The Barnes & Noble in Manhattan Beach is hosting a “Cookbook Fair” this Sunday, October 24th. Featured are the chefs/authors of the new splashy global cookbook “Flying Pans”, Bernard Guillas and Ron Oliver from the Marine Room in La Jolla. Events start at 12:30pm.
Barnes & Noble, 1800 Rosecrans Ave Ste B, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
If you read S. Irene Virbila’s upbeat and positive review of Obikà Mozzarella Bar in the Westfield Century City Shopping Center, then you know that the one flaw she encountered was the lackluster bread, which she described as, “Squishy as Wonder Bread.” (LA Times 10/18/10 http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/18/entertainment/la-et-earlybird18-20101018) Well Sweetie, you can rest assured the problem has been remedied, even before your review went to print. The bread, we were informed by manager Reagan, was now from Breadbar and was perfect accompaniment with the featured Mozzarella di Bufala DOP which, as you all know by now, is flown in fresh three times weekly. On our recent visit, the food was everything Sister Irene promised. We loved the tasting of fried mozzarella and vegetables with sage leaves and a spicy tomato sauce, the fried breaded mozzarella di bufala was a comforting treat of a grilled cheese, and the roasted bread topped with cherry tomatoes, caperberries, olives, fresh oregano, salted ricotta, and mozzarella di bufala DOP exploded with fresh mediterranean flavors punctuated by an intense salty caper bite. We tried many other dishes as well, all thoroughly enjoyable. But the hands-down winner at our table was the Rice and Eggplant Tortino with Smoked Mozzarella de Bufala Compana DOP. I arrived at our table molded, the smoky mozzarella rice carefully hidden beneath grilled eggplant. The light and fluffy rice was a perfect foil for the flavors of the eggplant, cheese, and pesto. An unusual dish, but one that left us in awe. Completely satisfied and stuffed, on the way out, we were introduced to the owners Nilde and Raimondo, whose friendliness, warmth, and genuine interest in us reminded us of dreamy evenings spent in trattorias in Southern Italy. We instantly felt like family. We were even treated with limoncello at the end of the evening! While Century City Shopping Center may not feel like Italy, Obikà gets it right; delicious, innovative food and friendly, warm staff.
The new breadbasket by Breadbar
The Rice and Eggplant Tortino
Obikà (310) 556-2452 www.obikala.com
Construction is underway on a new Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza at 780 S. Sepulveda in the building that was once Smith & Hawkins at El Segundo Plaza. The upscale restaurant (think CPK) is based in San Diego and has only one other LA area location in Torrance. The menu boasts surprisingly diverse selections including pastas, tacos, Asian, and of course, woodfired pizzas. Check out more at http://www.sammyspizza.com/.
Well, it looks like there’s yet another addition to the new carb-tastic bakery row that’s developing on Montana Ave. in Santa Monica. While the construction continues (and continues, and continues…) at Sweet Lady Jane and Nothing Bundt Cakes, a flashy new sign has gone up at the defunct Coffee Bean at 1426 Montana. The search engines yield no information beside the permits, but at first glance, it looks like the upcoming Valen Dolcé will be a bakery or sweet shop of some sort. We’ll keep you posted…
Just in case you need some cheap eats and drinks after maxing out your cards in the tony shops below, Pizza Antica, at the top of Santa Monica Place, has announced a new happy hour from 4:00pm to 7:00pm with $6 starters, $7 pizzas, and specials on beers and wine. Some of the nibbles offered are Crispy Summer Beans with Sweet Corn Fonduta, an Antipasti of Young Vegetables, Housemade Mozzarella and Focaccia Crisps, and Bruschetta with Burrata, Tuscan Kale, Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Sea Salt. Just don’t spill on your new LV bag.
395 Santa Monica Place, Santa Monica 310.394.4080 www.pizzaantica.com
Construction still continues, but the signs have gone up for the new restaurant in the Jamaica Bay Inn at the corner of Admiralty and Palawan in Marina Del Rey. The new restaurant, named Vu (View) will, according to the website, feature market fresh small and large plates to entice ‘sophisticated diners’. There will be beach views, patio dining, and fire pits. Opening date is projected for Fall 2010. They just might make it…
Good News! Mozza2Go is offering a terrific deal on pizzas on Sundays and Mondays: Two Margherita pizzas for $20. That’s a savings of $6. (Carnivores can also get 2 sausage pizzas for $25 or 2 ‘meat lover’ pizzas for $28.) I can’t think of a better way to start your week…
Call (323) 297-1130 to order or check out www.mozza2go.com for more details and other news.
