La Provence Cafe on San Vicente

Went to a new cafe for a change! Still love Urth, but I should really take in all that LA has to offer. La Provence is a French style cafe that is primarily known for their macarons. Definitely had to try this place! They were apparently in Cupcake wars and are considered one of the best cafe's in Beverly Hills.

So one of my partners in crime tagged along and we had tea. We both ordered Rose tea and split two macarons (rose and salted caramel) and a chocolate raspberry mousse.

The rose tea was nice. I liked how I had my own pot, but then again, that's typical at cafes. I just don't drink a lot of tea when I go to cafes, I guess. The mousse was light, not too heavy, with a nice hint of raspberry. The macarons were amazing! The cookies were probably the one of the best I've had! Perfectly crunchy on the outside (but not too crunchy! Phew!) and soft and moist on the inside. The rose flavor was nice and buttery and produced a cool feeling in the mouth like mint would. It's hard to explain, really. The salted caramel was a bit chewy. It was good, but I definitely prefer the rose more! Will definitely make a trip back!

Brunch at the Royal/T

Came back! This time with my roomie. The Andy Warhol exhibit was still up, but there was a slight adjustment to the layout. Got the Royal Milk Tea again. Food wise, I ordered the Egg Benedict and the roomie ordered the Brioche French Toast. Decent food, but nothing amazing. Don't think I'll be coming back too soon.

Royal-T Cafe/Maid Cafe

Went to my first maid cafe today at the Royal-T Cafe. i wouldn't say it's as legit as the Japanese Maid cafe, but it'll pass.

http://www.royal-t.org/

The industrial, cement floor building contrasts with the very artsy decorations (not to mention the Andy Warhol exhibit!). It is a feast for the eyes!

Ordered the Royal-T High Tea Set: a brew of Royal-T (black tea steeped in soy milk) with assorted canapes and desserts. The Royal-T was amazing! but the sandwiches could've been a tad bit better. I personally thought the bread was a bit stale. The desserts were pretty good, but I'm a sucker for anything sweet :)

Our waitress/maid was very bubbly and fun to talk to! I get the feeling she may be one of their top servers. There are other waitresses there too, who are Japanese, but their English is very limited so they don't make the best "sociable maid":/ In the end, the service was very good.

Sprungli Confectionary Shop in Zurich. BircherMuesli.

Yeah, so far Swiss food has not really appealed to me.... The prices aren't helping either (-_-) I am a sucker for oatmeal though and I just discovered muesli! I'm hooked! Apparently, Lindt's confectionary shop, Sprungli, is famouse for their Bircher Muesli. HAD to get it of course! Price is not an issue here :P With that, I got chamomille tea and a box of four Luxemburgerli (basically a lighter version of Parisian macarons).

The muesli was very refreshing! Perhaps I don't have enough Muesli experience to really talk about Muesli... But I love the texture of it and how light it was! The little bread that came with it was nothing to rave about, but carbs are always much appreciated :)

Muesli is basically a popular cereal containing uncooked oats, fruits and nuts. It's health food created by doctor Maximillian Bircher-Benner for his patients during the 1900's. Traditionally, it was originally eaten with orange juice instead of the milk/yogurt we see today.

Some health benefits listed on Wikipedia are:

• Muesli is packed with nutrients from fresh fruits and vegetables that can reduce the risk of cancer.
• The oat content of Muesli helps lower cholesterol concentration and the risk of atherosclerosis.
• Some of its nuts content like walnuts is rich in omega 3 fatty acids which is also good for the heart and development of the nervous system.
• The presence of manganese in Muesli along with low saturated fats keeps your heart safe.
• It reduces the risk of cancer and other age-related diseases.
• It lowers glycemic index which controls diabetes.
• Fulfills the daily fiber requirement: In this age of processed food, very few people are able to achieve their daily fiber requirement through regular meals. Muesli being a very rich source of dietary fiber - both soluble and insoluble - helps in lowering the blood cholesterol level. The soluble fiber (beta-glucans) in muesli helps in avoiding dramatic changes in blood sugar level. It also relives constipation by improving the bowel moment in the intestinal tract.
• The oats and nuts present in muesli constitute of a phytochemical known as lignans. This phytochemical agent helps in reducing the chances of breast cancer, ovarian cancer and prostate cancer.

Sounds pretty good to me!

The site also has the original Bircher-Benner Muesli recipe if any of ya'll are interested :)

I LOVE URTH

I love Urth Cafe. There are so many places in the world I want to live, but I am very likely to choose LA because there is Urth Cafe. Sad reaon, but oh well. My life, my rules. I am gonna have some posts dedicated just to Urth because I love this place soooo much!

Today, I went out for brunch with one of my lovely friends! Ordered Japanese Tea Latte, Spanish Latte, Chocolate Black Out Pound Cake, Bowl of Strawberries and cream, and Organic Oatmeal plus fruit. A divine brunch!