Wild Oak Café sits in the hills above Glendale near the Chevy Chase Country Club, surrounded by trees and birdsong. The setting feels verdant, secluded and rustic, more like Middle Earth than a mall-lined street. The cafe functions as a beloved breakfast and lunch destination that draws diners for both food and atmosphere. The experience evokes a country store vibe where patrons meander, study a menu, and order beverages ranging from rainbow and digital lattes to strong Armenian coffee. Juice blends include inventive mixes like Brain Juice (apple, carrot, kale and ginger) and Firecracker (apple, beet, jalapeño, lemon and ginger). The destination quality makes the drive worthwhile.
'Tis a long and winding road that leads you to Wild Oak Café, in the hills above Glendale, just a few steps away from the Chevy Chase Country Club. So close, indeed, that I was surprised not to hear duffers yelling "Fore!" as they hauled off to wack a Titleist deep into the rough. Rather, the dominant sound at Wild Oak is birds of every stripe and hue, twittering in the surrounding trees.
Like our several hidden-gem restaurants ( Saddle Peak Lodge in Topanga comes to mind), Wild Oak is a Tolkienesque journey into the greenery. It's not at the end of the road; Chevy Chase Drive continues for miles to Foothill Boulevard and the 210. But it's far enough away from the land of malls and parking meters to be on the edge of Middle Earth, rather than a golf course.
You meander in, consider the menu for a spell, then place your order - including the sort of beverage those codgers couldn't imagine. This is a rustic hideaway that offers a rainbow latte, a digital latte, and a denture-rattling Armenian coffee (which should wake you up till the Second Coming!), along with juice mixes with names like Brain Juice (apple, carrot, kale and ginger), and Firecracker (apple, beet, jalapeño, lemon and ginger).
Collection
[
|
...
]