Bakery – Page 2

Michi Michi (Hillcrest) An ever-changing bakery collective

July 23, 2025 Cathy Bakery, What Cathy Eats!

mmm-yoso!!! is, for another day, being written by Cathy while Kirk is busy with 'research' for his portion of this food blog. Enjoy reading.

cc even did the driving on this day and this was good, since I was unfamiliar with where we were going and really didn't know where to park, even though my Dentist's old office was in the area.

Michi Michi, a Baking Collective, opened in November 2024. A Collective is a rotating selection of local bakers, showcasing their creativity, artistry and skills. The additional emphasis of a Collective is on supporting local farmers and businesses with ingredients sourced from nearby farms (San Diego County has the most organic farms in the State of California, more than 280. 94% of the farms in the County are Family farms and 41% are owned by women, according to the San Diego County Farm Bureau).

Yes, there is usually a line outside, because the space inside is small, holding about six people. At the far end near the cash register is a listing of the current bakers, makers and suppliers. Something new at every visit.

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There is also a line when the storefront first opens, a 8 AM Thursday-Sunday.

Walk along, try to order judiciously, maybe also pick a beverage and pay.

cc chose a Watermelon-Mint Olive Oil Cake Danish and a Huevo Ranchero Danish (egg, salsa, Cotija cheese and tortilla strips).

I chose the ham and cheese croissant, topped with sesame and poppy seeds. Wonderful perfectly laminated layers of butteryness surrounded by great crispiness. A flavorful ham and cheese filling.

Michi Michi, Baking Collective 2800 Fifth Avenue San Diego 92103 Website Open Thurs-Sun 8AM-2PM Closed Mon-Tue-Wed

We chose different Ceremonial Matcha beverages (hers was caramel and mine had coconut milk). Quality and a new favorite beverage for summer.

Road Trip – Erick Schat’s Bakkerÿ (Bishop)

July 6, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Road Trip, Sandwiches, Sierra Nevada, California, Travel

On the way back from Lake Tahoe, I wanted to make a stop at an iconic Bakery in Bishop. I had been reading about Erick Schat's Bakkerÿ for ages. Originally working at the Bishop Bakery established in 1903 by the Schoch family, Jacob "Jack" Schat an immigrant from Utrecht, who's family has a long history in baking came to Bishop in 1950 and found work at the Bishop Bakery, eventually buying the business and naming it after his son. The bakery has become an institution. It is said that it has over 2 million visitors a year! Atlas Obscura mentions that the bakery produces 25,000 loaves of bread a day. Considering that the population of Bishop is around 4,000, that would be 6 loaves per person….that's a lot of carbs!

We headed on thru Bishop and stopped entered the crowded parking lot, and voila! A car was just leaving a space! Must have been fate, right?

We had decided to stop in for an early lunch. The place was bustling, even in the middle of the week! The shop is packed with loaves of bread, cookies, and a sandwich section. The Missus decided to go bread and cookie shopping.

While I decided to get a sandwich for us to share. Calvin had told me his favorite was the turkey on the special bread of the house Basque Sheepherders Bread which has been trademarked since 1938.

I stood in the queue, placed my order, and picked it up when ready. The Missus was still shopping so I found us a table outside.

It was a nice morning, the heat hadn't settled in yet.

As for the sandwich….well, the bread lives up to the hype. The crust had a mild chew to it; the bread was so soft and almost fluffy, with a light yeasty-sweetness.

Loved the sprouts and tomatoes, but that turkey was so try and tasteless……

I'll pass on sandwiches from here in the future.

And the Missus went with a sourdough loaf instead of the Sheepherders bread! Though we'd get that on our next trip thru Bishop.

And the Missus really enjoys the cookies from here.

Just the bread and the cookies makes this a regular stop for us when we're in the area.

Erick Schat's Bakkerÿ
763 N Main St.
Bishop, CA 93514

Na Tart (Clairemont) – A Soft Opening Visit

July 3, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Desserts

On a recent visit to Aldi, I noticed that Na Tart, which I had first noticed back in May seemed to be open.

