You can now purchase my handmade candy bars and marshmallows at http://www.bonbonbar.com/
I went to the City Bakery in Brentwood for lunch again two Saturdays ago, and I was happy to find that it’s come into its own since my last visit. Counters were full with a variety of classic and new (to me, at least) products, and it generally seemed to hum along. I liked that this time, instead of looking for old favorites, I discovered new ones.

For instance, here is a new craving: Caramelized French Toast. It’s a piece of brioche french toast that has been rendered portable by a delicious and chewy caramel kind of glaze. The brioche was airy, yet chewy, and the flavor was of perfect caramel and french toast, sweet and rich, and using the powers flour, sugar, and eggs to their full advantage. It looks like this if you tear it in half.

I also had their rich hot chocolate, which is perfect for people like me who like thick hot chocolate; it’s just a small step away from being the most chocolate-y pudding possible. Interspersed throughout are many air bubbles, which make it almost fluffy at the same time. Chad, however, declined it, as he was eating the Melted Chocolate Chip Cookie at the time (with a fork, because of its gooey-ness), and the great influx of chocolate might have proved that one can have too much chocolate.

Also, the lunch buffet was in full stride, and the price has came down to $14/lb, from $16/lb. This time, our lunch looked like this (and be warned, cost $35).

Standouts were the Buckwheat Soba with Enoki and Shiitake Mushrooms and Bok Choy; Jicama and Mango w/ Lime and Thai Basil; Chayote w/ Radishes, Mustard Greens in Lime Vinaigrette; Marinated Tofu with Garlic-Chili Sauce and Miso sauce; Prickly Pear and Guava Lemonades; and Macaroni and Cheese. The bland Caesar Salad was disappointing. The best, though, was the Halibut Baked w/ Watercress. Meaty and juicy, it approached the amazing halibut I once had at Le Bernardin.

I was also impressed to see an extensive olive section as part of the lunch buffet, including gaeta and arbequena olives, where were new to me. There were also marinated mushrooms, which I loved and whose taste somehow reminded me sour cream and chives potato chips.

I still don’t know what to make of the breads for sale, though. I found out that most of the breads come from the Bread Bar, while they fly in the rye from Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor, MI. A whole counter is devoted to them, but since there’s nothing you can really do but take them home and since they’re not made there, I feel a bit awkward around them.

The only other disappoinment was that they had just run out of their homemade marshmallows when I wanted one for the hot chocolate… but such things happen (and I can make them at home)…. This is still one of my favorite places in the world.

This entry was posted on Saturday, April 1st, 2006 at 5:59 pm and is filed under Bakeries/Pastry Shops, Highly Recommended, Los Angeles, Sampling. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.