Embrace Sweets

Monday, November 16, 2009

Shahadaroba

Shahadaroba means - The Future is much better than the past.

That is what I will use to describe the future of wine shops. No more countless aisle of wine beautifully lining the shelves and overly educated and intimidating Sommeliers. No, there's a new wine shop in town and it's fantastic! The Oaks Gourmet - just opened about a month 1/2 ago located on Franklin in Hollywood (across from the Church of Scientology).

This quaint place immediately wraps you in warmth when you walk in, yes there is wine but there's also a beautiful stone pizza kitchen - where all sorts of exotic pizzas, pastas and more can be made for you; and a tea, coffee and pastries bar on the right end - serving the cities best sweets and others. (Hopefully Embrace Sweets will be there soon!)

Mum and I had breakfast and then later returned for dessert and tea. This busy, neighborhood hangout is sophisticated yet laid back and you'll easily find the guy next door or the chick with pink hair and scary tattoos in front of you in line or munching at one of the patio tables. It's a place for everyone - but no where cheesy like Cheers. (No offense to the Cheers fans out there).

Stop in a say hi to Greg and Katie, tell them Brandi say hi!
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Breakfast Burrito (Fantastic!)

Prosciutto + egg + basil sandwich

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Stopped at the Wall

The Berlin Wall

Never did I think I'd have the opportunity to see, touch, smell and be in the presence of such greatness, of such history as the Berlin Wall. A statement, a piece of history as grand as this came and went when I - much to young to even understand. This wall restricted the lives, altered families and 'caged' millions for years. This simple 'wall' stands 12 feet tall and stretched over 90 miles. It divided East Germany from the West and caused one group of people to have such drastically different lives. This effect is even evident on the wall itself. The East side is bland, sad and worn. The West is alive, colorful, animated almost.

This outdoor installation is on loan from The Wall Project and can be seen on Wilshire Blvd, across from LACMA until Nov 14, 2009.

I had no idea how I would react or even feel seeing this; unfortunately I must have slept through history class when we covered this chapter in time. But thanks to Google and a very sweet, German man (Wolfe) we learned quite a bit about what happened from 1961 - 1989. Wolfe, was born in Germany and raised on the West side of the wall. He recounted hearing of hundreds of people being killed, the suffering the people on the East went through and he remembered vividly watching on television as the Wall came down. There is nothing like a first hand history lesson, it means that much more and is THAT much more powerful.

If you get a chance and you're in the city, please stop by and see just a small piece of history. You're allowed to get right up on them practically, touch and take pictures. This is not something that should be missed.