was the location of Coco's Coffee House (before that it was Kau Kau Corner - but I'm not that old!), which closed and was replaced by the Hard Rock Cafe in 1987.

So, that's what it kinda looks like now. We crossed on over and walked on in.

It's a pretty nice space. It's in a circular design, with a coffee roasting machine at the center.

At the front is where you place your order. The folks working are really friendly.

The Missus ordered a Peaberry Pour Over, I got a Cold Brew, and was a bit hungry, but didn't want anything too sweet. The young man recommended the Elote Scone, toasted, with a friendly warning of "it might be too salty, though." The drill goes this way, all basic coffee drinks and pastries are served at the counter. They call your name and you pick up your order. Cold Brew is specially made at this counter in the back by the area you can buy coffee beans.

You are given a number and they'll deliver the pour over to your table.

Also, all the pastries for the chain in HNL are made here.

Of course my order was ready first.

   The Cold Brew was ok, on the milder side. The scone was pretty good, not overly dense, nice chunks of corn, and not too sweet. I did not find it to be overly salty. Quite filling to be sure.

The Missus's pour over was delivered on a tray with two cups on the side.

The Missus said it seem to lack "character", She is also more into natural processed African beans and this was washed process and fairly mild.

Still, we liked the "vibe" of the place; think of it as a local version of a Starbucks Reserve Roastery.

Honolulu Coffee Experience Center
1800 Kalakaua Ave.
Honolulu, HI 96815

After our coffee we headed up Kalakaua. I showed the Missus where we lived for a short time. It was a cheap apartment, I had to support my Mom by those days. It cracks me up that it is now a parking lot....probably makes more money than the apartment did?

I then took the Missus to Don Quijote because most other places weren't open yet. Of course, you might remember it as Holiday Mart and then Daiei? Mega chain "Donki" owns many markets you might know, like Marukai, Times, Big Save, and even Gelson's. Anyway, this location of Don Quijote is open 24 hours It's huge; think of it like a huge Asian Grocery combined with Daiso on steroids. It kept the Missus busy for over an hour!

At which time we could head to Ala Moana to do our shopping. By the time we were done we decided to drop off our bags to our room and get some lunch. It was quite hot and we wanted to walk to lunch. I mentioned a place I'd read about on Kathy's wonderful Onolicious Hawaii, with the interesting name of SXY Szechuan. It's got an interesting location facing the parking lot on the second floor of the Kona Street side of Ala Moana, right where the ramp comes up from Piikoi. San Diego has been quite the wasteland for Sichuan in recent years and some Liang Cai and a veggie sounded good.

It was just after opening time for lunch; 11am and we were the first customers served.

The place isn't very big, though it also wasn't too busy on this day. There was only one other party eating during our entire meal.

We ordered two liang cai and some ong choy.

First up was the veggie. Man, this was so tender!

Even the stems! Great garlic tones; just enough salt and pepper, the Missus loved it.

We also got the Fuqi Fei Pian a favorite of hours. 

This had a lot more slices of beef than tripe; but the tripe was so tender as was the beef, which in this case seemed to be brisket. The seasoning had decent spice, good ma-la (numbing hot) with a balance of sweet and sour flavors. It wasn't overly salty and could have perhaps used more garlicky-pungent tones, but this was pretty good overall.

The last item was something I saw on Kathy's post on SXY; the Pork Belly with Garlic.

   Slices of pork belly wrapped around cucumber; looking at it, we were reminded of what we'd had Mountain House. There was a good amount of garlic, but the pork belly was too thick which really made it gummier than we like. While the cucumber did add a nice palate cleansing refreshing note, the overall flavor seemed a bit off balance. It needed more spicy, sweet, and savory. Funny thing, we dumped all the drippings from the Fuqi Fei Pian on the remainder of this dish and we enjoyed it much more. Still, the version at Mountain House is a step above this. Though, we did enjoy our meal. If we weren't staying in a hotel and unafraid to have leftovers, we definitely would have ordered more.

Still, this was a nice meal, the spice really had an almost cooling effect on us as we walked back to our room.

SXY Szechuan (Ala Moana Center)
1450 Ala Moana Blvd.
Honolulu, HI 96814

We decided to have nice nap in air-conditioned comfort, then do a bit more shopping before heading off to dinner!

