Coming up With the Goods in Carlsbad

 The Goods

2965 State Street

Carlsbad, CA 92008

This is a little added bonus Carlsbad restaurant review. Usually, when we pick up a birthday present for Katie, we eat at a restaurant and head back up the 5 Freeway home. This time, however, we did not eat dessert at the restaurant where we celebrated her birthday, so we both craved something sweet. A quick Yelp search yielded many results, but one stuck out a bit and was within walking distance. After a nearly six-minute walk, we found ourselves at The Goods. 

The Goods is an artisan doughnut shop smack dab in the middle of Carlsbad Village. They have been around since 2017 and serve what I term fancy doughnuts. These are places like Sidecar Doughnuts, Oliboli, and JD Flannel Donuts in San Juan Capistrano, where a dozen doughnuts can set you back at least $30 or more. Conversely, Old-school donut places can be found in every neighborhood, and they serve very straightforward, no-nonsense donuts. I love both, although I have a soft spot for the old-school donuts I grew up with. I appreciate the finer doughnuts on occasion when my wallet allows them. 

We arrived at The Goods just before 2 p.m., which is usually when bakeries are selling off their remaining inventory and shutting down for the day. Although they listed their closing time as 4 p.m., they still had a good amount of stuff in their case when we walked into their small storefront. Doughnuts are priced in the $4 range, other pastries are $7, and they have a slew of coffee beverages that go for an average of $5. No coffee for me, as I was all about the baked goods. 

Here's a quick overview of what we ordered while at The Goods. We got them boxed to go, but we did have a doughnut and cookie here for research purposes only. Katie also got an Americano, which she enjoyed on the way home. In total, we spent just shy of $40. Let's take a closer look at everything we had. 

It's a doughnut spot, so of course, I'll start with the Cinnamon Roll ($7). This roll was about the size of my outstretched hand and featured cream cheese frosting. I liked this but had wished it had more cinnamon inside, as it lacked the gooeyness of other cinnamon rolls. The icing struck the right balance of cream cheese to sugar ratio, making people who like cream cheese frosting and those who don't both happy. The base was sturdy and well-made and got a little softer when heated. 

I'm always a sucker for cookies, so I got their Chocolate Chip Cookie ($3) as well. I liked this cookie more than the cinnamon roll. It had the perfect amount of chocolate chips spread evenly through the cookie, and the light touch of sea salt added a nice touch. The outside edge had an excellent crunch, while the center was chewy. The way a chocolate chip cookie should be. I ate this before heading home and should have gotten one for the road to heat it up in the microwave for that just-out-of-the-oven feel. Next time, for sure. 

Katie picked our first two doughnuts. She almost always veers towards fruit-flavored doughnuts. Her first pick was this Seasonal Berry Jam ($4.50). It's a yeast-raised doughnut with berry icing and filled with a jam made up of three seasonal berries. I'm guessing the three berries used were blackberry, boysenberry, and strawberry, but I'm unsure. The doughnut part was soft and had a slight chew to it, the icing was not overly sugary sweet, and the jam inside was a little too tart for my tastes. This was a grown-up version of the jelly donut you can get at your neighborhood donut spot. Very high quality. 

Next up was the Strawberry Shortcake ($4.75). Again, this was a yeast-raised doughnut with strawberry glaze topped with mascarpone, graham cracker crumbs, and a sliced strawberry. Like the doughnut above, this was not overly sweet, but the strawberry flavor was loud and clear. I'm not that big of a fan of mascarpone, so I left most of this doughnut for Katie, who liked this one the best.

The best doughnut I had at The Goods was this Brown Butter Doughnut ($4.25). It was a cake doughnut with a slight crunch when bitten into, a toasted brown butter glaze, and a touch of sea salt. I could have just had this one thing and left very happy. I'll have to try more of their cake doughnuts next time. They are delicious and satisfying. 

