Few restaurants in LA are as prestigious as iconic Mélisse. And, they’ve been carrying the baton of Haute French for a full 14 years now. To celebrate, Mélisse is offering a special 5 course “Dine Mélisse” tasting menu during special dates over two weeks: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday July 16-19, and Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday July 23-26. Cost is $75. Reserve your table by calling (310) 395-0881 and be sure to specify “Dine Mélisse”. melisse.com
Going into the colossal and still-developing Playa del Oro complex on the corner of Manchester and Lincoln in Westchester is a new eatery, Roxy’s Cafe at 8601 Lincoln Blvd. According to the poem posted in the window, looks like construction has been delayed somewhat but they’re looking for a late June opening. Until then, you can check out what appears to be a tentative menu here.
To celebrate 30 years of undisputable contribution to LA’s food scene, Chaya Brasserie Beverly Hills is throwing a celebratory party they’re calling The Chaya Summer Festival on July 28th from 5pm to 10pm at their location at 8741 Alden Dr. in LA. They’ve pulled out all the stops with unlimited food and drink, games, and entertainment such as: “Fire Dancers, LIVE DJ, Taiko drummers, TWO LIVE bands, a tarot card reader, magician, photo booth, glitter tattoo artists“. Cost is $55 if you pre-order or $65 at the door. You may want to move quickly on this one… get your tickets and read more here.
We knew it was coming, just not where… until now. East coast purveyors of “ice custard happiness” Rita’s has finally landed its locale in Santa Monica. With locations peppered throughout California and the US, their latest will be located at 2307 Main Street, interestingly positioned equidistant between Rawvolution and Urth Caffé. (Hopefully) look for a late July opening. Read more at: ritas.
Ultra-popular Neapolitan pizza chain 800 Degrees is making headway on its Santa Monica location. Signs recently went up in the windows of 120 Wilshire Blvd. (corner of 2nd, across from Hillstone’s) announcing applications for beer and wine at the upcoming 116 seat restaurant. If the Westwood original is any indication, this corner, just steps from the famously phallic statue of Saint Monica, is about to become a very busy intersection indeed. 800degreespizza.com
After what seemed to be a long time coming, Taberna Arros y Vi will officially open today (Wednesday, June 12th) at 5:00pm in the old Tudor House space at 1403 2nd St. in Santa Monica. Brought to you by restaurateur Michael Cardenas (Lazy Ox Canteen), the brand-spanking new venture is billing itself, according to the Facebook page, as a Spanish tapas bar and restaurant. Read more at: tabernala.com.
This Tuesday, June 11th, Obikà in the Westfield Century City Shopping Center is throwing a shindig to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Consorzio del Prosciutto di Parma. The Emilia Street Festa, as they are calling the event, kicks off at 7pm on the patio and $40 gets you, “Unlimited tastings of differently aged Prosciutto di Parma, fresh focaccina, house-made grissini and artisanal breads, Grana Padano, Parmigiano Reggiano, Extra-virgin Olive Oil, Balsamico di Modena, and specialties from the kitchen [such] as lasagne, piadine, tortellini and sweet gnocco fritto.” There will also be tastings of Lambrusco, Malvasia and Colli Piacentini from Ceci and Castello di Luzzano wineries. How’s that for a deal? To secure a reservation, call 310-556-2452 just as fast as your little fingers can dial. obika.com
Gluten-free is white-hot now. It seems that every other person these days is passing up the bread plate, supermarkets have gluten-free sections, and there is hardly a restaurant that doesn’t have at least a few items to choose from. Now’s your opportunity to learn from a master. The reigning queen of GF who seems to be everywhere right now is Kristine Kidd, noted cookbook author, culinary expert, and food editor of Bon Appétit magazine for 20 years. This Sunday, June 9th she will be at the Topanga Library at 122 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd. from 4 to 6 p.m signing copies of her latest, Weeknight Gluten Free: Simple, Healthy Meals For Every Night Of The Week. There will also be a discussion and treats. Read more about the event here or check out Kristine’s website here.
What’s going on over at the long-languished construction site for the upcoming Santa Monica branch of Westchester staple, Truxton’s American Bistro? Well, anyone familiar with the mountains of red-tape confounding any new SM restaurant should be less than surprised. After their banners went up on the derelict building on the corner of 14th and Santa Monica Blvd. that used to house the Overunder Sports Grill back in May 2012, the site sat mostly untouched for the longest. However, things are looking up for Truxton’s as evidenced by a flurry of recent construction. According to a rep, after having to push back an originally planned April opening, they are planning on opening in early July. In the mean time, check out their menu and read more here: truxtonsamericanbistro.
Construction is underway on a brand-spanking new Italian restaurant on the Santa Monica Pier, next to the carousel building. According to the signs, Ristorante Al Mare will offer a rooftop bar-lounge, live entertainment, and even cooking classes. No word on an opening date, but by the look of things, they’re well on their way toward the projected summer opening.
