Flake Cereal Restaurant: Breakfast Bar of Champions

When Flake --a cereal bar (with the best tagline ever by the way..."Flake: Wake & Flake". I love it!)--first opened a few blocks from my street, I thought "Who on earth would be so lazy as to dine out and eat cereal?" Um, apparently--when I woke up this morning with bare cupboards and no desire to hit up Ralphs for sustanance so early in the day--that would be me.

Working up my appetite for bran flakes and toasted grains, I biked the 5 blocks to Flake, where I found a surprisingly high number of fellow lazy breakfasters lounging out at both their sidewalk tables and wooden tables inside. Their chalk blackboard announces all the cereal and topping combinations a la Pinkberry; you can go as basic (Cheerios with fresh strawberries) or whimsical (complex blend of Reeses PB Puffs and Flax Plus Special K topped with shredded coconuts, Pixie sticks and fresh pineapples). For those who love blending different cereals together for the perfect bowl at home (Life and Nutty Nuggets--Ralphs's cheaper version of Grape Nuts) is a winner in my household), Flake a cereal mixologist's wet dream.

Overwhelmed by the choices, I went for simple; Kashi's Go Lean Crunch with fresh blueberries and skim milk. At $3.75, its both a total rip-off in that I could buy an entire box at the supermarket for the same price, and also a real deal, because, where else can you get a generous and delicious bowl of breakfast for under $4? (they're pretty hearty portions, and cereal somehow taste better when someone else prepares it for you).
Since their opening a couple of months ago, their menu has also expanded with pretty yummy sounding breakfast sandwiches and lunchtime wraps. Although I felt compelled to order cereal at a cereal restaurant, I was also lured by their 'Nutty Munkee' ($3.75), a filling english muffin sandwich with peanut butter, bananas and choice of honey, Nutella or preserves.

Sitting in their corner table, munching on cereal and perusing a complimentary copy of the L.A. Times, I was feeling a lot more contentment than I should be for just eating cereal; with the relaxed atmosphere, sunny orange and wood color scheme and large windows looking out to the street attributed to the enjoyable feeling of eating at a hypothetical artsy friend's kitchen nook the next morning after a fun night out with the girls. Or maybe it was the decadent, guilty pleasure feeling of luxuriously dining out for cereal that gave me such breakfast bliss.

Other menu choices that may tickle my fancy another time (yes, I think I'd come back) include their Sambozon Acai bowl with granola and bananas ($6.25), The Fatty (smoked turkey, swiss and avocado on a warm croissant, $6.50) and Poesideon's Wrap (tuna salad with Israeli feta in a sundried tomato wrap, $7.50) Can you tell I'm a sucker for cleverly-named sandwiches?

Overall, I went out for a bowl of cereal this morning, and to borrow a phrase from Tony the Tiger, I would rate my breakfast experience as g-r-r-r-eat.

Flake : 513 Rose Ave, Venice CA
310/396-2333

Hiking Yosemite's Half Dome & Paso Robles Wine-tasting for $160.50!

Last week, I decided to celebrate/suffer on my birthday by hiking up Half Dome (basically, a mile high hunk of granite rock) in Yosemite National Park. Because I just happily blew about $1000 the week earlier on a last minute trip to Costa Rica (more about that on my next post), Ugly Shoe and I decided to complete our hiking expedition semi-budget style.

Relatively last minute trip entailed little planning, which was fine on the fitness side of things but more difficult when it came to finding accommodations.

Training wise, although I wondered ‘Am I fit enough for a 4750ft elevation, 18 mile roundtrip hike?’ I was still too lazy to actually do any training to ensure I was physically ready--my one overly ambitious training session the Santa Monica stairs almost resulted in voluntary house-arrest since I could barely walk down to the street from my 2nd story apt for the next couple of days.

I started looking for accommodations a month prior to our Yosemite visit and discovered most hotel rooms in the Yosemite area are way overpriced—for example, Comfort Inn, Shilo Inn and Days Inn: typically in the $50-70 range in Anytown, USA were all around $150…and at that price, sold out!!) Most hotels are also booked solid months in advance (Who knew outdoor enthusiasts were so anally on the ball?).

It’s slim-pickin’s if you want to stay inside Yosemite National Park; you’ve got the semi-affordable Yosemite Lodge at the Falls & the historic Wawona Hotel (both $150+ but usually sold out 6 months in advance) the way pricey Four Seasons-nesque Anwahnee Hotel ($350-$1000) and the rustic Curry Village Camp Grounds ($20 per car if tent camping, $85-115 if renting a no-electricity, no-indoor plumbing hut).

