when kel and i saw 'paris, je'taime' at ackerman a few weeks ago, we also saw the preview for 'penelope' and thought it was way too cute to miss!
now, i'm neither a fan of christina ricci (who has WAY too big of a forehead -- kinda like giada, i suppose, but less pretty) or james mcavoy (who's simply way too short and scruffy, even at his clean-shaven best -- and while i generally love blue eyes, his seem way too glassy).
but i do love reese witherspoon (even though her part is pretty tiny). (btw, is 'type a films' her production company? i swear i read that in some magazine article, but i'm too lazy to google it at this hour.) and the story line is pretty damn adorable. and i knew i'd cry (of course) at some point. so this movie pretty much had to be seen.
PLUS, kara is the CEC director this year and was lovely enough to put myself and a friend on the guestlist! considering that i don't have the biggest (ok, or smallest) ego around, it's always really special to be on a guestlist!! i know, i'm ridiculous. so sue me for being cheesy....
sadly, kel had to miss 'penelope' for a dorm event. but knowing that lucy's a big fan of free movies, i thought she'd get a kick out of this one. plus, considering that she had to deal w/me sobbing at 'the holiday' i thought she'd enjoy a possible repeat performance. i mean, who wouldn't?
in addition to getting let in through a special door and being seated in a special section, we ended up in a pretty prime location with a great view. and other than being surrounded by WAY too much estrogen and progesterone (which caused some serious squealing nearby and therefore a bit of a headache), the turnout was actually really good. i suppose i haven't been to a crowded screening in a while, but having lots of people around you really does seem to make movie-watching just a touch more fun. (well, at least when there aren't any kids around!)
unfortunately, when push comes to shove, this movie was fairly bland. as it was a fairy tale, the plot was overly simplistic. (thereby making the movie appropriate for the little ones, i suppose. that and very little on-screen smooching.) the characters were decently interesting, but pretty typical and one-sided. the neurotic mom. the oppressed daughter. the brooding love interest w/a deep, dark past. the obsessed midget pining for his lost eye. the bald-headed butler in funky red sneakers. (ok, maybe the last two weren't so typical.)
there were definitely some memorable moments and unpredictable twists. at two specific points, i remember my heart dropping out from under me. (yes, i'm a sap. shut up.) the first time when penelope begs max to marry her, his glassy eyes look into her pained ones, and he says "i can't." the second time when everyone realizes exactly why he said what he said. (OMG. i almost died.) this comes after the midget realizes who max really is. a totally unexpected twist that simply never crossed my mind.
at any rate, all of the advertising makes it clear that penelope comes to love herself for who she is. and anyone who knows what a fairy tale is knows that the girl ends up w/the boy. the question is how good is all of the stuff preceding these resolution points. and ultimately, there just wasn't very much worth watching. penelope escapes her prison of a house, wanders through the streets of some unnamed city, makes friends w/some oddball characters, almost ties the knot w/some freak, and ends up where she needs to be. and that's it. the rest of the side plots just seemed fluffy.
visually, i must admit that the colors were quite beautiful and vibrant. despite the fact that i thought most of the actors/characters in this movie were fairly unattractive (i mean, who really wants to see ugly people on the big screen? yes, i know, i'm superficial. so sue me.) the backgrounds and settings were absolutely captivating. and the costumes were just incredible. i wish i had that much color in my wardrobe! plus, i love the fact that the movie was set in some unnamed time, with the costumes blending old-school and contemporary fashion concepts. very cool.
at the end of the day, though, what's going to draw crowds to this movie is the current obsession with james mcavoy c/o his 'atonement' fame. (i'm not quite sure how i held myself back from slapping every single girl who went on and on and on about how hot he was. i mean, SERIOUSLY. what?! he's almost a midget and seriously SUPER scrawny. ick.) it's like you have one super hot sex scene and you're forever plastered in the minds of young girls as some sort of GOD. if folks wanted to appreciate him for his TALENT, they'd go see 'the last king of scotland' -- in which he was quite incredible. wow.
all in all, this movie certainly wasn't horrible, but ultimately, i'm glad it was free. i thought what penelope ended up doing at the end was kind of cute -- very *not* princess-ey. but it involved kids, so really, how great could it possibly be?
http://www.penelopethemovie.com/
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
palomino
after much too much time away, i finally ended up back at palomino's tonight for its delectable happy hour. 4-7 and 10-closing EVERY single night. what more could a girl ask for??
now i must admit that palomino does look a bit fancy schmancy from the outside, but looks can be deceiving. and if you give it a chance and step inside, you'll see that the place is filled with all kinds of people. snazzily-dressed industry folks schmoozing up other snazzily-dressed industry folks. (i even got hit on a month ago by a *writer* waiting for his *agent*. yeah, and what exactly is your day job again? to be honest, the guy was actually decent-looking. too bad he was all covered in facial hair. yeah, not so into the scruffy look.) doctors and nurses, still in scrubs. poor grad students drowning away their sorrows. (seriously, right?) i've even seen athletes dolled up in bruin blue having an afternoon snack during the week.
personally, i've gone over there in pj's and sweats to catch up on reading. i mean, who cares what you look like as long as you're willing to pay, right? (and tip well, of course.)
i used to go all the time -- alone, w/friends, w/co-workers, etc. i suppose i stopped going after a while b/c i'd pretty much gone through the ENTIRE happy hour menu. (which is ALL delicious by the way.) most of their appetizers are 1/2 off during happy hour. plus their super thin-crust pizzas are only $4.99 each! and for those of you who drink (and you know who you are), there's a short list of beers, whites, and reds that are reduced price as well. and for those of you drink AND are willing to spend, i've heard their martinis are YUMMY. definitely worth however much they cost.
kel had never been, and she offered to treat for dinner, so what better place to go to than my fave local hangout?! i sensed she was having a bit of a long week, so i thought she owed herself a bit of a splurge. that being said, we threw ourselves into the wild mushroom salad (my ABSOLUTE favorite -- i've been known to eat 2 of these on my own), the crab and artichoke dip (made w/some serious lump crab meat), the fried calamari (O--M--G), and the prosciutto and tomato pizza (mmm....). we stuffed ourselves to the tee. but needless to say, we *still* had leftovers for kel to take home. (poor girl's stuck w/dorm food all the time! i mean, those grilled cheese sandwiches are pretty darn good, but still!)
on a (freezing) cold and rainy night, there's nothing better than having lots of fun and laughs over some yummy palomino appetizers. but better yet is their early dinner special. if you get there b/w 5 and 6, you can ask for the early seating menu and order a 3-course prix-fixe meal for just 20 bucks! (for those of you who don't dine out very often, that's pretty much a STEAL. so keep it in mind for your next hot date!)
check it:
palomino
10877 wilshire blvd
los angeles, ca 90024
310.208.1960
http://www.palomino.com/
now i must admit that palomino does look a bit fancy schmancy from the outside, but looks can be deceiving. and if you give it a chance and step inside, you'll see that the place is filled with all kinds of people. snazzily-dressed industry folks schmoozing up other snazzily-dressed industry folks. (i even got hit on a month ago by a *writer* waiting for his *agent*. yeah, and what exactly is your day job again? to be honest, the guy was actually decent-looking. too bad he was all covered in facial hair. yeah, not so into the scruffy look.) doctors and nurses, still in scrubs. poor grad students drowning away their sorrows. (seriously, right?) i've even seen athletes dolled up in bruin blue having an afternoon snack during the week.
personally, i've gone over there in pj's and sweats to catch up on reading. i mean, who cares what you look like as long as you're willing to pay, right? (and tip well, of course.)
i used to go all the time -- alone, w/friends, w/co-workers, etc. i suppose i stopped going after a while b/c i'd pretty much gone through the ENTIRE happy hour menu. (which is ALL delicious by the way.) most of their appetizers are 1/2 off during happy hour. plus their super thin-crust pizzas are only $4.99 each! and for those of you who drink (and you know who you are), there's a short list of beers, whites, and reds that are reduced price as well. and for those of you drink AND are willing to spend, i've heard their martinis are YUMMY. definitely worth however much they cost.
kel had never been, and she offered to treat for dinner, so what better place to go to than my fave local hangout?! i sensed she was having a bit of a long week, so i thought she owed herself a bit of a splurge. that being said, we threw ourselves into the wild mushroom salad (my ABSOLUTE favorite -- i've been known to eat 2 of these on my own), the crab and artichoke dip (made w/some serious lump crab meat), the fried calamari (O--M--G), and the prosciutto and tomato pizza (mmm....). we stuffed ourselves to the tee. but needless to say, we *still* had leftovers for kel to take home. (poor girl's stuck w/dorm food all the time! i mean, those grilled cheese sandwiches are pretty darn good, but still!)
on a (freezing) cold and rainy night, there's nothing better than having lots of fun and laughs over some yummy palomino appetizers. but better yet is their early dinner special. if you get there b/w 5 and 6, you can ask for the early seating menu and order a 3-course prix-fixe meal for just 20 bucks! (for those of you who don't dine out very often, that's pretty much a STEAL. so keep it in mind for your next hot date!)
check it:
palomino
10877 wilshire blvd
los angeles, ca 90024
310.208.1960
http://www.palomino.com/
giselle
this weekend is definitely ballet weekend. after seeing the LA ballet last night, i was back on campus again this afternoon to see the state ballet of georgia perform giselle, one of my all-time favorites, at royce hall. it seems like i just keep coming back for more of royce, especially since i was just there last weekend for NSU culture night. this time, though, i was up in the balcony, soaking up a breathtaking view of the stage.
as i just mentioned, giselle is one of my all-time favorites. there's something about the story (which i hadn't actually remembered until i re-read the synopsis today) and the choreography (which is totally classic) that's just so romantic. it's only two acts, but the storyline is pretty simplistic, so there's not much to it. while the performance was beautiful (as it always is), i definitely wasn't as enthusiastic about it this time around. i guess i couldn't help not appreciating it as much, having just seen more modern ballet moves the night before.
it's sad how we can't isolate our experiences unto themselves. enjoying each for what it is. we seem to be in this constant state of comparison. one experience vs. the next vs. the next. all of them on some sort of bizarre continuum of good, bad, better, worse. what's more interesting? what's more intriguing? what's better at holding our attention?
worst of all, there were annoying kids in the row behind me, who weren't being shushed by their oblivious moms. but seeing as how i'd moved myself to empty seats, and they'd moved themselves to empty seats, i really didn't feel like i had the right to say much. so i had to just suffer through some random chair shaking that resulted from some random chair kicking. (ugh!) thankfully, they did manage to keep me awake as i was starting to snooze through parts of the second act. (sadness!) i really do love giselle, but in dim lighting, w/no action going on, there was very little worth staying awake for. (i know. it was quite tragic.)
all in all, the performance was quite good. but next to modern works, i definitely don't find traditional works nearly as creative or riveting....
as i just mentioned, giselle is one of my all-time favorites. there's something about the story (which i hadn't actually remembered until i re-read the synopsis today) and the choreography (which is totally classic) that's just so romantic. it's only two acts, but the storyline is pretty simplistic, so there's not much to it. while the performance was beautiful (as it always is), i definitely wasn't as enthusiastic about it this time around. i guess i couldn't help not appreciating it as much, having just seen more modern ballet moves the night before.
it's sad how we can't isolate our experiences unto themselves. enjoying each for what it is. we seem to be in this constant state of comparison. one experience vs. the next vs. the next. all of them on some sort of bizarre continuum of good, bad, better, worse. what's more interesting? what's more intriguing? what's better at holding our attention?
worst of all, there were annoying kids in the row behind me, who weren't being shushed by their oblivious moms. but seeing as how i'd moved myself to empty seats, and they'd moved themselves to empty seats, i really didn't feel like i had the right to say much. so i had to just suffer through some random chair shaking that resulted from some random chair kicking. (ugh!) thankfully, they did manage to keep me awake as i was starting to snooze through parts of the second act. (sadness!) i really do love giselle, but in dim lighting, w/no action going on, there was very little worth staying awake for. (i know. it was quite tragic.)
all in all, the performance was quite good. but next to modern works, i definitely don't find traditional works nearly as creative or riveting....