Thanks for stopping by!

The Croissant Files - La Clochette Cafe & Bakery (Mission Valley)

In one of my recent Croissant posts, "FOY" Kathy mentioned La Clochette du Coin on Cass. I had actually tried to visit once, but there was a huge line and they ere out of Butter Croissants by the time I got into the shop. Still, I had been planning to try and visit again; but then faith...or something intervened. I had heard that La Chlochette opened a shop in Mission Valley, in the newish enclave of Civita. Since I had to make a TJ's run, I thought I should try and see if the shop was open. I hadn't been in this area of Mission Valley in ages. Man has it changed; with a large park, they now have a Saturday Farmers Market and food trucks on Tuesdays. It's a far cry from what MV was when we first moved to San Diego in 2001 and lived off Friars Road for a couple of years!

And while there seemed to be a good amount of traffic I found some parking on Civita Boulevard and walked around the corner to see that the bakery was open.

This was a fairly early Sunday visit and the place was quite empty. I walked on in and took a look at the offerings.

While there wasn't anything the Missus was keen on trying; I zeroed in on the Butter Croissant (of course).

So, I simply got one Butter Croissant ($5.25), then headed over to Trader Joe's to get some shopping done.

Once home, I put everything away, then it was Croissant Time. The color of the croissant was fairly dark, though it had a nice "rise" and good layering.

 The pastry was quite flakey and crisp. The interior a bit wet and on the doughy side, but acceptable. The amount of salt was good, but it was sorely lacking in butter.

Too bad, because this definitely had potential. 

Still, this location is still in the soft opening phase. The Grand Opening isn't until October 5th. So, I'll probably visit some time after that to see how things are.

I want to thank KathyH for the reminder on La Clochette and if she is reading this; does the croissant look the same as the version in PB?

La Clochette Cafe & Bakery (Mission Valley)
7995 Civita Blvd. Suite 11
San Diego, CA 92108

 

Odds and Ends - Cubano Kings (Little Italy Mercato), and Desserts by Clement Revisited

I hope everyone is enjoying the cooler weather here. Just a couple of things for a mellow Saturday.

Cubano Kings:

So, I was doing my regular Saturday shopping at the Little Italy Mercato. But on this morning, well, I was a bit hungry. So, since I didn't have too much to do on this day, I took a look at various stands and this one caught my attention.

It had been a while since I'd had a Cubano and this seemed like a nice option. A Cubano was priced at $12, which seemed pretty reasonable, so I ordered one and went for short "walk" before picking up my sandwich. Which was ready when I returned.

I could tell by weight that it was quite hefty. I found a nice peaceful place to have a seat.

Like I said, the sandwich seemed quite hefty.

    Which turned out to be true...at least for me. Man, look at all that pork! The pork was nicely seasoned; though, at least for me, I'm all about proportion and balance of flavor and frankly, this was just too much pork, and where's the jamon? And the bread was just not up to the task as it got really mushy plus all of the pork muted the pickles. And was there even mustard on this....I do like a good counter-point to the rich pork.  Still, if you want a very porky sandwich, here it is..... It's just not the kind of Cubano I enjoy.

Still, in terms of price, well for $12 you can't really complain.

Cubano Kings at the Little Italy Mercato
Saturday 8am - 2pm

And in my post on getting the Missus the Pistachio Spiral Croissant from Bonjour Patisserie I mentioned having to go back to.....

Desserts by Clement:

Which I did.

On a quiet weekend morning. I found that PB wakes up a bit later than most places.

And so the Missus got Her Pistachio Spiral Croissant. 

Which She enjoyed and said this is the best She has had in San Diego......

Now, with some hesitation, I need to ask, do you know of a better version?

Desserts by Clement
1380 Garnet Ave.
San Diego, CA 92109

Hope everyone is having a wonderful....and much cooler weekend!

The Croissant Files - Bonjour Patisserie and Cafe de l'Opera

Here are a couple of more croissant visits.

Bonjour Patisserie:

I had read that one of the pastry booths in the Little Italy Mercato had opened a brick and mortar shop on Cedar street. I had tried the croissants from Bonjour Patisserie's stand at the farmer's markets and wasn't very impressed, but since the Missus wanted to try the Spiral Croissant to compare against the version Desserts by Clement. So, after doing my typical Saturday Farmer's Market stop, I headed on over to Cedar to the newly opened shop.

