LA Times Travel Show at LA Convention Center on February 23 and 24

What I like best about the LA Times Travel show this upcoming weekend at the LA Convention Center are the culinary presentations and hearing from travel authors.  Thus, even if you are not planning on doing any travelling, other than from an armchair, attending this Travel Show can be lots of fun for all ages.  You can go to the LA Times Travel Show official website to see the entire schedule, but what I make an effort to see are the cooking demonstrations and authors that will be speaking as shown below.  Not to be missed is Andrew McCarthy on Sunday, talking about his new book, The Longest Way Home.  Below he is pictured with Don George, former North American Editor for Lonely Planet Books and now Special Features Editor at Gadling.com, at the Annual Book Passage Travel Writing and Photographers Conference in Corde Madera.

“Meanwhile, Back At Café Du Monde…” Los Angeles Area Book Signings and Show

I met Peggy Sweeney-McDonald, author and producer of  “Meanwhile, Back At Café Du Monde…Life Stories about Food”, through my friend Jay Ducote, a rising Lousiana food personality, inside a Baton Rouge radio studio.  Jay was interviewing Peggy on her then upcoming Baton Rouge live show of “Meanwhile, Back At Café Du Monde…”.  Peggy who lives in Los Angeles and hails from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, will again be presenting a live production of Meanwhile Back at Cafe du Monde in Los Angeles on January 27, 2013 and February 11, 2013 at Tom Bergin's Tavern Restaurant at  840 S. Fairfax.  You can also catch Peggy signing her now hot selling book of the same title at several upcoming Barnes and Nobel signings, along with a Los Angeles launch party in Santa Monica at the South Restaurant and Bar on January 15, 2013 from 6 pm to 8 pm, and signings at Surfas in Culver City and and their brand new Costa Mesa location   At the end of this blog posting, is a listing of all of your opportunities to either meet Peggy Sweeney McDonald or to see the live show.

The Taste of Mexico at Vibiana on Friday Night November 30, 2012

 

I have been reading Gustavo Arellano's Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America, and thus this second annual Taste of Mexico is very timely to have a chance to better understand the wide range of upscale Mexican cuisine available in Los Angeles.  Thus for $50 on Friday night November 30 from 6  pm to 11 pm, you can graze on some of the best regional Mexican cuisine all  in one place at Vibiana in Downtown Los Angeles at Second and Main Streets.  I had a chance to preview some of the food several weeks ago at the Mexican Consulate, as you can see from the slide show below (not seen from an Ipad)

or my Taste Of Mexico Press Preview picture set on Flickr here.  The preview featured around half of the food vendors, but did not include superstars Jon Sedlar from Rivera who will be showcasing his food from Playa, nor Rick Bayless or his executive chef from Red O.  Both of whom are discussed in Gustavo's book.

Amanda Shaw to Play Ventura Oysterfest on October 13

In late August 2012 right before Hurricane Isaac hit Louisiana, I discovered Amanda Shaw and The Cute Guys at the New Orleans Slobsterfest.  Amanda Shaw who can be described as a Cajun rocker was in the middle of a national tour, and made a detour to play before a home crowd at the Slobsterfest in Metairie, just north of New Orleans near Louis Armstrong airport.  Amanda who recently turned 21 has been performing for over ten years, and is well known locally in New Orleans.  In fact, if one is in New Orleans and Louisiana in October, you can catch her at several Lousiana festivals, and then in San Francisco on October 7 at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival.  But for Southern California, her only appearance this Fall is up in Ventura on Saturday October 13, 2012 at the first annual Ventura Oysterfest, although she has played in the Los Angeles area earlier this year.

Ricardo Zarate and Mike Brown Among Featured Chefs of LA Street Food Fest

Over the past week, I have had the opportunity to engage Los Angeles based chefs Ricardo Zarate and Mike Brown in coversation. Both are featured chefs at the LA Street Food Fest on Saturday, July 21, 2012 at the Rose Bowl. A $45general admission  fee which must be purchased in advance covers all one can eat from the food trucks and other food vendors that will be participating in this 3rd annual food event occurrring in the late afternoon and into the evening. Ricardo Zarate from Mo-Chica will be in the sponsored booth from Los Angeles Food and Wine, while Mike Brown will be at the helm of the newest Los Angeles food truck Peking Duck making its debut. Here are my pictures from the press preview for the LA Street Food Fest event that might make you want to attend this great food event and meet these and other featured chefs.

A day off in Los Angeles

A view from Stough Canyon

Last week, my husband surprised me and my daughter by taking a partial day off to unplug and spend some time with his family. With nearly a full day and an entire city in front of us, the possibilities were overwhelming. Should we go to the beach? Take a drive up the coast? Go to the zoo? Sure, we've had plenty of days off for holidays or vacation - not to mention the weekends - but having an unplanned day off is extra special. It's like finding more time, which I think we can all appreciate!