Na Tart 01

The doors were open and it looked like some games and stuffs were out.

Na Tart 02

So, I walked on over and peeked in. I was told that they are indeed in a soft opening phase, With currently only Egg Tarts available for $3.50 a piece.

Na Tart 03

Though prices are cheaper when ordering in volume. All the other flavors were currently not available. Pardon the photos of the signs…the reflection really didn't do my photos good.

Na Tart 03c

Na Tart 04

I decided to get two tarts for the Missus. It seemed like they are still getting their processes set as I stood cooling my heels for about ten minutes with staff standing right in front of me. When I asked if I could get some tarts the six people behind the counter looked at each other blankly as if trying to figure out who was tasked with waiting on customers….it was kind of funny.

Anyway, I got two tarts and brought them home.

Na Tart 05

Of course I dare not touch them until the Missus got home!

So, the tarts are fairly "eggy" and on the sweeter side. The crust is light and initially crisp, though it does deteriorate over time. I think we could have done with something a bit more buttery.

Na Tart 06

Not bad, but not sure about these being $3.50 a piece.

Now for some good news. In case you want to try some of the other flavors of egg tarts, Na Tart's first California location, whose headquarters is based in Flushing NY, will be celebrating their grand opening tomorrow, the 4th of July. And it appears the first 50 customers will get a free tart.

Na Tart 07

So, in case you needed any motivation to, ahem "egg" you on and have a "tarty" (sorry, couldn't help myself) 4th, tomorrow's your chance.

Na Tart 00

Na Tart
5252 Balboa Ave
San Diego, CA 92117
Posted Hours:
Daily 10am – 9pm

Road Trip – Queen Cup Coffee, The Baker’s Table (Santa Ynez), and a revisit to Industrial Eats (Buellton)

April 13, 2025 mmm-yoso American/New American Restaurants, Bakery, Caffeine Fix, Croissants, Road Trip, Santa Barbara County, Travel

Even though we were staying in Solvang, we decided to head on out during the day and drive around a bit. Santa Ynez is less than ten minutes from Solvang by car. We'd driven thru and made a quick stop in the town on a previous visit, but this time we waned to take JJ for a walk and explore a bit.

I recalled a coffee shop in the little corner off Meadowlark Road where we stopped to do some window shopping last time. So, we decided to stop there.

While the Missus took JJ to stretch his legs, I went in and ordered us some coffee.

The menu cracked me up……and no, I didn't get anything off the "Fancy AF" menu; just a latte for the Missus and an Americano for me.

There's something quite charming about this shop and Santa Ynez as a whole. The young man working was friendly and effcient.

The Missus enjoyed Her latte and my Americano was fairly smooth and woke me up gently.

Queen Cup Coffee
1095 Meadowvale Rd.
Santa Ynez, CA 93460

After our caffeine fix we decided to take a walk thru downtown Santa Ynez, which has an "Old West" flavor to it. It's the second oldest town in the Santa Ynez Valley, established in 1882.

I cracked up when I saw that the Maverick Saloon has a free shuttle! You gotta love it!

There's a tiny library in town, which I later read, claims to be the Oldest Branch Library in California. The little 12 by 14 structure was built in 1912.

It's only open on Saturdays from 1pm to 4pm.

And of course JJ had to get into the act…..

It was a quiet morning in the town, though we saw two guys with some major photography gear walking up and down the street taking photos.

I had read about a bakery in town named The Baker's Table that was supposed to be pretty good. When doing the "Google thing" I aw several bakeries with that name across the country, so I thought it was a chain. Though on later searches, I found that there are several businesses in different cities that share the same name, but are not affiliated.

I thought it would be a nice morning for a croissant, so while the Missus took JJ around for photos, I dropped on in.

The place was fairly busy. I saw this pup in the courtyard to the side of the bakery. I guess the pooch belongs to one of the employees?

And while the croissant didn't look very impressive; it was pretty good!

