SPIREWORKS EAGLE ROCK OPENING PARTY
After having such a good time at the Spireworks opening party in Westwood Village towards the end of last year, my partner-in-crime, Alice, and I were eager to try-out the new one in Eagle Rock. I’ve always been curious about that interesting area of Los Angeles, so the trip was worthwhile, on every level, not just for the party.
The “hanging mural.” Photo by Karen Salkin.
This new one looks a little different from the original because the theme of the planned “chain” is different kinds of travel, so each one will have something unique about it. This one has kind-of a camping feel to it, complete with picnic tables and benches, and a giant vintage photo of a VW bus (with a trio of strange people in front of it) being the main décor. We sat in a booth, of sorts, which featured a very colorful “mosaic”-topped table. The whole place is bright and cheery.
After being greeted like old friends by everyone we had met last time–the two owners, Jeff and Bob, and the managers, Brian and Deborah, (and even some of the staff—the Westwood peeps are helping-out in Eagle Rock for a bit)–and securing a table, Alice and I went up to the counter, and the fun choosing-of-the-food began for us.
Just a few of the ingrediencts you can choose. Photo by Karen Salkin.
This is how it works at Spireworks: you walk along the counter, first ordering your basic meal, (of beef, chicken, or veggie patty, in either a sandwich, salad, or rice bowl,) and then choosing your vegetables, condiments, sauces, and sides. The menu pertains to the travel theme I mentioned above, so they refer to the sandwiches, rice bowls, and salads as “destinations.” You can choose to have a pre-designed one, such as the “Bangkok” which Alice loves. (She raved that it features “all the flavors of savory, with a hint of sweet kicking it up a whole lot!”) Or you can create you own combination, as I did. (Does that mean that I’m a control freak?) After you choose your base, you then go along the line and tell each worker which items you want in it. And that’s it!
The gorgeous meal I came up with! Photo by Karen Salkin.
We both always get a bowl with greens and wild rice, so that’s what we recommend. But a new fun situation there is that, if you order a bowl or salad, as opposed to a sandwich, you can still enjoy their amazing warm sesame-topped bread! Just request a slice of that heaven on the side; it’s no extra charge. (They may actually just offer it to you, but definitely ask if they don’t.) Alice went more nuts over this bread than almost anything else I’ve ever seen her eat! She exclaimed, “OMG! Their freshly-baked bread is my new obsession!” I even caught her closet-eating a chunk right out of her take-out bag. She was stuffed to the gills, but just could not help herself when she took another whiff of it! That was so funny to see.
The mini desserts. (The pastel writing is on the front of the counter, to identify the flavors for you. Photo by Alice Farinas, as is the big one of the menu (and the bread!,) at the top of the page.
Something else new is that they now bake their veggie balls, (instead of their former policy of frying them,) and they are absolutely scrumptious! And do not miss-out on the white sauce that you can dip them in. (I don’t know the name of it, or, of course, I would tell you what it is.)
As delicious as it all is, my two favorite items remain the same as the ones I found in Westwood: the perfect little crispy potatoes side dish, and the yummy bite-sized dessert cakes. The chocolate ganache is out of this world. (But you have to BYOM—bring your own milk! No worries there, though; if you really do need it for dessert, as I do, there’s a market right in the same little shopping area.)
Photo by Karen Salkin.
By the way, here’s one more fun perk at Spireworks—although they do sell bottled water, they have a dedicated water dispenser, near the (exotic) soda machine. It even gives you free sparkling water!
Alice labeled the fare “exotic Euro food on a budget,” and deemed it to be “such a great complete meal.” (That girl has a way with words, doesn’t she?)
The spice blends, (with the goodie bags lined-up in the background.) Photo by Alice Farinas.
As a party bonus, each guest received a gift bag on our way out, which contained a conductor-type cap, plus a quartet of shakers containing their famous original spice blends (which have cute names, I might add.)
Just like at Spireworks’ previous opening, they encouraged us to take another round of food to-go. Being the great girlfriend that I am, I choose to bring a chicken bowl to Mr. X. These bowls really are gigantic, but he loved it so much that he gobbled the whole thing right away! He’s always careful to eat well, so I told him everything I had chosen to put in there. When I finished listing the ingredients for him, he said, “That’s amazing—to be that healthful and that good!”
And that really sums up the entire Spireworks experience! I couldn’t have said it better myself.
[Bonus for tomorrow, January 24th, only! Spireworks is celebrating the Grand Opening of the Eagle Rock location by offering each guest a free “destination,” dessert, and beverage. The meal is available from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm and 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm.]
