Yelen P.
Yelp
Brunch:
LP LAVENDER LATTE
6
BLUE CORN SONORA WHITE WHEAT PANCAKES | 16
organic maple syrup, seasonal fruit compôte, choice of meat (got ham - they started smoking them in-house)
16
Brunch dessert:
JUJUBE DATE CAKE
with ginger ice cream, pear caramel and pistachios
13
SEASONAL FRUIT CRISP
with vanilla bean ice cream and oat
streusel
10
Driving up the road and walking from the parking lot, the crisp fall air and yellow autumn leaves greeted me. A peacock was hanging around the office building, and an orange cat was lying down outside the door, ignoring people and begrudgingly accepting scritches.
I had decided weeks ago that I wanted to try the blue corn pancakes, and that that was in fact the only item on the brunch/breakfast menu that I really wanted to try. Weeks ago and again today, I looked at photos of other brunch items that sounded interesting, but none of them really excited me as much as the pancakes.
After my drink came out and before the food arrived, I got up to take photos of the lavender field. I ran into someone I had worked with the day prior, who was there with a couple of others. Although work is stressful and high-pressure, being at LP is calming and relaxing, so it made me happy to see people outside of the work context. When I mentioned I was eating alone, they expressed surprise. But it was quite nice to eat outside on a fall morning, with the sun keeping it relatively warm but still sitting in the shade for sun protection.
The pancakes were exactly what I was expecting and wanted. Cornbread texture. Subtle flavor that stands alone solidly. Organic maple syrup was delicious, also not necessary at all on the pancakes because the pancakes were that good. Wished for more compote (fig, apricot?). Beautiful texture inside the pancake. The ham had a nice smoky flavor.
The lavender latte seemed like a regular latte, just with a few specks of flower on top, so I probably wouldn't get it again, though the hint of lavender when I ate it was special. I drank it lukewarm because I waited to drink it until the food came out. I'm glad I waited in case I might have burned my tongue if I drank it right away, and that's always annoying. I didn't realize there was a dessert menu, otherwise I would've tapped out one pancake sooner (I arrived hungry and was full after 2, but pushed for a 3rd because I wasn't going to let the pancakes defeat me. But after 3, I felt like I had made my best effort. I would not have been nice to myself by making myself eat the 4th).
Dessert:
I got the latter 2 desserts, but the mulberry crisp was not worth $10 (too small, not special, vanilla bean ice cream is not interesting enough; plus, I was hoping for white, not red, mulberries, but they were red). It also reminded me of a dinner dessert I got last time (St. Germain baba), but that one was special because it was part of a mildly acidic sauce that brioche was soaked in. The jujube date cake (shaped like a mini bundt cake) was a better dessert because the ginger ice cream was yummy, the pistachio sprinkles were a great addition, and the cake was substantial in thickness. But I was too full to enjoy it then, my taste buds too overwhelmed by the other flavors I had eaten thus far to savor and enjoy any distinct date flavor. The caramel in the middle of the cake was very exciting, and I look forward to eating it when I am hungry again.
I used the bathroom before leaving, and I remembered how nice the lavender soap smelled.
I asked for a bag to take home the to-go containers and got an overly large bag, probably the smallest/only size they had then. But it sure did make me feel fancy and schmancy to carry a big LP bag, notwithstanding it holding only a few things.
I walked around the grounds of the residential part a little, retracing my steps from the last time I was there, but this time, I could see everything because it wasn't the evening. Also, the leaves are changing color, which is pleasant. I didn't spend too much time walking around because of the ice cream. The ginger ice cream had turned into a sauce by the time I got home, and I sipped up as much of the ginger ice cream as I could. The vanilla bean ice cream of the mulberry crisp was melty but still qualified as ice cream.
Overall, I very much recommend the pancakes. The other items are less recommended. In descending order: jujube date cake, lavender latte, seasonal fruit crisp.
Comparing them to the blue corn pancakes at Chocolate Maven: I liked LP's cornbread-y texture. The maple syrup was in a tiny jug and thus optional, which was nice. The compote was a nice contrasting element. CM's was drenched in a lot of caramel sauce, making it less of an option/more of a mandatory part of the flavor and texture experience (it worked really well). I liked the powdered sugar and fruits on top of theirs.
Service:
No complaints. I thought it was timely, with appropriate intervals between check-ins. It wasn't too busy around 10/11a, which probably helped.