While the exterior could have been a bit more flaky and crisp; there was a nice balance of butter and salt flavor. The interior was light, fluffy, and nicely honeycombed. This was a pretty good croissant; and would probably be in the "top 3" here in San Diego.

Needless to say, I was quite happy with this! In Santa Ynez! We'll definitely be back!

The Baker's Table
3570 Sagunto St.
Santa Ynez, CA 93460

We went back to the shop we had visited the last time we were in the area. They welcomed JJ in and gave him "some pets" as well.

We might consider staying in Santa Ynez next time if we can find pet friendly accommodations.

We next drove over to Los Olivos. We love exploring Los Olivos, though it seems more boujie on every visit.

This time around we noticed the little library here as well.

This one is only open on Saturday as well; from 10am to 1pm. I cracked up as I asked the Missus if there's only one librarian in Santa Ynez who worked one day a week shuttling from the Los Olivos library from 10am to 1pm and then going to the Santa Ynez location from 1pm to 4pm?

We then drove back to Solvang and took JJ on the Hans Christian Andersen Park Trail.

A quick mile-and-a-half trail which took a bit over a half hour.

The loud woodpecker got JJ's attention.

And I got JJ to pose for a photo I named A "Shrimp on the barbie".

Poor JJ has to put up with all the dad jokes…..

Even though it seemed like we'd done a lot; it was just getting to close to lunch time. There was a place that we had really enjoyed and had been wanting to return to since our last visit. So, we headed down Highway 246 to Buellton and back to Industrial Eats. We arrived at a quarter to 12 and found parking in one of the few spaces in front of the converted warehouse.

We times things well because by the time Industrial Eats opened a line had formed behind us!

We ordered two item we'd had before and the Missus surprised me by telling me to order another item!

The two "repeats" were the Smoked Duck Salad ($18) and the White Shrimp, Pancetta Garlic Toast ($18).

We enjoyed the Smoked Duck Salad even more this time around; the duck was more tender, had a nice gamey-smokiness. The dressing had a nice acidity and the Missus enjoyed the tart-sweetness of the apples….She usually does not like the addition of fruit to salads, but this changed Her mind. A nice refreshing salad.

The White Shrimp was not as good as we recalled however.

The shrimp tasted fishy and were severely overcooked; the "sauce" was thin and watery. I did enjoy the garlic bread and the chilies though.

I was surprised that the Missus ordered the Miso Cod ($18), something that we usually only make at home. The cod was really delicious.

Man, that cod was so tender. moist, and buttery! The miso glaze was full of sweet-umami. The greens were a nice bitter counterpoint. Though we're not sure about the addition of avocado and the water-salty sauce really didn't add much. Still, the Missus wants to return for this dish!

I always think of our good friend Candice who first recommended Industrial Eats to us! We are so thankful and can't wait to return!

Industrial Eats
181 Industrial Way
Buellton, CA 93427

There's also a market next to Industrial Eats that we had never noticed before named Sunrise Organic Farm. Not sure if it's affiliated with the restaurants.

We picked up some cold pressed juice for breakfast and then headed back to our room.

It had been a fun morning, but now it was time for a serious nap before dinner!

Road Trip – Helena Avenue Bakery (Santa Barbara), Good Seed Coffee Boutique (Solvang), and a Revisit to Bell’s (Los Alamos)

April 6, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Caffeine Fix, Croissants, French Restaurants, Road Trip, Sandwiches, Santa Barbara County, Travel

After a surprisingly good dinner at Shalhoob's and a nightcap at Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company, I thought I would have a nice night's sleep. Well, that was not to be. I did anticipate JJ's 4am morning "puppy potty", but I had a hard time sleeping because of the traffic noise from the 101. I really enjoyed the Moxy Hotel, but it was right on the 101 and the traffic noise kept me up for most of the night. Oh well, cant win 'em all.

When morning arose, the Missus and I made some quick plans. We had lunch reservations at our favorite restaurant in the area and added in what we thought would be a fun visit for JJ.