Walking in I was greeted by the nice young lady working. And there was the Pistachio Spiral Croissant that the Missus wanted.

I got one butter croissant and the spiral croissant and headed back to the car and then home.

Once home I went and tried the butter croissant.

  Though it looked over-baked, the exterior wasn't flakey and crisp. The interior was on the doughy-bready-chewy side and the croissant, in my opinion really lacked butteriness. This was mediocre at best and was the same as what I'd had before from their stand. Well, at least they're consistent, right?

The Missus also dug into Her spiral croissant. Which looked pretty good.

    But the Missus cut into it and took a bite and made a face. She made me have a taste. The crust was doughy, gummy, and lacking in crispness. It was on the thick side. The filling was too sweet for my taste as well.

So guess who was sent back to Desserts by Clement as few days later?

Well, another croissant tried and marked off.......

Bonjour Patisserie
320 W Cedar St.
San Diego, CA 92101
Current Hours:
Tues - Sun 8am - 4pm
Closed on Mondays

Cafe de l'Opera:

During my visit to Izola's new location, while walking back to where I had parked my car, I passed a newish looking cafe. I took a quick look inside and saw that they had various patisseries, including croissants. The friendly young lady noticed that I had the Izola box and we had a short chat; the gist of it being that Cafe de l'Opera made their own croissants. I promised to drop by for some coffee and to try their croissants.

A few Sundays later, I decided to get a bit of walking in; so I headed down the hill and caught the Blue Line to the Park & Market stop and then hoofed it over to the Diamond Terrace Condo building where the cafe is located.

The same very nice young lady was working. I placed my order and had a seat in the nice looking cafe.

I had ordered a Cold Brew along with my croissant.

Man, this was a pretty stiff cold brew! It pretty strong and really woke me up! Not bad at all.

As for the Butter Croissant.

   It was soft and doughy, lacking in that flaky-crispness that I enjoy. I'm not sure why they call this a "Butter Croissant" as sorely needed more butter flavor. The interior was a bit too "moist" for my taste as well. 

Too bad, because I liked the cold brew and the young lady working here.

Cafe de l'Opera
910 J St.
San Diego, CA 92101
Current Hours:
Mon - Fri 7am - 3pm
Saturday  7am - 2pm
Sunday     730am - 2pm

And so my exploration of croissants in San Diego continues.......

The Croissant Files - Revisits to Izola (at their new location) and Wayfarer Bread & Pastry

Here's a couple of croissant revisits to old favorites.

Izola's New Location:

I was happy to read about Izola reopening at Faultline Park. I remember visiting Izola during the pandemic when they would lower a basket of pastries from their third floor bakery, which had been converted from a photography studio on 13th street in East Village.

Here are some photos to jog your memory.

I really enjoyed the croissants and even revisited twice more, though I never posted on those revisits.

Sometimes, a business can be a victim of their own success. Izola closed to do renovations on their kitchen. While in the process, they discovered that they would not be able to meet 2024 food permit standards and had to find a new location. They finally did find a new location, relatively close by; in fact I had walked past the location on Faultline Park while waiting for takeout from Sovereign Thai. Due to Izola's previous popularity, I decided to wait a month or so before finally making the drive down to the area and paying the new location a visit.  I found parking and strolled on over. It was interesting to note that I saw less homeless than on my previous visits to this location.

This locale has been several different businesses over the last couple of years, I recall it being Amplified Ale and then some kind of BBQ spot? 

I strolled on in and stood in line at the counter, which also displays the various breads and pastries for sale on this day.

I decided on a Butter Croissant (of course) and also got an Almond Croissant for the Missus. There weren't prices listed and my total came out to $17, yikes!

Anyway, I had a seat in the spacious dining area to wait for my croissants.

The really nice guy working the dining area asked me if I'd like some water while I waited, but I was fine.

In a few minutes the gentleman brought out my order packed, just like before in a nice little box.

I took my box and headed back to the car and skedaddled home.

Opening things up, I noticed that the croissant was still warm as I removed it from the box. I also noticed that it was much darker than what I'd had from Izola previously.

