How to Eat Like a Big Little Lies Star
We don’t know about you, but here at the Monterey Bay Food Tours, we’re super excited about season 2 of Big Little Lies! The show has done a lot for the community in general, and a lot of our local businesses were either featured in season 2 or supplied products for the cast!
On top of that, we’re honored to partner with a few of them!
If you want to experience some of the same food and drink as the Big Little Lies stars, check out the following:
Chai Five Tea
A pun on “High-Five,” the tea at Chai Five Tea is made from five different spices all imported from India. The owner, Ani Joshi, creates perfectly sustainable chai from a family recipe. In India, chai is a way of life, not a Starbucks drink.
And you’ll be hard-pressed to find another chai as good.
Rumor has it the chai bags are placed in various sets of season 2’s coffee shop on Lover’s Point, so anytime the ladies are spilling their tea, check to see if it’s chai.
You can also check out our tour options so you can try it for yourself.
Katie’s ColdPress
Photo courtesy of Katie’s Coldpress.
This is a major one — it’s already been spotted in the first episode!
Katie’s ColdPress is a collection of homemade juice options that are all organic and sustainable. The watermelon-mint flavor comes highly recommended… and would probably pair well with a coconut rum or a vodka if you’re looking to make yourself a more adult beverage, especially when you’re watching the show!
The juice itself is made from a hydraulic juicer, which helps with oxidization and allows the juice to remain fresh longer. It isn’t pasteurized, which classifies it as “raw,” and is guaranteed to freshen you up on a nice, hot day.
Carmel Berry Company
Photo courtesy of Carmel Berry Company.
We’re obsessed with the Elderflower Cordial and Elderberry Syrup from Carmel Berry Company — and we were stoked to hear HBO was, too! Elderberries and elderflowers are very nutrient-rich plants, and mixing them with the highest quality ingredients makes for a flavor you can’t find anywhere else.
You can keep an eye out for those in various scenes at the coffee shop built on Lover’s Point for season 2, and this is another product you can try out on our tour!
The owner, Katie Reneker, also organized gift boxes for the ladies from the show that were filled with goodies from local, female-owned businesses. What a way to express our gratitude for the show!
Happy Girl Kitchen
Photo courtesy of Happy Girl Kitchen.
If Reese Witherspoon looks this happy at Happy Girl Kitchen, we assume you will be, too.
Press shots of season 2 have Happy Girl Kitchen product placed in front of the ladies at the coffee shop, as well, so we can’t wait until we start seeing the pink logos in the episodes!
We’ve also heard that during the season, a night scene involves some headlights coming over Meryl Streep — and those headlights belong to the owner of the store! Anybody else wish they had their car available when the producers needed it for that scene?
Our tastings in the Joseph Boston Store have product from the Happy Girl Kitchen, and their honey is something we insist everyone tries at least once! If Reese says it’s good, it must be, right?
Monterey Bay Meditation Studios
Photo courtesy of Monterey Bay Meditation Studio.
This is not food related, no, but we do have a tour with the Monterey Bay Meditation Studios coming soon! (Sign up for our newsletter to keep up-to-date with those dates.)
The Meditation Studio provided tote bags for the show, and while we’re still waiting to see if they actually make an appearance, we love the idea that we get to “tote” around some of the same bags used for HBO!
Still Hungry?
These are just a few of the many amazing local businesses HBO featured for the show — and we haven’t even touched on all the wine they drink!
Keep an eye out for these places and more throughout the airing of season 2 of Big Little Lies. When they come back for season 3, now we know some of the places to up our chances of “accidentally” running into someone from the Monterey 5.
Have you tried any of these places, or any of the others featured on the show not listed here? Tell us about it in the comments!