This simple Chocolate Ganache ($3.65) was another yeast doughnut dipped into a plain-tasting chocolate ganache. The chocolate on this was too muted for me, and after a few bites, I was bored by it. It was not awful, but I want it to be sweeter if I have a doughnut and the calories to go along with it. 

The Goods truly does make good doughnuts. After a few bites, you can tell they are crafted well and utilize high-quality ingredients. It might have been because we got here late in the afternoon, and they were out of the better doughnuts, but only the brown butter doughnut really popped for me and made me take notice. If we had gotten here closer to their opening, I would have liked to try their apple fritter, Boston cream, Nutella buttercream, or the churro cruller on my next visit. The girls working the counter were lovely and answered all of the questions we had about the doughnuts. Are these the best doughnuts in Carlsbad? We will have to wait until next year for Katie's birthday to find out. 

Out of five creatures (because the city of Carlsbad is home to three lagoons, sadly, none of them include a creature like in the 1954 3-D monster movie Creature from the Black Lagoon), five being best and zero being worst, The Goods gets three creatures. 

For more information about The Goods, head to their website by clicking here: https://www.thegoodsdoughnuts.com/

Welcome to the West Coast Levain Bakery

 Levain Bakery

227 North Larchmont Blvd. 

Los Angeles, CA 90004

Wrapping up our day trip to LA, we needed something sweet to end our adventures in the City of Angels. Los Angeles has some iconic desserts to choose from; Churros from Olvera Street, Hot Fudge Cake from Bob's Big Boy in Burbank, a slice of pie from either Pie N' Burger or Apple Pan, or a scoop of ice cream from Fosselman's. So naturally, with all these great options, we decided to try an NYC transplant, Levain Bakery. 

Levain is an iconic bakery in New York and across the country. They have so many accolades that this could quickly become one of my longest posts if I listed them all. They have been named the best cookie in the US numerous times. Almost all the food people I follow on Instagram have made a pilgrimage to their bakery when visiting the Big Apple. 

Two friends started this business by selling bread to some of the best restaurants in New York City. They opened their first storefront on West 74th Street in 1995, which is still open for business. At first, they sold just their bread, rolls, and loaves. They made a chocolate walnut cookie as a test batch, and they flew off the shelf. People began talking, and soon, they had lines outside waiting for their cookies. They now have nine locations in NYC, along with storefronts in Boston, Chicago, Washington DC, Chicago, and their first on the West Coast, in Larchmont Village. 

We arrived just before 4 p.m. and were met by a small line of about three people. When they first opened almost a year ago, people waited for hours. Luckily, the lines have diminished, and we were in and out within 15 minutes. Parking can be tricky around here, but we parked in the Wells Fargo lot next to the bakery and told the security guard, Reggie, that we were just getting cookies, and he allowed us to park there. We got him a cookie for letting us park there. He probably goes home with a dozen cookies every day. A good gig. 

Before we got to the cookies, Katie wanted to sample their Sour Cream Coffee Cake ($4.75) and Blueberry Muffin ($4.75) first. I liked both of these. They were both sweet but not overly so. I believe the sour cream in the coffee cake suppressed the usual sweetness you would get with a typical coffee cake. I would have liked the cinnamon crumble to be more distributed throughout instead of concentrated on the bottom of the slice. 

The blueberry muffin was studded with plenty of fresh blueberries throughout the muffin. It had a nice crystalized sugar top and was buttery and flavorful at its base. It was way better than any muffin we have had in recent memory. 

For the main event, most people visit Levain Bakery because of the cookies. We got the Two-Chip Chocolate Chip Cookie ($5) and the Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie ($5). These hefty cookies are probably best to share, so you can try more than one variety. The two-chip cookie was loaded with chocolate chips, so you get a lot of chocolate in each bite. The outer cookie had a good crunch, while the inside portion was a tad underbaked for my liking. Still, it was terrific, and I microwaved this for about ten seconds to replicate that fresh, out-of-the-oven feel. 

