Around Town: Stretching the definition of ‘restaurant’
Urban Spoon lists 49 “restaurants” in La Cañada Flintridge. Who knew there were so many fine dining establishments, complete with waiters service, menus and little flower arrangements on the table?
Actually, there aren’t.
Both of our Starbucks made the Urban Spoon list, also Zeli’s, Goodie Girls Cupcakes, Cakery Bakery, Penelope’s and Flintridge Bookstore. None of our 7-Elevens made the list, despite the purported high quality wine selection at the one across Foothill Boulevard from Charlie’s Union 76.
A rose may be a rose but a restaurant has many definitions. Some restaurants are actually “fast casual.”
What is “fast casual?” Forester Research has noted that “the needs and behaviors of Gen Y and Millennials” support an “innovative social dining experience supported by a new business model and a fresh relevant brand.” Like “fast food” (McDonald’s, Taco Bell etc.), the fast casual site requires the patron to purchase at a walk-up counter, and even bus their own tables, but the quality is higher.
Apart from the branding issues, the Forester premise is that Gen Y and Millennials want social interaction when they eat and when they tweet. They want high-quality food.
Case in point. Go to Pasadena’s Whole Foods on Arroyo Parkway at Happy Hour. Organic beer equals awesome, right? But first, you’ve got to park in their weird structure, find a spot, exit your vehicle, carefully avoid the mad Prius contingent (don’t they know we drive Audis in Pasadena?), take the elevator up to the first floor, enter the store, take the elevator up to the second floor, go to the bar area, order some drinks, go to the food area, order a meal, go to the checkout line, pay for the stuff, go pick up the food and drinks, find a table, wipe it off, then sit and enjoy “a great atmosphere for wine, beer and sake tastings and events as well as glasses and pints to enjoy with your meal.”
Oops! We forgot the sake.
Unlike Boomers, Gen Yers don’t mind a little sweat equity for high quality brew. Some nights you gotta “let love in.” Our kids grew up at McDonald’s and AYSO. From an early age, they learned how to recycle and separate trash.
The cult continues to spread its tendrils into our very own La Cañada Flintridge. First, there was Panera. Although widely viewed as the poster child of “fast casual,” Panera’s founder, Ron Shaich, eschews the label. “There’s no such thing as fast casual,” Shaich has said. He views Panera as a bakery café, which provides “handmade, artisan food served in warm and welcoming environments by people you can trust.”
Then it was Blaze Pizza, “healthful, artisanal ingredients on the assembly line,” where the customer designs the pizza, and selects the ingredients. Blaze is not on the Urban Spoon list of restaurants in LCF, unlike Georgee’s, which did make the list.
Nor did Chipotle make the Urban Spoon restaurant list. Surprisingly, Chipotle calls itself “fast casual,” even though the LCF venue looks like a fast food joint. If only their floors were as clean as their food.
Meanwhile, over at Min’s, the tables are sturdy and the food is cooked-to-order. And at Taylor’s and Sakura, there’s fish and steak. Waiters bring the orders. Flintridge Proper still has the best cocktails and great poached eggs.
The moral? Unclear. This is not a restaurant column. This is not a business review. Around Town is a lifestyle column. We are held to a higher standard.
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ANITA SUSAN BRENNER is a longtime La Cañada Flintridge resident and an attorney with Law Offices of Torres and Brenner in Pasadena. Email her at anitasusan.brenner@yahoo.com and follow her on Twitter @anitabrenner.