Out of what was available, we picked Oakhurst Lodge for our first night; a no-frills motel lodge with a floral chintz bedspread and loud fan but free coffee and a AAA discount ($10 off our accommodations!)

Oakhurst is 16 miles from the Yosemite’s Southern Entrance gate, which translates to about an 1hr 15min drive from motel door to the base of Half Dome on the Valley floor.

Many others chronicle the hike in more detail, (I particularly like this one which gives a hiking timeline), but my three pieces of advice are;
• take the windy John Muir trail on the way up and the stairs-filled Mist trail on the way down (you’ll get soaked, but in a good, refreshing way, and the views of the gushing Nevada waterfall are amazing)
• Pack your lunch, then throw out half of it. You’ll eat way less than you think and enjoy the lighter pack. We shared a packet of beef jerky, two oranges and a Clif bar. Follow the maximum guidelines for water though, we finished our gallon CamelPak easily
• Buy cheapo suede gardening gloves at the 99c store! You’ll need them for the wire cables at the end, chances are there’s a pile of used gloves at the bottom of the cables to choose from, but the 99c investment will guarantee you have a left and right glove and save you from donning an ex-hiker’s sweaty, weather-beaten gloves.

It took us 4 hours to get to the top. I’ll let the pics do the talking regarding the view at the top. Worth it. I loved the patch of snow at the top and enjoyed the most delicious tasting orange ever up there.





The night after the hike, we stayed at Narrow Gauge Inn, a grandmama B&B located in the picturesque-sounding town of Fish Camp (2 miles from the Southern gate entrance). This was my birthday splurge accommodations and the fresh fruit-filled complimentary breakfast buffet and laser-beam intensity of the shower’s water pressure blasting off a 10hr hike’s worth of dirt and sticky sunscreen was so worth the extra $$.

The next morning, we cut across to the coast to Paso Robles—home to 200+ wineries--for some morning birthday drinking. It was a cheap birthday celebration; the majority of the wineries offer complimentary tastings.

We arbitrarily picked the winery pitstops based on convenience (most are off the main drag of the 46 highway), pretty looking grounds and if we liked the name of the winery. Our favorites were Vina Robles and Eberle Estates (where we bought a bottle of Muscat and where ex-Top Chef contestant, Tre Wilcox is going to host a dinner in the Eberle wine cellar in July). The steady stream tiny nips of alcohol perfectly balanced being non-tipsy enough to drive while relaxing our hike-tired muscles, saving them from achey pains on the drive home.

A big hike to commemorate that my legs still have it after 30 years and a pleasant wine-induced buzz on my 31st made this trip an awesome and affordable b’day getaway.

Oakhurst Lodge : $88 per person
Narrow Gauge Inn: $156 per person
Gas: 2 tanks in my Prius, $40
Yosemite National Park Pass: $20
Beef jerky, Clif bars and other roadtrip/hiking essentials: $15
Gardening Gloves: 99 c each
Wine-tasting: free!
Total: $320.98 for two, $160.49 per person

More visitor's info for Yosemite & Half Dome

Cook Like Julia Childs for $4.22; Making JC's Potato & Leek Soup

Because I just finished the book Julie & Julia: My Year of Cooking Dangerously which chronicles blogger/home cook Julie Powell's attempt to cook every recipe in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking (AND because my sad kitchen only has cereal but no milk, peanut butter but no bread and a handful of potatoes), I decided to make Julia Child's potato and leek soup, or, as she calls it "Potage Parmentier", which makes it sound tres more sophisticated.

It's the first recipe that Julie attempts to cook in the book and hers turned out wonderfully--and the recipe only calls for 5 ingredients and 3 steps--so I figure it'd be an easy first recipe for a soup-making novice such as myself. Author Julie only writes about the general method in her book so I followed recipezaar.com for exact measurements of ingredients (I cut down on the butter and salt by a third since JC is known to be a heavy-handed with the butter and it was fine.)

1) Wash and cut leeks and potatoes and throw in a pot with water and salt for 45 mins (no stirring even needed!)

You're supposed to use russet potatoes but I had my random colorful spuds from Trader Joe's laying around, and I'm kinda interested to see if my soup will have an indigo-ish hue from my purple potatoes.