641 N. Highland Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90036
Phone: 323.297.0101 Fax: 323.297.0109
Perhaps you’ve had a revelation at the Sunday brunch at Mesa Grill. Or maybe you just can’t tear your eyes away from any of his 10,000 daily appearances on tv, either way, face it… as much as you try not to be and don’t want anyone to know, you’re a fan of that irresistible griller, Bobby Flay. So put on your dark glasses and drive to the Williams-Sonoma in South Coast Plaza this Friday, Oct 15th at noon. Bobby will be signing copies of his new book, Bobby Flay’s Throwdown! More Than 100 Recipes from Food Network’s Ultimate Cooking Challenge.
Williams-Sonoma at South Coast Plaza
3333 South Bristol Street
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 751-1166
But maybe grilling isn’t your thing. If you’re a baking fanatic, and a reader of Bakerella.com (http://www.bakerella.com/), you may want to pop by the Williams-Sonoma in Santa Monica for the book signing of Bakerella’s Cake Pops: Tips, Tricks, and Recipes for More Than 40 Irresistible Mini Treats on Tuesday October 12th at 12:00pm. Who doesn’t need more mini-treats in their life?
Williams-Sonoma Santa Monica
1600 Montana Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90403
(310) 586-1018
More info at http://www.williams-sonoma.com/
Construction continues at a dizzying pace at The Market, the “Ferry Building style” marketplace set atop the brand spanking new Santa Monica Place. Words like “local” and “organic” feature heavily in the promos. What we DO know is that, according to the sign, Rockenwagner, N’Ice Cream, and Kings Road Cafe are slated to move in.
If you noticed that the Houston’s on the corner of Wishire and 2nd in Santa Monica quietly changed its name about 3 weeks ago and were wondering what was going on, here’s the skinny. No, it’s not a new restaurant, it’s still the same Houston’s and menu but with a new sign out front. It was explained to me by an employee that Hillstone, the parent company of Houston’s, Gulfstream, R&D, South Beverly Grill, and Bandera has been upgrading its higher-end Houston’s into the original brand name of Hillstone. The name change is an attempt to draw more attention to the Hillstone brand, or as it was told to me, “To get the name out there.” So there you go…
Chef Brian Patton “The Sexy Vegan” of vegan delivery service Vegin’ Out (www.veginout.com) will be presenting a vegan cooking demonstration at Surfas this Saturday, Oct 2nd from 12:00pm to 2:00pm. His Sexiness has given his demo (we can assume intentionally) the suggestive name, “Beatin’ Meat: Tempeh, Seitan, and Tofu“. In addition to learning how to make mock tuna sandwiches, veggie sausages, and buffalo wings, you just might learn how to drop the letter ‘g’ off various verbs like veging and beating. (Just a quick question: If you had chosen to name your presentation “Beatin’ Meat”, would you have chosen to use the same artwork in your poster?) Demo is free. Surfas is at the corner of Washington Blvd. and National Blvd. in Culver City. Check out http://www.surfaslosangeles.com/ for more info.
As part of the American Wine & Food Festival on Saturday, September 25th at Universal’s Backlot to support Meals on Wheels, Wolfgang Puck, Lee Hefter, Barbara Lazaroff, and Sherry Yard are hosting a Chefs Grand Tasting Dinner at Spago the following night, Sunday, September 26th at 6:00pm. There will be champagne, A paired tasting menu, silent and live auctions. But the draw factor for the pricey $750 price tag are the six guest chefs including Charlie Palmer, Nobu, Santi Santamaria of Restaurnat Can Fabes in Barcelona, and Michael White of Marea in NY; a great opportunity to see these amazing chefs in action! Contact Ellen Farentino at ellen.farentino@wolfgangpuck.com for more info. For info on the Saturday event, go to www.awff.org.
Just in time for the holidays: The folks at Mozza are offering a tart class on Tuesday Oct 12th or Tuesday October 26th from 7:00pm to 9:30. Mozza’s pastry sous chef Sara Asch will walk you through the art of creating and serving the perfect tart. Cost is $150, and as always space is limited. Reserve by calling 323-297-1133.
