OK, so they’ve had their share of delays… (Original date for opening was July 1st, then Sept. 1st, then simply “September”), but the plucky little outpost of sandwich chain Charley’s Grilled Subs has finally opened yesterday (Thursday) in the Century City Shopping Center. You can check out their menu here: http://www.charleys.com/. Read more here: Toddrickallen:Charely’sGrilledSubsDelays, Toddrickallen:NewRestaurantsComingToCenturyCity.
Work continues fast and furiously on the new Tortilla Republic going into the old Fat Fish space next to Sur at 616 North Robertson in West Hollywood. They have recently posted their flashy new application to sell alcoholic bevs. Shouldn’t be too long now…
Much to the delight of the other patrons, who excitedly whispered to one another and pointed with their eyes (even in jaded LA!), Mick Jagger and entourage enjoyed a late brunch at Bouchon in Beverly Hills on Sunday.
The Counter, the build-your-own burger joint is now officially open in the Westfield Century City Shopping Center on the first floor near Rocksugar. Check out their menu here: thecounterburger.com. And don’t forget to drop in on October 1st, World Vegetarian Day, for a complimentary mini veggie burger.
La Gourmandise School in The Market at Santa Monica Place is offering a free tour of the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market and a cooking demo program called “Follow that Chef!” For absolutely no charge, you get to shop with a guest chef, then return to La Gourmandise School for a private demonstration and tasting. Classes start at 9:00am and meet by the kiosk at 3rd and Arizona, but you must have a reservation, which you can make here: cookingschoolsofamerica.com/thegourmandiseschool. This Saturday, Sept. 24th, the guest chef will be Kirsten Gum, Caterer and star of Travel Channel’s Treasure Hunter. You’d better hurry; classes fill quickly.
Taking over the space next door to the original Kreation Kafe restaurant at 1023B Montana Ave. in Santa Monica, Kreation Juicery has now opened for business. Although they’ve been open since Saturday, this is only the soft opening. Look for a grand opening sometime next week. On the menu are a variety of, you guessed it, fresh cold-pressed juices, smoothies, shakes, and custom blends with names like glow, relax, and trinity twist, the latter being a combination of lemon, apple, carrot, and beet. Read more about Kreation’s vision at http://www.kreationkafe.com/.
As readers will know, I’ve been following the progress of Urban Fresh, which took over the Mr. Kicco’s Coffee space at 9679 Wilshire in Beverly Hills. After a few delays, the casual eatery is now finally open. Look for a menu of organic coffees and teas, juices, farmer’s market-driven salads and sandwiches.
This Sunday September 18th at 9:30am, you can get a chance to catch up with busy Chef Tanya Petrovna, founder, executive Chef and co-owner of vegan fave Native Foods Cafe who will be leading a cooking demo at the Culver City location. Included on the menu will be a creamy wild mushroom soup, September morning apple cobbler, and something curiously called Honey I forgot the cauliflower in the oven. Catch her while you can… with six locations in So. Cal and a newly opened outpost in Chicago (with more to come), she will be opening two new California locations soon in Newport Beach and San Diego. Reserve your seat at nativefoods.com/events/.
This just landed in my inbox… It’s official, the Hotel Bel-Air, which has been closed since October 2009 for renovations, will officially open its doors to guests on October 14th. Of course we’re all dying to get into the new restaurant, Wolfgang Puck at the Hotel Bel-Air, but we’ll just have to wait a bit longer. The restaurant and bar won’t be open to non-guests until November 1st. The highly anticipated restaurant will be managed by executive chef Sonny Sweetman and will feature a menu with “modern California with European and Mediterranean influences” in a dining room meant to evoke the “glamour of the Golden Age of Hollywood”. They are offering a special preview rate of $565 with a $100 dining credit, but you can try your luck at winning a room on their Facebook page here: http://apps.facebook.com/hotelbelair/contests/115576/invites/new?just_entered=true&show_newsfeed=1
Check out photos of the new restaurant here: http://www.facebook.com/WolfgangPuckatHotelBelAir
Seed Bistro, the newly opened vegan, macro, and organic restaurant in West LA commences lunch service today (Tuesday) from 11:30am to 2:00pm. Read more at Seedbistro.com.
As per the sign across the front, it looks like the fast spreading burger joint, The Counter, is set to open September 21st in the Westfield Century City Shopping Center.
Looks like they made it… Tender Greens on the corner of 2nd and Arizona in Santa Monica is, as of Saturday, now open.
It’s taken a while, but it looks like (fingers crossed) Tender Greens will open tomorrow, (Saturday 10th) in the old Lighthouse seafood buffet building on the corner of 2nd and Arizona in Santa Monica. They had hoped to open yesterday (Thursday), but…wait for it… they had problems with a permit from the City of Santa Monica (feign surprise). All should be ironed out by tomorrow. In the mean time, here’s a quick glimpse into the bright and airy space…
Read more at http://www.tendergreensfood.com/locations/santa-monica/
Are you a vegan who loves Indian food? Troubled by the ubiquitousness of ghee, cream, and panir? Well now you can have your kheer and eat it too. La Gourmandise School in Santa Monica is offering a vegan Indian class at the Market at Santa Monica Place. Lead by Kaumudi of pop-up Un-Curry fame (Un-Curry.com), you will learn the basics of navigating your way around Indian fare without animal products. Included on the menu will be: cucumber-peanut salad with curry leaf seasoning, tofu “paneer” makhanwala, and creamy lentils with garlic & chilies. The 3 hour class is this Monday, Sept. 12th at 2:00pm and costs $95. Check out http://www.cookingschoolsofamerica.com/thegourmandiseschool/index.php?flag_menu_index=reservation_php#227 for reservations and more info.
TV’s back-to-the-earth couple otherwise known as The Fabulous Beekman Boys (Josh Kilmer-Purcell and partner Brent Ridge) will be doing a book signing of their paean to the simple life and cooking, The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Cookbook at the Santa Monica Public Library in the MLK Auditorium at 2:00pm on Sunday October 9th. To score one of the free tickets, you have to be present one hour before the event when they will be passed out, one ticket per guest. The Santa Monica Main Library is located at 601 Santa Monica Blvd. in downtown Santa Monica. Read more about the fabulous duo at http://planetgreen.discovery.com/tv/the-fabulous-beekman-boys/the-fabulous-beekman-boys.html
Good news for West Siders! Spumoni, the intimate little Santa Monica branch of the Italian fave chain is opening an exciting new project, Spumoni Italian Creamery in the old TCBY Yogurt space next door at 715 Montana Avenue. They will be manufacturing their own proprietary ice cream using authentic equipment that is still on order. They don’t as of yet have an opening date set, but they expect to be up and running in a “coupla months.” I’ll keep you posted on progress…
Toddrickallen 