erewhon without breaking the bank + a sweet potato a day
erewhon hacks, an ode to the sweet potato and basement wine bar bang bangs
erewhon hacks
hate it or love it, erewhon is a quintessential la staple. yes, most of it’s overpriced and yes, it’s such a scene, but trust me when i say there’s a lot of things to love. for a deep dive on la’s cult obsession with erewhon, i recommend this piece by the cut.
i don’t necessarily recommend getting your weekly grocery haul here, but i do think the cafe’s prepared foods can be worth their price tags, esp. if you have any dietary restrictions and/or are just more health conscious. there are plenty of v, gf, refined sugar free items, and everything’s organic! i’m partial to the silverlake erewhon, but every location has a slightly different feel. i’ll walk the 45 min sunset blvd trek from my place in echo park to get my purple sweet potato haul before rucking them on home. and if i need a little treat (don’t we all though), i’ve been known to get a little something something…. but here’s how to enjoy erewhon without going into debt:
while i love all the legit sushi spots in los angeles, there’s always room for an erewhon sushi quickie. go for the bottom rows of sushi that are $13 (vs. the mid/top rows of $20 rolls). their forbidden rice salmon (or tuna!) avo roll is where it’s at.
though erewhon’s buffalo cauliflower’s not thaaaat cheap, i find myself thinking about it far too often. i’m not into the superbowl (oops), but *this* is what i want to stare at while sport plays, and same goes for their eye-catching beet hummus. the beet hummus was a hiiiiit for bryan and my engagement party, alongside vehicles for dipping and an unholy amount of tinned fish. when you’re not in the mood to bake you own, erewhon has you covered with their baked japanese + purple sweet potato sides.
erewhon’s iconic but $19+ (19!), celeb-backed smoothies are amazing, of course, but obviously not always financially viable. and while i’m a fan of their breakfast, after all add ons ($$$) to my custom breakfast burrito, i don’t partake often.
there are a few grocery items that aren’t insanely priced, and worth the trek: i love their castelvetrano olives (return the erewhon jar for $2 back next time). they’re also good for nut butter, no added sugar jams and sliced sourdough, since i’m in a big pbj phase (because i love my inner child).
as for bevs, get a bottle of vichy catalan, a spanish sparkling water that feels like your topo chico fell into the ocean. the touch of salt does something to me (then again i truly touch everything with salt, even bananas…)
it’s no surprise that erewhon has an assortment of natural wines. silverlake’s location even has their own standalone organic & biodynamic wine shop, with a literal tower of wavy wines sunshine, as well as bottles from california’s very own wonderwerk, fallen grape, las jaras and (the gateway to natural wine) austrian meinklang. sidenote, meinklang has a soft spot in my heart, being bryan and my first date wine (at bar stella <3), and we even got to visit their tasting room in vienna (vienna guide coming soooon!). prices aren’t too inflated on these wines, though you can generally get some of these bottles for a few bucks cheaper at my go-to silverlake wine or a glass of (dangerously chuggable) wavy sunshine on tap for $14 at prado.
dessert-wise, i’m a fan of just about all of them. and if you go at the right time, there are generous samples of their pastries made in house (i’m talking chunks). the silverlake location loves to sample their pumpkin bread, oatmeal cookie, coconut rice pudding, etc. their samples are usually situated at the coffee/tonic bar ~10am. these sample chunks can usually hold me over (re my little treat), but i really feel like erewhon should do us a favor and bake their own olive oil cake 👀
a sweet potato a day…
if you’ve seen the blue zones doc, you’ll know that sweet potatoes are a dominant food group in the okinawan diet, being a superfood high in antioxidants with a low glycemic load. i typically get a combo of japanese sweet potatoes (purple skin, creamy pale yellow interior) + purple sweet potatoes (purple skin, purple interior) from either the aforementioned erewhon, (for a pretty good price actually), silverlake farmers market or your local asian supermarket (h mart!). bryan and i (each…) eat a big sweet potato daily. we’ve gone through various versions of how to dress these, but right now i’m in my *purist* phase.
bake a few (washed!) whole sweet potatoes on the bottom rack of the oven at ~475° for an hour-ish (no need to pre-heat), letting them cool for a few. slice them open down the middle, heavily sprinkle maldon sea salt flakes and a drizzle of graza olive oil. a baked japanese sweet potato literally tastes like cake, and the purple sweet potato loves a little tamari. for more umph, you can top them off with avo and/or a fried egg. eat warm or cold, and store the extra sweet potato in the fridge for tomorrow, if you can wait that long…
where to bang bang:
holy basil – big fan of their original order-at-the-counter location in downtown la, and now their new atwater location has plenty of seating with an impressive natty wine list. orange wine was truly made for thai food, if you ask me…
then head across the street to (also new!) nico’s – enter through the bottle shop (+ grab a to-go bottle of ruth lewandowski’s tatto skin contact for $28… not bad, not bad). head downstairs for a glass of none other than la’s signature wavy sunshine with a build-your-own snack plate (tinned fish! marcona almonds!) and catch a comedy show, all in the glow of soft red light. it feels like your cool friend threw a basement party, in the best way possible.
35mm film prints:
i added new film photo prints available for purchase to my site – a few from our honeymoon in sifnos (expect a guide to sifnos too!)
where to spend your saturday:
leaving records listen to music outside in the daylight under a tree at montecillo de leo politi
love a self explanatory title – byo blanket + substance (i’ll probably bring a bottle of swick i need to shoot this week), while you listen to ambient music in elysian park. indie record label leaving records puts this daytime listening (very very lowkey) party on monthly-ish, and is open to all ages (we literally brought our parents once) + dog friendly (but oslo’s uninvited after last time…)
now playing:
made a sweet little ube playlist
start playing when you pop your sweet potatoes in the oven and by the time the playlist is over, they’ll be ready for you
thanks for hearing me out on my boundless love for sweet potatoes. i’ve got you on another city guide next time. paid subscribers, in case you missed last where to – la edition, you have access to my full guide to la, plus a discount on any of my prints below. everyone else, you can subscribe for free, or upgrade to the full experience for the price of a latte (!) — either way, appreciate you all <3