run for your life 5K
so i was oddly dreaming that the run for your life 5K was somehow in NJ and that i needed to print out the directions for lindsay, when all of a sudden, i woke up, looked at my alarm clock, and saw that it was 7:33!!! and of course, the CD symbol was blinking, which meant that the CD hadn't been able to play and get me up at 6:45 -- my original wake-up time. to be honest, i'm utterly SHOCKED and DISMAYED that alarm clocks don't have a fall-back beeping mechanism so that these kinds of situations don't happen. grrrr!
i raced out to my phone, only to realize that i'd already gotten 2 missed calls from lindsay, who was supposed to pick me up at 7:30. (sorry, linds!) thankfully, i didn't wake up at 8:30 or something crazy like that. so in a lightning-speed-span of 5-10 minutes, i brushed my teeth, threw on sweats, grabbed my phone and keys, and raced out w/my bag and some fruit. this was certainly NOT the way i'd hoped to start my weekend, but alas, shit happens. grrrr! thank goodness for packing up the night before. whew!
w/in 15-20 minutes, we made it down to playa del rey. i don't remember the last time i was this far south (other than going to SD), but it was actually a really nice day. we'd been worried it was going to rain or some nonsense (given the horridly wet week), but we were saved from any more downpours. we were unfortunately made to wait a bit too long (in my opinion), as we were slowly turning into popsicles. (and yes, i know it's not THAT cold. but standing around, it sure felt that way!) thankfully, our daydreams of cafe lattes kept us going. that and random people watching.
we noticed some interesting clusters of people, particularly some yuppy white folks (which isn't meant to be rude in ANY way, b/c they did look yuppy and they were indeed white) and some annoying asian kids (who were both annoying and asian). some runs tend to be a bit more diverse, which made these groups stick out more than usual. i also noticed some cute interracial couples (specifically asian/white), which surprisingly enough (to me, at least), seem way more plentiful in LA than in NY. (by this, i mean the interracial element, not the cute element.) it's interesting how race is so salient in my perceptions of social situations. a soc prof asked me about this a few years ago. at the time, my immediate thought was, when is race NOT salient? thinking about it, though, i suppose race isn't necessarily the first thing that comes to mind for most people. then again, that begs the question, why not?
after what i thought was way too much time waiting around, the race finally started around 9AM. and i have to say that i think we did quite awesome. the organizers made us go in a makeshift circle, heading up the running path for about 1.2 miles, turning around and coming back on the other side, and then turning around again and coming back on the original side. this seemed *much* easier than the track given the changing scenery. plus there's something motivating about running w/people and even having them pass by you on the opposite side of the running path. it really does make it seem like a team effort! (i told linds we should make buttons.)
at the end, we made it in a little over 33 minutes, which depending on the accuracy of the timer, puts us at approximately an 11-minute mile. i think we both agreed that that was quite good! our next run will be the annual run/walk @ UCLA, where the proceeds will go to the mattel children's hospital. i did the run last year in about 33 minutes as well, so let's see if i can beat my own time -- or at least make it in the original time! i mean, let's not be *too* ambitious.
i raced out to my phone, only to realize that i'd already gotten 2 missed calls from lindsay, who was supposed to pick me up at 7:30. (sorry, linds!) thankfully, i didn't wake up at 8:30 or something crazy like that. so in a lightning-speed-span of 5-10 minutes, i brushed my teeth, threw on sweats, grabbed my phone and keys, and raced out w/my bag and some fruit. this was certainly NOT the way i'd hoped to start my weekend, but alas, shit happens. grrrr! thank goodness for packing up the night before. whew!
w/in 15-20 minutes, we made it down to playa del rey. i don't remember the last time i was this far south (other than going to SD), but it was actually a really nice day. we'd been worried it was going to rain or some nonsense (given the horridly wet week), but we were saved from any more downpours. we were unfortunately made to wait a bit too long (in my opinion), as we were slowly turning into popsicles. (and yes, i know it's not THAT cold. but standing around, it sure felt that way!) thankfully, our daydreams of cafe lattes kept us going. that and random people watching.
we noticed some interesting clusters of people, particularly some yuppy white folks (which isn't meant to be rude in ANY way, b/c they did look yuppy and they were indeed white) and some annoying asian kids (who were both annoying and asian). some runs tend to be a bit more diverse, which made these groups stick out more than usual. i also noticed some cute interracial couples (specifically asian/white), which surprisingly enough (to me, at least), seem way more plentiful in LA than in NY. (by this, i mean the interracial element, not the cute element.) it's interesting how race is so salient in my perceptions of social situations. a soc prof asked me about this a few years ago. at the time, my immediate thought was, when is race NOT salient? thinking about it, though, i suppose race isn't necessarily the first thing that comes to mind for most people. then again, that begs the question, why not?
after what i thought was way too much time waiting around, the race finally started around 9AM. and i have to say that i think we did quite awesome. the organizers made us go in a makeshift circle, heading up the running path for about 1.2 miles, turning around and coming back on the other side, and then turning around again and coming back on the original side. this seemed *much* easier than the track given the changing scenery. plus there's something motivating about running w/people and even having them pass by you on the opposite side of the running path. it really does make it seem like a team effort! (i told linds we should make buttons.)
at the end, we made it in a little over 33 minutes, which depending on the accuracy of the timer, puts us at approximately an 11-minute mile. i think we both agreed that that was quite good! our next run will be the annual run/walk @ UCLA, where the proceeds will go to the mattel children's hospital. i did the run last year in about 33 minutes as well, so let's see if i can beat my own time -- or at least make it in the original time! i mean, let's not be *too* ambitious.
LA ballet
on a cold, wet, friday night, it's pretty hard to motivate to do just about anything. fortunately/unfortunately, i had to be on campus anyways for my personal trainer class, so at least i was dragging my butt in for more than one reason. (which somehow makes the effort of getting off my ass and out of my apt slightly more bearable.)
i must admit to being totally thankful that i had my bright pink umbrella to keep me from getting totally soaked in the downpour (oh, how i hate bizarre LA weather). otherwise, i would've been a total crabby pants during class (and thereafter). as it was, i was clean and dry and safe w/in the walls of the wooden center.
after a good core class, i thought i'd treat myself to a yummy chai iced blendz and a chocolate covered palmier for dinner. um yeah, not the healthiest meal i know, but when a girl needs sugar, a girl needs sugar. a quick stop at powell to check email and i was off to the freud for my much anticipated LA ballet experience.
in all honesty, i LOVE the ballet. there's something about the combo of grace and athleticism that's so amazing and inspiring. i used to go to at least one or two ballets every year when i lived in new york. specifically during the lincoln center festival that happens every summer. i must admit to getting a little drowsy during some performances, but when the choreography is really good, you don't want to close your eyes or else you might miss something. since coming out to LA, i've gotten to see one ballet at royce hall, which was absolutely fabulous. so i'm definitely psyched to check out another performance there this afternoon.
to see the LA ballet at the freud, however, was definitely worth the 50 bucks that i dished out (that i don't really have to spend). the venue is *much* smaller than royce, and every seat is pretty much a good seat. the sad thing is that the performance wasn't a UCLA live performance (at least i don't think so), which meant that there were no cheaper student tix. and to be honest, the cost is fairly prohibitive for poor students who *really* don't have the big bucks to spend (or don't feel the ballet is worth *quite* that much).
this ultimately meant that there were several rows of empty seats. which wouldn't have been a big deal in a larger space, but when it's such a small venue, it's quite noticeable. hopefully it was dark enough that the dancers didn't notice. but if it were me on stage, i'm not sure how much i'd appreciate not having a full house. then again, maybe it made them less nervous? on the flip side, wouldn't you be used to nerves as performers? ack! that's just way too much thinking. at the end of the day, i had a great seat with no heads obstructing my view. i even got to move a seat over after the first intermission to get closer to center. (as eri likes to say, center center is always the best place to be.)
the program consisted of 3 balanchine ballets and 1 new work by melissa barak. while there were one or two slips and falls (at least from what i noticed -- and i'm definitely no professional critic) that were a bit disconcerting (though barely noticeable), all in all i was very impressed.
the first piece was 'the four temperaments,' which i found extremely athletic, incorporating some very modern dance elements. i'd just come out of a core class, so all i kept seeing was the thoracic and lumbar flexion -- segmental no less! (elisa, aren't you proud?) b/c this piece definitely didn't exhibit the same stiffness associated with your typical ballet. while it would've been nice to be more familiar with the four humors (i.e., melancholic, sanguinic, phlegmatic, choleric) prior to the performance, there's something to be said for soaking up the performance with a tabula rasa. afterwards, i got a crash course via text from mel. (thanks, mel!) but even though i didn't necessarily look for accurate representation of the humors, the dancing was riveting nonetheless. interestingly enough, i couldn't help but notice that some dancer pairings were more choppy than others, though i wasn't sure whether that was intentional or not (based on the humors). it totally made me think about 'center stage' and wonder whether there was underlying drama b/w the dancers. and how that might come out on stage. you'd think performers would know how to be professional. but you can't help your feelings! we've all seen those dancer reality shows, right? ok, maybe not all of us....
the second piece was the new work, entitled 'lost in transition.' from the outset, i took it as a play on the 'lost in translation' concept and i certainly looked for elements of interpretive tension throughout the performance. as with the first piece, i found the dancing in the second piece to be extremely athletic and modern. the choreography was creative and interesting, and quite brilliant i have to say. again, i'm no dance critic, but there was something so atypical and unexpected about the movements. you really didn't want to look away. i loved the use of minor keys -- it made the performance that much more contemporary and dramatic. i also wondered whether there was a live orchestra in the back. seeing as there was no pit, i'm not quite sure where the musicians would've sat. but then again, i'm not familiar w/the backstage of the freud. in any case, the combination of the score w/the choreography was perfect.
the company frontloaded the evening w/the modern pieces and ended w/the more traditional works. 'the tarantella' was short and sweet. the tambourines didn't seem to go too well w/the score, but the dancing was quite playful. the last piece, entitled 'who cares?', was a lovely way for individual dancers to show off what they could do. particularly eddy tovar, who hadn't appeared in the earlier pieces. the music was gershwin (and who doesn't love gershwin?) and the dancing was airy and fun. at one point, i wish they'd added in the words, but i suppose that might've been distracting. at any rate, i suppose it was good to end w/a traditional ballet, especially for slightly older patrons who might've been less inclined toward the contemporary works. personally, though, the earlier pieces were much more to my liking. sometimes modern dance can be a little too acrobatic and fluid. so i find modern ballet to be a good compromise b/w traditional and modern dance forms.
all in all, it was an absolutely wonderful evening. especially when i walked outside into the brisk night air. every so often, i wish there were other people to do these kinds of things with. but then again, i'm not sure if i'd have the same thought-provoking experience. i just think there's something amazing about seeing, feeling, and thinking things on your own. free of judgment. free of wondering whether someone else agrees with you or not. there's something so great about just having your own opinion about something. for whatever reason you choose to have that opinion. it's like the title of the ballet, 'who cares?'
http://www.losangelesballet.org/
i must admit to being totally thankful that i had my bright pink umbrella to keep me from getting totally soaked in the downpour (oh, how i hate bizarre LA weather). otherwise, i would've been a total crabby pants during class (and thereafter). as it was, i was clean and dry and safe w/in the walls of the wooden center.
after a good core class, i thought i'd treat myself to a yummy chai iced blendz and a chocolate covered palmier for dinner. um yeah, not the healthiest meal i know, but when a girl needs sugar, a girl needs sugar. a quick stop at powell to check email and i was off to the freud for my much anticipated LA ballet experience.
in all honesty, i LOVE the ballet. there's something about the combo of grace and athleticism that's so amazing and inspiring. i used to go to at least one or two ballets every year when i lived in new york. specifically during the lincoln center festival that happens every summer. i must admit to getting a little drowsy during some performances, but when the choreography is really good, you don't want to close your eyes or else you might miss something. since coming out to LA, i've gotten to see one ballet at royce hall, which was absolutely fabulous. so i'm definitely psyched to check out another performance there this afternoon.