2) Mash potatoes with a food mill (whatever that is), or a fork (what I did, which leaves courser bits of potato pieces that the food mill but I think the lumps gave the soup some character)

3) Stir in butter and serve

Although it's not the prettiest looking soup (and would probably be a more appetizing creamy color if I used normal potatoes), it's almost inconceivably tasty and hearty considering it's just water, salt, potatoes, leeks and a tab of butter! And what other dish could you make with just those ingredients? Two helpings later, I'm still quite impressed with myself.

I had to get buy two stalks of leeks ($2.23), my existing potatoes cost me $1.99 and I had salt, butter and water on hand so my 8 servings of soup cost me a total of $4.22. Enough for a couple of bowls plus leftovers!

Dog-A-Thon: Walking For The Underdog

As a pet-less dog-lover, I get my fix of puppy love and doggie-activities through my friend's dogs; whether it's attending an awesome, un-ironic puppy b'day party, being dragged up Runyon by the leash while hiking with my friend and her four-legged pal or helping her 'park' her pooch at the 'doggie valet' at the Santa Monica Farmer's Market (yes, really. right next to the 'bike valet' on Main Street.)


Tobie at his 6th birthday party.


Dibo being dropped off at the dog valet.

Although not ready for the responsibility--or to pick up the poop--of a dog of my own, I'm happy to be poser dog owner this coming Sunday, May 18th at the 'Walking For the Underdog' 2K Walk. I'm borrowing my friend, C.S.'s Shih Tzu's (ex-birthday boy Tobey and ex-rescue survivor, McGuyver) and, together with her sister, joining other pet owners and their beloved pups walk the La Brea Tar Pits to raise money for a variety of rescue foundations (including cutely-named, pun-heavy organizations, Bark Avenue and Diamonds in the Ruff as well as Lhasa Happy Homes...which is where my borrowed McGuyver I'm walking with is from).

If you're interested in walking, it's not too late to register (you can either raise money and awareness by having your friends sponsor you, or just donate the $25 participant fee). Although I'm borrowing a pup for the event, dog-less participants are also welcome...and you may even leave with a new best friend; dog adoption booths will be set up from 10am-5pm. There's also live music, vendors selling pet-friendly goodies and something which the official website intriguingly states as 'dog-related entertainment'.

Photo from last year's event; perhaps the 'dog-related entertainment' they were referring to?

Walk for the Underdog is a great excuse for dog-owners to take Rover out for a walk and maybe meet new doggie pals, for non-dog owning pet lovers to be surrounded by cute parading pups and for wannabe dog owners to adopt a new four-legged friend while directly supporting local shelters and homeless dogs (according to the Walk for the Underdog organization, very sadly, 600 dogs are put down in L.A. shelters every week due to over-population, but every $75 saves a dog's life).

If I haven't convinced you to lend a helping paw, maybe Alanis Morrisette will. Check out this 15 second video narrated by her giving more detailed info on the event. I'll post pics of the event next week.

Walking For the Underdog
10AM-5PM, Sunday May 18th
La Brea Tar Pits 5801 Wilshire Blvd. LA, 90036
Registration begins at 9:30AM, Walk starts at 11AM
$25 to participate in the walk, free to check out the event
Street Parking or lot parking on Curson Avenue, between Wilshire and 6th Street. ($7 for all-day parking)

Like A Rolling Stone: Bob Dylan's American Journey Exhibit at the Skirball

Ugly Shoe Boy and I journeyed through Bob Dylan's American Journey at the Skirball Cultural Center the other night. The exhibit had been on our to-go list since its opening in early February, but with the recent discovery of the Skirball's Thursday Special (open late until 9pm and free admission & parking all day!), there really was no excuse not to check it out.

The Skirball Center (off the 405 just South of the 101) is the 4th pit stop for the exhibit hosted by the Experience Music Project, after making its way through the Cleveland Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, New York City and Minneapolis. Speaking just as a casual fan (I like the songs Bob Dylan's famous for but he lost me a little during his Soy Bomb/incohorent mumbling/singing phase) I found the exhibit comprehensive and interesting. While maybe not unveiling any new revelations about the man, the exhibit threw in enough surprises (young Robert Zimmerman's hand-written poetry from a high-school english assignment, a cheeky letter to Joan Baez's mother signed by Joan but penned by Dylan) and gems (never-released recording of Dylan's first concert performed at Carnegie Chapter Hall, journalists' scribblings documenting Bob's infamous electric guitar debut at Newport Festival; "on at 9:25", "wearing a black leather coat", "electric") to impress hard-core fans looking to find more traces of the person behind the persona.

