Cross-country Meat Fest, Day 1 – The Mad Greek in Baker, California

For whatever reason, be it novels or movies or those suave car commercials showing SUVs pulling smooth turns over a steep mountainside, cross country road trips still carry cachet in the minds of American people.   The freedom of the open road, idyllic American countryside, a slowed sense of time. Never mind the jostling with trucks for the fast... [Read more]

Potent Quotables: Ad Stalking

“What is the benefit of freaking customers out?” – Alan Pearlstein, as quoted in the NY Times piece “Retargeting Ads Follow Surfers to Other Sites“ //  Read More →

A Fine Dining Farewell: Saam at the Bazaar

When I first arrived here in 2002, a fresh-faced college student full of awe at the vastness of Los Angeles, food was the last thing on my mind.  I was picky, and I accepted it.  I hated sushi and shellfish despite never having tried it, I enjoyed my salads topped with syrupy French dressing, and I only ate tacos in flour tortillas with cheddar... [Read more]

Seafood Explosion: San Pedro Fish Market

If first impressions are everything, then San Pedro Fish Market may not have lasted more than the 50 years it has been in business.  There’s a lot to be turned off by at first glance: the overwhelming crowds, long lines, a pervasive smell of raw fish, high prices, and pigeons and seagulls stalking your every move, waiting to pickpocket your... [Read more]

To Market, to Market: Santa Monica Farmers Market

In Los Angeles, the Wednesday Santa Monica Farmers Market is to foodies what The Ivy is to celebrity hounds.  There is no better farmers market in the city, and for Travel + Leisure, perhaps no better market in the country.  Big-name chef spottings are practically guaranteed.  But celebrity chefs aside, what sets the market apart is the sheer variety. ... [Read more]

Restaurants I won’t find in NYC: La Casita Mexicana

When it comes to ethnic eats, New York does just about every type of cuisine well, except for one: Mexican.  Say what you will, but my boyfriend’s recent experience with Mexican cuisine in New York pretty much sums it up: My friends took me to this Mexican restaurant in the Lower East Side that they said was so good.  We sat down to the order... [Read more]

Historic Hollywood Bowl

2. Picnic at the Hollywood Bowl Summer in L.A. isn’t complete without a trip to the Hollywood Bowl.  In all my years here in California, I had never been, so this summer I went three times: once to the Playboy Jazz Festival in June, once to see Planet Earth Live, and lastly to see my boyfriend duet with jazz great Dave Douglas and his big band. The... [Read more]

Mango Guacamole + the secret to great guac

At the risk of sounding melodramatic, the best thing that ever happened to me in moving from Indiana to California eight years ago was avocados.  Oh how I adored those luscious, silky specimens of the Lauraceae family, so readily available all year round.  Outside of salting an avocado and eating it right out of its skin, the best way to devour these... [Read more]

Social Media Marketing FAIL: “Guaranteed Facebook Friends”

The world of social media marketing is relatively new, but not so new that there aren’t thousands of online posts telling you the “dos and don’ts” and the “no-nos” of utilizing the power of Facebook, Twitter, Myspace and all its spawn.  Not to mention that common sense and decency usually dictates basic social media... [Read more]

Hiking in my ‘hood: Urban Hike down Colorado Blvd.

7. Urban Hike Check in with God? Of all the ways you can train for a 14-mile urban hike down the streets of Glendale, Eagle Rock, Pasadena and Arcadia, I can tell you from experience the one thing you should not do.  Don’t go to the Hollywood Bowl the night before, park a mile away, hike up to the Bowl, forget your phone and wallet, then have... [Read more]

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