Boule on La Cienega- SOOOO pretentious
Okay, I just paid nine bucks for a tomato sandwich wrapped in plastic. Granted, it was a pretty good sandwich, but definitely not nine dollars good. Furthermore, instead of just giving me said sandwich and sending me on my way, they place it in a shopping bag that looks like it came from Tiffany, and then to top it off, they put RUFFLED tissue paper on top!!! For a sandwich!!!
Someone needs to tell this place to get over themselves.
By Getting Fatter
on Oct 5, 2005 06:39 PM
View »
Video
Now that's funny!
That could be a scene right out of "LA Stories".
Permalink | Reply
I could not agree with you more. Whilst doing research on bakeries in the area, Z. and I stopped in to look around. We were flabbergasted, not only by the prices, but my the entire aesthetic and vibe of the place. We left without buying anything and Z. spent several minutes ranting about the pretention and rarified atmostphere of what should be a friendly, happy place--they sell candy, pastry and ice cream, not BMWs! What a relief to get to Buttercake on Pico, where a single cupcake cost less than one piece of Boule candy.
Permalink | Reply
It just reflects the owners' philosophy. Matches to perfection the over-stiffed ambiance of similarly over pretentious, same ownership, Sona.
Permalink | Reply
Well, I can see how placing a sandwich into one of their bags may be a little over the top, but I love Boule. The quality is wonderful and I'm thrilled to have a place where I can get kouign aman, Catalan eclairs and macarons in unique flavors. Boule is a patisserie, modeled in the French fashion, and, as a result, is going to have a much different feel than an American bakeshop. I certainly don't find it pretentious.
Permalink | Reply
Actually, Massimo's is more of what you get in a typical French bakery. Your tarts and cookies are removed from the case and placed on a silver tray. When you are finished, each piece is wrapped and placed in a folded bakery box. They treat their baked goods as special treats, Boule treats them as if they were the Crown Jewels.
Permalink | Reply
The pastries at Boule are exceptional, the prices no more outrageous than what you'd pay for fancy baked goods at La Brea Bakery or oh-so-homey Clementine (which I love, by the way). If their aesthetic involved scattering innards on the floor, it would turn me off. Short of that...no objections.
Permalink | Reply
PlonkMan, Adsvino loves you. Couldn't agree more...
Permalink | Reply
I agree wit you. I wen to dem all and dees places are SOOOO pretentious. Broke-Da-Mouth and Da Wallet.
Boule (Handcrafted Chocolates, Croissants, Pastries, Ice Cream, Gifts)
420 N. La Cienega Boulevard,
Los Angeles, CA
(310) 289-9977
http://boulela.com/
Amandine Patissiere (Great Cheesecake, Croissants They burn the bottoms sometimes, Tarts, Omelettes w/potato gratin, Sandwiches
)12225 Wilshire Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025-1105
(310) 979-3211
(Cross St. Bundy, 10 Frwy exit Bundy go N., 405 Frwy exit Wilshire go W.)
Sweet Lady Jane (Try it all, Cookies, Wedding Cakes, 70 layer cakes, cheesecakes, pies and tarts)
8360 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90069-6501
(323) 653-7145
Cross, Kings Rd. Near La Cienega
Auntie Em's Kitchen (Beverly Hills prices and not even close to Beverly Hills.
Great Cupcakes, try red velvet and coconut cupcakes, Great breakfast sandwiches, huge salads, soups or lamb shepherd's pie).
4616 Eagle Rock Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90041-3032
(323) 255-0800
Cross Street: Corliss Street
Permalink | Reply
howzit? Should be Like-Go-Grind...
Permalink | Reply
eh, I like dat. Hey, Maybe "Like-Go-Pound?" or maybe, "Bolo Head Haloe!" Talk story about Boule. $9.00 tomato sandwich? Fo'real? Should be "Bull." Mo' better das why. Wot you think? Mahalo.
Boule ($9.00 tomato sandwich, $5.00 box)
420 N. La Cienega Boulevard,
Los Angeles, CA
(310) 289-9977
http://boulela.com/
Permalink | Reply
it's starting to sound like one of those credit card commericials.
after sandwich $9, box $5, then pretentiousness PRICELESS.
Permalink | Reply
I wanted ono sandwich, went spend $9, was mushy.
Is junk.
Permalink | Reply
You're no fun ;-) Boule seems to annoy many people.
I enjoy the pride and care Boule puts into their sweets and all the pretty packaging just makes it seem *extra nice*. It feels very personal, like this is the shop she's always wanted to open. I find it odd that nobody complains about the kitschy-cutesy fun of Teuscher's chocolate shop.
Permalink | Reply
I don't mind paying $1 for a piece of candy....after all, how many places in LA have homemade Lychee jelly squares? I don't even mind paying .75 per sea-salt caramel. What I DO mind is buying $20 bucks of this stuff to bring to a dinner party and being told that if I want it in a box it'll cost $5 extra for the box. I mean pul-eeeze. Next they'll start charging admission.
Permalink | Reply
$5 for a box?? Sheesh.
Permalink | Reply
so getting fatter, what was in the sandwich and how did it taste? there presentations are ricdiculous but i don't mind dealing with that if it means getting truly delicious food, that's a smile price to pay (although don't get me wrong boule is incredibly pricey).
Permalink | Reply
The sandwich was just okay. It was on pretty chewy olive bread (the bread at breadbar is better). it had some nice heirloom tomatoes on it, and some crumbly cheese that i thought was gonna be mozerella, but turned out to be some kind of feta. the description said the sandwich had a lemon vinegrette on it, but i couldn't taste any.
i think i justfied kinda sorta liking it because of the price, but a day later, i feel totally ripped off.
