Hello Kitty, Fish Tacos, and Handsome Coffee Roasters, the Birthday Bash of My Dreams

Those of you in the know, are well are that the past four months have been some of the toughest for me, and I have been working my way through the stages of grief. I knew my birthday was approaching, and to me, birthdays have always been special. When I was little, my grandma would organize the most amazing birthday parties for me, with balloons, a Happy Birthday ribbon, a special new birthday dress, a clown, and of course, a cake. Even though she is gone, these traditions are still very much a part of me, and I think you guys have started to notice that. Somehow to me, each year is a reminder that you are still here, alive, and fighting the good fight. This year was different though. With my world crumbling around me, that last thing I wanted to do was celebrate my birthday. I figured my birthday would land on a Monday anyway, so I would just go to work and see another year come and go.

Then people started asking me how I was going to top last year’s epic smash birthday dinner, and I honestly didn’t know how. Last year was pretty special, Wurstkuche, Magnolia Bakery, and Chinatown Summer Nights. A lovely night out in my beloved DTLA with my closest friends. So, with the encouragement of those closest to me, and their help, plans for my 28th birthday just seemed to come together. If you know me, I have a hard time asking for things, so, when people started to come forward offering to help and bring things without me asking, I was really humbled and weepy. If you were there that night, I think you all knew you were part of some magical surreal experience, amiright? I certainly felt it. In the weeks leading up to that night, I wasn’t really as excited as I should have been. I bought a few decorations, decided on Mexican soda, but didn’t even make the effort to look for a new birthday dress. I really loved the one I wore last year, so figured, hey, why not. Who cares. I’m wearing it again. And despite the fact that my mind, soul, and heart is full of grief and dealing with loss, Last Sunday night was EASILY one of the top 3 best nights of my life.

When my friend offered up his home in North Hollywood to host my party, I was very touched, but then the anxiety set in. I haven’t thrown a party in years. I thought about clean up, and logistics, and everything I would need to get. At some point having this at a restaurant just seemed like a better idea. Yet, my best friend S promised to help and in the days leading up to the party, she helped me get everything in order. The first order of business, was to pick a theme, and Hello Kitty seemed appropriate.

When Ricky offered to cook up his famous fish and shrimp tacos for my birthday, I cried. It seemed so perfect, and total comfort food. I really couldn’t think of anything else that I wanted to eat that night. Most of my friends have heard me talk about Rickys Fish Tacos, but most had yet to try them. A lot of minds were blown that night.

Bake You Happy went above and beyond, with Hello Kitty cake pops, cupcakes, and my special pink strawberry beautiful cake. Not only was everything amazing as usual, but the detail that was put into each cake pop, cupcake, and my cake…amazing. Kim and Kim, thank you so much for coming, and thank you so much for the dessert. Seriously.

I had never eaten cake pops before, but they were so good! These were such a great hit with everyone! And so adorable too!

Good coffee has always been a part of my birthday celebration because well…I love baller coffee! Last year, we had Blue Bottle from Drip Bar at Chinatown Summer Nights which was pretty special. This year, since it was going to be at a friend’s house, I was wondering how to make good coffee happen. Then Mike showed me something called the Handsome Traveler, which I thought was entirely too good to be true. Handsome Coffee would go to your event, and serve coffee for your friends and family.

Handsome Coffee. Who, I had been wanting to try, and had been completely excited about ever since rumblings of the new roaster were first announced months ago. I had been reading the Tumblr, and was so jealous I hadn’t signed up on time for the Handsome Forty program, even though I don’t make coffee at home…hmmm. I will say I enjoyed reading what everyone had to say about their coffee beans, including Jonathan Gold. I knew that one day, I would finally get to try them out.

I had seen Mike Phillips compete at SCAA last year, and had always wanted to have something served by him. I had seen him on bar at Intellivenice once, but he wasn’t my barista. I thought that whenever Handsome Coffee Roasters opened up shop, I would finally get that chance. I would have never imagined they would be part of my birthday bash…yet that’s totally what happened…here is Mike Phillips.

