Monthly Archives: September 2009

September 30, 2009

The Wine House’s 2nd Annual BourBon Q

Written by Caroline on Crack in Cocktails, Dining, Los Angeles, Nightlife
2 Comments

Bourbon shelf

Droool! The Wine House in West L.A. is fixin’ to kick off its 2nd Annual BourBon Q event where guests will chow down on a mess of barbecue cooked up by Upstairs2 executive chef Todd Barrie. Best part is that you get to wash down the delectable, spicy meats with samplings of American whiskies as well as specialty cocktails.

Here’s just a partial list of the whiskies of the evening:

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Tickets are $89 a person and include tax and gratuity. So pack up your Wet Naps and call your designated driver cuz this is going to be a messy, fun one.

EVENT: TUESDAY, OCTOBER 13 from 7 to 9:30pm

The Wine House
2311 Cotner Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90064 (map)
Reservations: (310) 479-3731 ext. 0

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September 29, 2009

The Roof Was on Fyah: Thrillist Party at The Lofts @ Hollywood & Vine

Written by Caroline on Crack in Los Angeles, Nightlife
2 Comments

Cops are here
I didn’t care that I didn’t have a thing to wear or that this party was in the heart of the parking hell that is Hollywood during a Saturday night no less. And when I got there, I didn’t care there was a long, slowww-moving line to get in. I just knew I had to get in. Because in this Thrillist Los Angeles City Originals party there were lots of free Newcastle Brown Ale, Yummy cupcakes and to-die-for views of the city. It promised to be awesome.

When my bf and I first arrived, we were feeling pretty good. We just scored street parking not too far away from the venue at The Lofts @ Hollywood and Vine. (Even though there was free valet for this event, I didn’t want to be at the mercy of the valet line at the end of the night.) And we had a delicious dinner and beers at the Blue Palms Brewhouse down the street. But as we approached the entrance to the Lofts, we saw the start of the long queue that continued to wrap around the corner up Vine. Eesh.

Undeterred, we marched to the back of the line. “Maybe you should see if you’re on the VIP list,” my bf said, after all, I know the organizer of the party, Jeff Miller of Thrillist LA. But I hate it when people do that: Walk past all the other folks waiting in line, up to the bouncer with the clipboard and name-drop. It’s right up there with, “Don’t you know who I am?”

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September 28, 2009

Win Tickets to Taste of Abbot Kinney Eating Tour

Written by Caroline on Crack in Dining, Los Angeles, Recreation, Shopping & Sales
151 Comments

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****CONTEST CLOSED****

I’ll contact the 10 winners on Monday, October 5. Good luck!

With foodie destination restaurants like Joe’s Restaurant, Tasting Kitchen and Gjelina populating Abbot Kinney, Venice is just crying out for a tasting event. Come on, Santa Monica has one, Eagle Rock and Pasadena do and, yes, beautiful Downtown Burbank. Good thing the inaugural Taste of Abbot Kinney kicks off on Sunday, October 11!

It’s $60 to get in on this eating, drinking, walking tour (or there’s a free shuttle provided) of about 16 restaurants on Venice’s coolest boulevard. You’ll chow down on the likes of Rockenwagner’s famous sliders at 3 Square and sip champagne at Elvino and wine from the Otheroom. The Tasting Kitchen will offer pork rilettes on a crostini as well as prosecco and a housemade whiskey punch. And there’s so much more nomminess to be had.

Additional restaurants, like Casa Linda (a new Mexican eatery owned by Hal’s and purported to open today), are anticipated to join in the city’s newest food event so keep your eye on the list of participating restaurants. Jin Patisserie just signed on this weekend! Apparently they’re going to give out a different goody every couple of hours.

FYI, if you’re wondering where everyone’s favorite, Gjelina, is on the list it’s actually not participating in the taste tour but will be giving away a dinner to one lucky ticket buyer.

Taste ticketholders will also get special discounts at Abbot Kinney stores like Urbanic Paper Boutique (my fave for fun events and cool stationary products), Principessa (cute designer clothes) and Grow (local gardening shop). So you can work off all that food with a shopping spree. Yay!

And OK, here it is: the GIVEAWAY. You, my dear crackheads, can try your luck at scoring a pair of tickets to Taste of Abbot Kinney here on my blog thanks to Cecilia of Velocity Creative Marketing who handles the marketing for this event as well as the Abbot Kinney Festival this past weekend. Cecilia was generous enough to give me 10 pairs of tickets, 10!, to give away! So tell your friends, family, co-workers. Maybe they’ll win and take you if you aren’t so lucky here.

To enter to win a pair of Taste tickets ($120 value) you MUST do the following TWO things:

  1. Leave a comment below with your email address (so I can contact you if you win) as well as which of the Abbot Kinney restaurants you’re looking forward to trying. There is no right answer.
  2. Tweet* this: “I wanna win #TasteofAbbotKinney @TasteofAK tickets! http://bit.ly/rD6o8″

You must live in L.A. to participate. Deadline is Friday, October 2 at 5pm (PST) to submit your comments and tweets and I’ll pick 10 lucky peeps and notify the winners on Monday, October 5. Good luck to you all!