The chocolate peanut butter cookie was my jam. It was delicious. Again, this cookie had a nice crunchy outer shell, but this one was baked a bit more inside, which I appreciated. It had the consistency of a gooey brownie, and the numerous peanut butter chips added a nice savoriness to the cookie. Really, well done, and writing this has got my mouth watering. 

Levain Bakery really lived up to the hype. Their baked goods are top-notch; hopefully, they will come to OC someday. I can't help but compare these cookies to my favorite OC bakery, Paderia Bakehouse. I'd give the nod to Paderia for their chocolate chip cookie, but the peanut butter chocolate chip cookie is better at Levain. In my opinion, these two bakeries are on par with each other. I'm happy we got to try Levain and did not have to travel all the way to NYC. They fit right in with the other great desserts available in LA.   

Out of five streetcars (because this spot is in Larchmont Village, which became a streetcar suburb of Los Angeles in the 1920s), five being best to zero being worst, Levain Bakery gets 4 streetcars. 

For more information about Levain Bakery, head to their website by clicking here: https://levainbakery.com/

Banana Pudding Bonanza at Magnolia Bakery

Magnolia Bakery

8389 West Third Street

Los Angeles, CA 90048

Never underestimate the power of pictures. I'm sure most of you don't really read the drivel that I write on these blog pages. Blogging is so 2009, but I still like to express my thoughts on restaurants, for the three of you that still read my reviews. Even my mom doesn't read this anymore, and the only way I know this is that she hasn't said a word about my poor grammar in a few years now, and I know I haven't all of the sudden become a punctuation wizard. 

I bring this up because pictures can be quite persuasive. I have been stalking Magnolia Bakey for years on their Instagram page. I find myself salivating over the pictures of their different versions of banana pudding and other baked goods a lot of the time. I finally decided a trip up to LA was needed to find out if Magnolia Bakey is just a collection of beautiful pictures or if their stuff is as delicious as what is depicted in those pictures. 

Magnolia Bakery opened for business in 1996 in New York City. They are a scratch bakery, and everything here is made on the premises daily. In 2007 there was a change of ownership, which resulted in a pretty aggressive expansion, including spots in Saudi Arabia, the Philippines, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, and India. Domestically there are seven NYC locations, along with one in Chicago and this one in LA, which opened back in 2010.  

The number of offerings at Magnolia Bakery is a little overwhelming. They have plenty of cupcakes and cakes to choose from, along with pies, mini cheesecakes, brownies, cookies, muffins, scones, icebox desserts, and of course their famous banana pudding. There's also monthly specials and weekly cupcakes to consider as well. Way too much for someone like me that wants to try everything. 

I enlisted my boss Melissa and her husband Kyle to meet us up in LA. After a very good meal at a nearby barbecue spot, we walked the three blocks to Magnolia Bakery. Due to covid restrictions Magnolia Bakery limited the number of people inside at one time, and there were no onsite places to eat what we ordered, so we decided to part ways and try our goodies at home instead and compare notes. I admit it was very hard not digging in while we drove south on the 5 freeway, but my lack of eating utensils helped to keep me from having everything finished by the time I got home. Let's take a closer look. 

I'm not sure where I first had Hummingbird Cake ($7), but every time since, I'm compelled to try it when it's offered. For those of you that are not aware, hummingbird cake is a cake very popular in the south. It's a banana-pineapple spice cake, which I'd describe as carrot cake, but without the carrot and sweeter. This version at Magnolia was first-rate. Little bursts of sweetness from the pineapple, but not too sugary. It was a very light and moist cake, almost falling apart as I dug my fork in for each bite. Their cream cheese frosting was wonderful also. 

