Encino brunch = designer dog heaven!

Today was my quarterly visit to see my posh friend Helen who moved from behind the Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills in with her cardiologist boyfriend in Sherman Oaks. They must be nesting or something because they just got a new puppy a few weeks ago and invited me to see him - how about brunch in Encino? I met Sean and Helen a few minutes after 10:30 and met their new puppy "Snuggles". Yeah.. don't get me started on the absurd name.

It's an adorable brown Pug/Beagle mix that was extremely hyper, even for a puppy! The funniest thing about this dog is that it doesn't lie down like a normal dog - it must have really flexible hips because it'll splay out on the floor with its back legs completely stretched out.  It has a curly long tail, so when it wags it back and forth, the entire hindquarters tremble because its body weight is so little right now! The puppy was SO excited to see the other dogs but of course went straight to their nether regions, which freaked out the posh owners who promptly pulled their dogs away. Awww. No sniffing private parts in public, Snuggles!

I couldn't believe how many huge designer dogs were at this brunch place. All very well trained and gorgeous!! There were poodle lab mixes - "Labradoodles" (thanks for the edit, Charlene!), enormous collies with long legs, Pitbull mixed with something more majestic.. the list goes ON. Being that Encino is the Beverly Hills of the valley, I can make a quick observation/prediction from my short visit: small dogs are quickly going out of style. The new "it" for dogs are waist-high, shed-free designer dogs - most of which seem to be mixed with labs.

They were all incredibly well trained, large but docile, strong enough to pull a table across the room and literally higher than my waist. I always learn something new when I see Helen ;) Next time I will be more vocal about asking what mixes these dogs were. I'm sure the owners were very proud of their selections but I didn't want to look stupid answering with nothing more than an "ooh.. really!" =) Hahhaa! I'll have to work a little harder on my compliments "what a fine looking dog!" or "he's got a nice shape!" or whatever you say to designer dog owners in Encino.

We had brunch at Waffles and More - I got the Tuscan Benedict which was fabulous! Helen and I chatted briefly about her usual topics - old friend clique-gossip, interior design for their house as she's constantly encouraging him to remodel his place, and the newest/best sushi place in the valley where they saw Scott Hamilton and Danny DeVito (came in seperately) the other day - Asanebo for those of you who are interested in spending about $250 per person but for amazing fusion sushi in an incognito place. Their offerings often come paired with hard-to-find caviars  and truffle ingredients.

And then we left and I washed my car finally after something like a month =) Wooho! I love the valley! Truly I do. Not more than downtown, but it's one of the most convenient and quality places to live in LA, without too much of the absurd traffic you find everywhere else!