Smorgasbord
Published:
Smorgasbord
Muffuletta Meets Monkey
Beckett’s Irish Pub and Restaurant on Shattuck Avenuehas a new neighbor—and the contrast couldn’t be more striking. I’m a Beckett’s fan, but seeing it the other night next door to the new Angeline’s Louisiana Kitchen threw me. Was I in the mood to slip into the equivalent of my favorite comfy slippers and huddle by the fire with a pint? Or did I dare to be seduced by the new, the bright and the cheerful, and bite into a po’ boy accompanied by a Barq’s Root Beer? (Beer and wine have since been added to the menu.)Angeline’s has all the favorites one associates with New Orleans cuisine: gumbo with shrimp and crab ($12.95); chicken jambalaya ($13.95); fried catfish with hushpuppies ($12.50); a bunch of po’ boys; and the ever-popular muffuletta ($10.95). Angeline’s also combines two Crescent City dessert favorites—bananas Foster and bread pudding—for something called bananas Foster bread pudding ($5.75). Angeline’s is a good place to whet the appetite for a trip to New Orleans.
Angeline’s Louisiana Kitchen, 2261 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley; open for lunch from 11:30 a.m. and dinner from 5:30 p.m. Mon.–Sat.; (510) 548-6900; www.angelineskitchen.com.
If you, like me, are a fan of L’Amyx Tea Bar on Piedmont Avenue, be happy. We now have a second L’Amyx option. Look for the familiar logo—the monkey holding his cuppa tea—on Lakeshore Avenue. If you’re a regular, you’ll know this contemporary Asian-inspired teahouse offers a broad selection of premium whole-leaf teas and sells tea accessories. L’Amyx has printed fact sheets about tea, so you can sip and learn, and the company Web site is an informative tea resource. L’Amyx has a small food menu for the peckish and a bunch of fun flavored teas served hot or cold—some with pearls. And if you simply have to have your coffee? Well, L’Amyx does a good job with coffee, too. See you there. L’Amyx Tea Bar, 3437 Lakeshore Ave. Open daily 10 a.m.–midnight; www.lamyx.com.
—By Wanda Hennig
