Mäni’s Bakery

So it's LA's 228th birthday, and I want to celebrate! Since I've lived here for over 19 years now, it's time to acknowledge and embrace the pueblo's founding. Mäni’s Bakery on Fairfax goes back to my early days in LA (1989 for them, 1990 for me), so it was a perfect fit.

If you haven't had the pleasure, Mäni’s uses organic flour and no-sugar sweeteners in all the treats. Good food that's good for you, per their tagline! Chocolate Raspberry Fortress Cakes accompanied me to many birthdays and other celebrations when I lived Beverly Hills adjacent. I was thrilled to hear that Faux-Nuts are back for a limited time. Faux-Nuts are decadent chocolate baked donuts, (created for Danny DeVito during his macrobiotic days filming "Other People's Money") and you will never miss the sugar. Here you see the chocolate-dipped bundt-shaped wonder with a mint lemonade chaser. YUMMM!

There have been other locations, such as Laurel Canyon/Ventura Boulevard, and Main Street in Santa Monica, but they're just working the home base on Fairfax now. Back in the day, you could hang out there with chef Mäni and sample the newest creations. He has now moved to San Francisco, but the bakery still has his name. At some point, a full menu was added, and I hear the soups are fantastic. They do have an awesome sounding breakfast burrito on the menu, and you know how I seek those out. But for now, I'm totally satiated with my Faux-Nut and mint lemonade. Happy Birthday Los Angeles, and here's to another 20 years of Mäni’s Bakery!!

Click here to go to their Web site.