to see the LA ballet at the freud, however, was definitely worth the 50 bucks that i dished out (that i don't really have to spend). the venue is *much* smaller than royce, and every seat is pretty much a good seat. the sad thing is that the performance wasn't a UCLA live performance (at least i don't think so), which meant that there were no cheaper student tix. and to be honest, the cost is fairly prohibitive for poor students who *really* don't have the big bucks to spend (or don't feel the ballet is worth *quite* that much).
this ultimately meant that there were several rows of empty seats. which wouldn't have been a big deal in a larger space, but when it's such a small venue, it's quite noticeable. hopefully it was dark enough that the dancers didn't notice. but if it were me on stage, i'm not sure how much i'd appreciate not having a full house. then again, maybe it made them less nervous? on the flip side, wouldn't you be used to nerves as performers? ack! that's just way too much thinking. at the end of the day, i had a great seat with no heads obstructing my view. i even got to move a seat over after the first intermission to get closer to center. (as eri likes to say, center center is always the best place to be.)
the program consisted of 3 balanchine ballets and 1 new work by melissa barak. while there were one or two slips and falls (at least from what i noticed -- and i'm definitely no professional critic) that were a bit disconcerting (though barely noticeable), all in all i was very impressed.
the first piece was 'the four temperaments,' which i found extremely athletic, incorporating some very modern dance elements. i'd just come out of a core class, so all i kept seeing was the thoracic and lumbar flexion -- segmental no less! (elisa, aren't you proud?) b/c this piece definitely didn't exhibit the same stiffness associated with your typical ballet. while it would've been nice to be more familiar with the four humors (i.e., melancholic, sanguinic, phlegmatic, choleric) prior to the performance, there's something to be said for soaking up the performance with a tabula rasa. afterwards, i got a crash course via text from mel. (thanks, mel!) but even though i didn't necessarily look for accurate representation of the humors, the dancing was riveting nonetheless. interestingly enough, i couldn't help but notice that some dancer pairings were more choppy than others, though i wasn't sure whether that was intentional or not (based on the humors). it totally made me think about 'center stage' and wonder whether there was underlying drama b/w the dancers. and how that might come out on stage. you'd think performers would know how to be professional. but you can't help your feelings! we've all seen those dancer reality shows, right? ok, maybe not all of us....
the second piece was the new work, entitled 'lost in transition.' from the outset, i took it as a play on the 'lost in translation' concept and i certainly looked for elements of interpretive tension throughout the performance. as with the first piece, i found the dancing in the second piece to be extremely athletic and modern. the choreography was creative and interesting, and quite brilliant i have to say. again, i'm no dance critic, but there was something so atypical and unexpected about the movements. you really didn't want to look away. i loved the use of minor keys -- it made the performance that much more contemporary and dramatic. i also wondered whether there was a live orchestra in the back. seeing as there was no pit, i'm not quite sure where the musicians would've sat. but then again, i'm not familiar w/the backstage of the freud. in any case, the combination of the score w/the choreography was perfect.
the company frontloaded the evening w/the modern pieces and ended w/the more traditional works. 'the tarantella' was short and sweet. the tambourines didn't seem to go too well w/the score, but the dancing was quite playful. the last piece, entitled 'who cares?', was a lovely way for individual dancers to show off what they could do. particularly eddy tovar, who hadn't appeared in the earlier pieces. the music was gershwin (and who doesn't love gershwin?) and the dancing was airy and fun. at one point, i wish they'd added in the words, but i suppose that might've been distracting. at any rate, i suppose it was good to end w/a traditional ballet, especially for slightly older patrons who might've been less inclined toward the contemporary works. personally, though, the earlier pieces were much more to my liking. sometimes modern dance can be a little too acrobatic and fluid. so i find modern ballet to be a good compromise b/w traditional and modern dance forms.
all in all, it was an absolutely wonderful evening. especially when i walked outside into the brisk night air. every so often, i wish there were other people to do these kinds of things with. but then again, i'm not sure if i'd have the same thought-provoking experience. i just think there's something amazing about seeing, feeling, and thinking things on your own. free of judgment. free of wondering whether someone else agrees with you or not. there's something so great about just having your own opinion about something. for whatever reason you choose to have that opinion. it's like the title of the ballet, 'who cares?'
http://www.losangelesballet.org/
Thursday, February 21, 2008
made in LA
so tonight i was stuck in b/w two options for thursday night culture. which is utterly surprising, considering how much i complain about this unbelievably atrocious city. (um, no, i'm not bitter or anything. [=S])
option 1: a radio play out at the skirball cultural center -- a venue that i absolutely love and have been meaning to go back to ever since ben and i helped out with a workshop there a few weeks ago. i mean, it's just a really brilliant space. so much light. such modern architecture. plus the radio play (called 'a paris letter') starred neil patrick harris (of doogie howser fame), ron rifkin (the alias bad guy), and JOSH RADNOR. i swear, a few years ago, i wouldn't have thought a thing of him. but ever since eri got me watching 'how i met your mother' i've found him and his dorkiness SOOOOOOOOO adorable. dammit. despite my childhood love of blondes, i think i've converted to brunettes. (they're way more down to earth.) drool, drool. ok, stop it, just stop it.
option 2: a free screening of 'made in LA' up in the dorms. now i must admit that i didn't know a thing about this movie beyond the fact that it was about sweatshop workers in downtown LA AND that kel has been throwing herself into making this screening a success. so despite the fact that i probably had a great seat at the skirball show (row A?!), that i'd already dropped $$ on the ticket, and that i would've looked RIGHT into josh radnor's adorable brown eyes, i chose option 2. (i know, you were all so shocked.)
a couple of things going against the first option: 1) i would've had to cab myself to/from the skirball and 2) i would've had to do so in the RAIN. as many of you know, i absolutely HATE the rain. and to have to schlep myself up TO the dorms in this dreary mess already put a damper on things. thank goodness i got to dress up nice and cute (and not in sweats). why? just b/c i needed to get myself out of this awful moody state. regardless, nice and cute. plus i got a lift home from my beloved chiara. (THANK YOU, MISSY!)
a couple of things going for the second option: 1) i got free dorm food and schmooze time w/kel, amuldena (the director of the film and a former UCLA FTV student -- how cool is that?!), and 2 amanda's, 2) i got to see my DM buddies nick and tej (who will be forever allowed to tease me for not suffering through the whole 26 hours like they did), 3) i got some good QT w/chiara (who schlepped all the way over from SC!), 4) i got to see folks from all my different campus worlds (yay for having so many!), 5) i got to help kel make her screening an UBER success (WOOHOO!), and most importantly, 6) i got to see a really good movie.
i have to say that i'm not one for documentaries most of the time. there's just something too real about them. (yes, i know, that's the point.) but the reason i love films is b/c they're real but not real at the same time. and there's something so creative about the elements of life that filmmakers choose to capture, twist, and throw back to the viewer. and while i suppose documentaries can do that too, they're still too real. and you're made to confront realities you may or may not be ready to confront. but when you're ready, documentaries can be really good for the soul. and when they have happy endings, they make you appreciate how good things can happen. and 'made in LA' did just that.
the film is about garment workers in downtown LA, and how they struggled for fair labor conditions and practices against the oppressive 'forever 21' retailer for over 3 years. given that it was a documentary, the quality of the film was pretty basic. but it wasn't like blair witch project or traffic, where the camera bounced all over the place. the action was well-captured. and more importantly, the characters were well-captured.
sometimes i wonder though if we're just jaded. the way we pass by beggars on the street w/o blinking an eye. b/c the things the characters were saying about being paid $3 a day didn't even hit me really. i suppose b/c my mom sewed pieces for pennies. and that was how things were. that was our reality. i think people SHOULD be shocked. i think people SHOULD gasp. but i guess that was how we lived. and it really just didn't blow my mind or anything to hear about it from someone else. i just wanted to shrug my shoulders and nod. yes, that was what we had to deal with. and we survived.
at any rate, the film was good. what it had to say was good. how it said what it had to say was good. i thought it was a wonderful thing to be able to Q&A w/the director and some of the characters. (do we even call them characters?) and to hear folks ask q's in spanish, it made us seem that much more connected to the film (which was bilingual) and to how the characters communicated w/each other and w/the viewer. i think i'm babbling at this point from fatigue, but i'm glad i made it tonight. for the sake of the movie. for the sake of seeing familiar faces. and for the sake of helping out friends who are trying to do good in the world.
http://www.madeinla.com/
option 1: a radio play out at the skirball cultural center -- a venue that i absolutely love and have been meaning to go back to ever since ben and i helped out with a workshop there a few weeks ago. i mean, it's just a really brilliant space. so much light. such modern architecture. plus the radio play (called 'a paris letter') starred neil patrick harris (of doogie howser fame), ron rifkin (the alias bad guy), and JOSH RADNOR. i swear, a few years ago, i wouldn't have thought a thing of him. but ever since eri got me watching 'how i met your mother' i've found him and his dorkiness SOOOOOOOOO adorable. dammit. despite my childhood love of blondes, i think i've converted to brunettes. (they're way more down to earth.) drool, drool. ok, stop it, just stop it.
option 2: a free screening of 'made in LA' up in the dorms. now i must admit that i didn't know a thing about this movie beyond the fact that it was about sweatshop workers in downtown LA AND that kel has been throwing herself into making this screening a success. so despite the fact that i probably had a great seat at the skirball show (row A?!), that i'd already dropped $$ on the ticket, and that i would've looked RIGHT into josh radnor's adorable brown eyes, i chose option 2. (i know, you were all so shocked.)
a couple of things going against the first option: 1) i would've had to cab myself to/from the skirball and 2) i would've had to do so in the RAIN. as many of you know, i absolutely HATE the rain. and to have to schlep myself up TO the dorms in this dreary mess already put a damper on things. thank goodness i got to dress up nice and cute (and not in sweats). why? just b/c i needed to get myself out of this awful moody state. regardless, nice and cute. plus i got a lift home from my beloved chiara. (THANK YOU, MISSY!)
a couple of things going for the second option: 1) i got free dorm food and schmooze time w/kel, amuldena (the director of the film and a former UCLA FTV student -- how cool is that?!), and 2 amanda's, 2) i got to see my DM buddies nick and tej (who will be forever allowed to tease me for not suffering through the whole 26 hours like they did), 3) i got some good QT w/chiara (who schlepped all the way over from SC!), 4) i got to see folks from all my different campus worlds (yay for having so many!), 5) i got to help kel make her screening an UBER success (WOOHOO!), and most importantly, 6) i got to see a really good movie.
i have to say that i'm not one for documentaries most of the time. there's just something too real about them. (yes, i know, that's the point.) but the reason i love films is b/c they're real but not real at the same time. and there's something so creative about the elements of life that filmmakers choose to capture, twist, and throw back to the viewer. and while i suppose documentaries can do that too, they're still too real. and you're made to confront realities you may or may not be ready to confront. but when you're ready, documentaries can be really good for the soul. and when they have happy endings, they make you appreciate how good things can happen. and 'made in LA' did just that.
the film is about garment workers in downtown LA, and how they struggled for fair labor conditions and practices against the oppressive 'forever 21' retailer for over 3 years. given that it was a documentary, the quality of the film was pretty basic. but it wasn't like blair witch project or traffic, where the camera bounced all over the place. the action was well-captured. and more importantly, the characters were well-captured.
sometimes i wonder though if we're just jaded. the way we pass by beggars on the street w/o blinking an eye. b/c the things the characters were saying about being paid $3 a day didn't even hit me really. i suppose b/c my mom sewed pieces for pennies. and that was how things were. that was our reality. i think people SHOULD be shocked. i think people SHOULD gasp. but i guess that was how we lived. and it really just didn't blow my mind or anything to hear about it from someone else. i just wanted to shrug my shoulders and nod. yes, that was what we had to deal with. and we survived.
