The Great Earl Grey Tour of Los Angeles County

Introduction

At some point in the haze of my first year of graduate school, at some dinner, a close friend of mine, DK, mentioned that his friends had recently opened up a ice-cream shop in Redondo Beach, and that they had a great scoop of Earl Grey ice-cream. My sister, who was at one point part of the entertainment production grind in LA, reminisced about her favorite Earl Grey macaroons. This reminded me of the Earl Grey tea that I used to get at a small coffee shop not far from my house, and thus the inception of the Earl Grey tour was born.

The idea was fairly simple, start off in the morning and drive around the LA county filling up on goodies and taking the opportunity to see some classic LA monuments along the way. Finally there was a personal touch to end the day on, something waiting for you at home, or in the trunk, to cap off the long road before you.

Below are the stops along the tour in their recommended order with suggestions of how to get there from the previous stop, and a small explanation behind how I heard about the place and why it’s worth the visit.

1. Pedaler’s Fork/10Speed Coffee

This is the most northern point in the tour and good starting point. There’s ample parking in the surrounding neighborhoods, and if you avoid going on Saturday you’ll even miss the struggle of navigating the woefully unprepared streets of Calabasas.

What to get there: The Earl Grey Tea

I used to go here fairly often when I lived a block away, but it took a friend who had grown up in the area to turn me onto the Earl Grey Tea. The tea initially catches you with the scent and follows up with the flavor. When you walk in, you need to go to the back where there is a coffee bar to order. There’s also an assortment of pastries or you can wander around the neighborhood. Who knows you might even see a Hollywood star.

As a disclaimer: Since I went on the tour last, a 10speed Coffee has opened up in Santa Monica, but I do not know if they serve the tea or not.

2. Donut Farm

This is the next recommended stop along the line. They have Earl Grey donuts and are on Sunset Blvd in the Hollywood area.

What to get there: Lavender Earl Grey Donut

There’s 2 ways of getting there: First, you can go in the “direct” route which will likely take you onto 101 towards LA and drop you almost exactly where you want to be. The alternative takes a lot more time, but has a lot more potential for photo opportunities, by taking Malibu Canyon Road to Malibu you will be deposited onto CA-1 which runs along the beach. This is the best on a sunny day.

Once in the area feel free to explore you shouldn’t be too far from places like Griffith Park/Observatory or the walk of fame.

3. The PieHole

There are many PieHoles in the LA Area, but I personally recommend the one in Downtown LA.

What to get there: The Earl Grey Pie

The reason I recommend going to PieHole in Downtown is two-fold:

1. This will be your eastern most breach into the city, you’ll find yourself near Little Tokyo and the Art’s District. A chance to explore a less busy or central part of the LA proper area
2. You will be very close already to the next stop
   • Bonus: If you like rock-climbing you end up near LA Boulders

Not much else to add here. It’s a good pie, there’s lunch places near by if you’re looking for a proper meal, might I suggest a vegetarian favorite Zinc Cafe (which is arguably the most LA place that I can think of).

4.Bottega Louie

The name is as posh as it is inside.

What to get there: The Earl Grey Macaroons

Bottega Louie is in the heart of the financial district of Downtown LA. I highly recommend leaving your car parked near PieHole and taking an Uber to Bottega Louie and back, for no reason other than avoiding the hassle of finding parking. The macaroons are a deep blue almost purple color and dusted with a gold colored dust. Makes you hate yourself a little on the inside for being there, but gosh are they good macaroons.

Once you’ve acquired them, may I suggest heading across the street to the Intercontinental and jumping into one of the elevators and going to their top floor. It’s the tallest building in Los Angeles and if it’s not too cloudy (or smoggy you can get a great view of most of the county.

5. Kansha Creamery

Continuing south to Torrance to cap out your culinary experiences for the day. What to get there: The Earl Grey Ice Cream

You should be warned that they don’t always have the Earl Grey flavor, but these are friends of friends, and their other flavors are great too. Plus being in Torrance you now have a few options of where to go next, I typically use it as an excuse to head to Redondo Beach and hang around there, you know, since you’re so close already.

6. The Earl Grey Liquor

This is the final point. Let’s say you’ve had your long day and you’re now either at home or on the beach and would like to combine your enjoyment of being an adult over the age of 21 and Earl Grey too. Well though it requires procuring a few ingredients and some prep-work the day prior the recipe below is a recommended top-off to the day you just had.

It’s super easy to do if you know where to get Everclear. My suggestion is either K&L in Hollywood or any Total Wine store. Call ahead and make sure they have it.

The link to this recipe is in the subtitle but just in case here’s a copy:

BLUEBERRY EARL GREY LIQUEUR (courtesy to Ted Kilgore) Ingredients:

• 6 oz. Everclear®
• 7 oz. Purified water
• 1/4 cup Earl Grey tea (or 3 bags)
• 6 oz. Fresh, ripe blueberries
• 13 oz. Simple syrup

Instructions:

• Blend Everclear, water and tea in quart-sized container.
• Let steep for 30 to 90 minutes to taste.
• Once steeped, remove tea and add blueberries.
• Steep in a cool, dry place for 24 hours.
• Strain out blueberries and blend with simple syrup.
• Bottle, store and enjoy.

Conclusion

There it is, I hope you enjoyed this blabber and tour guide. If there’s any questions, comments, concerns, or updates you have to add to this feel free to reach out to me and let me know! There are few things I love more than finding new spots to enjoy and excuse to roam around LA!