Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Followers Share Their Favorite Desserts at Local Eateries

As part of a one day ticket drawing on the Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Page, we asked folks to tell us their favorite desserts at any restaurant in the Conejo Valley and surrounding areas. Boy oh boy did we get the best compilation of great sounding desserts EVER! 

We are going to share these comments with you but be sure to keep in mind, eat desserts only after finishing your dinner. To quote a Pink Floyd lyric "If you don't eat your meat, you can't have any pudding! How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat?!" ("Another Brick in the Wall" 1979)

And here they are, in no particular order:

• Pastries from Champagne Bakery
• Strawberry Shortcake at Boccali's in Ojai
• Butter cake at Mastro's Steakhouse Thousand Oaks (mentioned 27 times)
• Pizookie at BJ's Restaurant in Thousand Oaks (mentioned 44 times)
• Cinnamon Puffs from Pizza Nosh in Agoura Hills
• Creme Brulee at Aroha Restaurant in Westlake Village
• Richie's Magic Bar at Pearl District (mentioned 2 times)
• Warm peach cobbler at Lazy Dog Restaurant
• Cheesecake Factory (mentioned 42 times - banana, Oreo, strawberry, chocolate fudge, key lime, tiramisu, Limoncello, banana cream, red velvet, Snickers, peanut butter, White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle, Linda's Fudge Cake, Dulce de Leche Caramel, Godiva, Peanut Butter)
• Apple fritters at Best Donuts
• Chocolate cake at Bandits' BBQ
• Banana cream pudding in Mason jar at Public School 805
• Carrot cake at Boney Mountain Tavern (mentioned 2 times)
• White chocolate pretzel cheesecake at Lazy Dog Restaurant
• Creme brulee or cobbler at Blue Stove in The Oaks Mall (mentioned 2 times)
• Donuts and cupcakes at Karma Baker (mentioned 3 times)
• Carmelized almond bowl with white chocolate laced chantilly cream and fresh berries at Mediterraneo in Westlake Village
• Creme brulee at Lazy Dog Restaurant (mentioned 2 times)
• Cheesecake with blueberries at Stonefire Grill 
• Creme brulee or pecan pie at Mastro's
• Cannoli at Roma Deli in Newbury Park (mentioned 2 times)
• Blackberry crumble at Lure Fish House
• Salted chocolate chip cookie at Urbane Cafe
• Banana cream pie at Paul Martin's (mentioned 3 times)
• Sprinkles Cupcakes (mentioned 4 times)
• Fudge brownie sundae at Bandits BBQ
• Key lime pie at Mastro's
• Green tea ice cream at Kabuki
• The Wonderbar at Pearl District (mentioned 2 times)
• Apple strudel at Jeanette's Edelweiss in Newbury Park (mentioned 2 times)
• Mountain High Mud Pie at Red Robin
• Chocolate fondue at The Melting Pot (mentioned 7 times)
• Ice cream sundae at Stacked
• S'Mores at Holdren's in Newbury Park
• Menchies Frozen Yogurt
• Kona Pie at Islands
• Butter cake with vanilla ice cream at California Pizza Kitchen (mentioned 3 times)
• Fried cheesecake at Sutter's Mill in Simi Valley
• Tiramisu at Marcello Ristorante in Thousand Oaks
• Brownie ice cream sundae at Pickles Deli in Newbury Park
• Brownie at Stonefire Grill (mentioned 3 times)
• Bread pudding at Twenty88 in Camarillo
• Donuts at Dunkin' Donuts
• Deep fried ice cream at Cisco's
• Chocolate Dome at PF Chang's
• Caramel apples from Newberry Candies in Thousand Oaks
• The gooey center of a Cinnabon
• Black and white cookie at Brent's Deli (mentioned 2 times)
• Chocolatine French Cafe
• Salted caramel cheesecake at Blue Stove
• The Melting Pot - any dessert
• Sweet quinoa cake from Grabbagreen in Thousand Oaks
• Cinnamon chips at Snapper Jack's Taco Shack in Camarillo
• Ice cream at Lure Fish House
• Dessert sampler at Holdren's in Newbury Park
• Chocolate cake at Brent's Deli (mentioned 2 times)
• Apple pie at Stella's in Newbury Park
• Banana spring rolls at PF Chang's
• Baklava at Mama's Hummus
• Spotted dick at Crown and Anchor in Thousand Oaks
• Pavlova at Aroha Cuisine
• Shave It (mentioned 4 times)
• Gelato at Urban Pizza
• Banana pudding bread at Cafe Firenze in Moorpark
• Carrot cake at Stonefire Grill (mentioned 6 times)
• Shakes at In-N-Out Burger
• Apple fritters at Rolling Pin Donuts in Camarillo
• Little Calf Creamery in Thousand Oaks (mentioned 26 times)
• McDonald's strawberry and cream pies
• Molten chocolate cake at Lure Fish House
• Lava cake at Chili's in Newbury Park (mentioned 2 times)
• Macaroons from Lemonade
• Ice cream at Rite Aid (mentioned 2 times)
• Creme Brulee at Tuscany in Westlake Village (mentioned 2 times)
• Cotton candy at Zin Bistro in Westlake Village
• Fried ice cream at Yolanda's in Camarillo (mentioned 2 times)
• Molten Chocolate Cake at Marmalade Cafe in Westlake Village
• Salted caramel pudding from California Pizza Kitchen
• Fruit cobbler at Lazy Dog Cafe
• Chocolate mousse cake at Blue Stove (mentioned 2 times)
• Eclairs at Brent's Deli
• Carrot cake at Old New York Deli in Newbury Park
• Mud Pie at Holdren's
• Ice cream sandwiches at Stacked
• Raised chocolate donut at Foster's Donuts
• Nutella and Biscotti Semifreddo at Cafe Firenze
• Frozen yogurt at Tutti Frutti
• Nutella cheesecake at Lemonade in Westlake Village
• Chocolate chip brownie sundae at Lazy Dog Cafe (mentioned 2 times)
• Chocolate cake at Paul Martin's
• Chocolate souffle at Mastro's
• Berry cobbler at Lure Fish House
• Chocolate lasagna at Olive Garden
• Brownie sundae from Sunset Terrace
• Florentine art dessert at Mediterraneo
• Churros (Nutella filled) at Sabor (mentioned 2 times)
• Baskin Robbins (mentioned 10 times)
• Cannoli at Italia Deli & Bakery
• Baklava at Baba's Kitchen
• Nothing Bundt Cakes (mentioned 14 times)
• Black Forest Cake at Paul Martin's
• Strawberry cake at Jeannette's Edelweiss
• Sticky rice at Sawadee Thai in Camarillo
• Neapolitan Shake from In N Out Burger
• Pastries and tiramisu at Al Mulino Eataliano
• Hot fudge sundae at McDonald's
• Sticky coconut rice and mango at Bangkok Avenue
• Strawberry shortcake at Country Harvest in Newbury Park
• Pizza cookie at Topper's Pizza
• Peruvian cookies at Mouthful Eatery
• Baklava at Mediterranean Pita Grill
• Flan at Don Cucos
• Fruit tart at Viktor Benes
• Butter cake at Lazy Dog Cafe
• Ras Malai and Gulab Jamun at Anarbagh in Westlake Village
• Cold Stone Creamery (mentioned 3 times)
• Wild Cherry Yogurt
• Carrera's Bakery (mentioned 15 times for items like triolgia, fritelle, gelato, cannoli)
• Tifa Gelato (mentioned 6 times)
• Sweet Arlene's (mentioned 6 times)

