Desserts at Ramekin and Boozy Oysters at Maru This Thursday, August 8

Being a foodie in LA isn’t very hard. But to be a trend-spotting foodie is an entirely another matter. About 4 or 5 months ago I started seeing photos of desserts from Ramekin, an ice cream and dessert shop. I walked past it a few times while strolling on Vermont and it’s fairly close to Rockwell, home of the wonderful For the Record shows. I finally had a chance to check it out recently.

Ramekin would be a cute place for a coffee date, to catch up with a girlfriend or an indulgence after eating “healthy” elsewhere on the street. Or if you’ve watched the rising dessert costs at restaurants but still want some place nice for dessert, Ramekin could be the next sweet spot (pun intended). Their desserts are between $4-7. Or a scoop or two won’t break the bank.

 

Chef Jason Park is behind the desserts at Ramekin. He also is the chef at Maru restaurant in West LA/ Santa Monica. On Thursday, August 8, garden-to-glass bartender Matthew Biancaniello will be at Maru serving 8 different boozy oysters. Some selections include:

– chipotle-infused mezcal with papalo-infused oil and salmon eggs infused with passion fruit
– rose Cocchi Americano with purple shiso granita
– japepeno, cotton candy

The oysters are $5/ oyster. Although reservations aren’t needed, they expect it to be well-attended so make your reservations.

Back over at Ramekin, I tried 6 different ice creams and sorbets and my favorites were the (white) grapefruit and pistachio. The white grapefruit was simply amazing. It tasted exactly like oro blanco grapefruit. The pink grapefruit was good too but I just loved the white. Others really enjoyed the plum. The fresh fruit flavors tend to be the sorbets.

 

 

I liked that the ice creams weren’t too sweet and you could really enjoy the flavors.

 

A popular Asian pastry is brick toast. Maru takes it to another level with fresh strawberries. Generally Asian desserts aren’t too syrupy sweet so it was nice to find something like Ramekin outside of Asian enclaves.

 

The only dessert I tried I wasn’t entirely fond of was the blueberry soup but I think it was mainly because I didn’t know how to eat it. The soup was indeed soupy (and cold) and came adorned with meringues and a cup (well, ramekin) of granola. I asked if I was supposed to pick at the granola or dump it into the soup. It was recommended I eat it however I liked. Well, I tried it both ways and decided it wasn’t a Minty thing.

 

Being a self-admitted “non-dessert lover”– I’ll take savory any day (ooh, boozy oysters), I do have a huge soft spot for chocolate. Ramekin’s chocolate bread pudding may be my new favorite. It seems like like a smaller portion but trust me, just a few bites are all you need.

 

We took home a couple of cookies and my favorite was the oatmeal raisin.

 

The next time I’m in Los Feliz I’m definitely heading to Ramekin for a scoop!

Ramekin

1726 N Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027  —  (323) 667-9627

Special Event

Boozy Oysters at Maru with Matt Biancaniello, Thursday, August 8

7-10 PM  – Reservations recommended

12400 Wilshire Blvd.,  Ste 150 Los Angeles, CA 90025  —  (310) 820-7240

© The Minty  2013