Bruxie Gourmet Waffle Sandwiches

It's been ways too long to post this entry.  Today, I am going to introduce this little fun restaurant/spot for everyone.  I discovered this little spot totally by a wrong turn.  I was crusing in Old Towne Orange and made a wrong turn, and then saw this little fun retro spot with a lot of people waiting outside (who knew that a "wrong" turn could make it so "right"?!).  As soon as I got home, I googled and tried to find what this line about, here is what I discovered: Belgium waffle + sandwich = interesting! 

Last Christmas Eve was our first visit to their original location in Old Towne Orange.  The owner was there too; he was super friendly and helpful with the menu to the newbies.  After that visit, we barely went there. Why?  Don't get me wrong that their food was super awesome and service was great.  Just that long line outside scared us away.  And waffle sandwich should be eaten at the restaurant, because they won't taste the same after you take them home.  About a month ago, my mother-in-law told me that they opened a new location in Downtown Brea.  Since she heard so much good thing about this restaurant from me; she could not wait to try.  So one lazy evening, we all went to their new location in Brea (not one but twice in a row).  The new location is much bigger and nicer than the original one in Orange.  However, the line was still long, but the wait was fast though. 


Long line, but suprisingly moving fast.

 Here are some interesting things I found online on their website and also some tips I want to give out to all the foodies, who plan on visiting this restaurant:

Brucks-ee

How do you pronounce “Bruxië”?
Brucks-ee!

What does Bruxië mean/How did you come up with the name Bruxië?
In French, Brussels is spelled “Bruxelles”; so Brux comes from the French spelling. Belgie is a Flemish term for Belgium and also used as a slang term for a waffle. We combined the “Brux” with the “ie” from a Belgie and incorporated the umlaut (two dots over the ë from German, which is also common language in Belgium) and the dot for the I (English artistic license) and we came up with Bruxië. The color of the three dots represent the colors of the flag of Belgium).

Pastrimi waffle sandwich

Turkey waffle sandwich

How did they come up with the concept?
Bruxië is the result of the collaborative effort of the three founders; chefs, Dean Simon, Kelly Mullarney and Philippe Caupain who have been friends for over 25 years. The Story – In 1999 Dean and Philippe were visiting Belgium on business. Dean was fascinated with the local farmers markets and street vendors and in particular the homemade waffles. Philippe was born in Belgium and grew up in this fabulous culinary culture. Upon their return to California, Philippe began developing recipes and Brux Waffles born. Over the next several years Brux sold product to some of America’s finest hotels and cruise ships. In 2009 Chef Kelly Mullarney was hired as a consultant to Brux Waffles in hopes of expanding sales to multi-unit foodservice operations. During the collaboration between Dean and Kelly the idea of making this waffle an all day offering was created. While traveling in Asia Kelly experienced dessert style sweets that were offered by street vendors similar to what was observed in Belgium. Because of the unique characteristics of the Brux Waffle, Dean and Kelly began pairing up a wide variety of sweet and savory combinations. The waffle was made thinner and then folded to make it portable…Bruxië AKA “The Bold Fold” was born!

What’s the difference between a Brussels and Liege?
The Brussels waffle is the platform in which all of our sandwiches are made. It is light, crispy and made with yeast. It is not sweet at all. The Liege waffle is more dense and sweet like a breakfast pastry. It has chunks of pearl sugar that gets caramelized into a sugary crust on the waffle.

Do you know Dairy Treet is misspelled?
It’s not misspelled! Before Bruxië came along the building was a restaurant called Dairy Treet. It was established in 1949 and was the oldest hamburger stand in Orange. They offered burgers, fries, and soft serve ice cream. The portion of our menu is a tribute to Dairy Treet.

Tips from me:

Good for big group of people:  No!  Both locations are not really good for big group of people.  So if you want to invite your family and friends to join you to try out this place, keep your group small.  The one in Brea is a little bits better since they have bigger tables.  The one in Orange is a very tiny spot, you will have a hard time if you come with a big group of people (and their parking lot is super small).