Also, they offered me the "lunch box" which included a tiny mixed green salad and a little cookie. the price...wait for it....FOURTEEN BUCKS!!!
next time, i'm going to joan's.
Permalink | Reply
or next time to bay cities italian deli, good sandwiches only about 7 bucks or less.
Permalink | Reply
Bread tends to get chewy when it sits all day wrapped in plastic in the frig (i.e., Starbucks and the Airport). I don't mind the price, but the fact that the sandwich isn't made to order.
Permalink | Reply
What really got me -- since the cakes and such were not really my cup of fur -- were the chocolates @ an eye-popping $2.50 apiece. I mean, they're fine, but give me See's any day and I'll be happy.
Permalink | Reply
Picholine's got Boule beat on price and quality on the chocolates. It's not cheap, these little morsels, but when you pop one in and realize how long that the flavor lingers, the longetivy factor makes the chocolate seem worth the price. And the French guy's nice and does not act like his shop's in some chic Parisian neighborhood, which, by the way, La Cienaga isn't. There's a Norm's a block away, fer chrissakes.
Permalink | Reply
Plus a strip joint across the street, and a lingerie shop a few doors down.
Don't they have those in Paris, too? :P
Permalink | Reply
They do carry hard to find items: canneles, financiers. On the other hand, one morning I asked for macaroons and they brought out a tray from the fridge of day-old, ice-cold macaroons. Not at those prices!
Permalink | Reply
Their new cases are awful for the macaroons. The last ones I purchase lasted like sweet library paste. No flavor and no texture. Really sad. Even the exteriors had beads of moisture. I can't imagine what they are thinking.
On the plus side, the ones I abondoned in disgust on my kitchen counter tasted pretty good the next day after they dried out. Even better on the second day...pathetic.
Permalink | Reply
It's exceptionally pricy, and they are completely full of themselves. The place reminds me of a fine jewelry shop more than a bakery, and they look you up and down when you order to see if you are worthy.
That said, I think some of their goods, in particular the various croissants and the sable cookies (chocolate!) are delicious and better than anywhere else. So I won't drive there everyday, but once a month or so, it is worth it. If the prices make me eat a little slower, pay a little more attention to the taste and texture of what's in my mouth, and appreciate a bit more the talent that goes into making these products, so much the better. Usually I eat lunch while working at the computer and don't even know what I've eaten when I'm done.
Disclaimer - I haven't had the sandwiches, and can't comment on whether they're worth the price or the schlep.
Permalink | Reply
My experiences have been very different...I took 4 & 7 year old boys in several weeks ago - dressed very casually.
We were warmly welcomed...before entering I begged the boys not to touch anything, including the glass cases. The staff started asking the boys if they wanted to taste things (slightly imperfect)goodies, they would gobble them up before I could race across the room for a tiny smidge. My daughter/the Mom is a No. Ca. pastry chef and wanted to see what was happening in LA. We bought items to eat on site and more to taste that evening. The "boys" had comsumed their choices before we paid the bill....I had to "beg-daughter" for an ice cream treat for them to eat outside.
Yesterday, my husband and I stopped for lunch & a treat and they let me back in! Again staff was helpful. It was 11:45 am and they were almost sold out of sandwiches - offered to help carry our lunch to a table! We ate at excellent, BLT & Mango-brie wrapped in prociutto; I removed the top slice of bread (saved it for dinner!) Love the place, wish I lived closer and had more $$$ and was thinner too.
Permalink | Reply
It was 11:45 am and they were almost sold out of sandwiches.
Are you suggesting that even for nine bucks they would not make a fresh tomato sandwich if they were sold out. That would make me wonder if they ever dirty their hands making any sandwiches. I would wonder whether the sandwiches are made on site or somewhere else by someone else and when they were made. SOOOO pretentious.
Kevin is right. Ready made Tomato sandwich $9.00, Empty box $5.00, Pretentiousness -- PRICELESS. BULLe
Boule
420 N. La Cienega Boulevard,
Los Angeles, CA
(310) 289-9977
http://boulela.com/
Permalink | Reply
I don't understand the vitriol Boule unleashs. It seems so harsh considering the low standards of most bakeries and the contempt that most average bakeries and corporate candy/baking manuafacturers have for their invisible consumers. I know this post comes late, but I finally made it to Boule and tried an individual peanut butter layered cake. It was some of the best cake I have ever eaten in Los Angeles. It set me back $6.50. I don't think it was overpriced because I compared the experience to eating a stale baked good made with subgrade ingrediants at an average bakery that would set me back $2.50-$6. To tell you the truth, when I spend $2 bucks on a dry tasteless brownie or even just a $1 on a cheap cookie--I often get mad becuase I expect it to at least be fresh and moist and often it's not either. I am often incensed by what bakers pass off as fresh baked goods and I'd prefer to spend my money on lottery tickets than fritter it away on dry stale nothings. Thats why I don't understand why an establishment like Boule gets such backlash. Like burgers and fries, I don't expect to consume dense foods like this everyday. I also don't think it is Boule's intention that their average customer eat at their establishment daily or even weekly. To tell you the truth if I worked at Boule, I would view daily regulars as just plain decadent--begging on their knees for a heart attack. For me places like Boule are an occasional treat and I don't mind paying more for premium quality. I would rather have 3 Boules than 30 mediocre (often not even mediocre but delinquent) bakeries in my neighborhood.
Permalink | Reply