For the cheapest Soft Serve Ice Cream in L.A., cruise Hollywood Boulevard. Right across from the world-famous Chinese Theater is a recent import from China called Mixue Ice Cream & Tea. If you have a sweet tooth like me, then you can get your fill of sweet, creamy Soft Ferve in a Waffle Cone for the bargain price of $1.19. And it's a darn good Soft Serve.
Mixue (Translation - Honey Snow) is a Chinese Restaurant Chain specializing in Soft Serve Ice Cream, Tea, and Lemonade. There are a lot more expensive Soft Serve options, including Strawberry Milkshake, Super Boba Sunday, Ice Cream Latte, and Fruit and Milk Teas. Click here for the menu.
Our local newspaper, The Los Angeles Times, did a recent profile of the first Mixue Ice Cream & Tea Store in the U.S., located in Los Angeles. Mixue is like a Soft Serve McDonald's with thousands of stores, but limited to stocking soft serve ice cream and tea.
On a recent trip to my dentist in Hollywood, I had to stop by Mixue to check it out. Even with half of my mouth numb, the Soft Serve was cool comfort. Located on the west end of Hollywood Boulevard, look for the "Snow King" puffy character wearing a crown, and draped with a red cape, at the front entrance.
Step over Billy Barty's Star on the Walk of Fame and you are there.
Inside is a counter the length of the store for ordering and pickup. The line moves quickly, and when your number is quickly called, the Ice Cream Cone is handed to you wrapped in a paper sleeve.
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And it is a tasty ice cream, milky sweet and soft. The serving is substantial, especially for $1.19.
The Waffle Cone is crunchy like a wafer cookie and not too sweet. You could probably get it in a cup, but why would you do that?
You can taste the Soft Serve Cone at a couple of counters against the wall and front window (there are no chairs or tables). I prefer to step outside and watch the Hollywood Boulevard sideshow. Just check out the cosplay movie and cartoon characters hustling money from the tourists walking down the Boulevard.
I usually wander east on the South side of the street and head to President Donald Trump's star to gleefully check out the latest defacing. The star has been pickaxed, spat upon, crossed out with a marker, and smeared with ketchup - among other indignities.
How does my latest Deal of the Day rate on my Cheap$kate Dining Scale of 1 to 9, 9 being best? Well...I give Mixue Ice Cream Soft Serve a perfect 9! If you are looking for a basic Soft Serve in a Waffle Cone, Mixue does the job.
Los Angeles has many Ice Cream, Gelato, and Frozen Yogurt stores where you can find exotic flavors that are more interesting and tasty, but you have to pay the full price - you will be hard-pressed to find a cheaper and tastier Soft Serve in L.A.
Anytime I'm near Hollywood Boulevard, I'll swing by.
Los Angeles has many Ice Cream, Gelato, and Frozen Yogurt stores where you can find exotic flavors that are more interesting and tasty, but you have to pay the full price - you will be hard-pressed to find a cheaper and tastier Soft Serve in L.A. Anytime I'm near Hollywood Boulevard, I'll swing by.
Mixue Ice Cream & Tea
Location: 6922 Hollywood Blvd, Suite 107, Hollywood, CA 90028.
Hours: Open Daily 10AM - 9PM.
Specialties: $1.19 Vanilla Soft Serve, $1.69 Matcha Soft Serve, Pearl Milk Tea, and Fruit Teas.
When in Louisiana, it's all about Crawfish. Cajuns eat Crawfish morning, noon, and night. My latest recipe serves Crawfish for breakfast. It only takes a handful of these crustaceans to make a Crawfish Omelet.
Hello there, this is a Swamp Chef, and I'm taking over with a recipe from deep in the Spanish Moss-covered bayou. I talked my way into Mom's kitchen to make a breakfast recipe, I guarantee, you are gonna like.
There's nothing to it, really. Make an Omelet your way with your favorite cheese and add a dozen small Crawfish, plus a Trinity of sautéed veggies.
Crawfish are similar to small Bay Shrimp, but milder in flavor, as Crawfish are raised in fresh water instead of saltwater like shrimp. All the meat of a Crawfish is in the tail, and you cook and peel them like you would a shrimp.
Here in Louisiana, Crawfish are bought cooked and peeled in 12 to 16-ounce packages sold in the frozen seafood section of most grocery stores. All you do is add some at the end of cooking the Crawfish Omelet, as they are ready to eat, and need only heating through.