at any rate, the film was good. what it had to say was good. how it said what it had to say was good. i thought it was a wonderful thing to be able to Q&A w/the director and some of the characters. (do we even call them characters?) and to hear folks ask q's in spanish, it made us seem that much more connected to the film (which was bilingual) and to how the characters communicated w/each other and w/the viewer. i think i'm babbling at this point from fatigue, but i'm glad i made it tonight. for the sake of the movie. for the sake of seeing familiar faces. and for the sake of helping out friends who are trying to do good in the world.
http://www.madeinla.com/
Sunday, February 17, 2008
definitely, maybe
as a true blue new yorker, i've always appreciated movies that are set in new york (especially cheesy ones!). and i've been particularly nostalgic lately and pining for home, so this movie was pretty much the most perfect movie i could've seen this weekend.
after dancing for 13.5 hours, and waking up after 6.5 hours of sleep (somehow i fell asleep w/the light on?), i needed something relaxing and therapeutic. mel and i had already planned to see the movie sometime in the afternoon (when i thought i'd be waking up past noon), but seeing as how we were both up anyways, we decided to check out the first show of the day. which was perfect b/c our weekend matinee tickets cost us only 6 bucks apiece! brilliant.
so after quick coffees & pastries @ peet's, we sauntered over to the theatre (which i've randomly decided to spell the british way going forward) and made it just in time for the previews! and might i add that these were some GREAT previews. a comedy w/cameron diaz & ashton kutcher, whom i'd never see on their own, but who seemed hilarious together. and a comedy/drama w/george clooney, john krasinski, and renee zellwegger -- OMG. totally hilarious. i love ANYTHING w/george clooney. and i mean ANYTHING. plus the chemistry between the actors in the trailer seemed perfect. totally worth waiting for.
as we get to the movie itself, let me say here and now that the BEST part was that it was set in new york. i swear i recognized so many scenes -- buildings, parks, even bodegas! so it was perfect that two icons came up at the end of the movie: the unforgettable I (LOVE) NY icon and the newer MADE IN NY icon. i could've wept at those alone! yes, i'm such a sap.
even though the ads and trailers made the movie look WAY cheesy (and don't get me wrong, it's TOTALLY cheesy), it was much less cheesy than i'd suspected. and the plot of the movie was quite adorable. ryan reynolds plays this adorable dad whose daughter wants to know how he met her mom. and rather than focusing on the one woman, he tells her the story of his 3 great loves. abigail breslin is absolutely adorable as the precocious daughter -- and i say this knowing full well that everyone knows that i hate kids. b/c y'know what? she WAS absolutely adorable! i won't deny it.
while mel said she figured out super early who the mom was (and i think i kinda did too), i loved the up's and down's of the movie, and how i didn't really know for sure until the end. and the bizarre and random places life takes us. what i loved most (about the plot) was the romantic notion that life ultimately takes us (back) to who we're meant to be with. and that sometimes we really don't know who we truly love until life somehow brings us (back) to them. and that there's no set path to love. and no set timeline. and no set way. that sometimes we make choices not knowing how and where they'll lead us. (which is so interesting since i came home to watch waking life, and that's so much about the same things, but in such a fascinatingly different way.)
it's this whole lack of timeline that makes me feel so much more comforted in my own life and existence. that i'm making choices as i go. and that somehow those choices will lead me to where i'm supposed to be and go. and hopefully to some great love of my life that i haven't recognized yet.
i really love movies sooooooo much. how they make you think. and cry. and think some more. and help you figure out what you know and don't know. who you are. what you miss. and what you need.
http://www.definitelymaybemovie.com/
after dancing for 13.5 hours, and waking up after 6.5 hours of sleep (somehow i fell asleep w/the light on?), i needed something relaxing and therapeutic. mel and i had already planned to see the movie sometime in the afternoon (when i thought i'd be waking up past noon), but seeing as how we were both up anyways, we decided to check out the first show of the day. which was perfect b/c our weekend matinee tickets cost us only 6 bucks apiece! brilliant.
so after quick coffees & pastries @ peet's, we sauntered over to the theatre (which i've randomly decided to spell the british way going forward) and made it just in time for the previews! and might i add that these were some GREAT previews. a comedy w/cameron diaz & ashton kutcher, whom i'd never see on their own, but who seemed hilarious together. and a comedy/drama w/george clooney, john krasinski, and renee zellwegger -- OMG. totally hilarious. i love ANYTHING w/george clooney. and i mean ANYTHING. plus the chemistry between the actors in the trailer seemed perfect. totally worth waiting for.
as we get to the movie itself, let me say here and now that the BEST part was that it was set in new york. i swear i recognized so many scenes -- buildings, parks, even bodegas! so it was perfect that two icons came up at the end of the movie: the unforgettable I (LOVE) NY icon and the newer MADE IN NY icon. i could've wept at those alone! yes, i'm such a sap.
even though the ads and trailers made the movie look WAY cheesy (and don't get me wrong, it's TOTALLY cheesy), it was much less cheesy than i'd suspected. and the plot of the movie was quite adorable. ryan reynolds plays this adorable dad whose daughter wants to know how he met her mom. and rather than focusing on the one woman, he tells her the story of his 3 great loves. abigail breslin is absolutely adorable as the precocious daughter -- and i say this knowing full well that everyone knows that i hate kids. b/c y'know what? she WAS absolutely adorable! i won't deny it.
while mel said she figured out super early who the mom was (and i think i kinda did too), i loved the up's and down's of the movie, and how i didn't really know for sure until the end. and the bizarre and random places life takes us. what i loved most (about the plot) was the romantic notion that life ultimately takes us (back) to who we're meant to be with. and that sometimes we really don't know who we truly love until life somehow brings us (back) to them. and that there's no set path to love. and no set timeline. and no set way. that sometimes we make choices not knowing how and where they'll lead us. (which is so interesting since i came home to watch waking life, and that's so much about the same things, but in such a fascinatingly different way.)
it's this whole lack of timeline that makes me feel so much more comforted in my own life and existence. that i'm making choices as i go. and that somehow those choices will lead me to where i'm supposed to be and go. and hopefully to some great love of my life that i haven't recognized yet.
i really love movies sooooooo much. how they make you think. and cry. and think some more. and help you figure out what you know and don't know. who you are. what you miss. and what you need.
http://www.definitelymaybemovie.com/
dance marathon
even though i'm physically fit, i'm almost 30. and i'm pretty darn proud of myself for having stayed on my feet for a STRAIGHT 13.5 hours! WOOHOO TO ME! i thought about it, and granted i wasn't hitting my feet to the pavement, i was certainly on my feet for longer than real-life marathoners! that has to mean SOMETHING, right? (not that i need validation, of course. ok, maybe a little.)
in any case, i'm thrilled w/my performance. all of the money from dance marathon goes to the elizabeth glaser pediatric AIDS foundation, camp heartland, and camp kindle, the latter two of which are organizations for kids affected by or infected with HIV/AIDS. and granted, i hate kids (yes, i really do), i'm still glad i could contribute to their happiness and well-being (yes, cheesy, i know).
having planned a bunch of events myself, i have to say that that the organizers did a GREAT job w/the space and w/the overall organization of the event. even though some of the acts/bands left a little something to be desired (granted, i don't like most bands), i was fairly amused for most of the evening. especially w/all the mini-videos! (do the kids still call them videos?)
plus the DJ (aside from a long bout of techno shit -- excuse my french) did an AMAZING job w/the music mixing. i barely remember more than one or two songs being repeated the whole time i was there. plus the music kept going, going, going. i don't think i could've asked for a better night of dancing fun! i mean, there was no alcohol or ANYTHING. [IIPE]
of course, the evening was made that much more splendid by friend kelly and her res life staff, who totally took this little *indie* (me) into their fold. a big shout-out to kelly, amanda, nick, and tej for keeping me in good spirits the whole 13.5 hours. kudos to all of you for (hopefully) surviving the entire 26-hour madness!
i mustn't forget to mention that we all got an AWSOME pic together w/the actor who played aaron samuels on mean girls (what's his real name?!) and the actor who plays kyle XY (OMG -- what amazing eyes! and his hand was on my low back -- *sigh*). i mean, that was seriously the highlight of the WHOLE night. especially for amanda who got to stand b/w both of them!
last but not least, i got henna tattoo-ed by the president of the undergrad student body (who i think is on the committee -- honorarily or not, i'm not sure). which i think is ironic since i was just complaining the other day about how he came into a meeting that i was in, took food, and then left. i mean, how impolite, inappropriate, and presumptuous is that?! *sigh* kids these days....
for anyone interested in participating or donating:
http://bruindancemarathon.org/
in any case, i'm thrilled w/my performance. all of the money from dance marathon goes to the elizabeth glaser pediatric AIDS foundation, camp heartland, and camp kindle, the latter two of which are organizations for kids affected by or infected with HIV/AIDS. and granted, i hate kids (yes, i really do), i'm still glad i could contribute to their happiness and well-being (yes, cheesy, i know).
having planned a bunch of events myself, i have to say that that the organizers did a GREAT job w/the space and w/the overall organization of the event. even though some of the acts/bands left a little something to be desired (granted, i don't like most bands), i was fairly amused for most of the evening. especially w/all the mini-videos! (do the kids still call them videos?)
plus the DJ (aside from a long bout of techno shit -- excuse my french) did an AMAZING job w/the music mixing. i barely remember more than one or two songs being repeated the whole time i was there. plus the music kept going, going, going. i don't think i could've asked for a better night of dancing fun! i mean, there was no alcohol or ANYTHING. [IIPE]
of course, the evening was made that much more splendid by friend kelly and her res life staff, who totally took this little *indie* (me) into their fold. a big shout-out to kelly, amanda, nick, and tej for keeping me in good spirits the whole 13.5 hours. kudos to all of you for (hopefully) surviving the entire 26-hour madness!
i mustn't forget to mention that we all got an AWSOME pic together w/the actor who played aaron samuels on mean girls (what's his real name?!) and the actor who plays kyle XY (OMG -- what amazing eyes! and his hand was on my low back -- *sigh*). i mean, that was seriously the highlight of the WHOLE night. especially for amanda who got to stand b/w both of them!
last but not least, i got henna tattoo-ed by the president of the undergrad student body (who i think is on the committee -- honorarily or not, i'm not sure). which i think is ironic since i was just complaining the other day about how he came into a meeting that i was in, took food, and then left. i mean, how impolite, inappropriate, and presumptuous is that?! *sigh* kids these days....
for anyone interested in participating or donating:
http://bruindancemarathon.org/
Friday, February 15, 2008
cafe 50's
for a quintessential diner experience, you've gotta check out cafe 50's on santa monica boulevard. not only is the whole place decked out in 1950's kitsch, but the waitresses are all dressed up in red and white, and the cooks even wear those cute little cook hats. i mean, seriously, how adorable is that?! the ceilings and walls are covered in old school movie posters. there are mini-juke boxes in every booth. and there are tons of games to play with while you're eating: battleship, connect four, operation, uno, etc. if you want, you can even sit at the counter and watch the cooks do their thing while you're sipping on your yummy milkshake.
while eating out is certainly about the whole dining experience, i must say that the food at cafe 50's is absolutely YUMMILICIOUS. eri and i pretty much go once every 2 months (at least) -- it's our favorite roomie dine-out spot (considering that we don't dine out together too much). and if you join their frequent diner program, you get coupons in the mail for great discounts and free entrees/desserts/shakes! it totally makes the trip worth it. plus they have specials every single day of the week, like 50% off burgers and omelettes on mondays, and pajama night the last wednesday of every month (where you can get free food if you wear a traditional, two-piece jammie set -- no slinky numbers allowed!). i've yet to try the jammie thing, but i suppose it's fun for the kids. and don't forget: there are magicians over the weekend! (yeah, if you like that sort of thing. ahem. ok, just checking.)
even though i've gone on and on about everything else, the food is seriously REALLY good. (crystal was apparently not a fan, but i've had enough diner food to know that this place is pretty top-notch.) the menu is humongoid, but before you look at anything else, you really should check out the shake list. i mean, SERIOUSLY. i think the best thing is probably the pumpkin shake, but sadly, that's only offered during the fall months. (why, i have no idea, especially since anyone can get canned pumpkin nowadays -- which btw is totally DELISH -- but i won't complain b/c distance/time makes the heart grow fonder.) personally, when i can't get the pumpkin shake, i drool just as much over the coffee and oreo cookie shakes. i tried the breakfast shake last night, but it was simply too healthy. i've been dying to try the sunshine shake, so i think that'll be up next.
