Freezing Point Creamery Matcha Rolled Ice Cream: Originating from Thailand, rolled ice cream is a technique for making fresh ice cream from scratch to order. Liquid ice cream base is poured onto a cold metal pan (think crepe-grill-sized) and is then mixed, scraped, and chopped by hand before its spread into a single, solidified layer. At this point, the scraper is used to roll the ice cream into individual pieces resembling fruit roll up / mini crepes, looking nothing like your typical scoop of ice cream. I ended up at Freezing Point Cr... (read more) 2.0/5.0
icecream oakland freezingpointcreamery matcha rolled ice cream 2.0
50 Tea Longan Red Date drink with grass jelly: On my last visit to Oakland, iTea was out of ice and only offering hot beverages. Given the beautiful weather, I decided to go across the street to a new tea shop instead. Named 50 Tea, the shop is iconic Chinatown – half of the storefront is for tea and ice cream while the other half is for purchasing various goods like DVDs and small trinkets and gifts. Their walls are covered in hand-written menu additions with distinctly Asian flavors like winter melon and sour plum. I opted for thei... (read more) 4.0/5.0
recommended drinks oakland tea grassjelly asian 50tea longan red date drink grass jelly 4.0
La Farine frangipane: Excellent pastry. Flaky crust topped with almonds. Inside is fluffy and light. Center has lightly sweetened almond paste. Some parts of the exterior are dark, but they're caramelized rather than burnt. Very sizable and filling for the price ($2.95). 4.5/5.0
lafarine bakery pastry almond frangipane croissant oakland exceptional 4.5