Now for the real reason, most people come to Magnolia Bakery, including myself. I started off my banana pudding binge with the Large Classic Banana Pudding ($7.50). The classic comes with sliced bananas and pockets of vanilla wafer encased in the lighter than I expected banana pudding. This is not a dense pudding, but light and fluffy. The banana flavor was present but did not overwhelm. Each spoonful was a surprise as to what I was going to get since there was no rhyme or reason to the layering in this, which was an added bonus. Definitely the best banana pudding I've had, but I had two more to try as you will see as you continue reading. 

Magnolia Bakery rotates their special flavors I think monthly. When we visited last month their special pudding was the Gone Bananas Pudding ($6.25). This was actually vanilla pudding with banana chocolate chip bread, Nutella, and sliced bananas in it. I liked this one too, even though I was skeptical about the bread being in here because I thought it was going to be all mushy. This was not the case. It held together nicely over the two days that this managed to hang around. This was a bit heavier than the regular banana pudding I had above, but that's probably due to the bread being in here. They could have added a bit more Nutella, but I'd still get this one again. 

Now for my favorite version of the Magnolia Bakery pudding on this trip, the Chocolate Banana Pudding ($6.25). Full disclosure, I'm a big fan of chocolate, so that might be why I liked this one best. The chocolate pudding was rich but light enough to allow the chocolate wafer crumbs and sliced bananas to be showcased. Each bite was a delight and I was actually sad when I had finished this medium-sized version way quicker than I intended to. I'll definitely get a larger size on my next visit, and I've already been online trying to find copycat recipes so I can make it on my own in the meantime. 

I'd say that Magnolia Bakery really lived up to the hype that I had built up for it. My go-to for banana pudding had been the one from Paderia Bakehouse in Irvine, which is good, but Magnolia's version is better in my book. It's a little sweeter, and I like that they have different versions. Prices were pretty fair when you consider how popular Magnolia Bakery is. I was expecting prices to be in the double digits, but that was not the case here. Service was very good, as the woman helping us answered all of my questions and indecision like a pro. I'm glad the pictures on their Instagram feed finally prompted me to make the trip up to LA. Well worth it. 

Out of five beetles, (because Magnolia flowers are pollinated by beetles and not bees like so many other flowers), five being best to zero being worst, Magnolia Bakery gets 4 beetles.  

For more information about Magnolia Bakery, head to their website here: https://www.magnoliabakery.com/

A Breakfast That's up to Scratch

Scratch Bakery and Cafe

24321 Avenida De La Carlota 

Laguna Hills, CA 92653

It's pretty difficult to keep up with the OC restaurant scene. Just when I think I have it wired, a restaurant closes, or another one opens. Then there are the places that inexplicably fall through the cracks. These are joints that I just plain miss. Good spots that for some reason or another don't get the attention that they deserve. Scratch Bakery and Cafe definitely falls into that category.

I was dining at a nearby restaurant recently and saw Scratch Bakery from across the parking lot. I didn't really think too much about it until a few days later when I got an email from them asking that I come in and try them out. I figured that it must be my destiny to give them a try, so I hurriedly replied in the affirmative that I'd come in the next Thursday.

Scratch Bakery might get overlooked because of their location. Not only do they have to contend with all of the stalled construction going on at the old Laguna Hills Mall, but they are also tucked into a less-trafficked corner of a shopping center that features Trader Joe's, Marshalls, brunch favorite Break of Dawn, and the weirdly, still thriving Woody's Diner. Man, how is that place still in business?

Anyways, back to the business at hand. You can trace the origins of this bakery to the Northen California town of Turlock, which is where a grandmother, Nana Fi, opened a bakery in 1989. The baked goods sold there was a great hit with many of the locals. The family eventually moved south and opened up Nana Fi's Bakery in Laguna Hills six years ago. In 2018, the bakery was rebranded as Scratch Bakery and Cafe with the same family running things.