Yes, kids. The 2010 World Barista Champion, Michael Phillips (top), along with Tyler Wells, who most of us recognized from IntelliPas, were the ones serving you the best coffee of your lives. I almost had someone pinch me, because it was just so surreal, and something I would have never imagined. Major props to Mike D. for handling the details, and he knew I was anxious about it really happening. So when I saw them arrive and start to set up…it was one of those “OMGZ IS THIS REALLY HAPPENING” type of moments. Fangirl.

Tyler Wells.

I had the best cappuccinos of my life that night. I think we all did.

A lot of non-coffee drinkers became believers that night, and I’m pretty sure the standards have been raised for many others. Personally? The coffee was so smooth, and a new instant favorite. I’m sure I’m not alone in thinking that.

Before a big event, I always tend to get anxious about forgetting something or all the ways something could go wrong. On this night, I had no worries, I had peace of mind. I went back to reality by the next morning, but on that night…I escaped my troubles for a bit.

People were mingling, eating, talking, laughing, making new friends. I was free to fully, for once, ENJOY myself, and enjoy my party to the fullest.

Every single person that was there that night had a blast, and I didn’t even have to play hostess.

Everything magically fell into place, and on that day, I forgot about all my grief, and all the loss I have experienced in the past four months. On this night, I realized that I am surrounded by people that genuinely love and care about me. And that gives me strength to keep fighting the good fight.

Even Ryan Reynolds (N8) was there!

Thank you to Jason, N8, and Scott Jackson for the ice, and for providing such a smooth birthday playlist. Thank you to S for your help, I couldn’t have pulled this off without you. Thank you to Kim and Kim for the sweetest desserts, Ricky for the best fish and shrimp tacos ever!

The Handsome crew for making this the birthday party of my dreams, thank you to my SCV crew for making it out to NoHo and celebrating with me and for always having my back. And to my LA food friends, Grace, Tien (and Idgie), Yeekai, Kimberly, Jeff! Thank you to Akaider for bringing the most amazing fruit tart ever, and to everyone that came out and helped to make it the best birthday ever.

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I want to thank whoever took some of these photos while I was off having a blast. Andreanna, N8, and whoever else. I loved checking my SD card and finding so many photos of me looking so happy. I don’t remember the last time I looked that happy in photographs.

One of my favorite quotes ever, courtesy of Anthony Bourdain, is Context and memory play powerful roles in all the truly great meals in one’s life. And, after this night, I also learned that…

Context and memory play powerful roles in all the truly great nights in one’s life…

Ricky (Rickys Fish Tacos), Yeekai (CogCoffee), Tyler Wells, and Mike Phillips.

I am not going to try to top this party next year. I’m throwing in the towel. As Mike D. said, “story’s over. said and done. seen the mountaintop, went there.”

So I’ll see you all at the Chuck E Cheese’s ball pit for my 29th birthday next year…

Velvet Cupcakes Now Serving Banana Pudding and Intelligentsia Coffee, Valencia

Yesterday after work I was catching up on my Twitter stream when I saw that Velvet Cupcakes at the mall (which I first blogged last November) announced they were now serving pour over cups of Intelligentsia coffee. As of right now, Undergrounds is the only other place doing so in SCV, so of course I was excited. By now you are all fully aware of our coffee snobbery, and how the SCV Crew makes frequent trips to Intelli just to get our fix, and other third wave shops throughout LA. So hearing that I could get some orange bag Intelli goodness so close to home, and at a cupcake shop totally made my day.

Before trivia, N8 and I met up for dinner and stopped by Velvet Cupcakes for some coffee. The girls working were really nice to us, and talked us through the pour over method. Although we are super familiar with this (coffee snobs remember) it was nice to see these girls so excited to prepare our cups of coffee!

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Each cup of coffee you order starts with freshly ground beans and ends up as a fresh cup. Sure it may take a little longer, but it is so worth it!

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And…as if that wasn’t enough…as we were drinking our coffee, we were told that starting Friday they would be selling Banana Pudding.

