592040 Thu Jan 29 20:02:23 -0800 2009 5 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 4371473 Today's pizza was delicious, the frittata, too. I haven't yet gotten to the black bottom cupcake nor cookies, and I still have half an apple pie from yesterday that was the best one ever. Thank you for years of deliciousness, prepared from your hearts. Thu Jan 29 20:02:23 -0800 2009 13471 lmnopm 1 4371620 Do you know why 1/29/09 was their last day? Poor RW will be crushed. Thu Jan 29 21:13:17 -0800 2009 4371473 10677 hhc 2 4371726 I am crushed. I wish I could have said goodby. I almost, sob, stopped by yesterday for lunch. Well, ditto. Thank you Lola for all those years of deliciousness. You were the first bright spot after my move to the East Bay. Thu Jan 29 22:18:14 -0800 2009 4371620 10264 rworange 2 4374781 I guessed that with two days left in the month, they were using the last two days to clean out the restaurant. I wanted to say good bye so I dropped by. John was there and there is a sign thanking customers in the window. It seemed strange to see the shop empty and John without his chef's jacket on. I really didn't ask why they closed. I figured if John wanted to say anything, he would. The only leading question I asked was if John had finally won big time betting on the ponies. He laughed and said no. He said it was difficult closing. To both him and Donna, for the past ten years, Lola's was more than just a restaurant, it was being part of the community. I left him my email address and asked that he contact me to let me know if they ever open another restaurant or if they are at any other restaurants or anything. I really loved the food there. John and Donna are not part of the hype machine ... the celeb chefs that the newspapers will track their next move. They just put out the best food they could with quality ingredients. I will miss the jams with the berries from a cousin in Oregon, the peach rosemary jam with a spicy warmth that announced summer was at it's zenith. There's so much ... the blueberry pie, the best caramel apple I ever had one year at Halloween, etc, etc, etc. It seemed like Lola's was one of the reasons that made Chowhound so valuable. It was a way to call attention to a worthy little business that just put out top class food and wasn't in the usual media blare. It seems like a good time, especially with the economy what it is, to maybe suggest if you have a place you love, post from time to time about it. Keep it in the chow radar. Fri Jan 30 21:50:43 -0800 2009 4371620 10264 rworange 3 4374794 Wanted to add the link. While I'm here, I'm going to cut and paste my yelp review which took the highlights of my many posts on Chowhound. The reason in detail why I loved Lola's Like food grandma would make if she was a perfect cook. Classic American home cooking that is straight from the garden fresh. Don't miss - THE CHICKEN: Roasted with lemon, garlic and rosemary, the skin is crackly, crispy, the meat moist, juicy and full of flavor. Get there early or call to reserve. They sell out quickly. Lola's isn't only about the best roast chicken, it is also about the Bay Area's best baked goods. COOKIES Madelines: Read Proust for a description. He must have bought them at Lola's. Orange sugar cookies: Half dollar-sized, crisp cookies with intense orange flavor with bits of orange peel. Triple chocolate: These lighter-than-air, slightly bittersweet cookies are almost liquid chocolate like hot chocolate chip cookies. Lemon pistachio: The freshest, most intensely lemon taste with wonderfully buttery pecan sandy texture. Gingersnaps: A buttery hard cookie that has a perfect balance of molasses, spice and hot bite of ginger. There's an excellent granola too with finely slivered nuts and a few unusual dried fruits in there like pineapple. . JELLY, MARMALADE, CHUTNEY Rustic, homey jellies and marmalades are hand-made in small batches from top-notch ingredients. Pricey ($9) but worth every penny. Made with the best seasonal fruit, that tastes better than fresh-picked from the tree or bush. They sparkle like jewels on the shelf. Bergamot Marmalade: The best. Sweet, bitter, tart & flowery all at once. Apricot rosemary jam: Fragrant with rosemary which gives warmth to the jam and full of large jammy intense apricot halves . Great on a toasted olive baguette. Mango chutney: Hot with ginger, there's lots of mango with orange peel and cranberries. Delicious on chicken sandwiches. Sour cherry jam: Cherries that came from 'one tree' in the back yard of relatives in Washington. The thick extremely sweet jam balances the tart whole sour cherries. Stunning deep purple Santa Rosa plum Ruby red grapefruit marmalade is thick, sweet and pleasantly bitter Blueberry Basil jam: The basil deepens the flavor of plump blueberries. BAKED GOODS Super summer fruit desserts that let the flavor of the fruit shine Blueberry cake was mainly fresh blueberries with a buttery / lemony crust dusted with powdered sugar. Blueberry pie. Perfect. Not sweet, just juicy blueberries and an excellent buttery crust. Blueberry muffins: Light, buttery and full of plump, juicy, flavorful blueberries.. Rhubarb crisp: Classic and perfect. Also keep an eye out for Boston cream pie, macaroons, apple walnut cake, chocolate cake and anything chocolate. Maggie's in El Cerrito and Tangerine on Solano sell a few of Lola's baked goods. HOLIDAYS Special Thanksgiving and Christmas menus are available to take home. Also there are seasonal cookies and cakes at holidays like Halloween. In addition to cute cupcakes and pumpkin cookies they make the perfect caramel apple, the seedless apple covered in non sticky, creamy caramel and dipped in nuts. SANDWICHES, SALADS, ETC. Panini: Caramelized onions, smoked ham and cheese was one of the better sandwiches . Quiche: Individual-sized. It reheats beautifully. Swiss chard: Excellent fresh and brightly colored loaded with minced garlic. Roast potatoes: simple quartered potatoes tossed with olive oil and salt. Soups: Southwestern corn had the sweetest fresh corn that made it clear that summer was here and now was the time for corn. Foccacia: Round, individually pizza-sized loaded with intensely flavored sliced mushrooms. Stromboli: Not the usual leaden version, it has a light slightly charred crust filled with a delicate mixture of cheese pepperoni and sauce. Calzone: A large puffy turnover with paper-thin crust dusted on the bottom with cornmeal is filled with a sauce made with deeply sweet tomatoes and creamy cheese. Entrees: There are a few dishes you can bring home and bake in your own oven (20-30 minutes at 375). These are fine but not as wonderful as the chicken. Salads: They keep without wilting Too much vinegar wilts lettuce. Excellent French Green Lentils, Chevre, and Spinach with Sherry The other nice thing about Lola's food is that it travels and keeps well. John Janachek does most of the cooking. His wife, Donna Boechler, bakes the wonderful cookies, pastries and cakes. Both are very nice, but neither are talkers. Some take that for attitude. It isn't. This is a two-person business where everything is done by the two owners who care about making the making the finest food possible. It doesn't seem to be about money for them. It is about love of what they do and pride in what they sell. Fri Jan 30 22:03:10 -0800 2009 4374781 10264 rworange 4 4374822 I've stopped by a few times, thanks to your recommendation on this board. Dang. Sorry to see them go. 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