Hi from Kauai!
In case you’ve missed it, I’m currently in Kauai, Hawaii. I’m here to visit a very close friend of mine whom I haven’t met in almost a decade (but we’ve kept in close contact over the years). She’s recently given birth to a beautiful baby, named Lilikoi, and I get to be her cool aunty.
And this is my view as I’m writing this newsletter to you.
There’s Hawaiian music playing in the background, and I feel extremely relaxed. It’s perfect! I don’t have a lot of time, so I’ll keep things very brief this week. Hope you’ll enjoy it regardless, and stay tuned for my vlogs! Youtube video will be up late due to traveling.
Here’s everything I did in LA - May 2025
Camel Coffee - 4459 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles: A popular cafe chain from South Korea, 11 in Seoul and 1 in Busan, and now 1 in Silver Lake, LA. I ordered the Camel Latte with chocolate and orange, and I thought it was a bit sweet and water-down. Wish I also got the matcha and the regular coffee, too, because that way I could give better of a review. Next time!
Erewhon Hailey Bieber's Strawberry Glaze Skin Smoothie $20: It feels ridiculous spending that much on a 20 oz smoothie, but I’ve got to say that it’s pretty good and got all 3 passes from 3 of us. Consistency-wise, it’s on a thicker side, and you’d definitely need to save some stomach space for it. It’s not too sweet, and I can taste the strawberries, banana, dates (blended into small bits), coconut, and the protein powder.
Maru is one of my favorite spots to grab matcha whenever I’m in LA. Yes, it’s overhyped, and I actually cannot recall if I liked their coffee. They’re also famous for the cream top, but I think they’ve recently discontinued it. Their iced oat matcha latte is good and consistent, every time.
Canyon Coffee definitely made it to my favorite LA list I’d return to often. I think this location and the crowd it draws are just perfect. Their coffee and non-caffeine drinks are good.
Neutra VDL Studio and Residences - House Tour - Regular tour 30 minutes $15: Home of architect Richard Neutra, located at 2300 Silver Lake Blvd, Los Angeles. It is a National Historic Landmark. A must if you’re an architecture lover!
Cherry Los Angeles (8475 Melrose Ave): cool store worth to check out if you love Aime Leon Dore and BODE.
The Row (8440 Melrose Pl): my personal favorite stop every LA trip!
Réalisation Par LA pop-up (8425 Melrose Ave): Another must-visit if you’re looking to buy any wedding guest and summer patterned dresses. I wasn’t in the mood to try on anything, so I couldn’t tell you much more.
Non-LA spots
left - right, top - bottom:
The Boiling Crab (Rowland Heights) - This location is huge, but we ordered take-outs. My go-to order would always be 2 lb per person of crawfish with the ‘Whole Sha-Bang’ sauce (medium spicy) and corn on the cob. If you like it saucy, I’d recommend ordering some extra sauce!
Reynalda Cucina & Amor (2865 E Thousand Oaks Blvd, Thousand Oaks) - I found this spot on Yelp when I was in Thousand Oaks, and it was spot on. Reviewers said it’s the best Mexican food spot outside of LA, and it was actually good. Their guac was creamy, and I had never had it just plain smashed avocado like that before. The salsas were so tasty, and the queso birria tacos were some of the best I’d had in a long time.
356 Korean BBQ & BAR (12585 Cantu-Galleano Ranch Rd, Eastvale) - I normally stay away from all you can eat and also haven’t actually done KBBQ in a long time, but it’s always fun to do it with a group of friends or family. We got sugarcane juice and stopped by the Ranch 99 for Asian snacks afterwards, and it was perfect.
Spending our last night with family playing Dixit. I placed second to last, hah!
Had In-N-Out Burger the first night when we arrived in California. My go-to oder is always a Double Double, lettuce, tomato, chopped chili, whole grilled onion & raw onion. Regular fries. And a coke!
Pho Koi in Corona - I had their special pho, and it was good. Portion was huge!!!
Down to Earth (not pictured, located in the same shopping mall as Pho Koi in Corona) - Highly recommend their smoothies and acai bowls if you’re in the area.
Lastly, I’d have to recommend this Goodwill location if you’re in Thousand Oaks. It’s random, I know, but I went back twice! I had some time to kill, so thrifting was my favorite thing to do solo when traveling in small towns.
And everything else I wish I got a chance to do or go see
JACQUEMUS (8804 Melrose Ave, West Hollywood)
Courage Bagels (777 Virgil Ave) - I drove by at around noon, and the line looked like it would have been over an hour long. I’ve been there once before and missed their lox bagel ever since. It’s overhyped, but I don’t think anyone else can quite top what they’re doing. Apollo Bagel in NYC couldn’t even come close.
Bub & Grandma's (3507 Eagle Rock Boulevard) - I’d order the tuna sandwich and a slice of lime pie. They’re closed early, and I missed it just by 15 minutes. I blamed it to the crazy LA traffic, ugh!
Quarter Sheets (1305 Portia St, Los Angeles) - Famous for their pizzas and desserts by @hannahziskin (I recently followed her on IG because her princess cake was mentioned on an article that I read!). If you read my May Edit, you’d know about my princess cake obsession.
Here are some link & code reminders:
20% Aurate New York code AN20
20% UBEAUTY code ANTRIEU20
10% APOTHEKE code ANT10 (active until 9/30/2025 7:30 AM PST)
10% QUINCE code INFG-25ANTRIEU10 *valid for new customers only
Get a free mascara with $85+ purchases at JONES ROAD
LARQ water bottle
Lastly, if you’re in NYC, LA, or Toronto, Aesop Queer Library is back for the 5th year, and it’s my favorite pride activation a brand has ever done. I cannot wait to come visit their NYC Aesop Rockefeller Center store later this month (June 26-29) to pick up a book!
Take care and see you next week!
An :X