Should I come in a raining day?  The last time I went to the one in Brea, it rained quite badly.  However, we got a table indoor, so it's not a big problem.  And they do have cover and heater.

Is it good for to-go?  As I mentioned earlier, it's a BIG NO NO!  Eat there even you need to stand and eat. 

Pumpkin shake

How's their seasonal shake?  I tried their peppermint shake last year, and my mother-in-law tried their pumpkin shake.  They both are delicious; however, since they are so rich and creamy, better to share with someone you love=p.

Grape soda made with 100% sugar cane

How's their soda?  They don't sell typical soda here.  All of their soda are made with 100% sugar cane and they are absolutely delicious.

What's your favorite?  I love their goat cheese spanish and mushroom waffle sandwich with sun dried tomato.  I also love their liege waffles are also great.
For locations and full menu, click here.

Chinese Style Egg Waffles (aka Eggette)

Few months ago, I saw this Chinese style egg waffles pan from one of my friend's facebook's wall.  Except for cool, I didn't think of purchase it at all.  Until I went to the mall last weekend, and saw the pan in "real person" at Williams-Sonoma, I was so excited and kept asking Mr. G if he remembers that's what we had in my hometown (Macau).  He said yes, they are pretty good.  I said yes, they are and I SO miss this street food.  I so wanted to buy it.  However, after looking at the price tag, I put it down and told myself not worth it, it's quite too much (about $50.00 usd).  After I got home, I tried to look for it from Amazon and ebay, but NO LUCK!  After 3 day deep consideration, I finally went to the store and purchased it today.

I of course could not wait to get home to try it out.  Luckily, I have all the ingredients at home.  So after having a quick dinner, I immediately tried out my new toy.  I guess the 50 dollars I spent not just for the pan, it's also for all my fond memory I have about my childhood and the place I love.

If you never heard of this famous Chinese (especially in Hong Kong and Macau areas) snack, here is a little introduction of eggette:

An eggette is a kind of spherical pancake or ball waffle popular in the Cantonese-speaking regions of China, including Hong Kong and Macau. The food item is also referred to as an egg puff, egg waffle, bubble waffle or by its Cantonese name,gai daan jai (鷄蛋仔),^[1] and is made from eggs, sugar, flour, and light evaporated milk.^[2] They are best served hot, and often eaten plain. They can also be served with fruit and flavors such as strawberry, coconut or chocolate.^[2] They are sometimes referred to as "Hong Kong cakes" in Chinatowns across America, especially in New York.


For more information, please go to here.

So I used the recipe on the back of the pan, the ingredients are pretty simple, and you can get everything from the store.  Williams-Sonoma also sell the mix in a box for $10.00 at the store and online, but to be honest with you, I don't think you need to spend that 10 extra dollars to get the mix if you can find everything from the pantry.


Ingredients:
4 large yolks
3/4 cup milk (I used a little bits of buttermilk to substitute the milk for a fluffier texture)
About 1 tbs vanilla extra
6 tbs unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups cake flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of grated nutmeg
Pinch of salt
6 egg whites, beaten to medium peaks
Vegetable oil for cooking


Direction:

In another mixing bowl, mix the egg yolk, milk, vanilla, melted butter (put in a microwave for 25 sec) and sugar and whisk until they combined.

In a third mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, nutmeg and salt.

Whisk the wet ingredient into the dry ingredient until well combined and no lumps remain

Add 1/3 of the beaten egg whites t the batter and stir until lightened.
Gently fold in the remaining whites in 2 additions.

The batter is well combined and ready to pour on the heated pan.

Preheat both sides of the egg waffle pan on separate burners over
medium heat until hot.

Grease both sides with vegetable oil to prevent sticking.

Pour 3/4 cup batter on the hot and greased pan.

Cooked on each side for about 1.5 mins over med. heat

One batch makes about 6 eggettes.

They are good just as is.  Or you could add fresh fruits, powder sugar and jam.
(Source:  Serving suggestion from Williams-Sonoma)

Next time, I will do different flavors (like matcha green tea, chocolate or seaweed, stay tuned.)