Meanwhile Back at Cafe du Monde...

Sometimes the ExperienceLA blog becomes ExperienceLouisiana when there is a Los Angeles connection, and "Meanwhile, Back at Cafe du Monde..." straddles both LAs. Producer and creative director Peggy Sweeney-McDonald is from Louisiana and lives in Los Angeles. On Wednesday she taped a talk radio show with Jay Ducote for radio and Internet broadcast on the Bites and Booze show for Saturday 3 pm west coast time to discuss the upcoming performance of Meanwhile Back at Cafe du Monde... at Boutin's in Baton Rouge that features a local cast of chefs and personalties connecting with food.

Also in the broadcast booth and on part of the Baton Rouge cast was General Russel Honore who played such a pivotal role during Katrina coordinating military relief efforts. Calling into the show was Paul Arigo, CEO for Baton Rouge Convention and Visitors Bureau., who is also part of the Baton Rouge cast. I was in the broadcast booth taking pictures.

"TwEat" to win tickets to exclusive after party with nation's best chefs

A chance to hang out with some of the country's top chefs? No, this is not some new reality chef show, and you won't need to prepare any special dishes. All you need is a Twitter account and follow @experienceLA to enter our "TwEat to Win" ticket giveaway! Read on for details.

L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade Stand: A Decadent Chefs Cookout

In the world of art and culture (and especially here in Los Angeles), we encounter many things that inspire us. At ExperienceLA.com, we've recently been inspired and touched by the story of one little girl, Alexandra "Alex" Scott. (Details on how you can donate and help XLA raise funds are at the end of this story)

Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken Restaurants to Promote IRIS on Cirque du Soleil Day LA

Thursday, June 16, 2011, is Cirque du Soleil Day in LA, and you can celebrate at Susan Feniger's STREET and the Border Grill restaurants in Santa Monica and Downtown Los Angeles that are co-owned with Mary Sue Milliken. Each of them are creating a special Cirque-themed menu that help to celebrate the upcoming opening of IRIS, A Journey Through The World of Cinema at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. The picture above was taken at an LA Central Library ALOUD book panel almost five years ago, and it is our copy of a heavily used cookbook that these two Top Chef Master competitors published back in 1989 celebrating the cooking of City Cafe that opened in 1981 and City Restaurant that opened in 1985. Thus, its been 30 years of the Two Hot Tamales in Los Angeles.

Chinatown LA Turkey Dinners

I never realized that getting an already prepared turkey to go from Chinatown Los Angeles was a Thanksgiving tradition for many people in the Los Angeles area. I used to joke with George Yu, the Executive Director of the Chinatown business improvement district, that one of the funniest parts of the holiday movie, A Christmas Story, was when the dog ate the turkey and the family went out to the local Chinese restaurant for the celebration meal. But in the movie, they are the only ones in the restaurant, but from what George says, going to ChinatownLA for turkey is quite a holiday event.

Photos: Los Angeles Times Celebration of Food & Wine

If you weren't able to catch our photos on Facebook and our updates on Twitter, check out photos from our coverage of the Los Angeles Times Celebration of Food & Wine from our Flickr Pool.

-ExperienceLA Staff

Photo Diary: LA Street Food Fest

A gluttonous affair and food trucks galore... mmm so good.

LA Street Food Fest

We gazed longingly through the gates that held us out. We were envious of those who'd made it through into the 1st Annual LA Street Food Fest. We were hopeful as we endured the heat, the sun beating down upon us. The line moved, slowly. My husband and I had been in line for nearly an hour and a half, and it looked like we had at least another 45 minutes before we made it to the front. I looked back and couldn't see the end of the line. It was too far away.

I texted back and forth with my friends who were among the fortunate to have made it into the event. More of the same on the other side. Waiting. And then, for those of us waiting outside, a voice echoed through a bull-horn: "We're sorry everyone. We've reached capacity and will probably remain at capacity for the rest of the day...we're not letting anymore people in. We're so sorry...Thank you so much for your support..."

It was 2:30. The crowd slowly started to disperse, disappointment on our faces. We were starving. What to do now? Chinatown's New Year festival was happening, but that would be packed and crowded. Little Tokyo was nearby, but it sounded like many others had the same idea.

We hopped the Red Line from downtown back to North Hollywood, and there at the top of the station was a tamale cart. No lines or huge crowds. It was almost as if he was there waiting for us, knowing what we had just gone through. We purchased a couple of tamales, and sat and enjoyed our lunch peacefully and immediately.

A text from my friend. He was still in line waiting for his first food truck sample. He had been in line waiting for his food almost as long as we had waited outside just to get in. His wife also in line at another food truck. They had decided to split up. In the end, they spent the entire day at LA Street Food Fest, only to sample 3-4 trucks out of 35.