in terms of options, the menu is FABulous and seriously has something for everyone. i used to love going in and getting breakfast food -- yummy (and huge) omelettes, chorizo and eggs (mmm...), joe's scramble (eggs, beef, cheese, HEAVEN), all w/a side of order of crispy bacon (pork is best, but turkey ain't shabby) and a big glass of iced coffee. BTW, REMEMBER THAT ONE WHOLE EGG IS 70% OF YOUR DAILY CHOLESTEROL ALLOTMENT!! as soon as i learned that, i was THRILLED w/myself for having gotten egg white omelettes every time i've ordered omelettes. eek! to think that they make JUMBO omelettes with FIVE eggs. GROSSNESS. in any case, grease certainly makes food taste good. mmm....
even though i still get breakfast every now and again, i've certainly expanded out over the years. the calico cobb salad (every so often w/blue cheese dressing) is ginormous and delicious. i've even tried the luscious fried mac 'n cheese. granted, it's only good for the first 5 minutes when it's hot and melty, but it's AMAZING. deep friend mac 'n cheese wedges. i mean, who can argue w/something like that? and while i don't like sandwiches generally, i had a hankering for a grilled cheese last night. and it totally hit the spot! i wish i'd had more of an appetite (and/or not been vegetarian for the month), b/c i'd love to have tried the fried egg sandwich or the BLT. mmm.... next time i suppose! i'm sure i won't have a problem remembering.
needless to say, i've already expounded on the MANY reasons that cafe 50's is one of my top picks in LA. however, i have to add that it helps that eri loves it too! and so did marie (our old roommate)! so it's kind of like a nostalgic place to come back to every so often. i think we all need at least one of those in our immediate vicinity!
check it:
cafe 50's
11623 santa monica blvd
west los angeles, ca
310.479.1955
http://www.cafe50s.com/index.html
while eating out is certainly about the whole dining experience, i must say that the food at cafe 50's is absolutely YUMMILICIOUS. eri and i pretty much go once every 2 months (at least) -- it's our favorite roomie dine-out spot (considering that we don't dine out together too much). and if you join their frequent diner program, you get coupons in the mail for great discounts and free entrees/desserts/shakes! it totally makes the trip worth it. plus they have specials every single day of the week, like 50% off burgers and omelettes on mondays, and pajama night the last wednesday of every month (where you can get free food if you wear a traditional, two-piece jammie set -- no slinky numbers allowed!). i've yet to try the jammie thing, but i suppose it's fun for the kids. and don't forget: there are magicians over the weekend! (yeah, if you like that sort of thing. ahem. ok, just checking.)
even though i've gone on and on about everything else, the food is seriously REALLY good. (crystal was apparently not a fan, but i've had enough diner food to know that this place is pretty top-notch.) the menu is humongoid, but before you look at anything else, you really should check out the shake list. i mean, SERIOUSLY. i think the best thing is probably the pumpkin shake, but sadly, that's only offered during the fall months. (why, i have no idea, especially since anyone can get canned pumpkin nowadays -- which btw is totally DELISH -- but i won't complain b/c distance/time makes the heart grow fonder.) personally, when i can't get the pumpkin shake, i drool just as much over the coffee and oreo cookie shakes. i tried the breakfast shake last night, but it was simply too healthy. i've been dying to try the sunshine shake, so i think that'll be up next.
in terms of options, the menu is FABulous and seriously has something for everyone. i used to love going in and getting breakfast food -- yummy (and huge) omelettes, chorizo and eggs (mmm...), joe's scramble (eggs, beef, cheese, HEAVEN), all w/a side of order of crispy bacon (pork is best, but turkey ain't shabby) and a big glass of iced coffee. BTW, REMEMBER THAT ONE WHOLE EGG IS 70% OF YOUR DAILY CHOLESTEROL ALLOTMENT!! as soon as i learned that, i was THRILLED w/myself for having gotten egg white omelettes every time i've ordered omelettes. eek! to think that they make JUMBO omelettes with FIVE eggs. GROSSNESS. in any case, grease certainly makes food taste good. mmm....
even though i still get breakfast every now and again, i've certainly expanded out over the years. the calico cobb salad (every so often w/blue cheese dressing) is ginormous and delicious. i've even tried the luscious fried mac 'n cheese. granted, it's only good for the first 5 minutes when it's hot and melty, but it's AMAZING. deep friend mac 'n cheese wedges. i mean, who can argue w/something like that? and while i don't like sandwiches generally, i had a hankering for a grilled cheese last night. and it totally hit the spot! i wish i'd had more of an appetite (and/or not been vegetarian for the month), b/c i'd love to have tried the fried egg sandwich or the BLT. mmm.... next time i suppose! i'm sure i won't have a problem remembering.
needless to say, i've already expounded on the MANY reasons that cafe 50's is one of my top picks in LA. however, i have to add that it helps that eri loves it too! and so did marie (our old roommate)! so it's kind of like a nostalgic place to come back to every so often. i think we all need at least one of those in our immediate vicinity!
check it:
cafe 50's
11623 santa monica blvd
west los angeles, ca
310.479.1955
http://www.cafe50s.com/index.html
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
IM brilliance
during a random IM conversation this morning, derek and i determined that the world needed a few more key symbols to convey those expressions/subtleties that seem to fail us when communicating through IM. i mean, who hasn't rolled their eyes staring at some stupid statement made during a gchat or meebo conversation? i mean, SERIOUSLY.
so here's what we've come up with for now:
IIPE = irony
(for the straight lines, hold down SHIFT and \ simultaneously)
=S = sarcasm
(simple, but effective)
(QQ) = whatever
(see the eyes?!)
so here's what we've come up with for now:
IIPE = irony
(for the straight lines, hold down SHIFT and \ simultaneously)
=S = sarcasm
(simple, but effective)
(QQ) = whatever
(see the eyes?!)
red mango
seeing as how pinkberry got its own post, i thought red mango deserved one too.
as most people know, red mango is supposedly the *original* concept developed in korea, prior to it being *stolen* by pinkberry. my attitude is this: if you didn't have the forethought to bring it to the US first, you shouldn't blame someone else for jumping on the chance to do so. i mean, that's just LAME. stop whining! however, i suppose that a nod by the pinkberry folks would be considerate.
in any case, my top picks are: the original flavor at red mango, and the green tea and coffee flavors at pinkberry. there's something yummier about the original flavor at red mango -- slightly sour-er? slightly sweeter? a bit of both? i can't tell, but it's good.
the thing i do appreciate about having both red mango and pinkberry in westwood is that each place has slightly different toppings. for example, red mango has chi-chi ghirardelli dark chocolate bits and snazzy cinnamon toast crunch squares. (i have to say, i do like the *brand name* toppings. isn't that horrible?) pinkberry, on the hand, has the wholesome carob and yogurt chips, and several other crunchy cereal toppings. thankfully, both places now have mochi! a godsend of a topping, i say, a godsend of a topping.
sadly, red mango no longer has any of its cool melon toppings! (are they out of season?!) the melon blender (smoothie) i put together (original flavor yogurt w/watermelon, honeydew, and cantaloupe) was absolutely AMAZING, and i can't believe i'm going to have to wait till next summer or something to have it again. bring it back! bring it back! *sniff* *sniff*
in any case, different strokes for different folks. so i encourage everyone to have a taste of BOTH and make their own decision.
http://www.redmangousa.com/
as most people know, red mango is supposedly the *original* concept developed in korea, prior to it being *stolen* by pinkberry. my attitude is this: if you didn't have the forethought to bring it to the US first, you shouldn't blame someone else for jumping on the chance to do so. i mean, that's just LAME. stop whining! however, i suppose that a nod by the pinkberry folks would be considerate.
in any case, my top picks are: the original flavor at red mango, and the green tea and coffee flavors at pinkberry. there's something yummier about the original flavor at red mango -- slightly sour-er? slightly sweeter? a bit of both? i can't tell, but it's good.
the thing i do appreciate about having both red mango and pinkberry in westwood is that each place has slightly different toppings. for example, red mango has chi-chi ghirardelli dark chocolate bits and snazzy cinnamon toast crunch squares. (i have to say, i do like the *brand name* toppings. isn't that horrible?) pinkberry, on the hand, has the wholesome carob and yogurt chips, and several other crunchy cereal toppings. thankfully, both places now have mochi! a godsend of a topping, i say, a godsend of a topping.
sadly, red mango no longer has any of its cool melon toppings! (are they out of season?!) the melon blender (smoothie) i put together (original flavor yogurt w/watermelon, honeydew, and cantaloupe) was absolutely AMAZING, and i can't believe i'm going to have to wait till next summer or something to have it again. bring it back! bring it back! *sniff* *sniff*
in any case, different strokes for different folks. so i encourage everyone to have a taste of BOTH and make their own decision.
http://www.redmangousa.com/
Saturday, February 9, 2008
sushi roku
so i went out to santa monica tonight to meet up w/viv and check out sushi roku on ocean boulevard. this is definitely one of those places that i've passed by a bazillion times and wanted to try. and tonight was the night! joanne had mentioned it being really pricey, but i suppose she just never knew how much i'd spend on food, b/c the prices were actually pretty fair for a nice sushi place right by the water. i mean, that's some serious real estate.
while i was waiting for viv (who was stuck in traffic), i hung out at the bar. which i generally never do b/c i feel weird not drinking. thankfully, i was at a sushi place and it was chilly outside, so ordering a hot green tea didn't seem out of the ordinary. plus the bartender mentioned it being happy hour -- how providential! and seeing that i was semi-starving, i ordered some calamari to tide me over. to be honest, it was *way* salty. thankfully, it was just a few pieces for $3, but my goodness. it's like they salted the calamari, breaded it, and then salted it some more. as i was telling viv later, i'd much prefer to have something bland so i can salt it myself, rather than have it come way too salty and i somehow still have to swallow it. yuck!
btw, let it be known that this place is pretty strict about reservations. the hostess wouldn't seat me till viv got there. and as soon as it hit 6:15, she asked me whether i wanted to give up the table. thankfully, a few minutes after i'd politely told the waitress NO, viv showed up. of course, she'd been distracted by seeing john mayer and cameron diaz strolling down ocean boulevard together, so i suppose i had to forgive her. it's weird how star sightings are so typical here.
the hostess seated us at a lovely table for 2 and we checked out the menus with ravenous appetites. (me a little less ravenous seeing as how i'd scarfed down the salty calamari and all.) as i'd checked out the menu online beforehand, my eye was already drawn to a few items. and while i'd wanted to eat light and stick to veggies, i really couldn't help myself. (that seems to be my MO recently -- *sigh*) we decided to get a bunch of small plates to share: fresh salmon daikon w/caviar, sizzling mushroom "toban-yaki" (i have no idea why this word was in quotes -- anyone have a clue?), seabass "harumaki" spring roll (again, no idea about the quotes -- help!), seaweed salad, foie gras wrapped yellowtail in black truffle soy, and a mixed sashimi plate. don't these all sound absolutely delish?!
well, here's the rundown: the fresh salmon daikon -- yummy. i suppose the price was due to the caviar, but the flavors and textures were pretty delish regardless. the sizzling mushrooms -- WAY salty, but the mix of mushrooms (and therefore textures) was fabulous. the seabass? BEST THING ORDERED. creative, not too salty, and perfect with a little bit of the herb citrus dip. the seaweed salad -- i find out later that i'd eaten all the spinach that viv had thought was missing and she'd eaten all the seaweed that i'd thought was missing (and which she'd gotten stuck in her teeth)! way to go for quality female communication, huh? (when do friends become psychics? anyone know?) the foie gras wrapped yellowtail -- pretty yummy in my opinion. ever so slightly bitter, which was good against the backdrop of endless salt we seemed to have throughout dinner. and the mixed sashimi plate -- ordered at the end of the meal and just the kind of super fresh protein goodness we needed to fill us up. all in all, i think we did pretty well! plus i thought it was lovely that our green teas came free of charge. i mean, it's so asian, no? ultimately, i'd love to come back to this place and try some more dishes. not necessarily the sashimi/sushi (b/c i think you can get fresh fish at other places for cheaper -- please feel free to disagree), but perhaps some of the interesting rolls. plus there was definitely quite a bit of creativity put into some of their hot appetizers. maybe tapas and small dishes are the new craze, but i love checking out new things and i love sharing, so a bunch of appetizers works way better for me than having a whole dish to myself. it's kinda like being non-committal. (also my MO.)