You Will Be Amazed By How Much Google Knows About You on the Google "My Activity" Page

If you use an Android phone, YouTube, Google Search, Google Maps and other Google products, chances are Google has more data on you than you could imagine on "Google My Activity."

Google knows what searches you've done, websites you're visited, YouTube videos you've watched, what you've voice searched for and where you've been (if you use an Android phone).

Let's take a closer look at myactivity.google.com. 

Today I was at the local vernal pond at Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa with my son to look at the tadpoles and frogs. My son found saw a group of tadpoles acting out The Walking Dead by apparently feasting on a dead tadpole. At his urging, I pulled out my phone and tapped the Google Voice Search icon and said "do tadpoles eat other tadpoles." And sure enough, My Activity showed that I did search for it and provided a recording of my query.

Now if you forget where you were some day and are looking for a reminder, My Activity can help you with that too. Simply click Other Google Activity then under Location History click Visit Timeline. I clicked this and "today" and saw a map of everywhere I went today while carrying my phone. Kind of creepy actually. But also potentially useful...where was I on Christmas Day 2015? Searching My Activity turned up the fact that we were actually in the Florida Keys.

Searching Location History under Other google Activity reminded me that I was in the Florida Keys on Christmas Day 2015. Google My Activity is a great memory jogger!

I took a look at activity prior to January 1, 2015 to see what Google had on me and it showed all my YouTube activity, including searches and videos watched.

Some folks may get a grin out of reviewing their activity. I apparently was helping my kid with geometry homework on April 13, 2016:

So the good news is that if you don't want Google stockpiling all of this data you can do something about it. Click "Activity controls" where you can manage the tracking of your web and app activity, location history, device information, voice and audio activity and YouTube search history You can also go to "Delete activity by" and remove any or all of what has been recorded. 

