3 Sq Cafe + Bakery = 2 Star Happy

LA's first taste of summer hit this past weekend and what better way to spend it than biking along the beach then Venice for shopping and good eats? Selfishly, I dragged my friends after an exhausting, hot day to a place where I had heard about the next best thing to steak: a Pretzel Bun Burger.

3 Square Cafe + Bakery
Situation: 3 Square Cafe + Bakery is a cute, happening place on a corner of Abbot Kinney. I have passed it by several times, always wondering what people are talking about in there and whether or not I can afford what they are eating. (There are plenty of surprises on this street after all.) It was not until my friend told me about the Pretzel Bun Burger that I made my way into this restaurant. Eclectic, clean, even eco-friendly looking (judging from the Astro Turf on the table). Cool. Menu is simple, but included a twist on traditional items--Avocado Fries, Truffle Macaroni 'n Cheese Croquettes, Pretzel Dumplings, Truffle French Fries, Cauliflower Puree Soup with Chorizo.

Food: The menu is oddly organized and priced, to which I heard the waitress bitch about the entire time I was there (service sucked and they were so negative about the restaurant)! Appetizers read like sides and entrees are mixed with 1 sandwich and random other things. My eyes drew to all items pretzel and the macaroni cheese, and so I ordered. The Pretzel Bun Burger included a generous piece of perfectly charcoaled meat--medium the way I liked it--with grilled onions and melted Swiss cheese. Not many ingredients to take away from the highlight of the meat-complementary pretzel bun. I added a bit of ketchup, mustard and a tad of El Cholo (we are in CA after all). CHOMP! And it was one of the best burgers I have had in a while! So, I could not taste the pretzel much outside of its texture (not enough salt crystals, which let's face it, makes a pretzel). BUT, it was only because the burger patty was so well done that nothing else mattered, and so the party in my mouth continues without...
Until I had the Mac 'n Cheese croquette and Pretzel Dumpling. The croquette style was different. Lot more breading than I would have wanted, and definitely cooled before I was done finishing my 3rd bite. I liked the marinara accompaniment but I much would have rathered Pizza Hut's bread sticks to go with. There were black pieces of truffle, but I could not really taste what made it decadent. Moving onto the Pretzel Dumpling which looked more like a pancake and had the texture of a Chinese Turnip Cake than an actual dumpling. Maybe my childhood was warped, but I always thought they'd be plump, round and ideally, surrounded in soup? Veto, I should have opted for the boring Truffle Fries instead of both of these!

Verdict: The Burger got me craving red meat again and that is a statement in itself. I am a fan, but next time I would probably just go to the Bakery part of 3 Squares and order the Pretzel Burger rather than get everything else and then have to pay tip to the unprofressional waitress. Nothing else on the menu really caught my eye (gasp I know, I don't care for avocado). I did venture to the bakery next door and was aroused by the various breads. However, let me warn you that the goods do not have a good shelf life. Leave it out for 1 day and it turns stale hard! But if you can stomach many carbs in one sitting, go for the pretzel types (hello, what have I been telling you their specialty was?) They have ones with cheese, jalepeno, etc. and they are even better when toasted!

Ask yourself, when's the last time you had a good pretzel with depth? I am not talking the thin, twisted kind you eat at a ballpark, I am talking indulgence in the finer things of life-kinda pretzel. Ch-check it!

1121 Abbot Kinney Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90293