I tore off a piece whereupon I noticed how rubbery it seemed. I took a bite, and sigh......man, this was fairly "hard", not flaky, not crisp, but hard and kind of chewy. The interior was fairly fluffy, but it still lacks the butter to salt ratio that I prefer.

The Missus had a bite and also noted the same thing.

She did say that the Almond Croissant was much better though.

    Overall, this was quite disappointing. I was looking forward to Izola reopening. I'm thinking I'll try the place in a couple of months and am hoping that this was just an off day. And at seven bucks a croissant....man, how would Parisians react to a six Euro croissant? I can only imagine!

Izola
1429 Island Ave.
San Diego, CA 92101
Current Hours:
Tues - Sat 7am - 2pm
Closed Sunday and Monday

This had me wondering about how another of my croissant "favorites" was doing, so the week after, I headed on over to Bird Rock and stopped by....

Wayfarer Bread & Pastry:

Well, it's been a while. I'd last visited two years ago, and my last post on Wayfarer was back in September of 2020! There always seems to be a line at Wayfarer, so I make it a point to arrive before opening. On this morning, I went and got a cold brew from Birdrock Coffee and headed on over. Funny, there was only one person in line when I arrived.

Soon enough there were over a dozen people lined up behind me. Once the place opens things move fast.

 

I just got a plain croissant ($4.75) on this day and then drove on home.

  Wayfarer tends to over bake their croissants; but this wasn't bad, quite flaky and crisp, the interior a bit on the dry side, but light and fluffy with a decent butter-salt ratio.

Still my favorite croissant in San Diego. If only Wayfarer were closer and the parking in the area wasn't such a pain! I guess I need to start up my croissant explorations again!

Wayfarer Bread & Pastry
5525 La Jolla Blvd.
La Jolla, CA 92037
Current Hours:
Sunday, Tues - Thurs 830am - 230pm
Fri - Sat 830am - 230pm, 430p, - 830pm
Closed on Mondays

So, for all you Croissant Enthusiasts out there, where have you recently had a decent croissant?

2025 Tournament of Roses Rose Parade float road test #1, breakfast at Portos

mmm-yoso!!! is a food blog.  There are reasons to get to the restaurants.  Cathy is writing today about the journey back to Portos.

On January 1, 2024, the 2024 Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game (Go Blue!) occurred and about two weeks later, planning for the 2025 Tournament of Roses began.

 The new president, Ed Morales, was introduced and he introduced the Theme of the 2025 Tournament.  "Best Day Ever! which guides the design theme of the floats which will appear in the Parade.

Designs were submitted, approved and construction began.  On Saturday, July 13, some floats were tested for mechanics and maneuverability at Phoenix Decorating Company in Irwindale.  This was the first of at least three road tests before decorating, which begins the first Saturday in December.  (You can sign up for decorating floats HERE; The Mister and I have already chosen two dates in December).

 The artist rendition for the 2025 Lions Club International float, "Celebrating a Day of Service" is so cute,!
 Even moreso in real life!  See the slot in the front hill? That is where the "Spotter" sits and can view what is in front of the float.  The Spotter speaks to the driver via a headset and has a set of brakes there at the front, in case an emergency type of stopping is necessary.

 Kiwanis International has the theme "Being Together" and is going to be even more beautiful when covered in natural materials and flowers.  The slot for the Spotter to view is at the top of the honeycomb


 The Service organization of Oddfellows and Rebekahs has their 2025 entry depicted on their website. 
 Here it is in real life!  so vibrant and, again, cute.  You can see the rectangular slot in front.  The Driver, who only follows the 'Rose Colored Line' on the street is situated near the middle of the float.

 The drawing of the 2025 Rotary International float, does not di it justice.
 This beauty is surreal and so detailed; everyone (on either side of the parade route) will see  something different.

 The 2025 entry for the Luthern Hour Ministries and Petal Pushers is going to continue with being the only Christian Themed float in the Parade for the 74th year.   There will be 'stained glass' windows on the church, all created with natural materials.  This float will be magnificent with it's theme "Behold! Jesus the Savior is Born".  The Petal Pushers volunteers assist with decorating about eight floats during decorating days.