Scratch Bakery and Cafe is truly a scratch bakery, as all of the 25 plus baked goods that are available daily here are made on the premises. They have plenty of cake offerings but do not do specialty cake orders, tiered or themed. They do however produce holiday and themed cakes throughout the year. I counted at least eight flavors of cake during my visit. They are also very well known for their bread and provide it to numerous restaurants in the area.

The weekends can be a little tricky finding seating in the small cafe and outside in front of the restaurant, as people like to linger with their coffee and meals in the relaxed and family atmosphere at Scratch Cafe. Breakfast is the big draw here, but there's also a lunch menu that features a good selection of sandwiches, some of which are named after family members. Soups and salads round out the lunch menu. I hear the soups are amazing, but alas, I was here for breakfast, so let's check out how that all turned out for me. 

It would almost be impossible for me to visit a bakery and not get a Cinnamon Roll ($3.50). After spying the ones behind the glass case at Scratch, I knew I was not going to be able to resist having one. They even offered to heat it up for me, which allowed for the icing to form a sugary cascade pooling on the plate. This cinnamon roll was lighter than most, with a very subtle cinnamon flavor inside. I really liked that they provided plenty of icing, as there's nothing worse than a cinnamon roll without enough icing for the whole roll. A sweet start to my first meal of the day. 

This Breakfast Sandwich ($5.95) has ruined me for the rare occasion that I travel to the Golden Arches for an Egg McMuffin. Scratch Bakery is pretty well known for their English muffins, which are made here. The result is a lighter, more airy English muffin. Way better than anything you can find in the grocery store or at McDonald's. The insides of the sandwich are not to be discounted though. A perfectly folded egg is joined with thick-cut, crispy bacon and cheddar cheese. A very hearty breakfast sandwich. This kept me full and satisfied the rest of the day. 

For some reason, there's a backlash about Avocado Toast ($6.75). I don't really get the averse reaction that this delicious combination receives. Not only was the version at Scratch delicious, but visually stunning as well. They top their house-made rosemary bread with a smear of avocado, sliced tomato, lemon pepper, and I chose to add a fried egg for an extra dollar and a half. I loved the way that the runny yolk tied everything together. The bread was sturdy enough to hold the toppings and the tomato slices were some of the freshest I've had in a while. So, give the much-maligned avocado toast a break and just take it for what it is, a simple, delicious snack.

Scratch Cafe is well known, not only for their English muffins but also for their Croissants ($3.00). From what I hear these are very time consuming to make, with lots of layers to them. The result is one of the best croissants you will find in OC. It was buttery, but not overloaded with butter flavor. Light and airy, with very pleasing flakiness to it. A great side item to anything that you order off of the Scratch Bakery and Cafe menu.

I was pretty full when it was time to leave, but I needed something to go home with, so I got a Chocolate Chip Cookie ($2.75) and Oatmeal Cookie ($2.75) for a little later. Well, later ended up being twenty or so minutes. Yeah, willpower with food has never really been my forte. Both of these cookies were good. I like my chocolate chip cookies with a crunchy outer ring and a softer, chewier middle. This one checked those boxes. The oatmeal might have been even better. It had a great texture to it and the flavor warmed me from the inside. It almost made me wish that I had saved it longer than the hour after I had left Scratch Bakery.

Scratch Bakery and Cafe definitely qualifies as a hidden gem in South OC. I'm very happy that they reached out and invited me to come in and give them a try. Small, family-run businesses are usually the places where you can find the best meals, and that was the case on this recent Thursday. I'm already making plans to come back and try their sandwiches and their biscuits and gravy, which is only offered on weekends. I'm very happy I got a little nudge to try this place and hopefully reading this will give you a little prod to do the same.

For more information about Scratch Bakery and Cafe, head to their website here: https://www.scratchbakerycafe.com/

Getting Lit after My Dentist Appointment - CLOSED

Lit Cafe

1071 North Tustin Street, Suite #100

Anaheim, CA 92807

Keen readers of this blog for the last nine years know that when I review a place in North OC for lunch, it's usually because I have a dentist appointment. That was the case on a recent early Thursday afternoon. After getting my teeth poked, prodded, and cleaned, I like to treat myself to a meal. This time, I enlisted my parents to come along with me to visit Lit Cafe in Anaheim.

