#18 - Huckleberry's Maple Bacon Biscuits

Guest Blogger Alert!
Say hello to the woman who inspired 99pLAtes - Kelly Novitski!


Well, hello there 99 pLAte readers!  I intended to start this blog with a little “about me” intro but then I realized Michael did me justice here (though please note he had never even been to my apartment when he described it as “a wicked pad” and invited everyone he knows to come crash here).  Thanks to that introduction highlighting all my finest qualities, I decided to just cut to the chase and say what I’ve been wanting to say directly to all of you faithful readers for over a year now: “You’re welcome!” 

Yep, I sent the email to John about the food list which John forwarded to Michael which Michael saw as a foodie challenge (clearly not reading the plate about the live octopus at San Nak Ji in Koreatown—seriously who is going to go eat that with him?!) thus prompting him to start this blog which, let’s be honest, is another challenge entirely.  How do I know Michael feels challenged by this whole blog/food thing?  Because most times I see Michael in LA or NYC it goes something like this:

[Convo over a really good/unique/interesting plate of food]

So cut to mid-May when I’m preparing for my bi-annual trip to LA to visit John (read: John, Michael & Disneyland)

Michael sends me an email with information on the plates he has left: “Pick a pLAte for when you’re out here!”   I took a few minutes to read through the list (admittedly the first time I actually looked at most of it despite being the one that sent it along in the first place).  Here it is in three categories: 

A) Ooh!  YUM!  This sounds amazing! (Approx. 10 items)

B) Ugh, I guess, I could eat if I want to fool anyone into believing I’m even remotely an adventurous eater (Approx. 5 items) 

and

C) HELL NO, I would NEVER eat that/ I can’t believe Michael committed to this nonsense!   (Approx. 84 items)

Needless to say the list I sent back included about 3 items from A, 2 from B, and 0 from C. 

Thankfully Michael took me up on my first suggestion: the “Maple-Bacon Biscuit” at Huckleberry in Santa Monica!

[Side note: if you’re keeping tabs on my blog adventures—which I’m sure you’re not—you’ll notice that this is the third pLAte I’ve been in on that includes bacon!  I heart a theme!]

And then Michael finally asked me the question I’ve been waiting over a year to hear…

Michael: Wanna guest blog?

Me: YES!!  I’m so honored you asked me!!   I’ve been waiting for so long!  I’m so excited!

Michael [half-listening and already perusing the case of exceptional looking food at the counter you order from]: Mmmhmm…yeah…okay….you’ll be great…

The line was plenty long—though it moved fairly quickly-- so there was lots of time to read through the menu to pick your meal.  We each flip-flopped between a number of delicious sounding items before settling on the following: Huevos Rancheros (me), Poached Eggs over fresh market vegetables with pesto and breadcrumbs (Michael) and Fried Egg Sandwich (John).  And of course we got one biscuit to share!

We then made our way through the packed seating area to a recently vacated table* and plopped down our number so the waiter would know where to drop off the food once it was ready.

The biscuit came first so we were able to give the official pLAte our full attention.

Michael: I think it’s kind of dry.  I wish it were flaky…it’s more just crumbly!

John: The bacon is waaay hidden in this thing.

Me: I think it’s a good mix of sweet and savory, though!  It’s definitely better on the inside. 

Michael: I so wanted to love this!  But I don’t…

Me: I feel like it would be better if we had something to eat it with.  We need eggs or something!

John: Too late.  We ate it all.

Just then our food arrived.    It looked amazing and super fresh and smelled even better!

        

Michael [one bite into his “Poached Eggs over fresh market vegetables with pesto and breadcrumbs”]: Anyone wanna switch?  I hate pesto!**

John: Nope.  I’m pretty happy with my sandwich even though this bread is so sharp I feel like it’s cutting the inside of my mouth!

Me: My Huevos Rancheros are good albeit not as spicy as I’d like…I’ll trade you!

Michael: Naahhh…I’m not really in the mood for Huevos Rancheros.  It’s okay, I’ll just deal with this pesto dish that I totally hate…

John: Fiiiine, we can switch!

The meal continued on, blah, blah, blah.  I took notes on the back of some piece of paper Michael gave me with information about an Old Spice YouTube media campaign on the front of it.  I had all sorts of clever ideas rolling around in my head about how witty and fun I’d make my first guest blogging experience!  Seriously…I had all sorts of high hopes!  And then the rest of the trip happened, I returned to NYC, lost the notes, found the notes, considered starting the blog, opened a word document and wrote “Huckleberry” at the top, saved the document to continue when feeling “more inspired,” tried to write again, got sidetracked trying to figure out why my Tivo picked up a show called “My Yard Goes Disney” and then produced what you’re reading right now—two months after we ate that meal back in May.