While many complained, we all know we'll be back next year. Why? Because this is LA. Believe it or not, we do have a sense of community and want to support it. And we're proud of our food truck culture. The turnout for this year's LA Street Food Fest demonstrated that. The organizers will learn from their mistakes, and I'm sure next year's will be better. That said, I still plan to arrive early, and will probably come with an entourage so we can hit as many trucks as possible. See you next year at the 2nd Annual LA Street Food Fest!


-Julie

The Big Pick: Benefitting Jewish Family Service/SOVA Food Pantries

So what do you do if you have over 400 trees full of ripe oranges and want to donate to a local food bank. Russ Lyon of Chatsworth had this problem and asked Rick Nahmias, a social documentarian film-maker focusing on food and agriculture, for ideas. The two of them realized that SOVA, a program of Jewish Family Service of Los Angeles, that operates major food pantries in Los Angeles could easily distribute the oranges once picked. Rick realized this called for a ready group of volunteers so he reached out to Slow Food-LA, as a social action project. Thus, on Sunday, March 8, more than 60 people showed up on short notice for either a morning or afternoon shift, or both to pick Valenica oranges in the San Fernando Valley. Many more offered their services, but only so many could be brought into this gated Chatsworth community. By noon almost 2 tons of oranges had been picked and loaded onto the JFS SOVA truck. It was expected that over 4 tons of oranges would be picked by 4 pm. This event caught the attention of ABC TV Los Angeles, the Daily News, and Caitlan Carroll with National Public Radio's Marketplace which will be aired this week. Here is a link to the Big Pick pictures I took during the morning before I headed out to catch the Sunday Studio City Farmer Market to support our local farmers before it closed.

An event like this is of major importance to SOVA and JFSLA in time of rising unemployment, decreasing funding for social service programs, and economic uncertainty for those who support social service organizations. The 4 tons of food collected today will be given out by SOVA over the next 10 days. SOVA operates three food pantries for those in need to get groceries. JFSLA is the oldest social service agency dating back to the 1850's and serves everyone who needs help. Both SOVA and Slow Food-LA hope to do this again with others who don't have a way to harvest their trees or produce and are looking for an outlet for their produce. As an individual who just has a fruit tree in their backyard, LA food pantries will always accept such donations.

If you would like to provide monetary assistance to help JFSLA and SOVA feed those in need, then one can give to JFSLA/SOVA online here.

The Odd Couple

For two performances only, Martin Short and Jason Alexander team up for "The Odd Couple", a special event of the Reprise! 2007-2008 season.

Reprise! is also offering a chance to win a pair of tickets to the Friday, January 25th. Click here for more info.

Don't miss out on this special event at the Wadsworth Theatre. While you're at it, I'd highly recommend hanging out in and around the Westwood area, which boasts both a Pinkberry and Red Mango, as well as on Sawtelle with great restaurants like Furaibo.

-ExperienceLA Staff

Turkeys Galore

"Heritage Turkeys", Submitted by ExperienceLA
Deep fried turkey, turducken, upside down turkey... so many ways to prepare them. Delish.

Just wanted to wish everyone an early Happy Thanksgiving! Don't forget to check out your local farmers markets for your last minute Thanksgiving meal purchases, as well as our latest newsletter for great giveaways (Wooden Classic, Enter Shikari Debut)!

Cheers and Happy Eating!
-ExperienceLA Staff

Los Angeles Magazine Food Event: Home Grown

With an opportunity to see several LA based chefs and taste food from a dozen restaurants, my wife and I paid to attend the Los Angeles Magazine Food Event: Home Grown - A Celebration of Ingredients Grown, Baked, and Raised Close to Home. Plus, the LA Mission would benefit from the event which was held at The Kitchen Academy in Hollywood and along the walkway to the ArcLight Theater complex...

With the popularity of Bravo's hit TV reality series, Top Chef, one saw a cook-off between contestants "CJ" Chris Jacobson of Season 3 and Betty Fraser of Season 2. Judging the competition with tomato as the secret ingredient were four from the audience plus the Master of Ceremony, Jake Hanover, who cast the deciding vote to Betty. During this 3 hour event, one also saw cooking demonstrations inside the Kitchen Academy from Kerry Simon (Simon L.A.), Michael Cimarusti (Providence), and Suzanne Tracht (Jar and Tracht's). One received souvenir cards of their respective recipes for their cooking demonstrations. Pictures of the event can be found on my Flickr account.

The offical wine was La Crema featuring their Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, while LA Mill Coffee, the soon to open coffee house in Silver Lake, was the official coffee and Gail Silverton, Nancy's sister, brought her Gelato Bar in from Studio City. There were also craft beers from Sang Yoon of Father's Office. I thoroughly enjoyed each of these, while tasting each of the craft beers, and making my way through samples of almost all of the gelatos by the end of the event.