But before all of this, we decided to head down the block. I had noted that right across the way from Figueroa Mountain Brewing was Helena Avenue Bakery. I decided to get my croissant fix, since they supposedly made everything inhouse.

It's quite a charming spot, the bakery shares the space with a wine tasting room. It also shares the address with a place we had really looked forward to eating at that kind of disappointed us on our previous visit to the area.

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You order at the counter and are given a number. We had a seat at one of the lovely outdoor tables.

Soon enough my Americano and Croissant was ready.

The Americano was fairly smooth, with a nice kick.

Seeing that the ridges were falling off the viennoiserie made me somewhat concerned, but the pastry did not shatter into crumbs upon consuming. The exterior was light and crisp, the interior fairly fluffy and "honeycombed". It was sorely lacking in butter and even salt for that matter. Quite bland overall.

A "halfway there" croissant if I've ever had one. Liked the vibe of the place, though I'm not sure what it would be like if busy.

Helena Avenue Bakery
131 Anacapa St. Suite C
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Since we had lunch reservations in Los Alamos, we decided to head on up to Solvang which is sort of on the way. We thought that JJ might enjoy the place and since it was a Monday during the slow season, things wouldn't be too hectic.

And we were right. It was calm and relaxed, we enjoyed strolling around. And JJ kinda enjoyed his "photo-ops".

This was when we thought it would be fun staying in Solvang with JJ, which would be our next "road trip".

We took a short break at this little coffee shop.

Where I had my second Americano of the day. This one was smooth and easy to drink. We just had a seat on the porch and enjoyed things.

It was a nice break in the action for us.

Good Seed Coffee Boutique
1607 Mission Dr.
Solvang, CA 93463

We did a bit more walking; then it was time to head off for lunch. Which was going to be at our favorite restaurant in the area; Bell's in Los Alamos. Over time we've come to conclusion that we enjoy lunches at Bell's more than the prefix dinner. It's much more classically French, with local produce and such. And since this is my fourth post on the place; I'm just going to mainly do photos. You can click on the preceding links for more info on our previous visits.

Perhaps because it was 11am on a Monday, we had the place to ourselves for a while. The back patio is dog friendly and the chef even came out and spent some time with JJ!

We ordered what we usually do at Bell's. They still make one of my favorite versions of Beef Tartare.

Love the cut of beef, with a wonderful texture, perfect ratio of capers and pungency, so rich and decadent.

Of course the Missus had to have Escargot.

The Country Terrine is nice and porky, with hints of winey-sweetness. It goes well with the cornichons and grainy-pungent Dijon.

We also enjoy the slightly offally, mildly sweet Chicken Liver Mousse.

The strawberry jam works as a nice sweet "foil", with the cornichons sour-acidity clearing the palate. Our only issue is with the crostini which were hard rather than crisp.

As with our previous we enjoyed our lunch at Bell's and would return again in a few weeks.

JJ enjoyed his first visit to a Michelin Star restaurant and got treated so nicely!

Bell's
406 Bell St.
Los Alamos, CA 93440

Now it was time to head back to the hotel and get a much needed nap…..if I could block out the freeway noise; before dinner!

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you had a great weekend!

Croissant Files – 102 Scone Company

March 18, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Croissants, Desserts

So, recently the wonderful Madam "LL" sent me a text asking me if I'd been to the 102 Scone Company. Huh? Well, I'd never heard of the place. She explained that it used to be named Canele Bakery, but then changed their name and main product to scones and rebranding as the 102 Scone Company. Funny thing is; they no longer make scones! And they do make Canele again; though supposedly only on Fridays. She did tell me that they make croissants….so you know I had to visit, right?

Looking up the address I cracked up……

102 Scone Co 01

This is the place with the simple "Bakery" sign next to Rubicon Deli! Man, I am so not with things these days!

I had arrived at 10 minutes to nine (opening time) on a Friday. Check out the line!

102 Scone Co 02

And it got even longer stretching all the way past Rubicon by the time the place opened. Things did move pretty quickly once the doors opened.