 The Fraternal Service Organization of Elks will have another float in the 2025 Rose Parade.
 "Cherished Memories" is the theme.  Remember that all floats must 'fit' down the parade route, so the Elk at the back of the float must be able to collapse down to the maximum allowable size.


 Shriners Children's 2025 float will feature a working waterfall!
 So far, in it's basic stages, I can see that the two parrots will be lifted up to go down the parade route, then lowered as it gets to the tight spots along the route.  

 I have not seen any drawings for the City of Alhambra entry, but it was also  tested on July 13. 

Most road tests at Phoenix Decorating are on the last Saturday of each month, beginning at 6:45.   The Mister and I could not make it this last weekend of July.

 

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So, once we finished with viewing and taking photos, The Mister and I headed south six miles to Portos in West Covina.

 A cortadito ($3.39) was a nice alternative to coffee.  The espresso with sweetened condensed milk really hit the spot.  

 A new beverage is an iced passion fruit, yuzu pear lemonade ($5.45) and we just had to try it.  Topped with edible violas and mint, this was a very pleasant, not overly sweet treat.
 A peach target ($4.55) and a matcha raspberry eclair ($3.90) were our choices to try later that day.  Wonderful crust and pastry and fruit and cream.  Very nice indulgences.
 A walnut-raisin batard ($4.65) is a must purchase item.  Crisp crust, an almost sourdough base and walnuts and raisins; a perfect snack or breakfast.
 Two cheese rolls ($1.19 each).  were enjoyed in the car on the way home.  Crisp and flaky and sugar topped with a whipped cream cheese filling.  Another perfect item.

 We ordered Torrejas (Cuban French Toast) ($9.15), a wonderful  breakfast item, especially with the cream cheese and fresh fruit.
 Instead of an eggy sandwich, we shared a lechon sandwich ($8.69) Roasted pork, so tender and topped with pickled onions, served on fresh, pressed bread that was spread with a wonderful house made chimichurri sauce.   This satisfied the cravings I had for about half a year.

Portos Bakery & Cafe 584 S. Sunset Ave West Covina CA 91790 (626)214-3490 Website

Sunday Sandwiches - Revisits to San Diego Bakery & Café and Banh Mi Express

A couple of recent sandwich revisits for a nice Sunday.

San Diego Bakery & Café:

"FOY" SomTommy recently mentioned that the prices for the formerly $5 Bolillo at San Diego Bakery & Café had gone up substantially over the last couple of months. It had been a while since I last visited, so I decided to drop by after doing my regular Saturday morning shopping.

I easily found parking and waltzed on into the rustic shop at around 845 and took a look at the chalkboard menu and yes, prices have indeed gone up!

The last time I'd had a breakfast bolillo here it was $5, it was now $6.50. Whoa, a 30% increase in the last five months! I know times are tough and there's all that inflation and stuff, but wow!

I decided to get the A la Mexicana.

Man, this had a good amount of jalapenos! It was quite spicy. The bolillo is nicely toasted and light, though up to the task of handling the eggs, beans, and stringy cheese. 

While there has been a 30% price increase, with Banh Mi now going for seven bucks and up, I guess this still falls into the "inexpensive" price range? What do you think?

San Diego Bakery & Café
6959 Linda Vista Rd.
San Diego, CA 92111

Banh Mi Express:

Speaking of Banh Mi. Just a couple of weeks before, I was having coffee and breakfast at Finjan (I need to make another visit before I post), when it suddenly dawned on me that I hadn't been back to Banh Mi Express in a while. I was aware that the shop now opens at 8am on Saturday, it used to be 10am when they first opened. So, I decided to drop by.

Taking a quick look at the menu, I noticed that prices hadn't gone up since my last visit here.

I decided to get the Banh Mi Thit Nuong ($6.99). Interesting thing, while the prices remain unchanged, the bread looked totally different from when I last had a banh mi here.

  The bread looked like a rolled French Baguette. It was quite crusty, though a bit more dense then what I'd call a typical banh mi. The jalapenos were really mild. There was a thin sliver of cucumber....though I must say that cucumbers are MIA in many banh mi's these days. There was a good ration of pickled veggies to mayo to pork.

The only issue I had....and it's quite an issue was with the pork which was super dry and hard; like jerky.

