Huckleberry. Santa Monica, CA.
Healthfully trendy eateries are all the craze in sunny Southern California. Because your first meal sets the tone for the rest of the day, breakfast, in particular, has seen an especially big hit by the “health nut” trend. If you find yourself resisting being drawn into this healthy-eating frenzy, don’t fight it off for a fear of lack of flavor. Instead, make your way to Huckleberry for a lesson in flavorful, healthy eats. Exalted by sources like GQ and the New York Times, Huckleberry boasts a wide variety of simple, gourmet Breakfast/Lunch items sure to satisfy your palate and waistline.
Their most famous dish, Poached eggs over fresh market vegetables with pesto & toasted bread crumbs, was a serious revelation for us in carb-less, yet damn good eats. Seriously, if vegetables were always this good, we would gladly become vegetarian. The combination of perfectly poached egg over lightly sauteed market vegetables, topped with pesto and breadcrumbs was probably the first “breakfast salad” we’ve ever had, though it will definitely not be last. We also tried the Marinated peppers & Burrata Sandwich on Baguette which in all honesty, though very flavorful in all its simplicity, is for those who know how to hold a sandwich together (its contents are very slippery and you may end up with a dissembled sandwich very quickly). But more than for its savory dishes, locals know Huckleberry for its decadent pastries. Among the plethora of choices, we settled on the Kouign Amann pastry (pronounced “Queen Aman”), a flaky tart filled with citrus and cranberry, a perfect complement to a great cup of chai/tea/coffee. Our only qualm with this place was the line/wait; you have to order before you are seated, and then venture on to the quaint little dining area (reminiscent of a rustic, yet modern barnhouse) to find your seat. Not a huge deal because their are attendants to facilitate the process. Post-meal, look forward to bout of food coma: healthy edition.