A Look at the Conejo Valley Before and After the Recent Rainstorms

As Tom Jones said, "It's good to touch the green, green grass of home." We're seeing green hills throughout the Conejo Valley after several months of rain. We're enjoying it now, but we know it will only last so long, as evidenced in the "before and after" photos below.

OVER 50 LOCAL AREA TRAILS AND HIKES

Autumn Ridge Trail in the Lang Ranch Open Space last May.

Autumn Ranch Trail in Lang Ranch in late February 2017.

Horsing around in the Rancho Potrero Open Space, Newbury Park, last December.

Horsing around again in Rancho Potrero; this time in late February 2017.

Hidden Valley Overlook in Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa last July.

Hidden Valley Overlook two days ago.

Boney Mountain Range in the Santa Monica Mountains from Dos Vientos early last November

The same view of the Boney Mountain Range, with the Rancho Potrero area in the foreground, on Friday, March 3, 2017.

A view of Lizard Rock in Wildwood Park from the Mesa Trail in late September 2016.

The same view towards Lizard Rock in Wildwood Park on February 24, 2017.  

My, oh my, do we love the green, green grass of home or what!? Enjoy it while you can!

Bacon, Avocado and Grilled Onions Top List of Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Followers' Favorite Hamburger Toppings

The burger from Bandits' Grill and Bar Thousand Oaks that inspired the drawing.

Yes, this is breaking news. Very important stuff. To celebrate reaching 12,000 followers on the Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Page, we teamed up with Bandits' Grill and Bar Thousand Oaks for a gift card drawing. To enter the six-hour drawing, we asked folks to name a favorite burger topping.

The drawing ended at 11PM and as always, when CVG Facebook followers are offered the chance to win free food, they do not hesitate to participate.

After selecting the winner, I decided to tabulate the responses to see if there was a clear-cut favorite topping.  It was not particularly surprising that bacon received 19% of total votes, making it the #1 choice.

But avocado gave bacon a clear run for its money, with 16% of the vote. As I was tabulating, midway through the count I thought avocado was actually going to pull out an upset win. But in the end, "bad fat" prevailed over "good fat," though not by much!

In a tie for third place were grilled onions and cheese, with 12% of the vote each. Rounding out the next four spots were blue cheese (this one surprised me a bit), mushrooms, onion strings/rings and BBQ sauce. Pickles, jalapenos, fresh tomato were noted several times.

Speaking of burgers and restaurants, visit THIS LINK for a rundown on local area eateries that are newly opened or soon to be opening.

Happy Face Hill in Simi Valley Looks Happy Again After the Recent Rainstorms

Happy Face Hill, the icon seen off the 118 freeway in Simi Valley, is looking quite happy and green after several months of above average rainfall.

The Happy Face has been there since 1998. Sonny Klamerus created it and other residents and community groups have kept this 150 foot wide icon well-groomed over the years. 

Recently 60 to 70 townhomes were built adjacent to Happy Face Hill, but you can still see it. And on the other side of the hill is a heart - not quite as prominent as the Happy Face, but you can see it driving eastbound on the 118.

And here's a comparison shot from March 2015, prior to the addition of the townhomes.

And in drier times...this one taken in October 2015.

Statue in Recognition of CLU Football Founding Father Bob Shoup at William Rolland Stadium

Many if not most residents of Thousand Oaks will visit California Lutheran University from time to time, be it for events open to the public at the university, sporting event, a visit to the William Rolland Gallery of Fine Art, the community pool at Samuelson Aquatics Center, or Gilbert Sports and Fitness Center, or just a walk around the campus.

Next to the Rolland Gallery in University Plaza is a statue dedicated to Bob Shoup, the founding father of CLU football. The bronze statue, "Champions," was unveiled on October 18, 2014 in homage to Shoup's Kingsmen football team that won the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Championship in 1971.

Bob Shoup was CLU football coach from 1962 to 1989 as well as Athletic Director from 1969 to 1977. He was inducted into the NAIA 2008-2009 Hall of Fame. Shoup now lives in San Marcos, California.

Pacific Coast Highway Was Originally Called the Roosevelt Highway

The 1400 mile stretch of road called the Roosevelt Highway (U.S. 101) in the 1920s was re-named Pacific Coast Highway in 1941.

This postcard, from back in the days when it cost only a penny to mail a postcard (the 1930s) indicates "the varying scenery, such as oil being drilled out of the ocean, makes motoring an interesting pastime in California." It shows an image of the Roosevelt Highway between Ventura and Santa Barbara.

Bob then indicates to his dear friend Jane, "Just dropping a line to say all is well in Calif. There's lots of strange things to see in this state. You should be taking your Sunday rides out here."

Now what does Bob mean by that? Well, never mind. Speaking of Ventura and Santa Barbara beaches, visit THIS LINK for public beaches spanning from the Ventura Harbor through Carpinteria and THIS LINK for Santa Barbara area beaches.