A combination of chopped onion, celery, and bell pepper is called the Trinity in Louisiana. Again, just a handful of sautéed veggies are added to the Crawfish Omelet.
Besides eggs, the last thing to add is some cheese. I would normally add a slice of American cheese, but I was party heartying the day before, and had some leftover fancy cheese. Use any favorite cheese.
As for the egg part, I cook mine the French way. That is, I pour the beaten eggs into a low-heating pan and slowly stir the eggs like I would a scramble.
The trick is to keep the eggs moving until almost done, but still damp. Then add the cheese, sautéed Trinity, and Crawfish. Finally, close up the CrawfishOmelet and cook until it reaches your desired doneness. I like mine slightly moist when done.
You can cook the Crawfish Omelet any way you like, even old-school, well done, diner style. All the extra flavor is in the Trinity plus Crawfish.
I do like Omelets with cheese and seafood. If you don't have access to Crawfish, it's okay to substitute with small cooked shrimp.
Cooked ShrimpCooked CrawfishClick on any phototo see larger.
Check out how this Cajun cooks a Crawfish Omelet - straight from the swamp!
Crawfish Omelet - VIDEOPlay it here, video runs 5 minutes, 48 seconds.
My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.
Ingredients
3 Eggs - lightly beaten. Okay to make a 2-egg omelet.
1/4 Cup Trinity - chopped onion, bell pepper, celery.
Crawfish - cooked and peeled, about 12 per Omelet. Crawfish are quite small. Okay to substitute with small, cooked, and peeled shrimp.
Soft or Semi-Soft Cheese - about 3 tablespoons. I happened to have leftover Herb & Garlic Goat Cheese from a party. Okay to use a slice of American Cheese, or any soft or semi-soft favorite, like Mozzarella, Cheddar, Swiss, Provolone, Ricotta, and Monterey Jack.
2 Teaspoons of Oil - a tablespoon each to saute the Trinity veggies and a tablespoon to cook the omelet.
Salt and Pepper - to taste. Cheese is salty enough for me, so I leave salt out.
Directions
Chop the Trinity veggies of onion, bell pepper, and celery. Add a tablespoon of oil to a medium-sized pan over medium heating pan.
Saute veggie until soft, about 2 to 3 minutes.
Add cooked and peeled Crawfish to the veggies and mix. Saute Crawfish for a minute, just to heat through.
Remove veggies and Crawfish while you make the Omelet.
I like to make my Omelet with 2 to 3 eggs. I whisk them in a bowl to blend the eggs.
Add a tablespoon of oil to a low/medium heated pan. I like my Omelet soft, so I cook it over a lower heat than normal so I can control the dampness of my Omelet. This is aFrench-style Omelet. It's okay to cook the Omelet your favorite way, well done or slightly damp.
Add the mixed raw eggs and slowly stir the eggs in the pan. When they are cooked, but still soft and moist, I spread out the eggs to cover most of the Omelet pan. Fill in any holes of the Omelet with soft egg.
Now is the time to bring it all together. Add the cheese first so it will melt. I add the cheese to half of the Omelet. Spread it out a bit.
I add the cheese first so it will melt. Next, add the sautéed Trinity vegetables and Crawfish over the cheese.
I like to slide a spatula under the cooking Omelet as it gets close to finishing to loosen it from the pan. When the Omelet reaches doneness, it's okay if the eggs are slightly damp. I gently fold the Omelet in half to cover the cheese and veggies.
I let the folded Omelet cook another 30 seconds or so. You can slice into the Omelet to check for desired doneness.
Add salt and pepper if you like. I find cheese is salty enough to my taste, so I leave it out. Add black pepper if you like.
If you want to gild the lily, then slather a little butter on the Omelet.
You are in for a movable feastduring this Cajun holiday calledMardi Gras. The real partying is underway and continues throughFat Tuesday, February 17. Usually, everyone lines the streets for the parades and floats with masked bead throwers. This is the time of year when New Orleans lets its freak flag fly -- almost all month long!
Hang out and I'll show you how locals have a tasty time, even in these plague years.
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Mardi Gras is more than plastic beads and King's Cake. So read on and watch my videos to see some delish Cajun recipes, plus I'll even give you a personal Po'Boy Sandwich Tour of New Orleans. So scroll on down.
King Cake is similar to a Cinnamon Roll with pecans.
