Pudu Pudu Pudding Bowl (Top Half: Cool Ocean Dip. Bottom Half: Butterly in the Sky). Image by Karin E. Baker for The LA Beat
Will pudding be the next big dessert trend? The owners of Pudu Pudu, a newly opened pudding gallery on Abbot Kinney, are betting on it.
The pudding offered here doesn’t bear much resemblance to the Jell-o brand most of us grew up with. Made with organic, locally sourced milk, Pudu Pudu’s elevated puddings are made with high-quality ingredients. They aren’t overly sweet and are enhanced with add-ins that promote health rather than a sugar rush.
This first all-pudding eatery in the world comes from Dr. Oetker, a classic German brand that has sold packaged pudding since 1894. You might be familiar with the company — I’ve bought their chocolate mousse mix locally several times.
Promoted by the company as edible art, these freshly made pudding bowls are topped with superfoods like turmeric, pomegranate seeds, spirulina, and antioxidant powders made from real fruit. You’ll also find edible flowers, fresh or dried fruit, orange zest, and chocolate curls.
The pudding gallery currently offers seven different pudding bowls, with selections to rotate based on seasonality. During my visit last week, I tasted all seven puddings, along with three of the artfully crafted bowls.
Bourbon vanilla pudding, green spirulina energy boost, banana cacao powder, chocolate curls, and edible jasmine blossoms comprise the Butterfly in the Sky bowl, while the Cool Ocean Dip is made up of coconut-pineapple pudding, a dusting of spirulina antioxidants, fresh and dried pineapple, and crunchy coconut.
Image courtesy of Pudu Pudu.
I loved both of these immunity-boosting desserts, but my favorite might be the caramel-popcorn pudding that’s the star of the Giggle in the Dark bowl, which also features puffed toffee popcorn, caramel and fudge, cocoa, sea salt, and dark chocolate curls.
Opened on March 22, the Venice location is just the first of three Pudu Pudu shops opening in Los Angeles before the end of summer. A Silver Lake shop will open in May or June, while a third location, in Century City, is slated to open its doors this summer. The company plans to eventually have 10 or 15 shops in L.A.
When I asked Florian Schneider, managing director of Dr. Oetker Hospitality, why the company’s first pudding outlet is in Los Angeles rather than in Europe, he replied “LA is a melting pot of food trends, so it made the most sense to start Pudu Pudu here.”
Pudu Pudu is located at 1432 Abbot Kinney Blvd. Hours are noon to 7 p.m. Sundays through Tuesdays and noon to 10 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays. More info can be found here.
Images below by Karin E. Baker for The LA Beat