It's a simple counter displaying various Viennoiseries and pastries, though no Caneles, even though this was Friday.

102 Scone Co 03

102 Scone Co 04

I bought myself a croissant (of course) and got a couple of items for the Missus. The prices weren't bad; a tad cheaper than ASA Bakery. The owners, a Korean Husband and Wife team were very ncie and actually seemed to know some of their customers…..must have a good number of regulars I guess.

102 Scone Co 04b

So, this is what I ended up getting.

102 Scone Co 05a

Looking at the croissant; I knew this was going to be interesting. Notice how the laminated ridges had fallen off. And I had just removed the cover of the box!

102 Scone Co 06

Even more fell off as I gingerly moved it to a plate.

102 Scone Co 07 102 Scone Co 08 It was too delicate; a bit over baked, the laminated exterior just falling off. You know what was going to happen when I actually bit into it, right? A certain song by the Rolling Stones came to mind:

"Ohhh look at me
I been shattered
I been shattered
Look at me, I been shattered…."

I prefer not leaving a good part of the croissant on the plate. Unless 102's specific purpose is to have me lick the plate?

You can see why I used ASA Bakery as a reference point, right?

Though I will say that while the interior was much too airy; I'm looking for a slightly moist "honeycomb" of flavor, it had a decent amount of butter, thouh perhaps too much salt. I do prefer this to the version from ASA; though it's not in my top three (thus far) for San Diego.

102 Scone Co 09

Unlike what happened on our recent visit to Michi Michi (I really want to do another visit before posting), I did get a chance to taste the Cranberry Chocolate Monkey Bread – decently light, not too sweet and the Lime Croissant – didn't care for the overly bready texture and the glaze; though enjoyed that it wasn't too sweet and the lime flavor wasn't overpowering. The Missus took the Matcha Crookie to work, but told me it was a bit too much.

102 Scone Co 10

I'm glad I got to try this place out and would like to thank LL for thinking of me!

102 Scone Co 00

102 Scone Company (Which doesn't currently do scones)
4130 La Jolla Village Dr.
La Jolla, CA 92037

Takeout Revisits – Sizzling Pot King and Yiko Yiko

March 6, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Chinese Restaurants, Desserts

**** Sizzling Pot King is now Zhang Liang Malatang

So, after a recent road trip, I really didn't feel like making dinner….I mean, an almost 6 hour drive back? Well, I must say, JJ was in much better shape than I was. So, we ended up doing something we hadn't done since the trips we made at the end of the pandemic; we decided to do takeout from Sizzling Pot King, which had been a regular stop for take out when we were too tired to go out; until prices got too high and portions smaller and they removed items from the menu. It had been two-and-a-half years since our last visit.

I drove over and was surprised to find that even more items were off the menu; no more tripe, no more tendon…so I went with our usual pork intestine with lamb and of course some frozen tofu. All said this came out to $45….which I gotta say does not seem so bad for these days.

Sizzling pot king to 01

While waiting, I decided to get the Missus a treat from Yiko Yiko…which even though we thought was seriously over priced, the Missus had enjoyed.

So, while walking over, the young lady from Sizzling Pot King actually chased me down. I stopped wondering what was going on. And she said "sorry, you ordered frozen tofu….most of our Korean customers order fried tofu…I want to make sure!" Lol! I had to crack up…..and also, I appreciated the effort. Though I did tell her that I'm Japanese not Korean, which kind of embarrassed her….but also mentioned that my wife is Chinese and She is the one who instructs me to order. I also told her that I really appreciated the effort she made to get the order right!

Yiko Yiko Rev 01

As before there was major sticker shock when looking at the offerings at Yiko Yiko. And after perusing what was in the case, I decided on the Durian Basque Cheesecake. In spite of the price – $14.35 a slice. Ouch!

Yiko Yiko Rev 02

The Missus did actually enjoy this. The young lady took the slice back and had it "torched"; though it was so lightly done that didn't really create a great crisp – burnt top like a typical Basque Cheesecake.

