Never make friends with people who scoff at the suggestion of ordering dessert first. They're the sort that hoard paper clips, kick kittens and put too much salt on everything. Hardly the crowd you'd want to spend more than two minutes with. I recommend avoiding them like the plague.
The aforementioned thought occurred to me while grabbing lunch at Planet Dailies in Los Angeles. The restaurant is located on the rooftop of a building overlooking the Grove, which is a mega shopping center known for its frou-frou boutiques and local farmers market. Planet Dailies is sleek, the kind of spot in LA you go to for dainty drinks and to flirt with the aspiring actors/bartenders.
We sat outside, beneath the shade and settled into the plushy, bright orange seating at our table. Our waitress, a lovely lady named Dalesia, slipped us drink menus. I picked out the Raspberry Collins, while my friend went with the Summer Fling. My Raspberry Collins consisted of fresh mint floating amongst the crushed raspberries in my gin and reminded me of a mojito, rather than a play on a traditional Tom Collins. Can't say I was complaining. The Summer Fling was a tarty mix of vodka, Prosecco, pomegranate syrup and a squeeze of lemon, a solid summer refreshment.
I suppose this is the point where I slowly lead into the main course, but f*ck it, ladies and gentlemen. I'm going to save you the trouble of reading through this entire piece and get straight to the good good -- the Iron Skillet Cookie Sundae. Yes, the dessert, because that's all any of us want anyhow.
Look at that beauty. The hefty triple chocolate chunk cookie arrived baked and served in an iron skillet. The chocolate behemoth was decked out with gobs of vanilla ice cream slathered in an inappropriate amount of chocolate sauce and topped with a mountain of homemade whip cream and a generous amount of white chocolate shaving. There was no skimping here.
Our knives cut through the soft cookie with ease. The ice cream melted into every crevice of the baked treat, making for an especially heavenly bite of cold, sweet cream, crunchy white chocolate flakes, and warm cookie.
Like I said earlier, dessert first.
For the rest of you still interested in reading, it's worth noting that Planet Dailies has an especially divine Roasted Beet Salad on their seasonal summer menu. The dish features delicate slices of roasted beets layered with the most sumptuous of goat cheeses and accompanied with a sweet agave dressing. However, I do wish that it wasn't so tiny. For roughly $11, something so addicting shouldn't be so petite.
Another notable item from lunch was the Chicken Caprese Sandwich, a classic, well-made combination of grilled chicken breast, thick slices of mozzarella and juicy roma tomatoes. Again, the cheese selection at Dailies is en pointe and the mozzarella was noticeably fresh, pairing well with the balsamic dressing.
Kudos to the chef, Joshua, for keeping the menu provocative. It is summer, after all.
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6333 West 3rd Street
Suite O20 Los Angeles, CA 90036
#323.370.656