So let’s just say my first guest blog is also going to be my last.  And Michael, if I ever try to convince you how “easy” it is to throw some words and pictures together to create a post again, I give you full permission to remind me that San Nak Ji in Koreatown is still on the list and that you’re looking for someone to join you on that adventure…I have no doubts it will shut me up.  Right. Quick.

*There may or may not be a story about me eating a bite of the dessert that was left on the table by the previous diners but let me just be clear that if that did happen I’d like to state that I ate from the side that had not been previously touched (and it was damn good and I don’t regret it despite the two Judge Judys sitting across the table from me…).

**Let’s just be clear that the menu did not hide the fact there was pesto in this dish!

Huckleberry
1014 Wilshire Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90404

FooDetour - Country Pancake House

This past weekend, Karen Hundgen (star of Thanksgiving 2010: The Event), my sister Kimberly Hundgen and I all found ourselves in a very familiar neighborhood. Ridgewood, New Jersey, unfortunately nestled dangerously close to the homes of the Real Housewives of NJ, was our family’s home for nearly ten years of our lives. Just a short drive from New York City, Ridgewood is the quintessential American town. With a main street that rival’s Disneyland’s charm and a High School emblazed with the slogan “A Tradition of Excellence”, you’d almost expect to see Norman Rockwell on a corner painting a portrait.

With a few hours to spare before flights took off to our respective homes we had just enough time to fit in the two things my mother and I do best: shopping and eating.

Me – “Want me to blog about our breakfast?”

Kim – “Yea that would be great! I like being featured.”

Mom – “What’s a blog???”

Parents, they never learn…Smack in the center of Ridgewood Avenue sits the Country Pancake House and Restaurant. Sure, it might sounds like an IHOP ripoff, but I assure you these flapjacks are worth the trip back. Many of the businesses in town have come and gone, including the stationary store where I used to buy Beanie Babies (I swear, I had TONS of friends in high school…). Despite the turnover of merchants, The Pancake House has endured the decades and on this Saturday morning a line of fifteen families had already formed outside.

There are two distinct features involved in going out to a restaurant with my mother. First, she must carefully observe no less than five other surrounding tables to see what they have ordered.

Mom - “What do you think that is?”

Me – “I don’t know.”

Mom – “It looks delicious…maybe some kind of egg thing with…is that a hollandaise sauce?”

Kim – “I don’t know”

Mom – “Excuse me…EXCUSE ME”

Me & Kim – “Oh God…here we go.”

Mom – “WHAT ARE YOU EATING???”

It happens…every single time. Second, whatever you order as your personal entrée will soon become a shared entrée. This rule I agree with, I mean what’s the sense of just having one thing when you can try all three!

With over 112 pancake varieties, it was going to be very difficult to narrow things down. From Dark Cherry & Banana to Buckwheat & Hazelnut, when it comes to toppings, if you can dream it – you can eat it. We ended up going with the ultimate breakfast trifecta. Mom settled on the Banana & Walnut Pancakes, I went with the Strawberry French Toast and Kim decided on the Florentine Fritatta.

“Those pancakes are HUMONGOUS!” Kim said as we eyed the plates coming from the bustling kitchen. Have you ever measured the diameter of a manhole cover? Cause I’m pretty sure that’s the standard they measure the pancake size against. Served up 2 per order, these pancakes are so big, you cannot even SEE the plate they are served on.

Mom – “I don’t remember it being this big!”

Me – “That’s what she said!” [That one’s for you Michael Scott]

Filled with entire walnut halves and chunks of bananas bursting throughout, you almost don’t even need the syrup or butter to sweeten up this colossal concoction.

Not to be outshined, the French Toast is made with at least half a loaf of challah bread and comes out thicker than most porterhouse steaks. While most frittatas are made in a pan, Kim’s was served in the shape of a pan with melted cheddar sprinkled on top.

Forget about finishing your meal, just finishing enough to only have to walk out with one doggie bag is the goal here. Despite our best efforts, we ended up leaving with enough food for lunch and dinner that day. “Leftovers are the best part!” Mom insisted. “I like eating the pancakes after they’ve been in the fridge for a bit. It’s like a piece of cake!”

I forgot to mention the third ritual of eating with Karen: she always has to find out the personal details of the waiter or waitress’s love life.

Mom – “So are ya married to the guy behind the counter?”

Jasna (our waitress) – “No, no – he’s my brother.”

Kim – “Awkward!”

Mom – “Well lean in, let’s take a picture!”

Where does one woman find so many different patterns of animal print? The world will never know.