I was so incredibly excited! Those of you that remember my birthday, 2010 remember that HUGE bowl of Banana Pudding that we couldn’t stop gushing over. Well, instead of having to go to Magnolia Bakery in LA…I can now just go to the patios and not only get myself a cup of Intelli, but also some of the best banana pudding, ever? Jackpot! Nate had to hear me gush about this banana pudding all evening. As did everyone I saw at trivia…

So, SCV…have I let you down yet? Trust me on this one! Head over to Velvet Cupcakes for a cup of coffee and some banana pudding. You can thank me later! And, if you have heard us tweet and blog and talk about our love of coffee and have wondered what all the Intelli fuss is about? Now you can check it out for yourself! Do @mic_dee a favor though, try it without the cream and sugar? Just once!

Oh, and of course! You can’t forget the cupcakes!

Velvet Cupcakes

The Patios in Valencia

Accross from Sephora

24201 W Valencia Blvd
Ste 3552
Valencia, CA 91355

fdsfs

Celebrating with Dinner at The Bazaar, DineLA, Los Angeles

This past week, I got a special recognition for my achievements at work and in the community and it was a little bittersweet because I knew that I would be accepting that award by myself that night. Luckily one of my friends also got the award so he ended up as my date, but I couldn’t help but feel some important people in my life were missing that night. So I knew that I wanted to do something to celebrate this achievement and just feel proud of myself for one night…and turns out this weekend coincided with DineLA. My boyfriend could sense how hard this whole award thing was for me, and so plans came together and he ended up taking me to The Bazaar for a special date night. We headed there hungry after watching El Bulli: Cooking in Progress earlier in the day.

I had been reading various blogs so that I would know what to expect and what dishes looked like something I would like. We ordered off the special DineLA menu, and added some other dishes as well. For DineLA you got to pick one first course, three small plates for the second course, and one dessert.

To drink, I wanted something without alcohol, but refreshing. This is what my waiter brought me. It was amazingly fruity and light…but I don’t know what it was! I meant to ask before I left, but it slipped my mind. Either way…I love ordering random non alcoholic drinks at nice places, I’m always pleasantly surprised! So good!

Our picks for first course were:

Tortilla de Patatas “New Way”
Potato foam, egg 63, caramelized onions 

Japanese Taco
Grilled eel, shiso, cucumber, wasabi, chicharron

My BF added:

Wild mushroom Soup

Idiazábal cheese, golden egg yolk

I added:

“Philly Cheesesteak”*
Air bread, cheddar, Wagyu beef

My Second Course Picks:

Embutidos platter
Chorizo, lomo, salchichon

Croquetas de pollo
Chicken and béchamel fritters

“The ultimate Spanish tapa!” Ensaladilla rusa
Potatoes, carrots, mayo, tuna belly

His Second Course Picks:

Mussels
Olive oil, vinegar, pimentón

Sautéed shrimp
Garlic, guindilla pepper

Beef hanger steak
Piquillo pepper confit

My BF picked these as extras:

Oxtail

Watermelon radish, cilantro, steamed buns

“Your life will change” Dashi linguini

Parmesan, Quail egg, basil

At this point we were a little full…but still had dessert waiting for us!

As we sat and talked about what a fantastic meal this had been, our waiter took our dessert order. We were told that when we were ready we would head over to the Patisserie to enjoy our final course of the night. I was really looking forward to seeing the Patisserie for myself! I had heard so many great things! So we left the dining room…which I’m assuming was the Blanca room.

And headed across the restaurant to an eclectic section…awesome.

We sat on a high table that we had all to ourselves as we waited for our sweets to arrive!

There was a candle in his dessert because The Bazaar knew we were celebrating a special occasion. So melt and a lovely surprise!

His pick:

Greek Yogurt Panna Cotta
Apricots and muscat gelatin

My pick:

Traditional Spanish Flan
Vanilla and fruit

I really wanted to try this, so we ordered it as an extra.

