6.19.2009

The Bacon Dessert Movement

Los Angeles may be known for stuffing avocado and alfalfa sprouts in everything and calling it "California Cuisine," but soon, we may be known as the land of bacon desserts.

I don't know who started it, but I know that the movement is growing. Nickel Diner, a vintage breakfast spot in downtown Los Angeles, started serving bacon maple glazed doughnuts, and the sidewalks have been packed with hungry hipsters ever since. Patrons such as Kim Burke made the pilgrimage all the way from Pacific Palisades to sample the goods, and she brought an entourage of seven. By the time they were seated, there were only 20 bacon maple glazed doughnuts left, and her table ordered a round and wrapped up the rest to go. The tattooed throngs on the sidewalk had yet to receive word that the famous menu item had just run out.

If a bacon maple glazed doughnut seems a safe route, other restaurants are experimenting with bacon and chocolate. Animal, the Fairfax district restaurant which serves as a haven for the carnivorous, offers a Bacon Chocolate Crunch Bar. Grubb, a down-home Hollywood establishment with ever-changing menus always has one dessert stand-by: the Hershey Bar Sandwich. The delectable concoction was made of bread, whipped cream and a Hershey bar, but keeping with the times, they have added bacon.

Restaurants that boast organic salads and fresh baked breads are now featuring menu items better suited for a state fair in the Midwest. But in these economic times, people seek escapism through calories and exotic experimentation, and it's really been helping restaurants bring home the bacon.