two spreads like jam
Toast and Jam, Cafe Demitasse, Little Tokyo, LA
Toast.
It’s this simple thing. It is a piece of a loaf that’s warmed to varying levels of soft to crispness.
Toast.
It’s this complex thing. It is a piece of bread, whole and split, adorned by innumerable iterations of toppings.
Toast has taken over food programs at coffee bars as much as coffee programs have taken over coffee bars.
It’s no longer just enough to have coffee, tea and kombucha on a cafe menu. There also needs to be sidekicks beyond the usual suspects of croissants, cookies and donuts. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll take all the dough, friends.
So now, there’s granola, muesli, eggs, breakfast burritos, tacos, bowls and yes, toast. By breakfast or brunch, these additional items play to the standards, giving us another reason in, another chance to experience an independent coffee shops’ way of doing coffee and food.
On an afternoon before the Emmys carpet rolled into Downtown LA, near the Little Tokyo Bar of our partner Cafe Demitasse, I went to try an item from their newly released all day brunch menu.
There’s the Japanese Inspired Egg Salad Sandwich, a Sushi Grilled Cheese, a Rice Bowl which I was told is full of protein and eggs, a Breakfast Burrito and what I defaulted to, a classic and approachable Toast and Jam.
The toast is made on Bub and Grandma’s bread – a growing staple bread provider for many Los Angeles coffee shops. It arrived pleasantly toasted with two jams like a Frank Ocean’s Chanel. Before me was flame peaches on half of the toast and strawberry shiso on the other half. I can’t decide if there was a better half, because both seasonal flavors were rich and ripe : just like I want preserves to be.
I managed to do a great job pulling the elastic like dough to many pieces as I savored each tear and chew. Before I knew it, I’d arrived at the crust, my favorite part! I just wasn’t ready to let it go down, down, my throat. But down it went, with a memory note that great toast and jam is always the jam.
Explore Cafe Demitasse’s new brunch menu at Little Tokyo.