Yiko Yiko Rev 03

Still, the Missus said it was creamy, light, and there was a faint flavor of durian. Though once I told Her the price I was instructed not to get this again!

Yiko Yiko
8008 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111

I walked back to Sizzling Pot King and my order was ready. Like I said earlier, $45 these days doesn't seem so expensive and the portion size was much larger than on our last visit or two.

Sizzling pot king to 02

Decent ma-la; there's a lot less veggies; especially broccoli than there used to be. The intestine was nice and "bungy" though the Missus didn't think it paired well with the lamb. There was quite a bit of sliced lamb….way more than the veggies. Which got me to wonder if we're living in a time when vegetables are now more expensive than meat???

This was fine for two meals for us…which now makes the $45 price seem more reasonable.

Sizzling Pot King
8058 Clairemont Mesa Blvd.
San Diego, CA 92111

This got me wondering…..for all you "FOYs" out there; what your experiences with places on your takeout rotation have been like recently?

Croissant Files – ASA Bakery Revisited

February 23, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Croissants, Desserts

Waaaay back in November of 2023 I did a post on ASA Bakery after the Missus requested I pick up some pastries after scrolling thru Instagram. The Missus was less than thrilled with what we got , which I mentioned in my post, along with the crazy long wait. In the comments of that post; the owner of ASA (along with BeShock Ramen, etc) left some thoughtful comments, which I really appreciated.

"This is Ayaka from Asa bakery, thank you for visiting us during soft opening! I feel terribly bad about your experience. Our baker just arrived from Japan end of September. As you can imagine baking or any type of cooking is very different in every country, he needs to make adjustment from ingredients(Japanese flower vs US) water source(Soft water vs very hard water in SD) cultivating yeast, humidity, even measurements are all different (oz vs ml, ℉ vs ℃, lb vs grams). We bake everything in house and that requires high baking skill sets. Training new staffs, hiring experienced bakers also takes time as a brand new business."

Which I totally understood. There's a reason why we enjoy Nagoya so much! And I made up my mind to eventually revisit as Ayaka also stated "Our classic croissant is head baker’s favorite". Croissants you say? The eventuality came to play as the Missus recently asked me to check out ASA again. Of course, I was going to head on down again myself!

I arrived a bit before opening and found parking near Island Avenue.

Asa Rev 01

One of the first things I noticed was this guy lying down at the street corner yelling at people.

Asa Rev 00

And crossing on Market there was this going on right down the street.

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But all of that didn't seem to deter the customers waiting for the place to open as there was a good sized line. Though it wasn't as bad as when ASA first opened.

Asa Rev 02

The line moved quite quickly and of course there was always something to catch your attention while waiting.

Asa Rev 03

I was in the shop in about 20 minutes.

Asa Rev 04a

And there was a nice selection of items. The staff were really friendly and efficient. It seems like everything is priced at $5.95. I got a Chocolate Danish and an Earl Grey Melon Pan for the Missus.

Asa Rev 04b

She preferred the Chocolate Danish to the Melon Pan which She said was too bready, had no Earl Grey Flavor, but at least wasn't overly sweet. She did say the Chocolate Danish was much better than what She had before. But it's not something She craves. I guess it's still Desserts by Clement for Her.

As for the Croissant.

Asa Rev 05 Asa Rev 07b Well, in her comments Ayaka describes it as "perfect flaky crust outside, right amount of butter to have moist and chewy texture with light and airy layers." Almost sounds like our favorite croissant in Paris, right? Well, hold on there pilgrim! The croissant was not bad, decent butter, but definitely use more. As for flakey, I'd say it was way too crumbly, the crust "exploding" into a crumby shrapnel. It was definitely light, too airy, without "body" and was quite dry to boot.

Asa Rev 06

This was not bad, though I prefer what Wayfarer, Izola (though based on DavidG's comment about their business practices I may refrain from visiting), and even La Clochette to this. And based on the location, we would have to enjoy what ASA makes, like we enjoy the food at Sovereign in the area to revisit. Though if I can get someone to tell me that their "Sandos" are outstanding, it might be worth a lunchtime visit!