Nitro Coconut Floating Island

Passion fruit and vanilla

At some point during dessert, a man approached our table to say hi…it was so random that it took me a moment to realize it was Yeekai of CogCoffee! I’m telling you, Los Angeles isn’t that big! It was a nice surprise! And, Eleana (@pokeleana) who I know through Sharon happened to be there that night too! It was so great to meet a fellow Vampire Diaries fangirl! And the best part was that our boyfriends totally hit it off, so we’ll have to do a double date soon!

I’m glad I got to try The Bazaar last night. I had heard so much about it, and really wanted to experience it for myself. It was a great place to celebrate a special occasion because it just felt really special to me. A big thanks to my wonderful, handsome, caring, boyfriend for taking me.

The Bazaar by Jose Andres

465 South La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90048

Fonuts, 3rd Street, Los Angeles

Ever since I heard about Fonuts opening up in LA…I knew I wanted to check it out. I finally made it to the shop yesterday! My BF said he was more of a traditionalist when it comes to donuts…but I told him that when the ex pastry chef from The Bazaar opens up a donut shop…you have to go check it out! So we did…

We had tickets to a showing of El Bulli: Cooking in Progress so we stopped here for a quick bite beforehand. The thing about Fonuts is that the donuts aren’t fried, they are baked. There was a nice variety, and between the two of us, we orderd three donuts, and two Mexican cokes. His and Hers. Sidenote? I love Coca Cola Light! It was nice to see it at this shop!

I ordered the strawberry:

Peanut Butter and Jelly

and he had this one:

It is quite a cute shop. I love that they used the stove as a place for napkins and such. A lovely detail.

Fonuts

8104 W. 3rd St.

Los Angeles, CA 90048

ink. on Melrose, Los Angeles

I want to preface this post by saying that while I have a food blog, and I love food…I tend to keep it very safe with my food choices. I have a fictional vegetable allergy, and if I don’t know what I’m eating, I probably wont want to try it. However, I put all of this aside for dinner at ink. and was really adventurous, trying everything that came to the table. I am so glad I did. My other half is the one that is really passionate about food and cooking, I just blog and eat. We both agreed this was one of the best meals and the best flavors in recent memory. Both Voltaggio brothers were in the house, and my date had the best view of the kitchen all night. Michael Voltaggio was gracious enough to sign a menu as a keepsake for him. Overall…a memorable experience from beginning to end…

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I haven’t been eating out a lot lately, and when I do, its mainly in town and something quick on the way home from work, which has been really busy. I have a lot of new responsibilities this year, and while I welcome the challenge, it can be a bit overwhelming. When I heard that ink. was opening up, I wanted to try it but reservations were pretty much impossible. I was determined to make it happen, and I would check the reservation link every morning, only to never find the link active. That was until I set the ink. reservation link as my homepage, so everytime I opened a new browser window, that’s what I saw. And most of the time it would say no reservations are available…but once in a long while, a rarity, I’ll see the link active, only it is a day that I can’t go. A week ago I managed to score a reservation for later this month, and I was really looking forward to it! Then…two days ago…the link was active with one time slot available for 9pm on Sunday, October 3. How could I resist? So I snagged the reservation, texted my dining companion in crime, and squealed because I was going to try ink sooner than I had thought!

I read all the blog posts and knew what I wanted to order…and then when I checked the menu yesterday afternoon…I noticed it had changed and a lot of the dishes available during the first week had been replaced. He didn’t want to be spoiled, so he didn’t want to hear me talk about all the dishes I wanted to try…but I would sneak in little comments here and there…it was cute. So last night, I ended up at ink. and I wasn’t going to take photos but thought it was time to dust off the bloggy blog and what better way to come back then a wonderful dinner at ink. My photos are a bit fail because the restaurant was a little dark, and I took the photos really quickly. We each had input into what we ordered, and I tend to be a little bit picky at times…so I was a little worried that some of the dishes would be a little over my head, but promised to try everything. I’m really glad I did. It was an experience and each course just kept getting better and better. I truly LOVED everything and I can’t wait to go back. We both agree, it was definitely an inspiring night.

