Urth Caffe

Urth Caffe produces beautiful latte art. Lest you think it's only about the fancy art foam, Urth Caffe makes mean lattes as well. It is pretty incredible how this place manages to not only produce lattes that are espresso-based but they also have lattes made from matcha (green tea powder), South African rooibos tea, and red Thai tea. The creativity is not what makes this place great but the execution of the creativity that makes the lattes taste so good. The flavors work so nicely together and the unique additions make the creative lattes work perfectly whether it is matcha or steamed condensed milk.

It was love at first sight between me and the Japanese tea latte. The deep green from the matcha was the first clue to the intense flavor of the drink. Too much matcha could sometimes give out a slight bitter taste but to my surprise, the latte had a natural sweetness to it. I think the adorable art foam in the form of a fish also made me like it more. The Spanish latte was made with steamed condensed milk, just like how traditional Spanish lattes are made. When it comes to coffee with condensed milk, we mainly only get to have it at Vietnamese restaurants so the Spanish latte at Urth Caffe was definitely a treat although of course very different from Vietnamese coffee. Growing up in Malaysia and Singapore, adding condensed milk to coffee (and tea) was a common sight that we miss very much.

The deep dish blueberry pie had me at hello. I knew I had to have it the minute I saw it sitting on the shelf that also had a myriad of other delicious looking pastries and cakes. But my heart was set on the blueberry pie mainly because it was labeled as deep dish pie. That could only mean two things: more crust and more blueberry filling. It also helped that the sugar sprinkles on top made it look rustic. There were actually whole blueberries in the filling and no, the blueberries did not get completely mushed up in the baking process. The entire filling was also not too sweet which made us feel like we could kept eating it. The shortcrust pastry was flaky and yet dense enough to hold the pastry together.

The last I heard, Jessica Alba frequents Urth Caffe and if that's true, she has good taste for their beautifully made and equally tasty lattes. And pastries.



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Urth Caffe (has several locations)
67 South Beverly Drive
Beverly Hills, CA 90212

Watermelon Salad with Honey Mint Syrup

There probably isn't a time during the year when I don't crave for watermelon. Watermelons make their way to grocery stores and the farmers market in the summer but come winter the fruit is almost non-existent at fruit stands. Growing up in a tropical country located right on the equator, we were used to seeing watermelons in abundance the whole year round. We never really thought about what was in season and what was not because everything was always in season since well, there was only one season: summer. Now living in Chicago where there are clearly (and drastically) distinct seasons, it makes us appreciate and think more about what fruit or vegetable is in season and make the best out of incorporating it into our meals.

Watermelons are refreshing to eat by themselves but the scent of fresh mint leaves and flavor of raw and unfiltered wildflower honey bring the watermelon salad up a notch.

Ingredients
Cubed watermelon pieces
Blueberries
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon good quality honey
2-3 sprigs of fresh mint

Method
1. Combine water and honey in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer.
2. Remove from heat and pour the syrup into a small bowl. Put the sprigs of mint into the syrup and let steep for 10 minutes.
3. In a salad bowl, combine the watermelon and blueberries. Drizzle the syrup generously over the fruits. Garnish with julienne strips of fresh mint.