The French Crêpe Company

The French Crêpe Co. at the Farmer's Market has been there for at least 20 years! I may have eaten there once many many years ago. We arrived at the market too early that some stalls were still in the process of opening. As we walked around we decided on one of the "soul food" stalls that had soft shell crab and beignets. We were all set to order when the fellow told us it would be another 10-15 minutes which made us walk away and we ended up at the French Crêpe. We took a seat and studied the menu. We decided to split a Savory Crêpe and a Dessert Crêpe.

We ordered the L'Opera Crêpe which had 2 scrambled eggs with Swiss cheese, avocado, onion, and fresh tomatoes. This was served with a spring mix salad with their own Dijon dressing. The crêpe was delicious. No one flavor overpowered another; everything was united. The salad was just as delicious. We particularly loved the dressing.

For dessert, we ordered two to try. We split a Crêpe Suzette (Grand Marnier) with butter and sugar and La Sorbonne which was filled with bananas and Hershey's Chocolate Syrup. Both crêpes were very good but were cold by the time we finished our savory crêpe. It didn't matter so much with the banana crêpe but it took away from the Crêpe Suzette which can only be enjoyed while it is hot.

I did speak to Elvie, the owner who apologized for the cold crêpe so she said next time I will have to order the desserts later.

If you like Crêpes, this place will not disappoint. The French Crêpe Co. is located at the Farmer's Market at the Grove in Los Angeles. They now have a second location on 3rd. St. in Los Angeles.

Charcoal Venice

Met my brother for brunch at Charcoal Venice. Gary has been there for dinner once and I have never been there at all. We were not sure if their brunch was any good but since Gary remembered it as being good and with Josiah Citrin (Mélisse) as Executive Chef, one can almost guarantee it to be satisfactory.

They had a Kouign-Amann listed under pastries. We had to order one to taste. It looked good but lacked the shine which I thought would lack the sweetness. We both had a bite and were not too impressed but as we had the second bite it tasted better and by the third bite we both decided that it was good after all.

Gary ordered the Blueberry Dutch Baby and I ordered the Charcoal Benedict with Dungeness Crab, tomato compote, poached egg with charcoal infused jet black Hollandaise sauce. We decided to split both orders. The Charcoal Benedict as our main entrée and the Blueberry Dutch Boy for dessert. The eggs were absolutely delicious. The crab was perfect and all the flavors complemented each other. The Blueberry Dutch Boy was good but only when you had sweet blueberries. There were some berries that were sour so that took away from the goodness.

Service was excellent. I would want to go back for dinner and try the many exciting items on the menu. Charcoal Venice is located at 425 Washington Blvd. in Venice, California.

Pretzel M&M's Brownies

Betty Crocker Fudge Brownie Mix may be the extent of my baking talent. I wanted to add something to the brownie aside from the usual nuts since I dislike them on any desserts. The Pretzel M&M's on my kitchen counter caught my eye. I decided to experiment and semi-crush the M&M's and added them to the batter.

I had forgotten how aromatically fragrant a house can smell while baking brownies. After the allotted time of cooling, I quickly started cutting them and had a piece. It was very good though it still lacked the saltiness of pretzels. I would make them again but perhaps use mini pretzels and maybe some plain M&M's.

Mexican Riviera

This restaurant has been in business since 1989 and for good reason.  I can only vouch for the Breakfast Burrito since that's the only thing I have had there. Someone must have told me about it 20 years ago and I remember it being so good.  Recently while at the gym, someone mentioned going to the Mexican Riviera Restaurant for lunch and all of sudden a light turned on my brain as I remembered their breakfast burrito.

The following day right after my doctor's appointment, I headed over there and got me my Breakfast Burrito. It was as good as I remember maybe even better. It had big chunks of unpeeled potatoes, eggs, bacon, cheese and with added salsa, it was magic. It is very filling, so technically one is plenty for 2 people.

Mexican Riviera Restaurant is located between Ross and CVS Pharmacy on Pacific Coast Hwy. in Torrance.

Peach Bellini Jam

This jam is from Trader Joe's. It has chunks of peaches and prosecco (sparkling white wine) in it though not enough to give anyone a buzz. The jam is very good with some salted butter and a nice roll or French bread.

Sometimes the simplest things are the best.