check it:
sushi roku
1401 ocean ave
santa monica, ca 90401
310.458.4771
http://www.sushiroku.com/sushiroku/index.htm
we raced out of the restaurant in time to catch "vincent" at the santa monica miles memorial playhouse. i won't say too much about it b/c i was generally unimpressed. while the venue itself was pretty cool and rustic, and the actor was pretty decent, i couldn't get into the one-man show or the character(s). i saw "edge" at the odyssey theatre and it was totally watchable b/c i could connect w/sylvia plath at several points throughout the play. not the case with vincent van gogh or his brother theo. the actor's expression was glazed over most of the time and i simply couldn't feel the emotion. i kept shifting around in my chair and i wished i could've taken a nap. i swear i could hear people yawning all around me. (or was that a figment of my imagination? i'm not sure.) well, as viv and i both confessed in the car, at least we were thinking how we didn't pay too much for the tickets!
http://www.theatreforasmallspace.com/
while i was waiting for viv (who was stuck in traffic), i hung out at the bar. which i generally never do b/c i feel weird not drinking. thankfully, i was at a sushi place and it was chilly outside, so ordering a hot green tea didn't seem out of the ordinary. plus the bartender mentioned it being happy hour -- how providential! and seeing that i was semi-starving, i ordered some calamari to tide me over. to be honest, it was *way* salty. thankfully, it was just a few pieces for $3, but my goodness. it's like they salted the calamari, breaded it, and then salted it some more. as i was telling viv later, i'd much prefer to have something bland so i can salt it myself, rather than have it come way too salty and i somehow still have to swallow it. yuck!
btw, let it be known that this place is pretty strict about reservations. the hostess wouldn't seat me till viv got there. and as soon as it hit 6:15, she asked me whether i wanted to give up the table. thankfully, a few minutes after i'd politely told the waitress NO, viv showed up. of course, she'd been distracted by seeing john mayer and cameron diaz strolling down ocean boulevard together, so i suppose i had to forgive her. it's weird how star sightings are so typical here.
the hostess seated us at a lovely table for 2 and we checked out the menus with ravenous appetites. (me a little less ravenous seeing as how i'd scarfed down the salty calamari and all.) as i'd checked out the menu online beforehand, my eye was already drawn to a few items. and while i'd wanted to eat light and stick to veggies, i really couldn't help myself. (that seems to be my MO recently -- *sigh*) we decided to get a bunch of small plates to share: fresh salmon daikon w/caviar, sizzling mushroom "toban-yaki" (i have no idea why this word was in quotes -- anyone have a clue?), seabass "harumaki" spring roll (again, no idea about the quotes -- help!), seaweed salad, foie gras wrapped yellowtail in black truffle soy, and a mixed sashimi plate. don't these all sound absolutely delish?!
well, here's the rundown: the fresh salmon daikon -- yummy. i suppose the price was due to the caviar, but the flavors and textures were pretty delish regardless. the sizzling mushrooms -- WAY salty, but the mix of mushrooms (and therefore textures) was fabulous. the seabass? BEST THING ORDERED. creative, not too salty, and perfect with a little bit of the herb citrus dip. the seaweed salad -- i find out later that i'd eaten all the spinach that viv had thought was missing and she'd eaten all the seaweed that i'd thought was missing (and which she'd gotten stuck in her teeth)! way to go for quality female communication, huh? (when do friends become psychics? anyone know?) the foie gras wrapped yellowtail -- pretty yummy in my opinion. ever so slightly bitter, which was good against the backdrop of endless salt we seemed to have throughout dinner. and the mixed sashimi plate -- ordered at the end of the meal and just the kind of super fresh protein goodness we needed to fill us up. all in all, i think we did pretty well! plus i thought it was lovely that our green teas came free of charge. i mean, it's so asian, no? ultimately, i'd love to come back to this place and try some more dishes. not necessarily the sashimi/sushi (b/c i think you can get fresh fish at other places for cheaper -- please feel free to disagree), but perhaps some of the interesting rolls. plus there was definitely quite a bit of creativity put into some of their hot appetizers. maybe tapas and small dishes are the new craze, but i love checking out new things and i love sharing, so a bunch of appetizers works way better for me than having a whole dish to myself. it's kinda like being non-committal. (also my MO.)
check it:
sushi roku
1401 ocean ave
santa monica, ca 90401
310.458.4771
http://www.sushiroku.com/sushiroku/index.htm
we raced out of the restaurant in time to catch "vincent" at the santa monica miles memorial playhouse. i won't say too much about it b/c i was generally unimpressed. while the venue itself was pretty cool and rustic, and the actor was pretty decent, i couldn't get into the one-man show or the character(s). i saw "edge" at the odyssey theatre and it was totally watchable b/c i could connect w/sylvia plath at several points throughout the play. not the case with vincent van gogh or his brother theo. the actor's expression was glazed over most of the time and i simply couldn't feel the emotion. i kept shifting around in my chair and i wished i could've taken a nap. i swear i could hear people yawning all around me. (or was that a figment of my imagination? i'm not sure.) well, as viv and i both confessed in the car, at least we were thinking how we didn't pay too much for the tickets!
http://www.theatreforasmallspace.com/
sports nutrition workshop
i attended this 1.5-day workshop a few weeks ago to finish up my required CEC's and i wanted to post on it since i thought it was pretty informative. you really have to pick through exactly what you want to take away from these things, but all in all, i thought it was quite interesting. bill evans did a great job incorporating research into his talk. (perfect for a budding scholar like myself.) nancy clark was more practitioner-oriented in her use of case studies. which was highly appropriate for the audience that was dominated by dieticians and nutritonists. but a little too simplistic pour moi. at any rate, this is way better than spending a bazillion dollars getting myself to a conference in vegas. (FYI that i DESPITE vegas. its only redeeming quality is its rising number of top-notch restaurants. though i do find those vegas commercials fairly amusing.)
if you need CEC's:
http://www.sportsnutritionworkshop.com/
if you need CEC's:
http://www.sportsnutritionworkshop.com/
some girls
as soon as i got the event card in the mail from the geffen, i told myself that i HAD to get tickets. i'd just re-watched "in her shoes" recently and i couldn't help falling in love with mark feuerstein (despite his short stature -- ok, come on, we all know i like them 6' or taller!), who was oh so adorable when he said "i've always wanted to be your bitch" to toni collette. ohmigosh. *sigh* i also haven't seen rosalind chao in forever and a day, though i had fond memories of her in joy luck club when she stood out in the rain talking to andrew mccarthy (another one of those short but amazing male leads). i remembered paula cale lisbe from somewhere, but i hadn't realized where until the program reminded me of that show providence with melina kanakaredes. in any case, plays w/actors i know and love are always worth seeing, especially up close and personal. (amazingly enough, i saw them all yucking it up over dinner at corner bakery before last saturday's show! i love seeing movie stars in westwood. b/c it's totally like they're real people with real lives and who aren't *necessarily* pretentious.)
as soon as i saw tickets available on goldstar, i jumped on them! as a poor grad student (and someone who appreciates time on her own), i bought a single ticket for a friday night. (i'd considered buying 2 and asking around for takers, but considering that they were still a bit pricey, i didn't want to bank on finding someone last-minute. plus, to be brutally honest, i usually have very little desire to spend time w/anyone but myself after a long week. being around people all the time is seriously exhausting!) so with less than 30 minutes to spare, i scarfed down some ralph's sushi (which is surprisingly yummy) and i went to see the show!
now i've heard about the audrey skirball kenis theater and i'd just looked at the specs recently, but i had NO idea what to expect when i walked in. the space was soooooo intimate. and i mean that in the best way possible. the colors were perfectly warm and neutral. there were just enough seats with just enough leg room. the ceilings weren't too high. the stage wasn't too far away. i was in the last row, but i felt so close to the scene. it was amazing. i know i say that a lot, but whatever, it was amazing. i must admit that the music came on a bit loud, but otherwise, the set-up was perfect.
in terms of the play itself, i totally appreciated that it was 4 acts back-to-back w/no intermission. i have to say that i really despise intermissions b/c they totally break up the action (at least in my mind). i mean, i don't want to talk about what's happened or what might happen (or even hear other people talking about it). i want to get through the whole thing and then reflect on the whole thing. i'm no longer in HS english class where i need everything broken down, chapter by chapter. there's something to be said for the big picture and letting it all come together in the end. which it did in this play. shockingly together.
when i got to the end, i thought "OMG. typical. people never change." (which is interesting, b/c that seems to be house's motto -- one that he reiterated multiple times in the most recent episode and which has been stuck in my head since tuesday night.) even now, i'm not sure whether i was surprised or not. there was something about mark's character that just made me a little uneasy, and the ending just brought it into the light. as for the 4 unbelievable actresses, their characters also seemed to reflect that sentiment. they were perfectly cast into these character roles -- ones that i've seen regularly portrayed on tv throughout my life. paula -- the neurotic housewife/mother (so like her character in providence). justina -- the lusty latina (a bit stereotypical, but not unbelievable). rosalind -- the type A professor (again stereotypical, but with a bit of a bizarre twist). and jaime -- the free-spirited blond (who reminded me of holly hunter in saving grace).
the way the 4 female characters evolved through their scenes was really fascinating. it was possible to sense the different personalities embedded within each character, especially their insecurities and how they were deeply affected by their interactions with this one man. it was heartbreaking really. to the point of tears every now and again. i often wonder whether it's a good thing to show on stage/tv/film what people already know (or think they know). does it just reinforce all their negativity? (i suppose positivity is possible, though less likely.) on the other hand, life is what it is. and reality is what it is. if men suck (and they do at times), shouldn't women just be able to acknowledge this and move on in whatever way, shape, and form they choose? i, for one, think that plays are meant to convey one person's perspective on the world. and that the audience is free enough to make its own decisions. others may disagree with stereotypes being perpetuated by the stage. but if that's someone's experience, who am i to deny them the opportunity to share it?
at any rate, this play was quite good. while the story line sounds similar to the movie plot for something that came out in the last year or so, i assure you that the point is totally different (at least from what i can remember about the movie). it's worth seeing, especially when the actors and the venue are all so quality. plus, can i just say that i hope i look as good as rosalind chao when i get to whatever age she is? aside from one or two wrinkles, her face and figure are ridiculous. way to go for ethnic women barely aging!! woohoo!! (sadness for everyone else who won't be able to age so gracefully. ha! that's mean, i know, so sue me.)
a must see:
http://www.geffenplayhouse.com/
as soon as i saw tickets available on goldstar, i jumped on them! as a poor grad student (and someone who appreciates time on her own), i bought a single ticket for a friday night. (i'd considered buying 2 and asking around for takers, but considering that they were still a bit pricey, i didn't want to bank on finding someone last-minute. plus, to be brutally honest, i usually have very little desire to spend time w/anyone but myself after a long week. being around people all the time is seriously exhausting!) so with less than 30 minutes to spare, i scarfed down some ralph's sushi (which is surprisingly yummy) and i went to see the show!
now i've heard about the audrey skirball kenis theater and i'd just looked at the specs recently, but i had NO idea what to expect when i walked in. the space was soooooo intimate. and i mean that in the best way possible. the colors were perfectly warm and neutral. there were just enough seats with just enough leg room. the ceilings weren't too high. the stage wasn't too far away. i was in the last row, but i felt so close to the scene. it was amazing. i know i say that a lot, but whatever, it was amazing. i must admit that the music came on a bit loud, but otherwise, the set-up was perfect.