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I got the names of the dishes right from the ink. website.

young turnips and radishes

coffee-cardamom soil, nasturtium, vadouvan, frozen yogurt

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This is something I would never order, but I’m glad he chose this. This was our first taste at ink. and it was a hint of what was to come. Who knew turnips could taste so good? Seriously. Loved this.

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beef tartare

horseradish, hearts of palm, sea bean chimichurri

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The first mind blowing dish of the evening. Another dish I wouldn’t typically order, but another solid choice by the boy.

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sea bass

lemon, caper, brown butter, romanesco, black olive oil, anchovy

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Lovely.

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halibut cheeks

red pepper dashi, shishito peppers, kelp pasta

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The flavors on this? So great. That sauce…I loved that sauce…

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seaweed mashed potatoes

sea grass, sea beans

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When our server suggested this dish to us, I may have wrinkled my nose. Seaweed isn’t something I’m usually craving, but the boy said sure, and although I was reluctant to try it? Once I did? I couldn’t stop eating them. Amazing stuff.

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bay scallops

cream of dehydrated potato, potato skins, buttermilk-shellfish broth

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I kept calling this the “potato dish” even onto the next day. This was all of my favorite things in one plate. Potatoes, scallops…dreamland.

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Berkshire pork tenderloin

charcoal crust, macaroni and cheese, leeks

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I can’t even begin to describe how great this was. That pork…swoon. And the macaroni and cheese? Amazing.

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wagyu hanger steak

ras el hanout yogurt, black garlic, mushroom chicharrón

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Yes.

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spaghetti

giant squid, squash, hazelnut-ink pesto, piment d’espilette

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This was good, just not my favorite. He liked it though.

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chocolate

coffee, spice

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I don’t eat chocolate, but he let me try a bit of it. Very nice.

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apple

crème caramel, burnt wood sabayon, walnut

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This is by far my new favorite dessert in the city. Wow. Just…wow. This was one of the best desserts I have ever had…and I’ve had a lot of desserts. THIS.

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Dear Los Angeles…I think you should try to snag a reservation at ink. and have a food adventure of your own. Trust.

Venus Chocolates, Lovely Exotic Tequila Infused Truffles, Tijuana, B.C., Mexico

After leaving my new most favorite coffee shop, La Stazione, my aunt and I noticed a chocolate shop a few doors down. I don’t really eat chocolate, but the shop looked cute from the outside, so, why not? When I entered I was greeted with such amazing Baja hospitality that I instantly knew I was in for something good. The owner of the shop asked if we had just come from the coffee shop, and we talked about how great it was!

Honestly, I was expecting a typical chocolate shop, but I was overjoyed to find out that this place was really special. They had exotic truffles infused with various liquors. All of the “trufas” were beautiful and I didn’t know what to choose! Then, the owner offered to let me sample, but I couldn’t choose what I wanted to sample! I was just looking through the offerings trying to make up my mind!

Since the truffles all looked lovely, before trying any myself, I decided I would get some truffles for my favorite Aunt Leti and some for my Godmother/Aunt Dora, and opted for the Strawberry/Tequila truffles. They were under a dollar each, and the owner was nice enough to put my dozen truffles in two cute boxes with a coordinating bow. So melt!

These are bittersweet chocolate + 43 secret ingredients!

These reminded me of Daniel…

These are semi sweet chocolates infused with tequila. Reminded me of Zig.

The flavors were pretty exotic and unlike any flavors I’ve seen in the states. I didn’t photograph them all, but there were definitely some specialty chocolates in the mix. What a find! And it was totally by chance, as we were leaving La Stazione!

After paying for my truffles, the owner reminded me that I had yet to try a truffle! She took out a Strawberry/Tequila truffle (since its what I had bought) and let me tell you…I’ve had plenty of baller truffles in my life…but this one? This one PWND all. So amazing! So good! Best ever? Yes.

What a gem of a chocolate shop! I wouldn’t have imagined that I would eat the best truffle of my life in Tijuana, and the shop is located next to my most favorite coffee shop. What an adventure this day was turning out to be! And it was barely 3 in the afternoon at this point! If you find yourself at La Stazione, do yourself a favor and walk a few shops over to Venus Chocolates and treat yourself to a truffle. Seriously. You can thank me later. Wow.

