Driving through Downtown Los Angeles, you couldย passย Birdies without even noticing. Tuckedย between an alleyway and a vacant old waffle house, itโs a tiny space that recentlyย housed a chicken-and-waffles joint.ย But Birdies has taken over the frying game here.
In the alleyway (and thus, somewhat out of sight) is aย mural that’s meant to portray what Birdies is all about: it shows Albert Einstein, with a spray can, tagging anย equation of sorts: coffee plus doughnuts equals chicken-squared…or something like that.
Once inside you’ll findย a few places to sit, but most orders are to-goโthis area of Downtown is for locals and nearby lunch-goers (not to mention that parking is pretty difficultย hereย as well). The simple menu is right above the colorful doughnuts galore displayed behind shiny glass. One of the signsย describesย the two different types of doughnutsโyeast and cake. Yeast doughnuts are the fluffy, chewy ones that have become commercialized in doughnut shops all over America; cake doughnuts are leavened with baking powder and crumbly, more dunkable, and denser, meaning they can hold heavy toppings. At Birdies, both kindsโeven the most vibrantly colored onesโare made with onlyย natural ingredients.
Theย flavors are on a steady rotation, and all are available to sample, with varietiesโfrom s’more and Oreo confections to strawberry white chocolate and lemon-thyme pistachioโthatย putย mostย other doughnuts to shame. The mind behind the menu is chef Jason Harley, whose inspiration came from โwanting to create something different, something new and unique.โ It’s possible he was referring toย Birdiesโ 24-karat gold doughnutโmade with real gold shavings and a cream cheese-Champagne frosting. It’s hard to tell if theย $100 price tag ($1,000 for a dozen)ย is a bargain or not, but if you want to eat your moneyโs worth, this oneโs for you. In the end, Harley says it all comes down to โmaking you feel richer as you take a bite.โ
Birdies’ย chicken also gets the star treatment:ย free-range, vegetarian-fed, antibiotic-free, and in the form of eitherย fried-chicken sandwichesย orย chicken strips. Co-owner Keith Bae points out that โeverything is extremely fresh, so the kitchen never stops running. The bread is baked every night for the buns, and even the doughnuts are all freshโwe donโt use a mix, everything is made from scratch.โ
The coffee bar sits at oneย end of the shop, but you can order the drinks along with your food. All are made with Intelligentsia Coffee, like the Black Cat Espresso, which Bae describesย as the โhighest grade, highest quality beans.โ Shots are pulled on a La Marzocco Linea Classic, and straight drip coffee and cold brew are also available to quench the spicy chickenโs heat.
For its ambitiousย future, Birdies already has its sights on another Downtown location, and while this first spotย currently stays open till around 3 a.m., the goal is toย build up to a 24-hour operationโthe demand is definitely there in this booming neighborhood. In the meantime, the doughnut flavors will change seasonally, andย the gold creationย will get a rerelease inย a more economical version, made with smaller flakes. Most importantly, the coffee side of things is taking flightย too:ย theย coffee bar will soon expand intoย the vacant space next door, and,ย Bae adds, the debut ofย their own Birdies brand roast is coming any day now.
Tatiana Ernst is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer and photographer. Read more Tatiana Ernst onย Sprudge.