The exhibit is organized chronologically, focusing on the Poet Man's formative years between 1956-1966 and showcases influencing events in Dylan's life and his country/folk/rock/ blues/gospel phases alongside corresponding memorabilia; highlights from the collection of 150+ artifacts include a Martin guitar inscribed by childhood hero Woody Guthrie, side-by-side headshots of Guthrie and early Dylan replicating the same stance into the camera, rare posters from his Greenwich Village concerts with Joan Baez, signed album covers with quirky comments and song lyrics, candid moments caught on camera and drafts of lyrics to 'Blowin' In the Wind' and 'Mr Tamborine Man'.

For those all about the music, there are private listening and & viewing stations cued with tracks from his first 7 albums and looping in hours of documentary, interview and performance footage. And, while I found this a bit too much audience participation, if your American Journey of Bob Dylan isn't complete until you've sung a mile in his shoes, there is an interactive section where you can live out your rock star fantasies remixing Dylan ditties, playing drums along with Dylan tunes or even singing along with Bob.
Thankfully, headphones are provided so the rest of the museum-going audience is spared hearing your duet of 'Like A Rolling Stone'.

Bob Dylan's American Journey, 1956-1966 exhibit runs through June 8, 2008
For more info, check out: Skirball Cultural Center
$10 General Admission
Tues-Fri: 12pm-5pm
Sat-Sun: 10am-5pm
Thursdays: Extended hours 12pm-9pm, free!

Sally Sells Seychelles By The Sea Shore - Seychelles Warehouse Sale!

Try saying that 5 times. Or better yet, just buy 5 pairs of new shoes.

You'll have to excuse the liberal use of the exclamation points but I just got back from the warehouse sale--with 10,000 pairs of Seychelles and BC Footwear Shoes to choose from!! Shoes for $30! Boots for $50! Cheap enough to revamp your entire shoe wardrobe for under $200!--and am still experiencing post-shoe-purchasing euphoria!! Especially because I'm already a big fan of Seychelles Shoes!! In fact, it's been over a year of non-blogging laziness but the warehouse sale (and one of my new years resolutions made 4 months ago) has compelled me to start writing about my sunny days a la mode again.

The two day warehouse sale started at 10am. I arrived at the warehouse at 10:22am to see two women already leaving the building with 12 shoeboxes each. Although alarmed that meant there were 24 less pairs of shoes to choose from, I also took that as a good sign that the selection mustn't be half bad.



After a 10 minute wait (and about 25 people in front of me), I was in. And Seychelles heaven it was! Row upon row of their signature suede roundtoe pumps, platform Mary Janes, funky knee-high boots and leather flats greeted me, each glowing with a "buy me for only $30!" allure. Kitschy style names such as "Don't Waste My Time" (leather Mary Janes with a triangular 3" heel) and "One Night Only" (ankle boots with buckle detailing) only adds to the appeal.

Not much one for pushy claustophoby crowds nor bloody catfights over the last gotta-have 7 1/2 heel, I'm not a frequent warehouse or sample sale goin' gal so I have no idea if this was typical but I was impressed with:

A) The orderly classification of all the shoes (no digging into bottomless bins here).

Each row was highly organized with all of the available sizes in their respective shoeboxes stacked underneath each sample shoe. Differing colors were arranged by columns. Each style of shoe was where it was supposed to be and inside each shoebox was the right size, style, color and one left and right shoe. For those who say "But duh! That's simple!"...have you ever gone to a Shoe Pavillion or DSW? Disorderly. Nightmare.

B) The grand selection of styles and sizes.

Not just an excuse to get rid of last winter's stock, the warehouse sale included styles which are currently on the Seychelles website and at Urban Outfitters for triple the price. Sizes weren't just reserved for the tiny and the behemoth...amongst the size 5-12's, there were just as many sizes in between. I am a size 7 1/2 or 8 and I found my size for every shoe I tried on.

C) The other Seychelle Warehouse shoppers.