Venus Chocolates

(a few doors down from La Stazione)

Tapachula # 5-C, Col Hipodromo

Tijuana, B.C., Mexico

La Stazione Café, My Most Favorite Coffee Shop Ever, Tijuana, B.C., Mexico

If you know anything about me, then you pretty much know that I’m always trying out the latest third wave coffee shops throughout Los Angeles and beyond. A few months ago I hit up most of what Portland has to offer and declared my life changed by the quality. However, my ultimate coffee shop, my most favorite out of the 3489320842 shops I’ve tried in my life, has been 49th Parallel in Vancouver for a while now. That was until this past Saturday when 49th Parallel was dethroned as being my ultimate most favorite shop ever. That title now belongs to La Stazione Café, located in Tijuana, Mexico.

If you would have told me that I would find the ultimate coffee shop of my dreams in Tijuana, I would have thought you were messing with me. Yet, its funny how the universe puts places in your path and changes your life forever. I had been hearing about La Stazione from RE for a long time. Years, maybe. I figured it was just a cute cafe or something, but nothing could have prepared me for the awesome that is La Stazione.

When I walked inside, I heard the same choir of angels that sang when I first walked into 49th Parallel years ago. This was the coffee shop of my dreams! It was so beautiful. I just stood there with my mouth open staring around for a few minutes. This place totally melted my cold dark heart. And that sign that says Coffee Is Hope? Total melt.

Sure, you are probably thinking, LD? Its just a coffee shop, stop being a dork…so perhaps this will help you understand where I am coming from. As much as I love the third wave shops in Southern California and Portland, I always feel a little out of place. When I go to Intelli, I’m usually the only Mexican person there. The same can be said for pretty much any other coffee shop I frequent in LA. I am a minority, and I may be an educated working professional, but stigmas still exist, and I would be denying the truth, if I were to say that race wasn’t an issue in my life. And here I was, at a wonderful shop that pretty much resembled a Mexican Intelli. I was like the girl in the Blind Melon music video that opened up the gate to where the bumble bees were hanging out. That was me. I was that girl when I walked into this coffee shop.

And then something silly happened. Something unplanned, but very neat. There was a guy sitting at the table next to us listening to us geek out over this epic coffee shop. And then he started speaking English. Yes my friends, there was an American guy hanging out at La Stazione. This time I wasn’t the minority! Boom! Funny how the universe puts people in your path. This guy is Jason, he’s a pretty big deal. He goes to SDSU, but lives in TJ, and runs an incredibly wonderful blog called Tijuanalandia. We ended up exchanging Twitterz, and its funny because it seems like he is someone I would follow on Twitter first, and THEN meet in person, but the exact opposite happened. I had never heard of @tijuanalandia before, but now I’m a fangirl. Seriously, great site documenting life in Tijuana. I love it.

So, back to La Stazione! The shop is beautiful. So beautiful. Dark wood, seating, retro speakers, pour over, legit machine, and baristas that knew their stuff.

 There was NO pretentiousness here. Not at all. It was so chill, I just wanted to hang out forever! All I needed was my MacBook Pro…because yes, since this was the coffee shop of my dreams, the guys hanging out on laptops all had MacBooks! Awesome!

The beauty is in the details and there were so many details in this shop. Everywhere I looked there was something that caught my eye. Even the jars and the labels…in Spanish!

“La Bestia”

And of course they have their own specially roasted coffee for sale. Etiopía o Bolivia.

I ended up ordering a cortado, which is my ultimate drink of choice. Sure the place was lovely, but how was the coffee?

The coffee was AMAZING! And look at the latte art? This coffee was so smooth. It was love.

In addition to drinks, they also have pastries! This bite size tart was super cute and super good! They also have fruit drinks, which are some of my favorites! I was so curious to try their offerings, and I figured I needed to counteract the coffee jitters so I read over the menu.

