The past week on Instagram

Had a fun week and weekend.  Drinks and learning at Kneedler Fauchere at the PDC.  A visit to the Arts Refoundry in Downtown LA (where I photographed the cacti, airstream and double decker bus) with some potential for partnership on the hardware line.  A culinary tour of Eagle Rock including Larkins, Cacao and Casa Bianca.  And a MAJOR chop of the hair (bottom two photos).

Restaurant Roundup

Restaurants I've been to recently that I recommend

Auntie Em's Kitchen- great brunch on Eagle Rock Blvd.  Amazing baked goods, local ingredients.

Little Flower Candy Co- sandwiches, salads, baked goods and of course candies on Colorado Blvd between Eagle Rock and Pasadena. I haven't tried the candy yet, but have heard it's amazing.  Great hostess gifts.

Cafe Stella  - Little french Bistro in Sunset Junction. Great ambiance and outdoor patio.  Stop in at the Silverlake Cheese shop next door. And make sure you order the escargot.

The York on York - Highland Park. Great bar, great burgers.  cool industrial vibe.

Bacaro Wine Bistro - in the West Adams area. Fun little place in an interesting up and coming neighborhood. The food was surprisingly good.  The decor could use a little help, but it was definitely worth it with a Groupon.

Lazy Ox Canteen - tapas style gastropub in Little Tokyo.  Stopped in her for apps before a ramen dinner. Excited about going back for a real meal.

More to come.  Have any recommendations for future nights out?  Let me know?  Need any other recommendations?  Let me know as well.

Brewery Art Walk

When: This weekend - both days 11amto 6pm

What: Open studio for 100+ artists

Where: The world's largest art complex at the Brewery in Lincoln Heights

Why: Because....

Salvage!

So Scott and I took a vacation day last Friday and somehow with out any prodding on my part, he came up with the idea all on his own to do a tour of LA Architectural Salvage Shops.  How could I say no to such a wonderful activity for a day off?  Now, there are several in Pasadena that we mean to hit up at a later date but this time we just did LA. 

First stop on the list was Silverlake Architectural Salvage.  In a strange sloped lot / warehouse behind Sunset Junction, you find this little Salvage shop.  It's packed to the brims, including the outside. A bit disorganized, but a lot of everything - doors, knobs, sinks etc.

Second stop - Intelligentsia Coffee and the Cheese Store of Silverlake.  If we hadn't been on our way to more locations in a hot car we would have surely bought our weight in cheese.  We were sad that we couldn't do so, but we did get to try some amazing samples.  One day I hope Eagle Rock will be so gentrified as to have its own Cheese Shoppe spelled with two "p"s and an "e".

Third Stop Sunset Bazaar.  This is not an architectural salvage shop so much as a series of 3 small antiques stores in Silverlake specializing in mid century modern furniture.  And there are a few guys in the alley behind that make casegoods and do other sorts of furniture refinishing. Always good to know about. 

Fourth Stop Olde Goode Things.... in a not so goode neighborhood.  Down by the LA mart south of Downtown, this outpost is way more organized than Silverlake Architectural Salvage.  Probably a bit pricier but had some pretty cool stuff. And if you're in the market for a any sized reclaimed tin tile mirror, then you've found the right spot.

Fifth Stop, Freeway Building Materials.  The most haphazard of the bunch.  A funny little place where the 10, the 5, and the 101 freeways all join, I think the guys that own this place pretty much make enough to squeak by and pay the rent so they can spend the rest of their time sitting on their stoop watching the traffic.  You'd have a hard time finding something specific here and you'd probably be run out by the yellowjackets that seem to have taken up residence among all the old toilets, vintage wheelchairs and the like. 

Sixth Stop, Urth Caffe at the Barker Block Live/Work lofts.  I found this a year or so ago when they were still building the cafe.  All sustainable and organic ingredients, the chilled gazpacho was just what the doctor ordered on this hot day.  I wonder what other interesting businesses will spring up in this loft district just East of downtown.

Final Stop  Disneyland!  Nuf Said.

Birthday FUN-icular!

So, it's been over a week, but for my birthday, Scott took me on the previously mentioned downtown date night.  Highlights include (and I apologize for the blurry iphone photos):

Martinis at the Library Bar.  Cute and Cozy space and probably better food than where we ended up.

A ride on the Angel's Flight Funicular - the shortest railway in the US.  For a mere 25 cents you get to stand instead of walking the steep slope between Hill Street and Grand Ave.

A stop at Redwood - a pirate themed downtown bar

A walk through longer-than-we-thought tunnel under said hill and past several homeless folk.... nothing like pushing the safety envelope on your 32nd birthday.

Final stop First and Hope Supper Club.  Whilst we had fun because we were with each other, my word of advice is DO NOT GO THERE.  Schizophrenic. Southern soul food meets Miami style club lounge with waitresses dressed in 20s gear and they'd run out of practically everything that we ordered on the menu. 

The Mac Daddy

I'm thinking a long lunch might be in my near future now that I know about Mac & Cheeza downtown.

It's like a customize your own mac and cheese bar.  You choose your size, your type of noodle, your meat veggie and topper.

A little gluttonous but I'm willing to take one for the team and go try it.  And did I mention they deliver? Anyone been?  Let me know what you think.

Ain't it Grand

Last Thursday work officially began on the Park portion of the Grand Avenue Plan in Downtown LA - a 16 acre park that will stretch from the Disney Music Center to City Hall.  The park which is the public portion of a revitalization of the civic and cultural areas of downtown will open in 2012 and will include venues for various activities and entertainment.  Should be a great lunch spot to walk over to from work!

Renegade Craft Fair - This Weekend!

Not sure if I'll be able to make it - so hopefully some of you readers can go in my stead.  The Renegade Craft Fair hits up LA this weekend.  It will play host to a plethora of arts, crafts, DIY stuff and more.  And you can take the Gold Line to the Chinatown stop to get there!

Farm Fresh

So, last week a few coworkers and I trekked out into the heat for lunch.  We actually walked 5 minutes out of our way to go somewhere besides the 7th and Fig Food Court.  How New York of us Angelenos to walk! Although admittedly when I lived in NY I usually didn't make it past the downstairs Guy and Gallard for lunch. 

In any case, we made the journey to Mendocino Farms' second downtown outpost to see what all the hype was about. 

Local: check. 

Sustainable: Check.

Organic: Check.

So in other words, delicious and guilt-free. What I didn't realize is that it's not all veggie centric - in fact there is a whole range of pork items on the menu - like a Cuban Pork Sandwich,  their version of a Mufaletta, Carnitas, Proscuitto, Pulled Pork, Pork Belly, and Bacon!  Wowwee... still green, but a little bit pink too. AND to top it off they have a blog about sandwiches.  I think I might be making another visit in the near future.

Grilled Cheese junkies TAKE NOTE!

The 1st 8th Annual (don't ask me what that is supposed to mean) Grilled Cheese Invitational is happening this Saturday April 24th at Los Angeles Center Studios. 

So load up on the Lactaid and head on down to sample LA's finest cheese grillin'.  Tickets are $10 and can be bought online