Alright, let's get this party started! Walking the French Quarter in New Orleans, revelers carry drinks spiked with knee-buckling Everclear spirits. I always make a stop at the local drive-thru New Orleans Original Daiquiris for a boozy slushy beverage.
Yep, you heard right, that's the way we roll in Cajun country. Watch the video below to see how we get away without getting a ticket for an open container violation!
If buzzy spirits are too much for you, then settle down within view of the Mississippi River in New Orleans for a chickory-flavored cup of Joe and sugar-powdered beignets at the world-famous Cafe du Monde. After the caffeine and sugar rush, you will be ready to take in New Orleans and the outrageous French Quarter, just a few steps away.
Cafe du Monde - Video
I lived in Gonzales, Louisiana, during my high school daze. I didn't know what to expect when our family moved there from Texas. I did some wild stuff over the next four years and ate a lot of down-home Cajun cooking. The video below takes place in a local flea market, so check it out to get the flavor of the place.
Cajun Flea Market Eats - Video
I hitchhiked with my high school buddy Marvin (featured in the Po'boy Sandwich Tour below) to New Orleans for Mardi Gras during the school break. Back then, it was all about grabbing a Muffaletta, listening to street Brass Bands and Rock and Roll, catching some beads thrown down by inebriated revelers perched behind French Quarter iron-wrought balconies and Mardi Gras parade floats, and getting a good buzz (we were underage, so no booze, but we found other natural ways).
Chef, Marvin & Dennis - high school buddies
We knew no fear, and locals were friendly enough - even picking up a couple of hitchhiking long-haired teenagers like us. One memorable ride was in a hand-painted hippie Volkswagen van where the college-aged, tie-dye-wearing driver, and cool chicks in tight bell-bottom jeans, on the backbench seat, passed around a doobie, before dropping us off in the city.
Looks like Red State Louisiana has agreed with Blue State California in legalizing marijuana for medical use. I guess we can all get along if there's a peace pipe to share.
I've kept in touch with my high school buddy Marvin and like to look him up when I land in New Orleans. Check out the video below to see how I (dinner) roll these days, when I tour the Crescent City in search of a delicious Po'Boy Sandwich with my high school bud - all the tasty details are in my original blog post here.
You will get a street-level experience of the Big Easy and the eccentric locals from my documentary short below.
New Orleans Po'Boy Tour - Video
Recently I met up with my long-lost brother from another.....daddy, aka the Swamp Chef! He showed up on Mom's doorstep one day, and she welcomed him back into the family. I must say he's a chip off the cypress tree block. He'd fit into a rockin' CajunZZ Top lineup, slinging a wooden stirring spoon instead of a guitar.
99 Cent Chef, Mom, and Swamp Chef
When the Swamp Chef shows up, there is always a delicious celebration -- and this time it's a BBQ Sausage Po-Boy Party!! Here in Gonzales, Louisiana, it's all about the bread when making a Po-Boy, or as it's also known, a Poor Boy (I can't figure out how to spell Po' boy as I've seen it all kinda ways!) Just watch the video below to see how the Swamp Chef grills locally made sausages by Ivderstine Farms Butchersand stuffs them into a loaf of Reisling's French bread.
Sausage Po-Boy Recipe - Video
The Swamp Chef & Zak get gooey and spicy with Cajun Nachos.
To quote Zak: "Uncle Swamp Chef for the win, these Cajun Nachos are lit."
Swamp Chef Cajun Nachos - Video
The Swamp Chef knows the lay of the land around here, and he recommends all you Mardi Gras tourists who need a pitstop, to park here in Gonzales, Lousiana for a big lunch plate of Jambalaya. Just check out the Swamp Chef giving you the lowdown in the video below. And it's dirt(y rice) cheap of course!
Jambalaya Plate Lunch Review - Video
I know you are here for the recipes, too, and boy, do I have a pirogue boat full. Between Mom and my Cajun line-cooking nephews, Matt and Zak, I got that covered.
If you hang out in Louisiana for any amount of time, you will inevitably eat spicy steamed mudbugs, crayfish, or as the locals call them,Crawfish.
They are milder in seafood flavor than shrimp and are about the size of a small bay shrimp. If you've never had one, then watch my video below to learn how to eat one.
How to eat a Crawfish - Video
It quickly becomes a party when I visit Gonzales, Louisiana, to see my Cajun family with nieces, nephews, and their kids galore
And this first recipe is made with a beer-flavored sauce. Warning, in the video, we had to go through a Party Pack of Abita Beer to find just the right flavor!