“Remedios para el Calor”

(Remedies for the Heat)

I had never seen offerings like this anywhere else, but I did see Barista Oliver cutting up fruit and taking such care in preparing these drinks. I needed to try them. They had some tea infused drinks, and Oliver actually steeped the tea for each drink.

All of these cold drinks were freshly prepared! Nothing ready made in a jug. This was serious business! I mean, we are talking shakers and fresh fruit. My ultimate!

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Here is the Jasmine Lemonade. Wow.

And here is my Naranjada. Blood orange something or other. Amazing. Amazing. My only regret in ordering this, is that now I’m craving it all the time. Quite possibly the most refreshing drink of my life. Oliver is a genius! It had huge chunks or oranges in it too. This.

We must have stayed here for well over an hour just hanging out. My uncle was reading the paper, RE and I were taking pictures, chillaxing.

We got to talking to Oliver, asking if there were any other good coffee places to try in the city for our crawl. Him and Jason told us about the VIA building, and that there was a new cafe located there that might be worth checking out. Yay for new friends!

Remember earlier, I talked about the details? Check this out. The mirror says “Cliente del mes” which means “Customer of the month” which I loved! So adorable!

After visiting my fair share of amazing coffee shops throughout various states and countries, La Stazione Cafe in Tijuana, B.C., Mexico is my ultimate and most favorite in all the land. If you find yourself in TJ and want to try some third wave goodness, definitely make it a point to stop by. Its amazing to me how this wonderful shop in Tijuana completely PWNS anything San Diego has to offer. Boom.

La Stazione Cafe

Av. Tapachula 5-C Col. Hipodromo
22024 Tijuana
Mexico

Sospeso Coffee and Roasting House, Tijuana, B.C., Mexico

A while ago, my aunt was telling me about a place in Tijuana that roasted their own coffee and was owned by a guy that was a pretty big deal. A quick google search later, I learned she was spot on. There was a cafe in TJ that was slanging the real deal, third wave, legit coffee that I’m used to finding in LA…in Tijuana? I wouldn’t have thought it…

So after leaving La Diferencia, we surprised my favorite aunt Leti at work, and then headed over to check out Sospeso. When we walked in, Amy Winehouse was playing through the speakers, and I was immediately drawn to the bar. Siphon, aeropress, pour over, chemex…in Tijuana…I asked if I could take photos but was told I would have to go through administration for permission. So you wont see any photos of the bar, but it was a cool set up. They are definitely bringing something new to Baja, so I guess they want to keep their methods in house.

Having been to the best coffee bars in LA, Portland, and Vancouver, and after attending SCAA, and most recently Coffee Fest in SD, none of these methods were new to me, but I can see how they are new to Tijuana. The young man working was very passionate and educated about coffee and told me all about the different methods. I didn’t want to interrupt him and tell him I kinda know coffee culture and my blog is like 75% coffee shops…so I let him tell me. It was super neat to hear this all explained to me in Spanish though.

Sospeso is owned by Alberto Song Trujillo who is incredibly passionate about coffee and has all sorts of baller certifications. He roasts his own coffee, which is available for sale at the shop. The baristas are all trained and definitely know their stuff.

I convinced my aunt to get a siphon…which she had never heard of. The barista recommended their Guatemalan coffee, and my aunt loved seeing the process and declared her coffee to be amazing. I think I’ve turned yet another person into a coffee snob. Excellent!

RE and I ordered a couple of drinks. Everything was so smooth.

As we left Sospeso we were all really happy. Third Wave in Tijuana was now a reality!

Caffe Sospeso

Joaquín Clausell #10342 Zona Río,

Tijuana, C.P. 22320 México

Breakfast at La Diferencia, Tijuana, B.C., Mexico

I got to San Diego really early on Saturday morning, with only a few hours of sleep after getting home late from the NKOTBSB concert the night before. I was tired and hungry, and when I’m hungry, I get grumpy. So I wasn’t in the best of moods, but I’m always up for an adventure and when my uncle said he was going to take me to his favorite breakfast spot, I was happy! I rarely eat breakfast because of my work schedule, and since I’m on summer break, I’m rarely awake in time for breakfast. We crossed into Tijuana without any issues, and I was even able to check in on Foursquare to “La Pinche Linea De Tijuana-San Ysidro” which is now my most favorite check-in, ever! Muahaha…major props to whoever came up with that one.