I'm thinking I need to order a different banh mi next time. This would have been a good sandwich, if the protein had been better.

Banh Mi Express
9353 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92123

What's in a name? Cakey Bakey and Cluck n Sip

Recently, I had to get my iPhone battery changed. Our business of choice for this is iTech which is in the same strip mall as Balboa Market. Funny thing, there's a dessert shop here, the sign says "Balboa Bakery".

But, the actual name of the place is.....Cakey Bakey!

What a name!

We actually came here a couple of months back....you know me, I don't really have a sweet tooth. But on the first visit, the Missus tried a couple of items....there's a great variety of traditional Persian confections for sale, but the Missus was more interested in the "other stuffs".

Over time She's had most everything the place had to offer and has settled on one item She enjoys; the "Napolian" a mille-feuille type pastry. 

She likes that it's not too sweet and the crisp textures. 

I dunno since I've never tried it, but I'm not complaining as in these days of $10 and up pastries; well this is five bucks. So, I make sure to get one when I'm in the area.

Yes, Cakey Bakey......

Cakey Bakey
5921 Balboa Ave.
San Diego, CA 92111

Cluck n Sip:

Well, on that same visit I needed to head on over to 99 Ranch Market. I went to use the restroom, it was 1030 and as I made my way past the food court, the place that I knew as Krispy Krunchy Chicken that had changed to Cluck n Sip was just putting out the first batch of chicken.

I noticed it was the same really nice folks working from the KKC days so I walked on over. I was told that the basic fried chicken recipe was the same as before. It was just a name change and there's some different sauces and such. Interesting.

I went and ordered six wings and some potato wedges. Of course, everything had just come out of the kitchen so it was all fresh.

    So yes, this was scalding hot. Did I notice a difference? Well, 6 wings were now $9.99 and it seemed to have much more black pepper and was even saltier than I recalled. Also, the coating got soggy quite quickly. Not sure if it was just my imagination, but it seemed that way. The wings were of decent quality, it was moist, but again really high on the sodium scale for me.

As for the Potato Wedges ($3.99), man this was a large portion for a "small size".

Like the chicken, it was like a sodium bomb. It was fairly crisp initially, but got really hard and chewy as it cooled.

Regardless of what I was told, I seem to detect some changes since the KKC days. Not sure I'll be back. Though I need to try the original location in Hillcrest one of these days.....

Cluck n Sip
5950 Balboa Ave (In the 99 Ranch Market Food Court)
San Diego, CA 92111

The Croissant Files - Desserts by Clement

Desserts by Clement was recommended by two "FOYs" (John Dowd and Stephanie) in the comments on my post on Patisserie Melanie. Seeing that the Missus has been wanting all these newfangled croissants since we visited Le Deli Robuchon in London trying the Instagram "superstar" cube croissant, which btw was a disappointment. Still, the Missus has been wanting to try these new spiral croissants. So, I decided to head into PB early on a Sunday morning, the patisserie opens at 8 and I figured I could then hit up TJ's on the way back home.

Being a Sunday; it seems that PB wakes up a bit later on that day of the week, plus the rain we had earlier in the morning, the streets were empty. Check out what Garnet looked like!

I parked on Garnet and walked on over to Desserts by Clement. The nice young lady had just unlocked the door.

The shop was clean and bright; the two young ladies were super friendly as well.

I got one croissant and asked the young ladies for something not overly sweet; they recommended the Pistachio Rolled Croissants and also said the Swiss (Pain Suisse) was very popular.

So, I got all three....man, three pastries, over $21....who'd have thought?

I got home and the Missus was anxiously waiting and immediately went for the Spiral Croissant, which looked quite Instagram ready.

   The Missus loved this! And made me have a taste. While more bready than the flakey-crisp of a regular croissant; the exterior was nicely lacquered with a bit of a crunch, the inner layers not overly doughy. The pistachio filling was on the lighter side; with a mild nuttiness and not overly sweet. This was pretty good!

The Swiss was a bit too sweet for the Missus, so I passed.

As for the Croissant?

 Well, this was pretty good. I prefer my croissant aux buerre a bit more crisp, but this was not bad. It was light , fairly fluffy, and not overly doughy with a nice, balanced butteriness, and a mild hint of salt. While not in the same league as our favorite in Paris, La Maison d’Isabelle, this was easily the equal of Ernest & Valentin.