If you don’t win, however, you can still purchase Taste tickets online here. Proceeds from the ticket sales will go to Venice-based Inside Out Community Arts, an award-winning, non-profit that brings arts education to underserved Los Angeles school kids.

EVENT: SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11 from 2 to 7pm

Check in: 920 Abbot Kinney Boulevard
Venice, California 90291 (map)
Twitter: @TasteofAK

* BTW, I stole this Twitter idea from Sarah of The Delicious Life. If you’re gonna steal, steal from the best. Heh.

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September 25, 2009

Hungry Cat’s Last Steamed Crab Night of the Season

Written by Caroline on Crack in Dining, Los Angeles
7 Comments

The waiter teaching us how to break open the crab.

Even though cooked whole animals creep me out (see my quail experience at Osteria Mozza) and Hungry Cat‘s food, although tasty, is a bit more than my wallet can allow (NYC here I come!), I found myself saying, “I’m in!” to estarLA (Esther) when she was looking for one more person to join her and Shopeatsleep (Maya) at Hungry Cat’s crab fest on Tuesday. Hey, it’s my girrrls and cracking crab with them sounded like so much fun.

But when we walked in and I saw the buckets of cooked crab on a table at the restaurant’s entrance, I chickened out. The hostess said, “They cook the live crabs out here and this is where the servers pick up the cooked ones.” “Ewww! Live crabs?!” I couldn’t help but exclaim and then realized that was a dumb thing to say. Why am I here if not to eat fresh crab? “Oops, heh. I’m sure it’s delicious,” I said walking to my seat on the patio.

And yet I couldn’t bring myself to order the fresh steamed blue crabs (red when they’re steamed dead). They reminded me of those facehuggers from the Alien movies. “Well since you guys are getting them, I’ll just order the lobster roll!” I told the girls, happy with my decision. Extremely happy because not only was the Maine lobster unrecognizable with its meat stuffed into some type of hot dog bun but it came with a nice pile of frites ($23). For the order of crab (1/2 dozen for $25, dozen for $50), all you get is crab. But later on we discovered, that’s all you really need.

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September 25, 2009

The Edison’s Radio Room Featuring the No. 1 Bartender in the World

Written by Caroline on Crack in Cocktails, Los Angeles, Nightlife
2 Comments

This month’s Radio Room at the Edison is just around the corner and check out what goodies you have to look forward to by guest mixologists, Jeffrey Morganthaler of Portland, Oregon, and John Lermayer, Travel and Leisure Magazine‘s No. 1 Bartender in the World.

Cocktail Menu of the Evening ($14 each):

  • Allspice Sour: Hudson River Rye with allspice dram shaken until frothy
  • The Charley Horse: Averna with Death’s Door Vodka, ginger and orange
  • East of Eden: G’Vine Gin with housemade Gewurztraminer syrup shaken
  • Red Pepper Collins: G’Vine Gin, fresh muddled bell pepper and Dimmi liqueur
  • Susquehanna Cocktail: Amaro Averna, Punt e Mes stirred
  • Tuthilltown Punch: Tuthilltown bourbon, cassis, fresh lemon, ginger and champagne
  • Winter Daiquiri: JM Rum, walnut liqueur, lime and sugar

Aidan Demarest, the Edison’s director of beverages, also says there will be hand-rolled cigars for sale if you want to smoke it up in the street-level smoking lounge, as well as live big band music from March 4th Marching Band. And if you’re hungry they’ve got a limited food menu available.

  • 20th Century Sliders, $16
  • Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup, $13
  • Bavarian Pretzel, $8
  • Tesla and Edison Fries, $9
  • Chocolate Chip Cookies, $7

BTW, here’s the recipe for John Lermayer’s Bison Beach cocktail if you’d like to do it up at home. Sounds mighty tasty.

EVENT: TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 at 8pm

The Edison
108 W 2nd Street
Los Angeles, California 90012 (map)
(213) 613-0000
Tickets: $10

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September 24, 2009

Hollywood Forever Cemetery Screening Do’s and Don’ts

Written by Caroline on Crack in Featured, Los Angeles, Movies
7 Comments

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Yes, Cinespia just screened its last movie of the season — Rosemary’s Baby — at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, but I thought I’d take this time to reflect on the suggested do’s and don’ts of this popular summer pastime and a definite L.A. must-do. Besides, they may screen a movie for Halloween in which case these will definitely come in handy. Last year’s movie was Carrie and the year before it was The Shining. Ooh! wonder what it’s going to be this time. Coolest thing? Halloween falls on a Saturday this time around! Fun!