Waffle + Pizza = Waffza at Love to Go (San Gabriel, CA)

Hours:

Mon-Thu 11 am - 10 pm Fri-Sat 2 pm - 12 am

307 S Mission Dr
San Gabriel, CA 91776

I always admire entrepreneurs (just like myself); these people are fearless, innovative, passionate, driven, open mind and they always have that JUST DO IT positive attitude and a strong work ethic. The market has not been going to anywhere these few years, it's extremely challenging to become an entrepreneur.  I hope all of us could just hang in there during this tough economy.  Believing in yourself and your companies because your confidence will show to your customers, your employees, your stakeholders and your suppliers.    Eventually, our passions and services will touch people's hearts.

A refreshing Kiwi yogurt Italian soda

I met this girl, Sundi from church when I was living in Pasadena back to year 2000.  I heard so many good things about her cookings, her sweet personality and her food from others at the church we both went to.  Few years ago, I found out that she finally opened her first cafe, Love to Go in City of San Gabriel, California.  I am so excited and happy for her when I first discovered this news.  Because turning your interests and hobbies into a career require a lot of efforts, time, money and a lot more...Her passion towards food have shown on her works.  She created this sweet treat called waffza (think about a combination of waffle and pizza).  This signature dessert is very popular at her cafe (so does their Italian soda).  I am so honor to share her journey and passions with everyone on my blog.

Enjoy these interview Q&A, and I truly wish that after reading this post, you could sit back and take a moment to think about what you are passionate about and GO FOR IT because life is too short to wake up with regrets.

Mrs. G = G
Sundi = S

G:  When did you open your own store, Love to Go?
S:  I opened my store on April 18, 2010

G:  When did you discover you have passion toward food?
S:  When I was studying in college, I started cooking dinner for my friends, brothers and sisters from church all the time.
One day, I saw a commercial on TV about Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena.  I immediately made a phone call and scheduled a visit at their campus.  After the visit, I finally made up my mind and decided to complete an associate degree in Culinary Arts.

Four different types of waffzas

Hong Kong style peanut butter waffle pocket

G:  What inspired you to create waffza?
S:  I found out that many people in the States like to eat waffles.   They also like  pizzas. I think people like these two food because you could put a lot of different toppings on these two food items.  I got inspired by pizzas and waffles and create waffza. At first, I made my waffza on a whole waffle and topped with ice-cream, whipped cream, strawberries and bananas, later I realized most of the people could not finish the whole waffza by themselves.  It made me wonder how I could alternate my creation with more varieties. At last, I came up with the idea of separating the whole waffle into smaller size (their original quarter size) and decorate them slice by slice...Waffza was created ^.^

G:  What is your favorite waffza?
S:  I like all of my waffza, but the most favorite waffza that I love is the banana & nut coated with dark chocolate.

A banana waffza cake

A strawberry and banana waffza cake

“Odd Couples”

Donut + Coffee = Perfect Couple

PB (Peanut Butter) + J (Jelly) = Perfect Couple

Straw berry + Chocolate = Perfect Couple

In our baking world, not all the ingridents are made for each other; however, there are some chemistry has been created between two very odd ingridents.  There are few famous odd couples I am going to present on this post. 

Two very odd ingredients come together create some incredible and unforgettable favors.  Here are some strange combinations ideas for your cupcakes:

Sea Salt + Caramel

(Picture from:  http://www.recipestap.com/martha-stewarts-chocolate-salted-caramel-cupcakes-13)

Bacon + Chocolate

(Picture from:  www. ingridcakes.blogspot.com)

Bacon + Maple Syrup

(Picture from:  http://www.hotpinkapron.com/2011/03/bacon-and-maple-syrup-cupcake-with-maple-icing/)

Guinness + Bailey’s Irish Cream Frosting

(Picture from:  http://dulcedoblog.blogspot.com/)

Grapefruit + Chai Icing

 (Picture from:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/sugardragon/)

Fried Chicken Topping + Waffle Favor Cupcake

(Picture from:  http://www.citysweettooth.com/?p=1190)

So do you have any odd combinations you would love to share with us?