Asa Rev 08

Still, the service and selection was much improved since my last visit. Also of note, ASA does not accept cash; only electronic payments.

ASA Cafe & Bakery
634 14th St. Suite 110
San Diego, CA 92101
Current Hours:
Wed – Mon 9am – 9pm
Closed on Tuesdays

On an interesting note; man, this is my 48th post on Croissants….that's a lot of "beurre under the bridge". I hope you're not getting tired of my croissant posts!

Road Trip – La Parisienne (Morro Bay) and Luna Coffee Bar (Cayucos)

February 7, 2025 mmm-yoso Bakery, Caffeine Fix, Paso Robles/Cambria/San Luis Obispo County, Road Trip, Travel

We had a decent night's sleep at our hotel, the Harbor House Inn, which was super dog friendly. Of course JJ was still a really young pupper and had to go potty at 3am, but the hotel has a designated green space for that.

After waking and feeding the pup breakfast, we gave him time to "settle" then headed on out for a morning walk before checking out. On our last visit, we had spent time at the shops and such. This time around, we walked north toward the "rock". We had noticed a bakery of sorts during our last visit right off the Embarcadero and Front Street. In need of something for a light breakfast, this time we headed on in to the shop, named La Parisienne.

After looking over the rather large selection; I decided on getting a quiche and ended up choosing the Bacon and Caramelized Onion Quiche. I ordered a coffee for the Missus who was waiting with JJ at the table outside.

The really nice woman working heated up the quiche and even delivered it to our table outside.

She even provided two forks without me asking! This was pretty good, sweet-savory, nice crisp top, creamy-rich interior. Well worth the $5.75 to me!

Not bad at all!

La Parisienne
1140 Front St.
Morro Bay, CA 93442

On our last visit to the area we didn't take the time to check out "the rock", so we decided to walk on over.

Though JJ seemed to prefer the Ice Plants…..

In Coleman Park is this Plaque. Morro Bay is where the first Filipinos landed in the United States on October 18, 1587!

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Well, didn't the Pilgrim's land in 1620???? So….maybe we should be having Adobo for Thanksgiving? Hmmm……

Based on how many folks we'd seen the night before, we were surprised to find the park around Morro Rock to be quite quiet and peaceful.

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The views of the coast were also quite nice.

The Missus asked me what that town was in the distance. I told Her it's Cayucos. I also mentioned that there's a pier with some nice views, so we decided that should be our next stop. So, we walked back to the hotel, packed up, and checked out and drove the short distance to Cayucos.

It was fairly busy, but we still found parking on North Ocean Avenue and made the stroll down the pier.

I admired those surfers, cause the water looked fah-reezing!

We then took a stroll down Ocean Avenue with JJ. I had thoughts about having brunch at The Hidden Kitchen, but the line was crazy long, so we looked for a coffee place instead and saw this sign.

And went down the little passage way to this coffeehouse.

Which had a quaint patio.

And JJ and I had a seat, while the Missus went in and ordered a Latte for Her and a Cold Brew for myself. The breakfasts looked quite large, so we decided to just get our caffeine fix.

The Cold Brew was fine, it did the job; the Missus thought Her latte was on the weaker end of the spectrum, but we enjoyed the vibe here.

Luna Coffee Bar
84 North Ocean Ave.
Cayucos, CA 93430

As a bonus, right next door to the coffee shop is a location of the Brown Butter Cookie Company. We had been to the Paso Robles location, so we knew it was a nice place to grab a few omiyagi for folks.

Brown Butter Cookie Company
98 North Ocean Ave.
Cayucos, CA 93430

We enjoyed the beach town vibe of Cayucos and will think about staying here or perhaps at Avila Beach in the future.

So folks, between Cayucos, Avila Beach, or Pismo Beach, which so you prefer?

JJ would like to know!