in terms of the play itself, i totally appreciated that it was 4 acts back-to-back w/no intermission. i have to say that i really despise intermissions b/c they totally break up the action (at least in my mind). i mean, i don't want to talk about what's happened or what might happen (or even hear other people talking about it). i want to get through the whole thing and then reflect on the whole thing. i'm no longer in HS english class where i need everything broken down, chapter by chapter. there's something to be said for the big picture and letting it all come together in the end. which it did in this play. shockingly together.
when i got to the end, i thought "OMG. typical. people never change." (which is interesting, b/c that seems to be house's motto -- one that he reiterated multiple times in the most recent episode and which has been stuck in my head since tuesday night.) even now, i'm not sure whether i was surprised or not. there was something about mark's character that just made me a little uneasy, and the ending just brought it into the light. as for the 4 unbelievable actresses, their characters also seemed to reflect that sentiment. they were perfectly cast into these character roles -- ones that i've seen regularly portrayed on tv throughout my life. paula -- the neurotic housewife/mother (so like her character in providence). justina -- the lusty latina (a bit stereotypical, but not unbelievable). rosalind -- the type A professor (again stereotypical, but with a bit of a bizarre twist). and jaime -- the free-spirited blond (who reminded me of holly hunter in saving grace).
the way the 4 female characters evolved through their scenes was really fascinating. it was possible to sense the different personalities embedded within each character, especially their insecurities and how they were deeply affected by their interactions with this one man. it was heartbreaking really. to the point of tears every now and again. i often wonder whether it's a good thing to show on stage/tv/film what people already know (or think they know). does it just reinforce all their negativity? (i suppose positivity is possible, though less likely.) on the other hand, life is what it is. and reality is what it is. if men suck (and they do at times), shouldn't women just be able to acknowledge this and move on in whatever way, shape, and form they choose? i, for one, think that plays are meant to convey one person's perspective on the world. and that the audience is free enough to make its own decisions. others may disagree with stereotypes being perpetuated by the stage. but if that's someone's experience, who am i to deny them the opportunity to share it?
at any rate, this play was quite good. while the story line sounds similar to the movie plot for something that came out in the last year or so, i assure you that the point is totally different (at least from what i can remember about the movie). it's worth seeing, especially when the actors and the venue are all so quality. plus, can i just say that i hope i look as good as rosalind chao when i get to whatever age she is? aside from one or two wrinkles, her face and figure are ridiculous. way to go for ethnic women barely aging!! woohoo!! (sadness for everyone else who won't be able to age so gracefully. ha! that's mean, i know, so sue me.)
a must see:
http://www.geffenplayhouse.com/
Thursday, February 7, 2008
table 8
talk about a GODSEND of a dining experience to end restaurant week with! i'm forever indebted to dani for picking an absolutely AMAZING closer. yay!
so who out there has NOT heard of govind armstrong? if you haven't, look him up NOW. b/c even if you don't know or care a thing about his food, you should at least know and care that he's HOT. yes, he's HOT. i mention this b/c i think he actually came into the dining room a few times during the night! mmm.... yummy food made by a yummy chef, what more could a girl ask for? well, maybe that he were mine....
while the 1.5-2 hours that was required to get me from campus to table 8 on a bus through crazy traffic on sunset blvd during rush hour was frightening to say the least, i think i was way too tired (from lack of sleep) to get way too worked up about it (that is, aside from a bit of a rant to elizabeth as i was getting off the second bus).
plus the driver on the first bus tipped me off to the correct transfer point for the second bus (after seeing the wrong transfer point printed on my mta.net directions -- BOO mta.net!), which probably kept me from freaking out and/or missing dinner entirely. the latter which would've been worse than anything imaginable after a super long day on campus which started soon after i woke up at FIVE in the morning. and don't bother asking. i have no idea why.
so as i walked in the door, i realized that dani was there already. yay! so this meant we were getting seated right away, yes? um, no. the hostess said she was new and asked if we wouldn't mind waiting a few more minutes. so we sat down on the cushy seats by the hostess stand. a few minutes later, she said our table was ready. so we got up and proceeded to follow her into the dining room (which was a bit small and nondescript in my opinion). to a huge booth prepared for a party of 4. as we were attempting to not look confused, a second hostess came over to tell us that the first hostess had directed us to the wrong table. so we left the dining room and went all the way back out to the hostess stand. stopping midway b/w the dining room and the bar/lounge area b/c we really had no idea where we were supposed to be going. the first hostess looked at us and wondered why we were back. and we looked at her and at least *i* wondered "why us?" within a few minutes, the second hostess returned us to the dining room. this time to seat us at 2 side-by-side tables set for, yet again, a party of 4. by this point, i know *i* was anxious for dinner, so who the heck cares about the seating arrangments? of course, as i proceeded to slip into the inside seat, i almost tripped over the attache case by the feet of the gentleman at the next table. needless to say, this was nothing more than a pre-dinner comedy of errors. but thank god the night could only get better, right? right.
while the dining room wasn't particularly lavish or memorable (just dark) nor was the ladies room (which has been known to be pretty ridiculous at some places), the food and the service (other than the semi-incompetent hostesses) certainly made up for the space.
first of all, the waiter brought us both menus (regular and dineLA) in leather books. umm... yeah... if i get my prix fixe menu in a leather book, i'm pretty impressed. re: the dineLA menu, not only had the online menu options already looked delish, but the restaurant chose to add more dishes! and unless you're wildly indecisive (which means you have issues), who doesn't appreciate more options? to be honest, probably us to the teensiest degree b/c now there were even more scrumptious-looking items we'd have to deny ourselves!
at any rate, after discussing our top picks (which amounted to pretty much everything on the menu), i decided on the roasted broccolini and the duck confit (both additions to the menu), and the tres leches with coconut macaroons. dani picked the boucheron with greens, the short rib, and the dulce de leche chocolate cake. all of which sounded absolutely AMAZING by description alone. considering the power of advertising and marketing, i simply don't understand when my eyes are met with bland food descriptions. how are those supposed to draw me in? if you can't even convince me to pick the thing, how am i going to taste it to know it's fabulous? the restaurants that want my money should know what makes me tick. and the restaurants with decadent food descriptions (and equally decadent food to match) ultimately have a *much* better chance of getting their hands on my dwindling fellowship funds!
so who out there has NOT heard of govind armstrong? if you haven't, look him up NOW. b/c even if you don't know or care a thing about his food, you should at least know and care that he's HOT. yes, he's HOT. i mention this b/c i think he actually came into the dining room a few times during the night! mmm.... yummy food made by a yummy chef, what more could a girl ask for? well, maybe that he were mine....
while the 1.5-2 hours that was required to get me from campus to table 8 on a bus through crazy traffic on sunset blvd during rush hour was frightening to say the least, i think i was way too tired (from lack of sleep) to get way too worked up about it (that is, aside from a bit of a rant to elizabeth as i was getting off the second bus).
plus the driver on the first bus tipped me off to the correct transfer point for the second bus (after seeing the wrong transfer point printed on my mta.net directions -- BOO mta.net!), which probably kept me from freaking out and/or missing dinner entirely. the latter which would've been worse than anything imaginable after a super long day on campus which started soon after i woke up at FIVE in the morning. and don't bother asking. i have no idea why.
so as i walked in the door, i realized that dani was there already. yay! so this meant we were getting seated right away, yes? um, no. the hostess said she was new and asked if we wouldn't mind waiting a few more minutes. so we sat down on the cushy seats by the hostess stand. a few minutes later, she said our table was ready. so we got up and proceeded to follow her into the dining room (which was a bit small and nondescript in my opinion). to a huge booth prepared for a party of 4. as we were attempting to not look confused, a second hostess came over to tell us that the first hostess had directed us to the wrong table. so we left the dining room and went all the way back out to the hostess stand. stopping midway b/w the dining room and the bar/lounge area b/c we really had no idea where we were supposed to be going. the first hostess looked at us and wondered why we were back. and we looked at her and at least *i* wondered "why us?" within a few minutes, the second hostess returned us to the dining room. this time to seat us at 2 side-by-side tables set for, yet again, a party of 4. by this point, i know *i* was anxious for dinner, so who the heck cares about the seating arrangments? of course, as i proceeded to slip into the inside seat, i almost tripped over the attache case by the feet of the gentleman at the next table. needless to say, this was nothing more than a pre-dinner comedy of errors. but thank god the night could only get better, right? right.
while the dining room wasn't particularly lavish or memorable (just dark) nor was the ladies room (which has been known to be pretty ridiculous at some places), the food and the service (other than the semi-incompetent hostesses) certainly made up for the space.
first of all, the waiter brought us both menus (regular and dineLA) in leather books. umm... yeah... if i get my prix fixe menu in a leather book, i'm pretty impressed. re: the dineLA menu, not only had the online menu options already looked delish, but the restaurant chose to add more dishes! and unless you're wildly indecisive (which means you have issues), who doesn't appreciate more options? to be honest, probably us to the teensiest degree b/c now there were even more scrumptious-looking items we'd have to deny ourselves!
at any rate, after discussing our top picks (which amounted to pretty much everything on the menu), i decided on the roasted broccolini and the duck confit (both additions to the menu), and the tres leches with coconut macaroons. dani picked the boucheron with greens, the short rib, and the dulce de leche chocolate cake. all of which sounded absolutely AMAZING by description alone. considering the power of advertising and marketing, i simply don't understand when my eyes are met with bland food descriptions. how are those supposed to draw me in? if you can't even convince me to pick the thing, how am i going to taste it to know it's fabulous? the restaurants that want my money should know what makes me tick. and the restaurants with decadent food descriptions (and equally decadent food to match) ultimately have a *much* better chance of getting their hands on my dwindling fellowship funds!
the meal started out w/some yummy appetizers b/c both of our dishes involved greens (healthy) and some delicious cheese (*slightly* less healthy). my dish was literally warm broccolini covered in melted cheese -- a bit too salty for my tastes, but delicious nevertheless in all its gooey-ness. dani's was a little bit lighter and a perfect combo of flavors and textures, especially w/the inclusion of some roasted mushrooms. mmm.... mushrooms....
FYI that duck is literally my favorite bird of all time. while dani made a good point that duck *can* be fatty and gross, all that means is that the poor bird was cooked by an IMBECILE. needless to say, no imbecile came near the duck on my plate b/c it was absolutely heavenly the way it fell right off the bone as soon as i touched it with my fork. the meat was perfectly seasoned, cooked -- and swallowed. mmm.... dani's short rib was also quite delicious, especially with a bit of the crispy bacon and creamed swiss chard. honestly, creamed anything w/crispy bacon sounds like a pretty good combo.
last but not least, dessert. before i go on, i want to preface this next comment by saying that i'm generally NOT a fan of tres leches. particularly b/c i'm simply not a fan of milk. it really doesn't do a thing for me. and the last time i had tres lches, i was completely overwhelmed by the milk that'd been soaked up by the cake. it was a big ole mess in my mouth. THANKFULLY, the tres leches at table 8 is the reason why i don't (usually) let one bad experience ruin things for me. as dani pointed out, this cake was *so* light -- even airier than angel food! and there was just enough milk on the bottom of the plate for *some* soaking to occur (but not too much). in addition, the dish came with a coconut macaroon, which (in retrospect) i totally should've shared, especially since we'd had SUCH a bad experience w/one sunset's wannabe macaroons just last week. alas, i stuffed the whole thing into my mouth way too quickly, especially when i realized how perfectly crunchy and moist it was. not that it mattered b/c dani seemed to be thoroughly enjoying her chocolate cake, which was BEYOND amazing. this cake totally beat the lava thing we'd all shared at one sunset...BY FAR. and y'know what? on top of the great combo of chocolate and caramel, i could taste chocolate nibs! i swear those nibs will do it for you. they add just a little bit of texture to the ooh gooey deliciousness in your mouth. mmm....