I was happy with my croissant as was the Missus. Man, I need to head on back to Wayfarer and can't wait until Izola opens at their new location.

You can read about Soo's visit here.

Desserts by Clement
1380 Garnet Ave.
San Diego, CA 92109
Current Hours:
Tues - Sun 8am - 6pm
Closed on Monday

Thanks again for the recommendation John and Stephanie!

Witch Creek Winery, Sleeping Tiger Coffees, and Carlsbad (Danish) Bakery (Carlsbad)

We enjoyed strolling back to our hotel after dinner at Jeune et Jolie. We had gotten some coffee at the shop on the corner of Carlsbad Boulevard and Grand Avenue on our last staycation in the area. I had forgotten to take photos during that visit. The coffee stand was actually in Witch Creek Winery. We decided to pop in and take a look. There were folks enjoying themselves, though the place wasn't overly crowded.

The musician was plating Guantanamera which was a favorite of my late mom. We decided to finish off the evening with a nice glass of wine.

We got a glass of the Chardonnay and a glass of the White Blend.

The Missus really enjoyed the White Blend. We finished things off by sharing a glass of the Sparkling Wine, which I enjoyed. Fairly light, fruity, but not overly sweet.

We took the 3 block walk back to the hotel. It was a brisk, but pleasant night. We slept well. The next morning we woke and relaxed a bit. I went to get some coffee provided in the hotel's recreation room and we sat on our porch and enjoyed ourselves.

We then took a nice stroll along the Carlsbad State Beach walkway. 

After our morning walk, we decided to check out. The nice gentleman manning the front desk told us it would perfectly fine to leave our car in the lot until one or so. So we loaded up the car, then headed on out. The Missus wanted to check out some of the shop in the area, most of which didn't open until 10. So we ambled up State Street and then Roosevelt.

I was getting a bit hungry and recalled seeing a fairly popular bakery during our last stay in the area. So we headed on over.

The name of the place is simply Carlsbad Bakery. It used to be named Carlsbad Danish Bakery.

The very nice woman working seemed to have a Danish accent, which made me smile as I hadn't heard that in quite a while. I had thoughts about just getting a croissant, but decided on the Brie-Mushroom-Spinach pastry. The Missus got some flourless chocolate cake that She saved for later and enjoyed.

Pastry in hand we started walking back to the hotel.

As we walked past Witch Creek Winery, we decided to grab some coffee. And headed on in.

We'd been here on our last visit, so we knew what we wanted. The Missus got the Tanzania pour-over and I got a cold brew. We placed our orders and took a stroll around the shop.

The place was empty so it was nice to wander around.

There's quite a bit of "stuffs" for sale in the shop and on the patio. Some of it was quite cute and charming.

Once our coffees were ready we took a seat outside and enjoyed watching the parade of pooches up and down the street. The Missus enjoyed Her pour over and the cold brew was great fuel for the drive ahead.

There's a Starbucks next door which does some major business; but Sleeping Tiger was fairly quiet. I dunno, we much rather support a local business.

I had my pastry, which was much larger than it looked on the counter.

This was not bad; enjoyed the creamy brie which also had some nice earthiness, which the mushrooms further enhanced. The croissant dough was lightly buttery; though it lacked the flakiness that I enjoy; this was not bad. I guess I'll need to try the croissants next time.

You can read about Soo's visit to Carlsbad Bakery here.

I'm guessing we'll be returning to these two stops when visiting Carlsbad.

Carlsbad (Danish) Bakery
2805 Roosevelt St.
Carlsbad, CA 92008
Tues - Sat  7am - 3pm
Sunday      7am - 1pm
Closed on Monday

Witch Creek Winery
2906 Carlsbad Blvd.
Carlsbad, CA 92008
Current Hours:
Sun - Thurs Noon - 7pm
Friday          Noon - 8pm
Saturday     Noon - 9pm

Sleeping Tiger Coffees (In Witch Creek Winery)
2906 Carlsbad Blvd.
Carlsbad, CA 92008
Current Hours:
Thurs - Mon 7am - 5pm
Tues - Wed   7am - 3pm

We had enjoyed Carlsbad; but now it was time to head on over to our next stop.....