Lit Cafe is a spot that's only open weekdays from 7 to 3pm, so this dentist appointment is one of the rare opportunities I'd be up this way during their limited hours. The cool kids all know that lit means something is popping, turned up, or awesome in every sense. Okay, I got those definitions from Urban Dictionary, so you know I'm not one of the cool kids.

This spot is a long time coming for the husband and wife team that opened it this spring. Chef David Fujimura and Chef Erica Tjangnaka met in culinary school. Talking with Chef David, he knew she was the one after she made him a cake, and he was blown away by her culinary talent and the woman behind the cake.

After graduating from The Culinary School at Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena, the duo has worked at some prominent restaurants. He's had stints at Cafe Hiro, 6ix Park Grill, Marche Moderne, Andrei's Conscious Cuisine, and Charlie Palmer at South Coast Plaza. Chef Erica has been very busy as well working with her mentor, Chef Stephane Treand of ST Patisserie in Costa Mesa, she's also held various positions at the St. Regis Hotel and Resort in Dana Point, Charlie Palmer, Marche Moderne, and has even taught classes at pastry school. All of this, and raising a family as well. That is impressive stuff for these two.

Now comes their first restaurant. Lit Cafe is right off the 91 Freeway, at the corner of La Palma and Tustin. They are between a nail salon on the left and a Taco Bell on the other side. There's plenty of parking at this restaurant, which they hope serves food that combines comfort and creativity. They see their food as a modern update on comfort food classics while using the freshest ingredients available.

Their menu bears this out. They offer breakfast toasts, three kinds of breakfast burritos, chilaquiles, and a couple of egg dishes. Lunch starts at 11 a.m. and consists of four varieties of salad, five sandwich options, two burgers, and a couple of out-of-the-ordinary items. Only their Lit Burger and Fries will set you back $15, while the rest of the menu hovers around the $11 mark.

I arrived at Lit Cafe at noon from my dentist appointment. Half of the 15 or so tables were occupied, one by my parents, who were waiting for me patiently to arrive. I quickly reviewed the menu, and we went to the register to order our food. You also might want to linger near the register just a bit because that's where the bakery cases are. I instantly liked the clean, high-ceilinged space. It was a bit sterile, but I found it comforting. Let's see if the food was comforting as well.

As you can see, I lingered a bit at the bakery case because we started out with two pastries to nosh on while we waited for our food to arrive. The Coffee Cake Crumble ($3.75) was done very nicely, with a subtle sweetness. The bottom portion was moist but not too damp, where it would lose its structural integrity. The crumble added just enough sweetness to not distract from the well-made pastry. The Almond Croissant ($3.00) was one of my best ones. It was light and full of flavor. Technically a very sound croissant, with quite a bit of almond filling inside and the sliced almonds outside added a nice textural element. If you like real-deal croissants, this is the one for you.

If there's one thing online that people rave about at Lit Cafe more than any other, it's probably these Chilaquiles ($12). From what I gathered, these started as a special item and were permanently added to the menu due to customer demand. My only problem with this was that my dad picked it up before I could. He saved me a few bites, though. They only have this green version, but what a version it was. Tortilla chips were layered with mozzarella and cotija cheese, salsa verde, and sour cream. The plate finished with some grilled smoked bacon, a cabbage cilantro slaw, and a sunny-side-up egg. A little different take on your traditional chilaquiles. The green salsa had an excellent heat, which the sour cream helped cool. The chips stayed crisp, even after spreading the egg yolk around. My dad's only complaint was about the bacon, which he wished would have been crisper. I will definitely call dibs on this one the next time I'm here.