DO…

  • Get there at least two hours before the gates open to ensure a great parking spot on the street in addition to a good seat in front of the screen. Especially when we’re talking a popular movie, in which case the line will stretch all the way down the street. I like to plop down on a grassy spot in line and nosh as well as fix up some cocktails and just chat with friends while I wait for the gates to open. Some people use this time to nap, play board games or even just catch up on some reading. Waiting ain’t all that bad.
  • Park on the street i.e. side streets from Gower to Van Ness to avoid the rush to exits in the cemetery at the end of the night.
  • Have your $10 in cash in hand. They say it’s a “$10 donation” to get in but really it’s mandatory.
  • Bring a headlamp or flashlight so that you can ably collect your belongings after the movie. Seems lots of people tend to leave their sunglasses and eyeglasses behind. It’s also handy to have one when you need to visit the porta-potty during the movie.
  • Bring a bottle of booze (your spirit of choice), cups, one mixer (cola or juice to keep it simple) and ice since alcohol is allowed here. People usually bring a low-maintenance bottle of wine, but that’s why cocktails are more special. I had friends bring pina colada Jello shots which were fun and tasty.
  • Have someone run ahead as soon as you pay your $10 at the gate to claim a good spot to view the movie. Works best if they don’t have to carry anything so they can run unimpeded and faster.
  • Set up a portable table on which to enjoy your picnic. So much nicer that way, especially if you’re on a romantic date or you want to set out a buffet for you and your friends. Some people even bring tea lights to set the mood.
  • Take an impromptu tour of the cemetery to kill time before the movie starts. You’ll find Mel Blanc and Johnny Ramone’s graves.

Rosemary seeking Dr. Hill's help

DON’T…

  • Forget to bring a blanket, a warm hat and a sweater/sweatshirt. It gets mighty chilly once the sun goes down.
  • Wear flip-flops. Or if you do, make sure to pack shoes and socks because after the movie the grass is usually very wet and who wants cold, wet feet?
  • Bring a tall chair. If your butt is higher than or as high as your knees it’s too tall and your neighbors will let you know.
  • Show up right before the movie starts and set up your tall chair. If you are going to come late, show your neighbors some courtesy and just sit on the ground. It’s too late for people to adjust to you. EstarLA and I got in a kerfuffle with some rude guys because of this. They didn’t move their seats even when everyone behind them heckled them (asking nicely at first didn’t help). Bastards.
  • Walk on the grass through the graveyard when going on your impromptu tour. The cemetery staff doesn’t like that. Just stick to the paths.
  • Continue to drink once the movie starts. You need to make sure you have plenty of time to sober up before it ends. There’s nowhere to hang out around the cemetery after the event, if you need to kill time.
  • Leave your trash. There are huge trash bins off the grass, on the road, opposite the mausoleum wall.

Hollywood Forever Cemetery
6000 Santa Monica Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90038 (map)

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September 23, 2009

This Weekend: New Culver City Lounge, Thrillist Rooftop Party, Private Presale

Written by Caroline on Crack in Beauty & Fashion, Cocktails, Lists, Los Angeles, Movies, Nightlife, Shopping & Sales
2 Comments

Man, lots of things going on this weekend! If it’s not the TarFest, it’s the Red Bull Soapbox Race and the 25th Annual Abbott Kinney Festival. OR you got the following must-dos as well. What to do? What to do?

Thursday, September 24

Buy Tickets to 27th Annual American Wine and Food Festival
One more week to the AWFF (Saturday, October 3)! And tickets are still available! For this must-do annual food festival, you get to roam around the Universal Studios back lot indulging in dishes created by the most celebrated chefs in the world like Nancy Silverton, Mark Peel, Ilan Hall and of course Wolfgang Puck as well as partake of drink from the finest wine and spirit purveyors. But probably the best part is that proceeds from the event go to benefit Meals on Wheels.

Fred Segal Santa Monica Private Presale
Fred Segal and 944 Magazine are hosting a private presale where you can enjoy 50% off designer collections before the public does during this weekend’s sale. And all while you sip on Peroni Beer and Pinky Vodka cocktails! Mmm, buzzed shopping. Just RSVP and you’re in.

  • 6-9pm. Fred Segal Santa Monica, 500 Broadway, Santa Monica (map).

Friday, September 25

Debut of The Lounge at Akasha
Culver City restaurant Akasha will transform its bakery area into a lounge with a special bar menu, an expanded craft beer selection and a dj going forward, every Friday and Saturday from 6-10pm. But this weekend, happy hour pricing applies til 10pm, with half off all beers, wine and cocktails!

  • 6-10pm. Akasha, 9543 Culver Boulevard, Culver City (map). (310) 845-1700.

Saturday, September 26

Barnsdall Screening: Chinatown
Sure, the cemetery screenings may be over but the Barnsdall screenings just got started. Its last one with Swingers was a huge success and this one promises to be the same. Enjoy Roman Polanski’s L.A. film noir starring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway while indulging in Silverlake Wine’s beer garden. And if you decide not to bring your own picnic, there’s always the mobile food court of the Let’s Be Frank hot dog truck and the Cool Haus ice cream truck.

  • Beer garden 4-7pm, movie 7:30pm. $25 beer and movie, $10 movie. Barnsdall Art Park, 4800 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles (map).

Thrillist Los Angeles City Original Rooftop Party
Free Newcastle beer, live graffiti art, Yummy Cupcakes, djs and 360-degree views of the city from atop the Lofts at Hollywood and Vine. Sounds like the best party evuh! and you need to get yourself on that rsvp list right quick! Bonus? Free valet! There. You have no excuse not to go.

  • 9pm-12am. The Lofts, 6253 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood (map).

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