So we arrive at a place called La Diferencia, and apparently my uncle is a regular because they knew him by name.

I should mention that my uncle does not know I have a food blog, and this was the first time I had my SLR on me, so he noticed me taking pictures of everything. I must have looked like such a tourist…especially when the waiter came by with a bread basket (no…literally, a basket). Seriously, put some conchas in my path, especially when I’m hungry, and I wont be able to resist.

As I looked over the menu, everything was so tempting! There were a lot of traditional Mexican breakfasts…

Yet I went with la sugerencia del chef! Now, I love enfrijoladas, but I had a feeling these were going to be out of this world and different than what I’m used to…I had to order it!

Before our meal, the waiter brought out a little fruit plate…

This was an omelette my aunt ordered:

The tortillas…of course!

These are the chilaquiles my uncle ordered:

And here is the best Mexican breakfast of my life! These enfrijoladas were filled with chorizo, and pretty much PWND any other enfrijoladas I’ve ever eaten in my life. They may not look like much in the photo, but believe me, amazing breakfast dish. I will now be craving this for breakfast all the time.

This was a great breakfast to start off our Baja adventure. I loved the decor of the crosses on the wall. Any time I see crosses on the wall, I remember how blessed I am.

They offer some exotic insects for dinner, if that’s your type of thing. They even have a cut out of Andrew Zimmerman by the door. I would much rather stick to the traditional breakfasts.

The outside of the restaurant:

So, if you are in TJ and are looking for a solid sit down breakfast place, La Diferencia is great and not too far from the border. Perfect.

La Diferencia

Blvd. Sánchez Taboada

No. 10521, Zona Río. Tijuana, B.C. Méx

My Return to Tijuana, BC, Baja Crawl, 2011

I’ve always talked fondly about my Baja roots, as the family I have left primarily lives in Tijuana, and anyone that really knows me, is well aware of how Mexican I am. At times, I’m a total naca, I love la Trevi, and go to concerts by artists my friends have never heard of but are HUGE in Mexico, I watched La Academia, and grew up watching novelas like Alcanzar Una Estrella (with Ricky Martin). My first love was Kuno Becker, and I think Carrusel may have inspired me to be a teacher. I love Timbiriche, and there are so many other examples of how brown I am, but its lost on a lot of my friends because I’m the Mexican of the group. Out of everyone, Daniel gets it the most, even though he isn’t Mexican like me. Even though I was born in Los Angeles, I consider myself Mexican. And I love buying Mexican shampoo and Suavitel at La Comercial Mexicana…

I speak and write Spanish, and am even credentialed to teach Spanish, something many people don’t know about me. And…above all, I’m proud of my Baja accent…I can totally pass as a native speaker, and often times people that hear me speak Spanish, have assumed I don’t speak English. It means the world to me because I can talk to my aunts flawlessly, and I don’t feel like an outsider American when I’m in Mexico.

On a more serious note, I often reference the fact that I don’t have much family left, and that’s the sad truth. A lot of my family has passed away unexpectedly and tragically in recent years. The last four times I have gone to Tijuana has been for funerals. I could be mayor of a couple of mortuaries at this point. Its tragic, and sad, and something that has impacted me deeply in recent years. For that reason, it was time to head to Tijuana on a positive note. A time to explore, see my aunts, and see how much the city has changed. A little birdie (RE) told me the third wave coffee scene had a presence in Tijuana and that was enough to make me grab my passport, comfortable shoes, my sense of adventure, and head south of the border for a mini vacation. What followed was an eye opening experience as to the state of coffee culture and many “best evers” during the trip, which I’m going to attempt to blog about all this week. ¡Arriba Baja California! ¡Cachanillas!

To be continued…