My mom did not want breakfast, so she went with the House Greens Salad ($9). It consists of mixed greens, goat cheese, shredded carrots, candied almonds, and raspberries, and she swapped out the yuzu vinaigrette that usually comes with their ranch dressing. She could not have been happier with this salad. It had just the right amount of dressing coating the greens, the raspberries were at the peak of their freshness, and the goat cheese added a nice creaminess. It is a very well-balanced salad.

No chance that I was going to be a light eater at Lit Cafe. This Mr. Rosas Breakfast Burrito ($9.25) was the first of the two items I had this afternoon. This is the most traditional of the three breakfast burritos on the menu. One has honey in it, and the other has a maple syrup-soaked pancake bar in it, and I was not feeling either of those two. This Mr. Rosas burrito was filled with scrambled eggs, hash browns, caramelized onions, cheddar cheese, chicken sausage, and bacon. It came with both red and green salsa. It was not a huge burrito, but it was a well-crafted one. There was no greasiness, the egg was cooked nice and light, and the caramelized onions shoved the sausage off to the side, but the bacon was present. The red salsa had a little more flavor than the green, which was odd since the green salsa on the chilaquiles had a pretty good amount of heat. Still, it's a solid breakfast burrito and one of the better ones I've had this year.

I'm a big fan of loco moco, so the Lit Loco ($12) would be my second entree at Lit Cafe. A bed of Japanese rice is topped with a hamburger steak, then finished with a teriyaki au jus, gravy, and a sunny side up egg, Also thrown in the bowl was a potato salad and a good amount of sliced pickles. This represented a moco loco well, but adding more gravy would have made it even better. The hamburger was tender, and the rice soaked up the yolk nicely. The pickles seemed out of place here, but at least they were not overly intrusive like many pickles can be. The potato salad was a definite star of this bowl. It was light and creamy, with some shredded carrots for a crunch. It was not meant to be the star here, but it might have been. It's easy to see why this has been moved to the permanent menu.

I might have been too drawn to the bakery cases because we finished with a Chocolate Eclair ($3.25) and a Brownie ($3). The eclair was the better of the two. It had little crunchy balls perched on top, adding a nice textural element to each bite. The eclair itself was a classic. A nice, slightly crunchy outer shell and then a rich cream inside. Tasty but a little too small to split among the three of us. The brownie was fine, but I needed something to make it pop. Maybe a little icing? 

My parents and I were excited about our visit to Lit Cafe. Yes, I have read the online reviews about the prices being a few dollars too much and that the portion sizes are smaller than expected, but Chef Erica and Chef David are both highly trained chefs, and they are turning out some delicious, high-quality food here. They have met their goal of creating comfort food with a modern twist. I also feel that this is just the beginning for Lit Cafe. It will be an evolving process, as it is with most new restaurants, especially with first-time owners. As of our visit, they had not yet gotten their beer and wine license, so they were waiting to open for brunch on Saturdays until they got it. There's an announcement on their website that brunch will be starting on August 3rd, from 10 to 2pm. Stay tuned. As for now, Lit Cafe has limited hours when I can make it up there, but it's still worth the trip, maybe after my next dental visit in six months.

Out of five suns (because before it became a slang word, Lit was an OC band that had a big hit with "Place in the Sun"), five being best and zero being worst, Lit Cafe gets three solid suns.  

For more information about Lit Cafe, head to their website here: http://www.litcafeoc.com/

A Sweet Opening at SOCO

Susie Cakes

3321 Hyland Ave.

Costa Mesa, CA 92626

I should really head over to South Coast Collection way more than I do. It seems like every two weeks they are opening a new foodie destination that I add to my ever-growing list of restaurants to hit up. Right now languishing on my, "must go to" list is Taco Maria, Shuck Oyster Bar, Arc, and the Iron Press. We will definitely hit these places up soon.