My nephew, Chef Matt, has been cooking for years now and has some major culinary skillz. I'll let him give you the lowdown on a Southern classic, Shrimp and Grits video recipe (click here for recipe photos and text).
Chef Matt's Shrimp & Grits - Video
The cheapest Cajun entree is Red Beans and Rice -- made by my Southern friend Miss Patti. She is a vegetarian with a menagerie of critters she keeps on her property just outside the city of New Orleans.
For real New Orleans-style Red Beans, you should use the brand of beans called Camellia. But if you can't find them, it's okay to use any cheap red kidney beans.
We always have a good time together, and you will too, watching us cook together. Recipe details are a click away, here.
Ms. Patti's Vegan Red Beans and Rice - Video
Mom knows Cajun cuisine best. And she is here to share a few with you right now.
It's best to start at the beginning and here's the first recipe we did, Mom'sJambalaya.
I make this recipe the most. Nothing to it: just brown chicken pieces and sausage with a whole chopped onion. Finally, add rice and water to make the best comfort food ever. This is my Mom's version of Jambalaya (click here to read all about it).
Mom's Jambalaya - Video
Mom also makes a killer Chicken and Sausage Gumbo. The trick is all in the deep chocolate-colored roux - actually just flour that's slowly browned in oil.
Lately, when Mom makes hot and spicy Gumbo, she adds a scoop of cool Cajun Potato Salad. The last time she was here in Los Angeles, I got her to make some, and my cute niece Maranda dropped by to help. This recipe is a family affair, you can check out below.
Mom's Cajun Potato Salad - Video
Next to Gumbo, a rich and creamy Étouffée made with local crawfish is another decadent stew. Check out local Chef Tony's take on Crawfish Étouffée.
Chef Tony's Crawfish Etouffee - Video
My other line-cooking nephew, Zak, knows how to blacken fish the Cajun way. And boy does he do a skillful job at it, as my video below will attest. He also throws in a mind-blowing side of Sweet Potato Hash, and yes, it's loaded with bacon.
Zak's recipe gets everyone in on the action, including his Mom and my sister, Brenda, who make noshing appearances. So do check out his delicious Cajun recipes below and click here for all the written details.
Zakk's Blackened Fish with Sweet Potato Hash - Video
The South's favorite nut, next to boiled peanuts, is the pecan. And my nephew Chef Matt has the best Pecan Crusted Fish recipe this side of the Mississippi River. And he throws in a vegan Spinach Salad with a creamy Strawberry Vinaigrette. Now that's a mouthful.
Pecan Crusted Fish and Spinach Salad with a Strawberry Vinaigrette - Video
My most outrageous Cajun recipe is an Alligator Po'Boy sandwich made by my nephew Chef Matt. They say alligator tastes like chicken -- to me, it is close to the texture of a pork chop and tastes somewhere between chicken and shrimp. Just check out the recipe video and make sure to watch all the way to the end, where the relatives go hog wild over the Alligator Po'Boy.
Alligator Po'Boy - Video
How low can one recipe go? Well, check out the Swamp Chef and nephew Chef Matt's Deep-Fried Frog Legs...not for the faint of palate! This recipe goes from a swamp frog hunt to the deep fryer.
Frog Legs Recipe - Video
If you are not in New Orleans attending the glittery and debauched Mardi Gras festivities, you can still have a tasty good time - if you remember to bookmark this page and come back to make any of my Cajun Mardi Gras meals. So laissez les bons temps rouler!
New Orleans Po'Boy Dining: Short Stop Po-Boys - 119 Transcontinental Drive (near New Orleans Airport) Metairie, Louisiana 70001 Phone: (504) 885-4572 Website: http://www.shortstoppoboys.com
Mother's Restaurant - 401 Poydras New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
For a tasty local Los Angeles Po' Boy, try The Gumbo Pot in the Mid-City Farmer's Market. I ordered the Shrimp or Oyster Po' Boys for $16.50. For the menu, click here. Warning, the seafood Po' Boys have a sour bite because of the inserted sliced lemon -- I usually take the slices out.
Another local food find for Cajun Cuisine is a restaurant and deli store called Little Jewel, in downtown LA's Chinatown. It's the real deal, too. Listen in as you get all the tasty details in my special Restaurant Nocturne arty video below. (BTW, the chef/owner drops an F-bomb at 1:53 minutes.)
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