Hillary EatonPatches and enamel pins are taking over the fashion world right now. Pins are attached to vintage denim jacket lapels and messenger bags and patches are ironed on to absolutely everything, in direct homage to ’90s style. Remember “pieces of flair” from that movie Office Space? Those are cool now.
These accessories are a sort of real-life emoji, displaying your mood and interests to the analog world. Luckily for those whose main interests involve food, some of the coolest L.A. restaurants and food trucks are jumping on the trend, creating patches and enamel pins with some of L.A.'s best illustrators for their loyal diners and fellow style mavens to display.
One such designer (and all-around badass) is Tuesday Bassen, the L.A.-based owner of Friend Mart, whom you may remember from that time (well, it's ongoing) when Zara tried to unabashedly rip off her designs. As part of a collaboration with the city's favorite free-wheeling, bagel-making food truck, Yeastie Boys, Bassen has designed the most fun bagel-related pun we've ever had the pleasure of coming across: the “Baegel.”
The art collaboration includes a real-life bagel addition to the Yeastie Boys menu. The “baegel” (that's a play on “bae,” the term the youths use for their beloveds) comes with whitefish salad, cream cheese, capers, red onions and arugula, a combination Yeastie Boys has described as “a real Larry David–ass bagel special.”
If we know anything about flair, it's that one piece is simply not enough. So to help you create a menagerie of pins for your coat/bag/hat/whatever, here are some of our favorite L.A. food pins so you can rep your (best in the country) food city properly. So go get pinnin'.
Array of Eggslut enamel pins; Credit: Courtesy of Eggslut
Eggslut
There is perhaps no breakfast sandwich out there as iconic in Los Angeles as the Eggslut rendition. It's the place you'll suffer through that line to get your fix, and the first place your out-of-town friends are going to want to try when they step off the plane. Whether you're a Fairfax lover or more a fan of the Original Slut, you can now wear your egg adoration on your person with one of the stylish Eggslut pins. Choose from the fried egg in a skillet, orange juice or the logo pin. Or don't choose and go with all three. Available at Grand Central Market.
E.P. & L.P. swag; Credit: Courtesy of E.P. & L.P.
E.P & L.P.
West Hollywood's trendiest eating house is not just home to delicious modern Asian cuisine and the only Fijian-style ceviche (kakoda) in Los Angeles. It also attracts diners to its killer rooftop patio, bar program and unbeatable vibe. If E.P. & L.P. is your jam, you can snag a piece of its signature style with a four-leaf clover, Thai elephant (symbolizing luck) or heart pin at the restaurant. Later this winter, the E.P. & L.P. team will unveil a retail vending machine inside the restaurant, selling namesake hats, pins, medallion key chains, T-shirts, tiki mugs and a limited-edition 250-count E.P. shoe collaboration with Australian shoe brand Volley. Fanboys go hard.
Guerrilla Tacos truck and logo pin; Credit: Courtesy of Guerrilla Tacos
Guerrilla Tacos
This roving Alta California–style taco truck helmed by Wes Avila is home to some of the best tacos in the city. From the uni-topped hamachi tostada to the foie gras and bacon tacos, it's pretty obvious why Guerrilla fans are more than happy to search out the truck no matter where it is in the city. If you're a fan, just ask at the truck to get your hands on the pin, designed by Jeff Vales and Jonathan Colcol. Go with the logo, a riff on the traditional County of L.A. crest, or choose a mini version of the dearly departed original taco truck. Either way, repping one of them means you know #LADONTPLAY.
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