Jazz the Glass – Caliche Rum, fresh pineapple and basil, house orgeat, citrus, float of medium Fino Sherry
It’s always a good time to visit The Spare Room inside the Roosevelt, but in case you needed a better reason to visit on a Monday, they’ve got one. League Nights by Caliche Rum at this first-rate hotel bar give Naomi Schimek good reason to come up with some fantastic cocktails, and she runs the gamut with her cocktail menu that goes 4 deep.
Heather Dorak of Pilates Platinum
For awhile after I started food writing, there was a point where I had let go of all physical activity. At some point, I felt the repercussions, and decided to give the Pilates studio a few blocks away from my new Hollywood apartment a go. I had an inkling that I’d like Pilates, but I ended up really loving it.
I’ve gone through the distance running, Bikram yoga, Anusara-influenced yoga and spin phases in my child through adult life, but I found Pilates to be just what I needed, because I really need consistent strength training – especially since I’ve had shoulder surgery and am now perpetually conscious of it and my upper body strength. I have also found my prior yoga training really helpful for proper form while I’m on the reformer, and now whenever I’m not even in the studio, I love the extra attention I subconsciously pay to my posture, even while at the desk. In short, I highly recommend Pilates!
But it all wouldn’t have been possible without Heather Dorak, the still-twenty-something entrepreneur extraordinaire who started it all. She is an inspiration, just as working out regularly has also had an influence how it has influenced how I think about food. I asked a Heather a few questions about her lifestyle and her relationship to food:
Portuguese Mussels, linguiça, beer, chickpeas
While I love living in Hollywood, sometimes you have to acknowledge the strengths and weaknesses of living in a town that’s the notorious destination for clubs, live acts, theatre and just plain drinking. And as a resident, I’m so glad that David Reiss’ (A-Frame, Sunny Spot) new place featuring the wares of Jason Travi (Spago, Fraiche, La Terza) is here. Littlefork is a clear selection that sits under the “positives of Hollywood” column. (If you’ve ever eaten at the former Korean BBQ spot, which happens to lie spitting distance from arguably the best concentration of Korean food in the world, I’ll try not to judge you.)
LudoBites 4.0 Greatest Hits: White Asparagus Veloute, Mozzarella Mousse, Candied Olives, Fennel, Salmon Roe
Now would be a great time to finally and formally introduce you to my “Upcoming Events” column over on the right (–>). It’s but a few months old, but a great way to short-handedly let you know about the best things that are coming up as far as goings on in Los Angeles. It also means less pre-event write-ups, since you can get the skinny right in that column. (You’re welcome.)
For now, though, I’ve anticipated a slew of food events in our beloved city – especially while everyone’s trying to get everything wrapped up before the holidays. I believe the following, however, warrant special attention. Be sure to make your reservations & buy your tickets. Here they are, in order of date:
1. Now: LudoBites 10.0 Reservation Window Now Open (until 10:59 AM Thursday, November 29, 2012)
Right now we’re in the middle of a 24-hour window that first opened at 11 AM PST. So until 10:59 AM tomorrow (Thursday, November 29), you’ll get to enter the lottery for a reservation on one of 14 days (weekdays, December 4-21) of LudoBites 10.0 at Gram & Papa’s in Downtown LA. No guarantees that any of you will actually GET a reservation, but all we can do is try, try, try, right? (No seriously – don’t submit that form twice. It will make Krissy very mad. Just once, guys.) Protip: To increase your chances of getting a reservation, be sure to be as available as possible, since you have to fill out your available days and time slots. Or maybe that was obvious.
And if you don’t know what LudoBites is, by now, I’m afraid I can’t help you…or can I?
The Combination – Chivas 12, Italian Vermouth, Pear Syrup, Toasted Pecan Bitters
Since the weather, yet again, is doing nothing to evoke anything the least bit autumn, there are four new cocktails at Sadie in Hollywood that will do it, themselves. Forget that we’ve yet another heatwave (alas, in November) and let Giovanni Martinez’s new creations take you to a place where the leaves turn colors and the air smells crisp. And your taste buds find a new appreciation for cognac…
Tavern Red State Burger – Pork, pork, pork, Manchego, Romesco
As November 6th rolls up, we’re reminded, again and again, that the best reason to vote is to realize our civic duty. We, as a society, have been preparing for next Tuesday for a long time (Californians, with all our propositions, you know what I’m talking about). Decisions will be made as a collective whether or not we decide to personally participate, so why not embrace it?