I was bummed to hear that one of the places we have actually been to at SOCO is no more. We liked Christopher Garren's Bakery when we were here early last year, but they shuttered their storefront on December 31st. I had wondered what happened to their old space and had heard that a new bakery was opening up shop there, Susie Cakes.

Susie Cakes recently opened up their second OC location, with more in the work for sure. We heard about a Laguna Niguel spot but did not get a date or an exact location, so keep an eye out for that. Susie Cakes has numerous Northern California outposts, and have begun a conquest of Southern California recently.

Susie Cakes comes to us from Susan Sarich, who grew up in Chicago, where she came home from school every day to her grandmother's baked treats. It is these handwritten recipes that accompanied Susan to the West Coast, where she wanted to share all these fantastic baked goods with all of us. Their philosophy at Susie Cakes is that they don't bake with anything they can't spell. They don't use mixes, artificial preservatives, or high fructose corn syrups. This scratch bakery also uses only the highest quality ingredients they can find.

We arrived at the Susie Cakes Bakery during their grand opening celebration. There was definitely a carnival atmosphere going on here. Face painting, pictures in a classic Ford Mustang, and of course, sweets. The bakery was packed with people getting a large assortment of baked goods. My favorite feature of the space is the open kitchen, which allows you to see that this really is a scratch bakery. I could have sat there and watched the workers bake all day, but we had some big decisions to make at the bustling counter.

As you can see from the pictures, I was a little trigger happy with my camera, as all the baked goods were pretty photogenic. Behind the case at Susie Cakes were plenty of varieties of cookies, cakes, pies, bars, and their famous cupcakes. This was going to be tough to just pick a few things to come home with. After much consideration, we made our selections and were on our way home to enjoy our haul.

I can usually judge a bakery by what kind of cookies they make, and after eating this Chocolate Chip Cookie ($2), I had a pretty good feeling about Susie Cakes. I'm always partial to cookies that are crunchy on the outside, and softer in the middle. This cookie had passed that test, and I liked that there were plenty of chocolate chips in this cookie as well. Probably one of the most homemade tasting cookies I have had from a bakery. Really tasty.

I had read on Yelp that Susie Cakes is known for their 7 Layer Bars ($3), so that was a definite must-try this afternoon. I'm a big fan of Eagle Brand's Magic Bar recipe, and these were just as good. A mixture of butterscotch, coconut, chocolate chips, nuts, and who knows what else, combined to make these just as good as any Magic Bar I have had.

Carrot Cake ($6.25) is one of the most polarizing desserts out there, but you can count me as being one of its biggest fans. This version at Susie Cakes was good, but not the best I have had. Their frosting is what made this cake for me. Not overly big on the cream cheese, this was more of a sweeter icing than most carrot cakes use normally. The cake portion of this is where I have to dock points. It was moist, but I expected a little more cinnamon used here, and there were some big chunks of nuts in the batter. I also would have liked a little more icing used in between the layers. Still a good slice of cake though.

The last thing we tried on this afternoon was this Apple Cider Cupcake ($3.25). This seasonal cupcake came highly recommended by our guy behind the counter, and he was not just blowing smoke. It had a very good apple flavor to it, the cake portion was moist, but the best part for me was the icing again. With just the right amount of sweetness, it pushed this cupcake to another level. Really tasty, and much better than a lot of the specialty cupcakes I have had.

I was really sad to hear of Christopher Garren's closing, but I'm more than happy that Susie Cakes has taken over their spot. Everything really did taste homemade here, and I am surprised that it was as affordable as it is. You can definitely add Susie Cakes to the many reasons to come to SOCO. We can't wait to come back.

Out of five typewriters, (because whenever I hear the name Susie, I think of the TV series Private Secretary, with Ann Sothern, who played a character named Susie), five being best to zero being worst, Susie Cakes gets 3 typewriters.

For more information about Susie Cakes, go to their website here: http://susiecakes.com/