The Financial District in LA can be foreign ground to even the most knowledgeable Angelenos. With the hustle and bustle of downtown traffic, it is easy to forget about the cultural diversity of the city. In just three hours, Six Taste travelers are reminded of the rich experience Los Angeles has to offer through six restaurants and 18 blocks of exploration. Accompanied by an energetic guide to lead the journey through hidden alleys, tour-goers may find a diamond in the rough on their gastronomical adventure: Lost Souls Café.
Settled in a narrow alley, shadowed by tall, brick buildings is Lost Souls Café— a quaint, yet artsy coffee shop that is home to an eclectic downtown crowd. What may seem to be a hole-in-the-wall on the outside is actually a spacious, tranquil lounge, equipped with a small stage for open-mic nights.
Isolated from busy streets, one step into the café and the atmosphere changes to a cozy, comfortable getaway. As the first stop on Six Taste’s Financial District tours, the server behind the coffee bar will notice the small crowd and begin preparing a sampling of food that will soon awaken virgin taste buds to a taste of the Philippines. A tray filled with slices of bread is placed on the counter.
As the tour guide explains the delectable, sweet and crispy bread, called pandesal, another tray lands on the counter, but this time the appearance is not as familiar. It’s a thick, purple concoction, called an Ube shake. An Ube shake is composed of yams, ice cream and milk, and topped with a dollop of whipped cream. It may pose a challenge for some, but the tray will soon be empty as tour guests realize it tastes much better than it looks. The hardest part is now over and with a small lining of heaven on their stomachs the group begins to chat as they make their way out of the restaurant and back on the streets to the next destination.
Afterwards, tourists will taste pastries, gourmet sandwiches, Thai food and spicy Mexican cuisine. At the end of the tasty journey, patrons may realize that Six Taste Food Tours are not just fulfilling, but also an amazing way to discover LA. Six Taste’s tours show hometown-tourists that a walk in their own backyard can open up their eyes (and taste buds) to a world of new things. What begins as a tour often ends in friendships, a mind-opening cultural experience… and food coma.
Love love love this place. Joan’s on Third is a great Gourmet Marketplace, but they also serve lunch and breakfast. I stopped by here on a Friday morning to try their omelettes that I heard so much about.
The girlfriend had the French Toast. I’m not a huge fan of sweet things for breakfast, but she’s a big French Toast fan. She gets it whenever we get breakfast, and I always try it. Joan’s French Toast was pretty good. The portion size was not too big, and the French Toast wasn’t heavy at all. I like my french toast thick, and these were a little thin for my taste.
French Toast
French Toast, Again.
I had the Bonne Femme. The Bonne Femme is a bacon, cheddar, and potato omelette. The first thing I noticed was the size. This isn’t a huge hulking omelette that you can find in most breakfast places in Los Angeles. It’s the perfect size to satiate your appetite without making you too full to eat lunch. It was accompanied by some light sour cream.
This picture doesn't do it justice. It's so pretty in person.
After taking my first bite, I noticed something else: Joan’s omelettes are softer, slightly ‘runny’ but in an amazingly delicious way. It’s not undercooked, and it makes you feel as though you’ve had overcooked omelette’s your entire life. Apparently, it’s made in more of a french style, and if you’ve seen the Perfect Scrambled Eggs, you’ll know how the French like their eggs. To be honest, I wasn’t paying too much attention on the filling, which was flavorful and excellent, but paled in comparison to the preparation of the egg and the different consistancy than what I expected. The omlette was excellent, and I dare to say one of the best in Los Angeles.
Bacon, Potato, Cheddar deliciousness.
I also had a mocha latte, which I appreciated because it used a non-sweetened chocolate to flavor the coffee. I have to say, it was a great start to the morning.
Mocha Latte
In addition, the ambiance of this place is great. We saw a few B-List celebs in the place, and it was quite busy. It’s so nice eating your omelette and sipping your coffee in the front of the store. This is a must if you’re a breakfast-lover.
Love it.
Six Taste brings a brand new series: The Best Burger Quest. Follow us as we try and find the best burger joints in Los Angeles.
Name: 8 Oz. Burger Bar
Location: Middle of Melrose near West Hollywood. 7661 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90046
Prices: Fairly standard for a sit-down burger joint. A little more pricey than usual because of the ‘construct-a-burger’ concept.
Ambiance: Darkly-lit, filled with a lot of the younger, trendy bar-going crowd. Friendly service and usually quite busy.
Burgers: Not the tastiest patty in the world, but some of the sauces are great. Great selection of cheese beyond your usual cheddar, and the size is enough to fill you up. You can’t really go wrong with any combination. However, I highly suggest adding the House Cured Bacon. Incredibly crispy and adds a whole level of texture complexity to your burger.
Burger Accessories: GET THE TRUFFLED POTATO-SKINS! Don’t get anything else. In fact, don’t even get a burger. Just order a giant mount of truffled potato-skins. These things are delicious. Crispy, but thick enough to have a soft center. Seasoned perfectly, not too salty, and with a good kick of cheese flavor. Not too greasy, and a great compliment to both the burger, and a tasty beverage.
On that note, also get a beer. Great selection of both heavy and light and all of them don’t overpower anything you’re eating.
Final Rating: 7/10. Solid showing but the burger isn’t the focus on this place…it’s really all about the truffled potato-skins. Also, while the sauces are good, the taste of the patty itself was a little bit lacking. All in all, worth trying once or twice.
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