Country Pancake House & Restaurant

140 E. Ridgewood Avenue

Ridgewood, NJ 07450

#12 - Brooklyn Bagel Bakery's Hearth Water Bagel

“This place scares me!” John said as we drove through the mostly abandoned streets of Flipinotown last Saturday morning. After a few weeks of Create-A-Plates and Foo-Detours, the blog was in desperate need to get back to it’s original roots and John was in desperate need for some carbohydrates. Problem is, even though we are only 12 pLAtes in, the destinations for some of these restaurants are a bit outside the bubble of my 90046 zip code. So in order to cross another pLAte off the list, we had to venture to the outskirts of Downtown LA to visit the Brooklyn Bagel Bakery.

For anyone who has immigrated to California from the east coast, they know that bagels in LA are a real problem. It’s right up there with the Twizzlers vs. Red Vines debate. Seriously west coasters…Red Vines taste like waxy plastic with food dye. Twizzlers for life! Back to bagels - as a kid growing up on the east coast, my Saturday mornings consisted of my father taking me to Bagelicious (Ridgewood!) and I’d order a (still warm) plain bagel slathered in melting cream cheese with a Snapple Grapeade on the side. It’s not wonder I ended up looking like this.

Since moving to LA nearly five years ago, I just haven’t been able to find a lightly toasted gift from the gods that can stack up to the bagels back east. Yes you’ve got your Bagel Brokers and Noah’s Bagels…I’ve had ‘em, I’m unimpressed. 

This is a real bagel, not a roll with a hole is the grand statement emblazed on the Brooklyn Bagel Bakery’s website. According to the reviews, this place has bagels that are cooked the proper way. No, they don’t import the water from New York (which I thought was the proper way). Instead, they boil the bagels before baking them, which according to the owners is more time consuming but makes for a better bagel.

After nearly walking into a gospel church service going on next door, John and I found our way into the factory-like store that Brooklyn Bagels calls home. One could be easily overwhelmed by the diversity of doughy delights waiting in bins behind the counter. They’ve got your standards like Sesame, Onion and Egg, but in addition they also offer options like Banana Nut, Jalapeno Cheese and Strawberry bagels for the sweet tooth.

Despite the abundance of variety to tantalize your palate, all of the flavored donuts are made the west coast way. To get the “properly cooked” Brooklyn bagel, you need to order carefully. Tucked away in the corner, like a diamond in the rough (Aladdin anyone?), is the Hearth Baked Water bagel. This is the real deal…the reason people have been coming back to Brooklyn Bagels for nearly 60 years.

In order to properly taste the difference, I ordered one Hearth Water bagel and John went with a Sesame. Much to my dismay, the cream cheese was not slathered on in heaping clumps. Instead, the thickly lipsticked woman behind the counter sold us individual cream cheese packs (which by the way, are “not for individual sale”).

John – “Where do we sit?”

Me – “Well this place isn’t exactly known for its ambiance.”

We settled on a lovely spot down the street…aka the front seat of my Mitsubishi Eclipse.

“Smell the carbs!” John exclaimed as he spread apart his sesame and got to work on the cream cheese. I ended up leaving mine totally plain in order to really ascertain the unique flavor promised from the Hearth Baked. To my surprise there was a distinct difference between the two bagels. John’s was definitely the puffier of the two. All around the sesame was chewier and softer. My bagel, like most east coasters, had a tougher exterior. The outer skin of the ring was almost elastic-like as I peeled away pieces of the bagel. The crust definitely had a richer density, but the inside still had the doughy texture we’ve come to love about bagels.

As we cleared our plates…errr…laps, I think it’s safe to assume we both silently contemplated a return trip in the near future. In fact, Brooklyn Bagels will be celebrating St. Paddy’s Day with batches of Green Hearth Bagels from March 14-17. So this year, instead of Erin Go Braugh…make it Erin Go Bagel!

Brooklyn Bagel Bakery

2717 Beverly Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90057

(800)-78-4BAGELS

#1 - Maple Bacon Donut

The Nickel Diner

You know that dog “Dug” from the movie UP. He’s the one that would lose it every time he saw a “SQUIRREL!”. Well the same sense of unbounded joy holds true for me and BACON. Let’s face it, bacon became super cool a few years ago when Top Chef wannabees included the porky product in every amouse-bouche, reduction and gastro molecular dish they could. Let’s be clear – I’ve tried turkey bacon and chicken-apple bacon, but I mean it’s like comparing the original Freaky Friday with the bastardized Lindsay Lohan remake…you don’t mess with the classics. So, I thought it seemed fitting that my favorite crispy companion be featured as part of the first dish for 99 pLAtes.

The guest eaters for today’s episode…errr…blog installment (can you tell I work in TV?) are also very appropriate for the 1^st official pLAte. John, the dude, and Kelly, the dude’s BFF, were in the mood for a little breakfast adventure so they joined me for a trip to The Nickel Diner in downtown LA for a taste of the coveted Maple Bacon Donut.