My wife, Karen, who is an accomplished cook and watched each episode of Top Chef many times from season one to three provides the following commentary on the CJ - Betty cook-off.

The challenge was to combine ingredients and cooking styles from 2 different countries to make one dish. They could use any of the ingredients that were provided in the pantry. Betty's countries/cultures were American and Latin, CJ's were Asian and Italian.

Betty pureed scallops with cilantro and jalapeno. She put the puree on an egg roll wrapper, topped with a "tomato ring", which was filled with a raw egg and topped with provolone. She folded the turnovers into triangles and deep-fried them. She served them over a salad of mixed greens and topped them with a chunky guacamole.

CJ sauteed batons of eggplant and apples, and then topped them with sauteed chicken breasts that were rubbed in Asian spices. There was a brunoise of tomatoes and celery root with cilantro, basil and lemon zest. Then he made a sauce of pureed tomatoes, sriracha, and herbs and drizzled that on the plate. And my apologies if I got anything wrong in CJ's dish. It looked and sounded delicious.

The challenge was 30 minutes long. Betty's plating was very rustic and homey looking, CJ's was much more refined (different styles, different looks).

Tea Tasting in LA's Chinatown

Tucked in-between the golden dragon archways on Broadway and Chinatown Metro Gold Line station with its green, yellow, and red curved roof is Far East Plaza. At the entrance to this plaza is Wing Hop Fung Ginseng and China Products Center. But don't let the name fool you. There's more to this place than aromatic herbs and beautiful hues of porcelain dishes and figurines (though it does have a good many to please). Pass by the first floor of ginseng and herbs behind glass countertops and the large selection of dark and light wine bottles lining the shelves. Then head up the escalator and next to the assortment of imported food goods in bright plastic packages (ranging from yellow rice crackers to sweet and salty plum candy), a tea fan might find a surprising treat...

...at the top floor of Wing Hop Fung are large glass cylinders and glass countertops filled with tea leaves. Recently, I had a lovely tea tasting experience with fellow ExperienceLA blogger and ExperienceLA founder Curt Gibbs, when meeting with George Yu of the Los Angeles Chinatown Business Council and Bibiana Yung of the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles.

In addition to letting us smell the intense and fresh aroma of tea leaves, the woman in this area of the store provided us with a sample of Fujian Fresh Flavor Oolong Tea, which retails for $68.99, and plum tea, cold and slightly sweet. One surprising aspect of the selection of teas is the price range, from expected prices one might find in a general store to a high-end selection worthy of Rodeo Drive. Curt purchased a sample of an extremely fragrant $150 tea aptly named "Lion Hill Supreme of Green Tea."

In addition to invigorating the sense of taste and smell, tea tasting at Wing Hop Fung is a truly visual experience. Tea can come in all shapes and sizes, more than just small leaves, they can be beautiful bulbs and round kernals. Most people are likely to visualize tea in its Lipton sachets of crushed leaves - sometimes the dark, dry mixture has hints of colors from other leaves and dried flowers, visible only through the gauze of a tea bag. But aside from pre-packaged paper boxes of this and loose leaf tin canisters of the standard fair of Jasmine, Oolong, and Green, few can likely attest to seeing tea unparceled, unready for just quick placement in a porcelain tea pot or mug of hot water.

If you want an experience to invigorate your senses, have a taste of tea at Wing Hop Fung in Chinatown.

-ExperienceLA Web Coordinator 

Less Taxing Situations: Free Coffee and Ice Cream

Los Angeles is famous for some perks. Among them, almost year-round sunshine, diverse arts and cultural offerings, and just about any kind of food you want to find!

A temporary, but fantastic perk? It's also home to a free coffee promotion by Denny's for this year's tax day! April 17th is also Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day...

Denny's Pours Los Angeles A Cup of Coffee
Anytime on Tuesday, April 17th (i.e. that dreaded TAX DAY), customers can visit participating restaurants and receive a free cup of Denny's new Special Blend coffee.

There's even free coffee at select post office locations where sampling teams will be handy with "rocket packs" filled with Denny's new special blend of coffee. Those at Westwood Village will even have the opportunity to get free travel mugs and coupons.

WHEN: TAX DAY - April 17, 2007
WHERE:
7:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.: Post office at 9029 Airport Blvd., Los Angeles
7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.: Post office at 10 W Bay State St., Alhambra 10 W Bay State St., Alhambra
11:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.:
11000 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles Westwood Village near Denny's on Triverton Ave.
8:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m.: Post office at 9029 Airport Blvd., Los Angeles

Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day

This annual event runs from 12pm-2pm on April 17th! Find a participating store near you!

-ExperienceLA Staff