Whether you take-away a savory dinner to enjoy at home or await the returns in camaraderie at one of the viewing parties, your “I Voted” sticker will score some points with your taste buds and your wallet anywhere around town. If you voted absentee, perhaps you’ll want to carry your stub or some other proof with you so you can make your case. Check below for a deal near you:
Bicycling Los Angeles
People do walk in L.A., but – let’s be honest – they mostly still don’t. People drive alone, and they carpool. They vanpool and they shuttle. They ride their bikes. They Über or Taxi Magic all over town. And yes, we Metro railway. Do you ever get the feeling that just because we’re not New York, that’s the only thing they’re rubbing our noses in?
Which is not to say that I’m not envious of their subway access – and many other things. Yet having passed the 2-year mark living near a Hollywood Metro Red Line stop, I’ve learned a lot in the process about our own public transportation options. The Expo Line has opened during that time. And we’re looking forward to more. Just experiencing the drastic transformation in how people choose to get around – myself included, and not only on the rail – have provided so many eye-opening revelations. So when Slate says that L.A. is being turned into “America’s next great mass-transit city,” we’ll take that little bit of validation.
Jonny Ericsen
There was a point in time about a year ago where, upon first meeting other Angelenos and exchanging which neighborhoods we lived in, I stopped getting as many wrinkled noses and, “How’s THAT going for you?’s” in response to my living in Hollywood. But I still get them, to my own bemusement. It’s a revealing comment about the inquisitor, divulging more about their assumptions than I care to disprove. When it comes to drinking and the requisite clubbing, there has sprung up plenty of spots to disprove those stereotypes for a few years now (Library Bar, Harvard & Stone, The Spare Room, Sadie – three of which I can walk to, the other I can Metro to).
Photo credit to djdphotos on Flickr
Beer cocktails. Beer floats. Sour beers. All-you-can-drink beer. Beer crawl set to music. Crappy-for-happy beer trades. Prickly pear beers from all over town. Los Angeles is comin’ up beer. And in its 4th year, not only is LA Beer Week bigger and better than ever, it’s also more unified. The camaraderie around the LA beer community is unmistakable – so get ready to drink some tasty brews while learning a lot and meeting some cool people along the way.
After perusing the 10-day schedule, I’ve come up with a few events I’d personally want to attend. With the LA beer scene at the strongest it has ever been, there’s bound to be some (or a lot of) conflicts during this extravaganza, but all we can do is do our best, right? While you’re at it, you might as well check off the four quandrants of this LA Beer Week Bucket List. Then, bring your four stickers to the LA Beer Week Festival on September 30th and get a free bottle of the official beer of the week, Unity, from Eagle Rock Brewery – a play on a traditional Berliner Weiss, yet jazzed up with a touch of rye as well as red and green prickly pear. You’ll also get to enter a drawing for tickets to the BAM Fest on October 6th in Santa Monica.
(If you don’t complete the bucket list, never fear – it’ll be on draft at select retailers throughout Los Angeles and Orange county as well as at the LA Beer Week Festival itself.)
Without further ado, here are my Top Ten of LA Beer Week:
Lesley Bargar-Suter, Eddie Lin, Krista Simmons, Bill Esparza – Photo by Dustin Downing
When I learned through the presses Twitter that Krista Simmons, my one-time (OK, one issue) editor, would be a judge on the upcoming season of Top Chef Masters, I was ecstatic that someone that I know, love and respect would get her enormous food TV cred. Wednesday night was a special night dedicated to her current Bravo Top Chef Masters stint, and pretty much the entire food community was there to support. The love was not lost on our star:
“I’ve wanted to have a cooking show ever since I was a little girl, so the experience of taping Top Chef Masters was sort of surreal. Getting to work with James Oseland, Ruth Reichl and Francis Lam really helped me grow as an on-camera personality as well as in my writing. But the best part of the whole process has been receiving the outpour of support from the LA food community. I can’t believe how many people came out last night! I feel so lucky to be part of such a talented group of industry professionals here in LA.”
-Krista Simmons
Truth be told, I missed the boxing-themed episode with Sugar Ray Leonard also as a judge at the “viewing” party. Of course, it was because I relied on my DVR to pick up the slack while we caught up with old friends and celebrated with new cocktails from Library Bar and bites from Public Kitchen. Good thing she’s on plenty of episodes this season (the more space on my DVR dedicated to friends’ appearances, the better) – so be sure and catch her on Top Chef Masters Season 4!!
