By: Melanie Warner
No road trip is truly complete without a drive through Los Angeles, or La La Land, as the natives call it. Swimming pools, movie stars, tofu, botox – all are readily available. In fact, the only thing you won’t find is a fur coat. There are thousands of little restaurants, cafes, and bistros to choose from, so how do you know which ones are worth the stop? So much food, so little time. Where do the locals go? There’s a little-known treasure just off the bustling Ventura Boulevard that runs through the San Fernando Valley community of Studio City.
No, there are no actual studios in studio city. I know. It’s a little misleading. I’ve been going to Pagliacci’s Café for over twenty years now. The service is terrible and the workers have no personality. Each time I walk in, they still act like they have never seen me before– but the yogurt is so worth the abuse! It’s cleverly disguised as an unassuming pizza joint, so most people don’t even know about the yogurt. My drug of choice is the chocolate peanut butter yogurt nestled inside a crispy waffle cone. Yogurt masters artfully blend chocolate yogurt with real peanut butter in their patented yogurt blender, making it soft and smooth – not chunky like most places. It’s not peanut butter flavored Hollywood yogurt, it’s real creamy (or chunky) peanut butter. I often fantasize about that yogurt. It haunts me. It annoys my friends and family when I force them to detour, brave the L.A. traffic, and go an hour and a half out of our way just to indulge my fetish. It’s really only a few miles, but the traffic is so heavy that it always takes an eternity to drive anywhere in L.A. It’s more like a traffic trip rather than a road trip, but I always have to get my “fix”. The pizza is consistently great and the custom-blended yogurt is the best I’ve ever had. It’s real yogurt, not the watery, trendy kind that you are forced to sprinkle with confection distractions. I’m talking rich and creamy, lush and dreamy yogurt. I’ve deemed them the ‘Yoda of Yogurt’.
Recently robbed, they were shut down for a short time, but have since recovered and are back in business with two locations. They are probably more known for their pizzas and also serve sandwiches, salads and pastas – all made fresh daily. Guests also love the Club Panini, Eggplant Parmigiana sandwich, and Sun-Dried Tomato Pizza. Pagliacci’s Café offers delivery 24/7 within 45 minutes (but obviously not the yogurt). Don’t expect service with a smile from the tough-as-nails, hard-working staff of this family-owned business. As good as the yogurt is, I’m sure there is an agent out there somewhere that would represent Pagliacci’s Café. Just give me my cut. I’ll gladly work for yogurt!
4366 Coldwater Canyon Avenue
Studio City, CA 91604
818.506.4111
3990 Vantage Ave
Studio City, CA
818.766.2515