Previously on the 99 pLAtes blog, Kelly sent John an email with an article from LA Weekly naming the “99 Things to Eat in LA Before You Die”. That article led to this blog, which led to us hopping on the 101 on a recent Sunday morning to taste our first dish.

This is the face Kelly makes when I offer her apt to strangers

Kelly actually lives in NYC and was visiting John for her bi-annual trip to the City of Angels. Things you need to know about Kelly include: she makes very intricate Photoshop collages, she runs the entire Student Life department at the School of American Ballet and she has a wicked (holla Boston peeps) pad on the Upper West Side (in case you need lodging the next time you are in NY).

The Nickel Diner is (like almost everything else) relatively new to the Downtown LA scene. Opened in 2008, it’s earned a reputation for delicious homemade pop tarts, amped up classic diner food and the aforementioned Maple Bacon Donut – the holy grail of sweet and salty. This place has gotten all kinds of press lately including being featured on an upcoming episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (Triple D for those of us who Tivo the show).

After arriving a little later than scheduled (John drove – will have to save that story for another blog post), we found the spot marked clearly by a conventional sign and somewhat unconventional mannequin heads.
 

This being the dry run for the blog, I wasn’t quite sure how this would all go down. Do we tell the waitress that I am writing a blog about this donut? Do I write notes about the taste, quality, texture? Do we take pictures of the knick-knacks around the restaurant? All of these questions have still gone unanswered, but John thought the one thing that would be appropriate to just take a picture of Kelly and I. Candids

as he calls them…

Now the Maple Bacon Donut isn’t the only special feature on the menu. They also have donuts in flavors such as Nutella, Strawberry Crumble, Red Velvet and SAMOA. 

“Samoa!” I exclaimed out loud, “Like the…GIRL SCOUT COOKIE”. I used my excited voice of course which kind of sounds like a cross between Gonzo and Ethel Merman. You know Samoa’s – those are the delightful mixtures of coconut, chocolate, wafer and 12-year old girl in green uniform goodness.

“Sold out” said our waitress with the same gusto that those Girl Scouts mention the $5 price per box of cookies. So we settled for just the Maple Bacon Donut, better to not confuse our palate with too many variations of donut lard. In addition to out first pLAte, all of us ordered a version of the egg/omelette/huevo ranchero staple seen in brunch spots across Los Angeles.

It wasn’t long at all before our gift from the Gods of Pork and Pastry was bestowed upon us. The first thing I noticed was that not only was the donut served hot, but the plate was actually warm as well. It immediately reminded me of my Italian Grandma Angie who, before every meal, throws dinner plates in the microwave to make sure they are the same temperature as the pasta about to be heaved onto the dish. There is no greater test of patience than having to wait the full 30 seconds for the microwave ding before you can dig into her linguini with homemade red sauce. Back to the donut…

Kelly and John insisted that this being my first blog entry and all, I should have the inaugural bite. Upon first taste of the glistening glory, I was immediately smacked with an injection of salty and sweet flavors all at the same time. Let’s face it – if you want to light up the taste buds either salt and sugar will do it. But with their superpower forces combined…even Quailman doesn’t stand a chance. 

I believe (based on no actual research) that Los Angeles has more donut shops per capita than anywhere else in the world. You’ve got Stan’s Donuts, Randy’s Donuts, Winchell’s Donuts…but interestingly no Dunkin' (rumor has it there are plans for a West Coast expansion). Despite the sweet baked smell wafting through the city (its especially tempting around 2am when walking home from the bars…ask my old roommate Adam) I probably haven’t had a donut in 3+ years. From what I remember of the ring shaped treats, donuts are cake-like and depending on the variation, often crumble apart in your hands. Not the Maple Bacon Donut. Instead, this variation is almost spongy with a chewy moist consistency punctuated with blasts of salty pork.

 

 

John and Kelly took their own turns, each pointing out the thin layer of sweet frosting that stays on your lip even after you’ve finished. It’s kind of like the film of sugar on your spoon after eating a bowl of Fruity Pebbles. John, a bacon-aficionado, approved of the well-done state of the bacon crumbled on the upper rim of the ring.

With nothing left but a layer of syrupy remains (too embarrassing to scrape up with a fork) on the plate – our work was done. The Maple Bacon Donut gets thumbs up around the table. Honorable mention goes to the creamy polenta that accompanied my omelet. Thanks to this one-two breakfast combo, my arteries will never be the same again. 

Not gonna lie…I could have made room for that Samoa Donut. Is it Girl Scout Cookie season yet?

Maple Bacon Donut

The Nickel Diner, 524 S. Main Street

Los Angeles, CA