Although everyone had a steely 'woman with a mission' focus in the eyes, this was the most civilized group of warehouse shoppers I've come across. No squabbling over who grabbed the shoebox first, no fighting for the two mirrors in the entire warehouse. Instead, we all patiently waited our turn to scour through the shoeboxes or for a glimpse in the mirror, unwanted shoes were returned back at their proper place as opposed to the nearest pile of shoes, females gave each other unsolicited "ooh, those look cute" and "there's more shoes on sale for only $10 over there" comments. many called their friends to describe and buy shoes for them over the phone, and I even asked a random stranger to try on a pair of flats to see how they looked with jeans, which she happily complied even though she was carrying 5 shoeboxes in her hands and was a size 10. It was as if this best warehouse sale ever also brought out everyone's best behavior.

The pay line goes fast and they accept cash or credit card. I left with 5 pairs of shoes--for a mere $150, that's $30 each with tax included!--and a new dilemma of which new pair to wear first (hhhmm my purple "Happily Ever After" faux croc heels or my shimmery "Starter Husband" ballet flats?")



The two day warehouse sale goes on until 5pm today and starts up again tomorrow from 10am-4pm. Those looking to build on their Imelda Marcos-inspired footwear collection should there early to avoid the lines and before everything gets bought out. On average, most shoppers walked out with about 6-8 pairs of shoes each. For more info on the warehouse sale, check out Daily Candy's weekend guide

3 Square Meals: 3 Square Cafe + Bakery

I am always on the looking for a good bakery to add to my list of favorite pastry-purchasing spots around town.

(My incomplete but constantly growing list includes Massimo's Delectables in Culver City (buttery italian cookies and amazing inside-out apple cake), Amandine Patissiere (fluffy pain au chocolate and homemade blueberry cheescake on Wilshire/Bundy), Susina Bakery (glossy fruit tarts and triple berry cake in spot where Sugar Plum Bakery used to be), Los Feliz's Alcove Cafe & Bakery (gargantuan slices of banana cream pies and triple layer chocolate cakes), Le Pain Quotidien (dense belgium brownies...mmm), even Whole Food's bakery section with mini lemon tarts and just-baked buttery croissants...but I digress)

With the discovery of 3 Square Cafe + Bakery along Abbot Kinney, my favorite street in LA just got better. The side-by-side cafe/bakey double-spot is the newest offering from Hans Rockwagner. I've been eyeing the spot for weeks waiting for it to open. Currently, only the bakery side is open, the cafe side (which will be serving more substantial breakfast, lunch and dinner is due to open in a couple of weeks). I haven't visited his other spot, R Bakery in Mar Vista (read fer food's blog for more info), but I hear his newest bakery shares R Bakery's same sandwich menu and tasty, oversized baked goodies.

Located in a modern, loft-like building, 3 Square is minimalistic (look for either the 3 small colored squares painted on the glass door, or in the mornings, the line of pastry-enthusiasts milling about with their fresh-baked raspberry white-chocolate scones and Europe-imported Meinl coffee.)

Inside, a long glass counter tempts with its array of fruity muffins, savory scones, chocolate-covered cookies, lemon bars and fruit tarts. I am normally a sucker for anything sweet and was eyeing this powdered sugar dusted pastry overflowing with juicy raspberry's but since I'm equally enamored with anything with cheese as a main ingredient, I was also leaning toward the poppy-seed/cheddar pretzel twist (which are available at the Rockwagner stall at the Santa Monica farmer's market) and the cheddar/bacon scone. I ended up going with the scone ($3) and unfortunately scarfed down the entire hunk of cheesy/bacony goodness before I could take a photo of it for this blog.

A chalkboard lists lunchtime options and breakfast specials. For future reference, I noted both the black forest ham, swiss and caramelize onion paninis and brie and caramelized pears on fig bread (both $7.50) as two tasty choices for next time.

The long skinny spot doesn't have too much seating, there are a couple of tables and a long wooden counter to eat at, but it's not conducive to long girly chatting over lattes and strawberry-creme tarts, like Jin Patisserie across the road.

Nevermind, I was craving the cheesy bacon scone so much, I made a special detour on my morning drive to pick one up on my way to work. The to-go experience is probably the way to go for the bakery. Neither the bakery nor street parking was super packed at 8:45am so the breakfast pickup was quick and easy--and definitely something that can incorporated as part of my morning commute routine.

3 Square Cafe + Bakery
1211 Abbot Kinney Blvd
310/399-6504
Daily Candy's Profile

Massimo's Delectables
13222 W. Washington Blvd
310/823-8381

Susina Bakery
7122 Beverly Blvd/La Brea
323/934-7900

Amandine Patissiere
12225 Wilshire Blvd
310/979-3211

Le Pain Quotidien