I caught a hint of lemon or maybe verbena as I walked through the doors of the Larchmont Bungalow. My second impression was that I had walked into a light and airy general store in the midst of an upscale village.
There was a line, so I had time to run to the restroom first. The walls were covered with images from old newspapers. My attention was grabbed by a front page headline of the July 22, 1947 edition of the Los Angeles Times. "The kidnapper didn't think to look under the bed" it proclaimed. Apparently a mother hid her daughters underneath a bed, thus thwarting the erstwhile kidnapper's efforts. I wanted to know more but didn't want to spend ages in Larchmont Bungalow's bathroom. Even 60 years ago, media was driven by sensational stories.
Back at the line. My advice to you is to look at the menu while you are waiting because the menu is extensive. The four guys at the front of the line had spread themselves along the counter, blocking my view of the menu stand (to the left). I spent my time looking around and daydreaming.
Suddenly I had a menu in my hand and was in front of the server.
I felt overwhelmed. Did I want French toast with Nutella, plantains and hazelnut syrup? No, too sweet. Maybe I wanted the Asian Style Crepe with scallops, shrimp and mushrooms in a sesame orange dressing? No, it was too early in the day for that. What about the Seafood Lover's Omelet of lobster, shrimp, fresh blue crab, and spinach with a truffle hollandaise? No, too rich.
I hate the people at the front of the line who waste everyone's time while they dither about their order. But if I didn't make a decision in two seconds, I would become one of those people. In a panic, I chose the breakfast panini (chicken-apple sausage, tomato, avocado and cheddar).
Sometimes inspiration comes too late to be useful. I had the brilliant idea to ask the cashier what she thought were the best dishes after I'd placed my order.
"Savory or sweet?" she asked.
"Savory," I replied. She then rattled off three or four dishes. I can't remember what she said.
"What about sweet?" I can remember those recommendations (Why is that, by the way?). She suggested the red and blue velvet pancakes and dark chocolate chip bread pudding pancakes.
The service was lovely. She also suggested that I pay for my espresso first and have it made when I was ready for it.
I took my number and made my way to a table. Many of the tables inside were occupied. It was too chilly for me to consider sitting at one of the tables outside. I found a small table near a wood burning stove.The wall nearest to me was papered with a leaf green pattern on a white background and reminded me of a Marimekko print.
Larchmont Bungalow felt cosy. Floors, tables and chairs were made of wood. A woman was tucked up on an olive green velvet (or its lookalike) couch in front of the wood burning stove. All around us people were either meeting, chatting with friends or working on their laptops. The abstract art on the wall made me think of peacocks because of its color palette and patterns. I particularly liked a black and white (maybe sepia treated) photo of a high rise, shot very close to the building. It looked as though panels of multiple images of the same building were lined up to create the piece.
The music selection was okay, although I'd heard all of these songs before. Acoustic guitar was the order of the day. Nevertheless, I was surprised to hear acoustic versions of songs like Level 42's "Something About You." The song is so quintessentially 80s that the acoustic cover sounded ridiculous to my ears. I later learned that we were listening to Sirius XM's Coffee House station. I don't love a coffee house radio station playing in a coffee house -- it seems to me to be too literal an interpretation of what the experience is. But that's a small point and I can live with it.
The breakfast panini was good. There was nice interplay between the sweetness of the chicken sausage, the savory flecks of dried onion in the bread, the tartness of the tomato and the smoothness of the cheese and avocado. It was more rich than what I was looking for, but I didn't order well.
Then I was ready for coffee. I was glad that I'd followed the server's advice as there was a line of people waiting to order when I went up to the counter. While my espresso was being prepared, I heard a guy with a deep cigar voice order a side of bacon and toast. That was exactly what I should have ordered.
Sipping my coffee back at the table, the talk around me (I wasn't eavesdropping -- people were speaking loudly) was of disease, genetic markers and then, mercifully, the snow in Chicago. Until the table behind me was served their food.
"Excuse me. I'm sorry," a woman sitting at a neighboring table said in a way that was both peremptory and breathless, "What is that?"
"Bread pudding pancake."
"Oh my God." This was said in a way that spoke of deep longing and regret. We all laughed.
"You can't go wrong with that," said the woman who was going to tuck in to said pancakes. More laughter and good cheer all around.
Free wi-fi. Metered and free street parking.
Click here for Larchmont Bungalow details.
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