Sushi Sasabune, which quietly slipped out of their old space to inhabit the old Seed Bistro at 11917 Wilshire Blvd. is now officially open (but with no signs yet), according to their Facebook page here. Replacing them in their old digs just blocks away at 12400 Wilshire will soon be Maru Restaurant. With one location in Valencia, according to their website Maru offers a menu of seasonally inspired modern French, Japanese, and California influences using organic farmer’s market produce and fish flown in from Japan. Construction is currently underway with no news of an opening date, but I’ll keep you posted… Check out their website here: maruvalencia.com.
Furthering its inexorable drive to make cold-pressed juice available to all, plucky and prolific organic juice chain Kreation’s latest outpost is now open at 1202 Abbot Kinney Blvd. in Venice. Inhabiting the old Jin Patisserie space with its lovely, sunny patio, the Venice location offers a full “kafe” menu as well as their proprietary line of juices, nut “mylks”, kombucha, smoothies, and detox drinks. Read more at: kreationjuice.
On Monday June 3rd at 7:00pm, Italian mozzarella specialist Obikà in the Century City Shopping Center will be hosting a special Sicilian wine dinner highlighting the flavors and wines of Sicily. $40 will get you four traditional courses redolent of the Island’s flavors including citrus, pistachio, fennel, and capers paired with three Sicilian wines, a 30-year-old Marsala, and limoncello. Make your reservation by calling (310) 556-2452 or click here: obikala.com.
This Memorial Day Sunday May 26th, Susan Feniger’s Street is hosting an über-cool event just dripping with hip… Starting and 12pm and running until 9pm, Street will be setting up a Korean BBQ and kimchi station on the patio, but there’s more: there’ll be a sake/soju lounge by Yoshi Murukami of Boutique Sake, and a pop-up shop by Giant Robot. Now how cool is that? Cost at the door is $45 and includes 3 drinks, but advance purchase is $35 and includes 4 drinks, so what are you waiting for? Click here to find out more…
Festival season is off and running… The 22nd Annual Santa Monica Festival takes place from 11am to 6pm on Saturday June 1st in Cloverfield Park at 2600 Ocean Park Blvd. Scheduled events for the “zero waste” event include a variety of eclectic dance and music presentations, workshops, a marketplace, eco-zone, Juneteenth celebration, and a culinary stage with various Santa Monica chefs leading demos culminating in a Chef Challenge between Josie Le Balch (Josie, Next Door) and Nyesha Arrington of Wilshire Restaurant. The challenge? Create an innovative vegetarian meal for four for $15. And what festival is complete without the de rigueur Food Trucks? Here’s a partial list of the line-up: Border Grill, Coolhaus, India Jones, Juice Crafters, Let’s be Frank, and many more… Admission Free. Check out their Facebook page here.
You could be forgiven for thinking that there already was a branch of ubiquitous mall pizza chain Sbarro in the food court of Santa Monica Place. But there wasn’t… it was a branch of Stephano’s Pizza, the very same as is located on the corner of The Promenade and Arizona, just blocks away. Well, Stephano’s has quit the food court and in its place will shortly be a brand-spanking new branch of the aforementioned Sbarro that you can read about, if you must, here.
This Monday, May 20th at 7pm, Native Foods in Westwood is hosting a “Tour of Asia” cooking demo. Featuring vegan recipes from Korea, Vietnam, China, and Thailand, there will also be prizes and samples. Cost is free but space is limited… Secure your spot by clicking here.
With all the big “Taste of…” festivals in SoCal, it’s easy to overlook some of the smaller ones, but they’re often not without their charms… This weekend affords you the opportunity to go off the beaten path and discover a different world. Taste of Hawthorne is this Sunday, May 19th from 10am to 6pm at the Hawthorne Airport at 12101 S. Crenshaw in Hawthorne. A rather remarkable 40 plus Hawthorne and South Bay restaurants are represented, as well as food trucks, Food Network and Travel Network stars (i.e. local son Chris Cognac, the Food Network’s Hungry Detective), artisan beer and wine gardens, and entertainment headlined by local fave band Ozomatli. And with brand-spanking new Eureka! Tasting Kitchen on site, what more could you want? Another bonus? Admission free. Check out more at: tasteofhawthorne
t
Nutrition and supplement experts LA Urban Fitness at 3015 Main Street in Santa Monica (corner of Marine) is currently remodeling a portion of their store to install a brand-spanking new cafe to be called, surprisingly, LA Urban Fitness Cafe. The new cafe will feature bar, table, and outdoor seating and offer a menu of smoothies, cold-pressed juices, coffee, and “snacks”. They’re shooting for a June opening. laurbanfitness.com.
Dust off your seersucker sports coat… On Sunday, May 26th, Coast Beach Cafe just steps from the beach in the swanky Shutters Hotel in Santa Monica is hosting a very civilized viewing party for the Monaco Grand Prix racing event. Now here’s the genius part: Due to the time difference in Monaco, Coast is opening their doors at 4:00AM and luring guests in with promises of a continental breakfast and unlimited champagne! Quelle bonne idée! Secure yourself a table here.
Toddrickallen 