Mac & Cheeza

The LA blogs have been abuzz about the soft opening of Mac & Cheeza downtown. Announced this summer, Mac and Cheeza is the brainchild of the founders of Larkin's Joint, a delicious little place in Eagle Rock that serves up contemporary soul food. Let's see: Larkin's owners, mac & cheese and downtown LA? I'm in!

Mac & Cheeza is reportedly looking to do most of its business in take-out and delivery, which makes sense when you see the layout. They're located in a tiny space on 8th Street and have only two benches and a few small tables.

A "Baby Mac" (the only size they served at the soft opening) costs $5, a "Momma Mac" with one addition costs $10, a "Daddy Mac" with one addition costs $15 and, finally, there's the "Mac Daddy" with one addition for $25. Extra additions are $1.

You begin by choosing your type of noodle (regular or rice) and your base (cheese or soy cheese).

Your choices of veggie add-ins are: collard greens, black olives, peas, jalapenos, green onions, mushrooms, tomatoes and spinach.

Meat add-ins are: Ground beef, BBQ chicken, hot links, tuna, bacon, ham, chorizo and veggie sausage.

Finally, you have your choice of a topper: a cheese blend or spicy toasted walnuts.

The mac and cheese is made assembly line style. The noodles are first poured into the containers, then the cheese is ladled over the noodles. After that come the add-ins and the topper. The whole thing is then popped into a conveyer belt oven and then into your eager, waiting arms.

Mac & Cheeza also carries specialty sodas and desserts.

J ordered his with regular noodles, regular cheese, BBQ chicken and the cheese blend topper. The chicken was flavorful and tender, but the dish, overall, needed a little crunch. I think it could have benefitted from a second, vegetable add-in.

I ordered mine with regular noodles, regular cheese, bacon, collard greens, and the cheese blend topper. The bacon was nice and thick, and its crunch added a nice change in texture. The tang of the collard greens also provided a nice counterpoint to the cheese's mellow flavor.

I wasn't sure how great cheese ladled onto noodles was going to be, but I was really impressed by the flavor of the cheese. It was rich and creamy, and I was in mac and cheese heaven.

I couldn't pass up dessert! I opted for the banana pudding with Nilla Wafers and fresh banana slices. It's a very simple dessert (I mean, even I've made it) but a wonderfully scrumptious one. It's an interesting choice, though, for a pre-made dessert that sits in a refrigerated case. It doesn't take very long at all for the pudding to make the Nilla Wafers soggy, and this is definitely a dish that needs crispy wafers. At $6, it's also a little pricy for what it is.

My only real complaint is that they weren't particularly generous with the add-ins. Gimme my meat! I'm gonna give them the benefit of the doubt, though, and chalk this up to the fact that this was their soft open and that they were erring on the side of caution in light of the publicity they'd received (I mean, people were lined up 30 minutes before they opened).

I also hope that they bring in some sides and/or baked goodies such as corn bread like those they have at Larkin's Joint. I don't know if having just mac and cheese will cut it downtown, where there are so many great dining or snacking options.

I'm feeling a little under the weather and was disappointed that I couldn't hit up the rest of ArtWalk (one of my favorite nights of the month), but Mac & Cheeza was the highlight of my sleepy, sore-throated day.

Mac and Cheeza
www.macandcheeza.com
223 W. 8th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90014
(213) 622-3782