Los Angeles: The Sweet Life

85c Bakery @ 2700 Alton Parkway Suite 123

J & I are both major sweet tooths and we like a variety of different things.  For our more Asian side, we can’t deny ourselves of Chinese baked goods.  One of my favorite bakeries in the SoCal is 85c Bakery in Irvine.  The line is usually ridiculous (there’s a line to get in, a line to pick up the goods, and a line to pay), but if you come during off-peak hours, you may be lucky enough to avoid the non-locals who act like they’re picking up food for their last meal on earth.

One of my favorite things at 85c is their Mochi Egg tart.  You can’t see it, but there’s a thin layer of mochi underneath the custard.  The crust is also super flaky and crisp.  I love the creamy custard to crust ratio here.  It’s best when fresh, but still super good a couple days old.

85c Bakery - Mochi Egg Tart

My other favorite is the custard bun.  As you can tell, I really like their custard stuff.  The filling is really light and creamy.  Nothing about this bun feels heavy.

85c Bakery - Custard Bun

My friend who introduced me to this place told me they’re famous for their Taro Marble bun, which they keep in the back so it doesn’t sell out immediately.  I had the good fortune of getting one one day.  However, the bun did not live up to the hype.  The taro in the bread itself is really subtle.  The filling was thick and gritty.  I didn’t care for it much.

85c Bakery - Taro Marble Bun

I probably will just stick to my custard favorites from now on.  They also have these sea salt drinks that are quite popular, but not my cup of tea.

Sprinkles Cupcakes @ 944 Avocado Avenue

There’s a Sprinkles in Beverly Hills too, but I was in Orange County for work and picked up a dozen of these at the Newport Beach location instead.  I bought a variety for the office, but only had a chance to try the red velvets.  These’s cupcakes are pretty expensive at almost $4 a pop after tax.  They’re quite simple in decor compared to other cupcakes, but I guess you don’t have to dress up when you’ve got inner beauty.  The cupcake was really moist and not too sweet.  I, not a cupcake fan at all, actually enjoyed it.  I think it may have been the best I’ve had!  But hey, keep in mind, I’m no cupcake expert.

Sprinkles - Assorted Cupcakes

Jin Patisserie @ 1202 Abbot Kinney Boulevard

For the more refined side of me, I went to Jin Patisserie on Abbot Kinney, one of the cutest streets in Venice Beach.   Unfortunately, by the time I sat myself down here, most of the desserts were sold out.  We ended up getting the leftover.

Brandon got the Mascarpone Banana.  I generally don’t like artificial banana flavor, but this was a very light taste and my love for the mascarpone made up for it.

Jin Patisserie - Mascarpone Banana

I ordered the Serene, which is basically a pistachio mousse.  It was my favorite of the three, but those who know me well know I have a soft spot for pistachio flavored things.

Jin Patisserie - Serene

My other friend ordered the inspiration, but it wasn’t very inspiring.  I’m not a huge dark chocolate fan.  It was just too rich.  I needed something else to complement the depth and heaviness of the cake.

Jin Patisserie - Inspiration

Service here is only okay.  I thought it was a bit painful to find and sitting outside during winter  wasn’t exactly ideal.  I will still come back when J visits so she can eat at her namesake.

Milk @ 7290 Beverly Boulevard

I found out about ice cream macarons and thought the idea sounded amazing!  Boy was I wrong.  I came to realize, macarons aren’t really meant to be the “bread” of an ice cream sandwich.  The cold temperature made the normal light fluffy cookie part hard and difficult to bite into.  I was quite disappointed. And at $5 each, they’re unnecessarily expensive for something so mediocre.  I tried the strawberry, the vanilla, the coffee toffee (shown below) and the salted caramel (shown below as well).  The strawberry lacked any real sweetness and tasted quite sour.  The vanilla was partially coated in chocolate, which made it too sweet.  The coffee toffee and salted caramel were okay, but as I mentioned earlier, the tough macaron really ruined it for me.

Milk - Coffee Toffee Macaron

Milk - Salted Caramel Macaron

It wasn’t until after I left that I realized Milk is actually famous for their blue velvet cake.  Oh wellers.  I have very little desire to try the blue velvet.  I feel like it’s just a gimmick to attract people.  How different can it taste from a red velvet?  I don’t want my poop to turn blue.  So alas, I bid farewell to Milk.  I probably won’t be returning.

– Charmin Bear T

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