Mozza2Go
6610 Melrose Ave.
With LA locations in the Glendale Galleria, Fashion Square, Topanga Plaza Mall, and numerous locations throughout the US, it looks like purveyors of fine tea, Teavana, is opening in the Westfield Century City Shopping Center in the old O&Co space. The November opening will include a tea bar as well as a store. The concept focuses on the health benefits and flavors of tea as well as and experience of the customer. Check out more at their website http://www.teavana.com/.
Last weekend, Santa Monica was blanketed with flyers announcing the upcoming Wine and Food Festival of Santa Monica. The event will be held on Saturday, October 2nd from 11:30am to 7:00pm. Although I don’t see any of the heavy-hitters (Michael McCarty, Josiah Citrin) on the bill, local faves such as LaCachette Bistro, Yummy Cupcakes, various wineries, and local businesses are participating. $40 admission gets you cooking classes, food vouchers, wine tastings, and a Latin jazz concert. The venue is near Casa Del Mar at 2030 Ocean Ave. in Santa Monica. Check out http://santamonicawinefest.com/ for more info.
As you get funnelled around the construction as they redo the outdoor dining terrace at the Westfield Century City Shopping Center, you can’t help but notice the plywood and signs as they convert one of the food stalls into a new Greek restaurant, Big Fat Pita. So far, not much news on the specs, and as of yet no website. But the Westfield site explains it as “crisp, fresh, healthy and delicious”. It was slated to open this fall. We’ll have to wait and see…
Wonder what’s been going on behind the butcher paper at the corner of Montana Ave and 7th in Santa Monica? Turns out it is the second location of West LA’s Greens Up! Greens Up! is a concept lunch restaurant that focuses on salads that can be ordered from a menu, or are ‘built’ at the customer’s specifications. The emphasis is on healthy, local, environmentally responsible fresh produce. Robert (from Greens Up!) who has been developing the space, allowed me a peak in. As you can see, it looks fairly close to being finished, even though he explained that it would open in “a month or two”. Since the website lists a July opening, we wondered what was going on. “We’re taking our time,” was his explanation.
Well I’m not quite sure what-the-hey happened, but the restaurant that was scheduled to take over the old French 75 space in the Century City Shopping Center, The Tap Room by Capital City, is apparently au revoir. The ‘Capital City’ signs have come down and have been replaced by this…
Yes, it looks as though that old mall staple, BJ’s Restaurant And Brewhouse is now moving into the upscale mall. Thank God! How many times after a hard day of shopping at Louis Vuitton and Tiffany, have you thought to yourself, “Wouldn’t I just love a frosty glass of ‘Nutty Brewnette’ ale and some nachos?” http://www.bjsbrewhouse.com/
After what seemed like, well, forever, it looks like the West Coast’s first outpost of the Italian chain, Obika Mozzarella Bar in the Westfield Century City Shopping Center is scheduled to open on Wednesday. The only other US location is in New York. Obika offers a menu of salads, pastas, sandwiches, and mains based on Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP that is flown in fresh from Italy three times weekly. They also have a modest but well-thought out wine list exclusively of Italian regionals. The space is airy, bright, and industrial. Read more about Obika from this previous post http://wp.me/pIwAN-aO or go to the company’s website at http://www.obika.it/.
An exciting evening for fans of Asian street food: Susan Feniger is giving free rein to chef and cookbook author Robert Danhi on Saturday, September 29th at 6:00pm. A vast array of promised delicacies will be available at various food ‘stations’ set up both inside the restaurant and outside for a mini street fair of Asian flavors. For those who have marvelled at the Kaya toasts at Street, this is the man who introduced them to Susan. This is guaranteed to sell-out, so act quickly. The cost is $40 for unlimited tastings plus $5 for “exotic beers”. Additionally, Chef Danhi will be selling autographed copies of his James Beard nominated cookbook, “Southeast Asian Flavors: Adventures in Cooking the Foods of Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore” for $30 ($15 off the jacket price). Make your reservation (limited to 2 per party) by calling Street at 323.203.0500 or by go to Opentable.com.
742 N. HIGHLAND AVE
LOS ANGELES, CA 90038
323.203.0500
www.eatatstreet.com
Toddrickallen 