Milan – L.O.V.E., Panetteria Mercato, Santa Maria del Carmine Church, Aperitivo Time at Rosso Brera, and More Exploring

December 7, 2024 mmm-yoso Bakery, Desserts, Italian Restaurants, Italy, Milan, Travel

I got up rather early on our first morning in Milan. We had done a bit of shopping before heading to dinner the night before, so we had breakfast and lunch covered. After a light breakfast, I was ready to head on out. The Missus just wanted to relax, so I went in search of something I'd read about before our trip. This walk had me going down Via Mercato, which we'd walk pass several times a day during our stay; with bakeries and such, it was a fun street to shop and eat. The street eventually turned into Via Broletto and there's a lot to see here as well. Like the Neoclassical designed Church of San Tomaso in Terramara.

Via Broletto ends at the very busy and picturesque Piazza Cordusio.

From here, there was an interesting public art piece I was looking for. A bit further west lies Piazza Affari where the Milan Stock Exchange is located. It is quite busy.

As for me, I was more interested in the sculpture right across the way; which seems to send a message to the bankers and financiers of Milan, considered to be the "economic" capital of Italy.

Yep, for real. You gotta love it! The name of this sculpture is L.O.V.E, which stands for Liberta, Odio, Vendetta, Eternita (Freedom, Hate, Vengeance, Eternity).

Could you imagine something like this standing outside the stock exchange in the states?

From here I took a now familiar route back to the apartment. I noticed that the Instagrammers were out in full force in Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.

On the way back, I stopped at this bakery.

And got the Missus some cannoli to have with lunch.

She especially enjoyed the pistachio version; saying that it was not overly sweet.

Panetteria Mercato
Via Mercato 24
20121 Milan, Italy

After lunch we headed on out. To do a some exploring and shopping. As we passed this church for the fourth time, seeing that it was open, we decided to check it out.

This is the Chiesa del Carmine (Santa Maria del Carmine Church).

The church dates back to 15th century. And the chapel, which dates back to the Baroque period is considered a masterpiece.

And if to really display the contrasts between the ancient and modern; right in front of the church is this sculpture.

Named the "Great Toscano" by Polish artist Igor Mitoraj.

As we strolled down Via Broletto, the Missus stopped at this sneaker/shoe shop. The brand was Golden Goose?

Looking at the prices, I jokingly told the Missus that She was limited to one pair. Her response; "no, I already have the one's I want at home." !!!!!!

We enjoyed wandering the streets of Milan.

Walking thru places that now seemed quite familiar to us.

As we headed a bit further afield and headed past the Duomo.

That's the Chiesa di Santa Maria presso San Satiro, a church that dates back to the 15th century!

That's San Giovanni in Conca above. The remnants of a church which dates back to the 4th century. What remains of the church is the crypt! I've always thought of Milan as being so modern, so hip, but what I saw really gave me a better appreciation of the city!

And yet, there were places we walked past that just brought on a smile….

Heading back to the apartment, we strolled thru Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II once again.

No matter how many times we walked thru the shopping center; there always seemed to be something we'd notice that we hadn't paid attention to before.

On the way back to the apartment, we stopped at this shop.

Where the Missus found a small purse She loved. Heck, this was Milan, you want a purse….well go for it, right?

We got back to apartment and took a break. I had dinner reservations nearby. But first, we decided to do the Milanese thing…. Yes, it was Aperitivo time! There was a Chinese restaurant that was recommended to us that we decided to try. It was located close by; in fact less than a block from where we'd had dinner the night before. So, we decided what the heck and went to Rosso Brera for Aperitivo. It was really funny; the same young man who waited on us the night before came on out. He smiled and I told him we were here for Aperitvo. He cracked up and we were served with a smile! So yes, a Negroni for me; Prosecco for the Missus, and some typical snacks.

Before heading off to dinner.

Rosso Brera
Via Marco Formentini 7
20121 Milan, Italy

We were really enjoying the Milanese lifestyle. You could say that we were falling in L.O.V.E. with Milan!