so as this first year of dineLA comes to a close, all i can say is that i'm pretty darn impressed. not only w/some of the YUMMIEST meals i've had since being in LA, but particularly w/the fact that i got so many of them in my schedule over the course of 2 weeks! and the best news? table 8's extending their dineLA menu till the end of the month!!! talk about unbelievably freaking amazing. do they KNOW how many weeks are left in february?! *happy happy sigh sigh*
go go go:
table 8
7661 melrose ave
la, ca 90046
323.782.8258
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
3 on 4th
so this is one of those places that i've passed by a million times and always wanted to try. it's dimly lit and it looks deceivingly small from the outside. but that's just what you want sometimes -- a place that has an intimate feel but gives you the necessary elbow/leg room once you're settled in.
seeing that restaurant week was ending in a mere 3 days, i was really excited about this reservation. i'd had a long week and a long day, and i'd just submitted work to my advisor the night before, so it was time to celebrate!
idiotically, i'd worn heels (which i rarely ever do), and even though i was sitting on a bus for 45 minutes (which was surprisingly nice), my toesies were still majorly chafing (like my mom says, do you really need to suffer for beauty?).
so i decided to make two pit stops before heading straight to the restaurant. first, lululemon. ummm, LOVE them, wish i could afford them. thankfully (!!) i remembered to ask the saleswoman about the discount they have for local fitness professionals (yes, c'est moi -- is that gramatically correct, btw?). all i have to do now is fill out a form, submit a fitness schedule w/my name on it, and commit to being part of their R&D team for a year -- and i get 15% off! how great is that? yes, it's a bit of work and paperwork, but nothing lil ole me can't handle. as i was telling eri a few months ago, I'M AWESOME!! (yeah, no ego here, right?)
btw, as i was chatting w/the lovely saleswoman, i found out that she was a dance major at UCLA and is now teaching dance classes! how cool is that? i swear, you find the most random people doing the most random things in the most random places. i love that! totally makes my day. so as a supporter of this new lululemon acquaintance, i'm providing a link to the dance studio for all you dance lovers out there: http://shaktiselements.com/. check it out! FYI that she teaches beginning roots modern dance. it sounds totally fun. who's in?
next, leonidas. i forget who, but someone was just recently raving about the fact that leonidas now has sugar-free chocolate. i think they expected me to think it was a wonderful thing, but my reaction is: HELL NO!! i mean, when i'm at a fine chocolate shop, i don't want to see chocolate where sugar's been subbed by some sugar substitute. i mean, GROSS! chocolate is chocolate, and if you didn't want to indulge, then why bother coming into the store at all? go get yourself some cheap-ass russell stover or whitman's (ewwwwwwwww!!!!). furthermore, if you want less sugar, go towards GOD and buy DARK chocolate. (milk chocolate's nasty anyways. and only edible when you have no other chocolate product in sight.) any true chocolate connoisseur knows that dark is the way to go, with milk coming in second, and white coming in WAY third. (talk about cloyingly sweet. ick.) personally, i enjoy the REALLY bitter (like 90% cacao if possible), but you're pretty good to go w/65%.
before i move onto dinner, let's just say i couldn't even pay attention to what leonidas had to offer on its shelves b/c i was so distracted by this couple in the store. the reason? i was blinded by the GINORMOUS diamonds on her ring finger. as a number of my friends have gotten engaged over recent months, i've been trained to watch for the bling as soon as someone's left hand passes through my field of vision. but there is NOOOOOO way anyone could've missed these babies. they were HUGE! the engagement ring was a ginormous pear in the center with humongous side stones. and i think the wedding band was rocks all around. btw, have i mentioned they were HUGE?! i swear this woman's hand must've been glued onto her wrist. at any rate, i had to break the mesmerizing hold of all that ice and leave the store. all i could do was wonder what that man did for a living. i mean, seriously. is he trafficking drugs?!
as i limped over to the restaurant, i was oh-so-thrilled when the hostess offered to seat me first. however, i should've known that dinner would go downhill when she broke my cardinal rule of restaurant week eating -- she didn't offer the regular menu! (i had to ask the server for it later b/c i really wanted to see it.) i mean, how are you going to get me back into the restaurant if i don't know what else is available? tsk tsk. bad move.
at any rate, my friend (who shall remain nameless for reasons that will become clear shortly) wasn't going to be there until the actual reservation time, so i had some lovely minutes to myself to scour both menus. while i was impressed with the appetizer options on the regular menu, i was unimpressed with the entree options (and prices). i mean, who wouldn't want to try scrambled eggs w/sea urchin, black truffle, and creme fraiche? (ok, maybe lots of people, but they're not the adventurous eaters i like to hang with.) but who wants to look at yet another boring menu with salmon, chicken breast, and steak frites? talk about dullsville. bleh. furthermore, who wants to pay excessively high prices for little to no creativity? i could just as easily get dorm food. (and some of that dorm food is pretty darn yummy!) in any case, i'm thankful that we were doing the prix fixe menu. it wasn't anything too mindblowing, but the pricing was significantly better than dining a la carte.
let's see... for the appetizer, i ordered the grilled apple salad w/buffalo mozarella, crispy prosciutto, and honey roasted walnuts. (considering that i was going to try and be vegetarian for the month, i haven't been doing too well. why vegetarian? for the resolution revolution of course! http://12-resolutions.blogspot.com/) for the entree, i chose the wild atlantic striped bass. and for the dessert, i went with the mascarpone cheesecake. a lighter version than the typical cheesecake, but it's cheesecake, so how light could it possibly be? let's not lie to ourselves.
but first things first, i have to admit that i was slightly distracted from the food last night by some very negative dinner conversation. and i've decided that bad dinner conversation is WAY worse than completely dead air. and as everyone knows, eating out is as much about the company and the conversation as it is about the food. and if the conversation kills the mood, you can't even resort to focusing on the food b/c you've totally lost your appetite. at least with dead air, you can direct your atention to what's on your plate. plus negative chatter really messes up your first impression of a restaurant. so if there's a place you really want to check out, pick your dinner date accordingly. with that, i premise this abbreviated review with the apology that my taste buds weren't quite as sharp as usual last night.
so before we even ordered, one of the servers came out with an amuse bouche. this is usually a sign of chi-chi fare. unfortunately, the amuse was a combo of tuna and potato. this was yet another sign of a downward spiral, as i don't like tuna and i hate potato. eek. the flavors weren't heinous, but needless to say, i was more impressed by the thought of the amuse than the amuse itself. as for the salad, it was a yummy combo of flavors and textures. i'm not the biggest fan of apples, but i think i prefer them slightly grilled over completely raw. and who can't get enough of candied walnuts? it was a pretty basic dish, but a light way to start what ended up being a pretty heavy meal.
the fish. well, the skin was WAY crispy (the way i like it) and the meat was flaky (though a little dry). unfortunately, the presentation was seriously bland. there was some green celery puree and some orange carrot puree on the plate, neither of which looked very appealing. there was no sauce at all, which would've been better w/the fish than the slightly grainy vegetable purees. and to kill the dish, the chef set the fish on top of a white mess of POTATO PUREE. as i reiterate yet again, I HATE POTATO. needless to say, that was just gross. i had to try and flake off the fish w/o getting too much potato on my fork. talk about ruining taste AND texure. ick.
the dessert. mascarpone cheesecake. not a bad concept, but not a light one either. and when you've had a heavy meal, a light dessert option should at least be offered. what did i have to choose from? a chocolate tart. been there, done that. blueberry pie. ummm, how does that even belong on the menu? so random. and probably saturated with sugar. so i pretty much didn't have too much room to maneuver. granted, i ate it all. but it's dessert, it's restaurant week, and it's me w/no self-control once i've started in on something. needless to say, i felt seriously weighted down when i left. emotionally AND physically. talk about ending the night on a crappy note! i so did NOT deserve that. boo!
this just means the week's going to get better, right? lol. staying positive. (thanks, derek!)
3 on fourth
1432A 4th st
santa monica, ca 90401
310.395.6765
http://www.3onfourth.com/
seeing that restaurant week was ending in a mere 3 days, i was really excited about this reservation. i'd had a long week and a long day, and i'd just submitted work to my advisor the night before, so it was time to celebrate!
idiotically, i'd worn heels (which i rarely ever do), and even though i was sitting on a bus for 45 minutes (which was surprisingly nice), my toesies were still majorly chafing (like my mom says, do you really need to suffer for beauty?).
so i decided to make two pit stops before heading straight to the restaurant. first, lululemon. ummm, LOVE them, wish i could afford them. thankfully (!!) i remembered to ask the saleswoman about the discount they have for local fitness professionals (yes, c'est moi -- is that gramatically correct, btw?). all i have to do now is fill out a form, submit a fitness schedule w/my name on it, and commit to being part of their R&D team for a year -- and i get 15% off! how great is that? yes, it's a bit of work and paperwork, but nothing lil ole me can't handle. as i was telling eri a few months ago, I'M AWESOME!! (yeah, no ego here, right?)
btw, as i was chatting w/the lovely saleswoman, i found out that she was a dance major at UCLA and is now teaching dance classes! how cool is that? i swear, you find the most random people doing the most random things in the most random places. i love that! totally makes my day. so as a supporter of this new lululemon acquaintance, i'm providing a link to the dance studio for all you dance lovers out there: http://shaktiselements.com/. check it out! FYI that she teaches beginning roots modern dance. it sounds totally fun. who's in?
next, leonidas. i forget who, but someone was just recently raving about the fact that leonidas now has sugar-free chocolate. i think they expected me to think it was a wonderful thing, but my reaction is: HELL NO!! i mean, when i'm at a fine chocolate shop, i don't want to see chocolate where sugar's been subbed by some sugar substitute. i mean, GROSS! chocolate is chocolate, and if you didn't want to indulge, then why bother coming into the store at all? go get yourself some cheap-ass russell stover or whitman's (ewwwwwwwww!!!!). furthermore, if you want less sugar, go towards GOD and buy DARK chocolate. (milk chocolate's nasty anyways. and only edible when you have no other chocolate product in sight.) any true chocolate connoisseur knows that dark is the way to go, with milk coming in second, and white coming in WAY third. (talk about cloyingly sweet. ick.) personally, i enjoy the REALLY bitter (like 90% cacao if possible), but you're pretty good to go w/65%.
before i move onto dinner, let's just say i couldn't even pay attention to what leonidas had to offer on its shelves b/c i was so distracted by this couple in the store. the reason? i was blinded by the GINORMOUS diamonds on her ring finger. as a number of my friends have gotten engaged over recent months, i've been trained to watch for the bling as soon as someone's left hand passes through my field of vision. but there is NOOOOOO way anyone could've missed these babies. they were HUGE! the engagement ring was a ginormous pear in the center with humongous side stones. and i think the wedding band was rocks all around. btw, have i mentioned they were HUGE?! i swear this woman's hand must've been glued onto her wrist. at any rate, i had to break the mesmerizing hold of all that ice and leave the store. all i could do was wonder what that man did for a living. i mean, seriously. is he trafficking drugs?!
as i limped over to the restaurant, i was oh-so-thrilled when the hostess offered to seat me first. however, i should've known that dinner would go downhill when she broke my cardinal rule of restaurant week eating -- she didn't offer the regular menu! (i had to ask the server for it later b/c i really wanted to see it.) i mean, how are you going to get me back into the restaurant if i don't know what else is available? tsk tsk. bad move.
at any rate, my friend (who shall remain nameless for reasons that will become clear shortly) wasn't going to be there until the actual reservation time, so i had some lovely minutes to myself to scour both menus. while i was impressed with the appetizer options on the regular menu, i was unimpressed with the entree options (and prices). i mean, who wouldn't want to try scrambled eggs w/sea urchin, black truffle, and creme fraiche? (ok, maybe lots of people, but they're not the adventurous eaters i like to hang with.) but who wants to look at yet another boring menu with salmon, chicken breast, and steak frites? talk about dullsville. bleh. furthermore, who wants to pay excessively high prices for little to no creativity? i could just as easily get dorm food. (and some of that dorm food is pretty darn yummy!) in any case, i'm thankful that we were doing the prix fixe menu. it wasn't anything too mindblowing, but the pricing was significantly better than dining a la carte.
let's see... for the appetizer, i ordered the grilled apple salad w/buffalo mozarella, crispy prosciutto, and honey roasted walnuts. (considering that i was going to try and be vegetarian for the month, i haven't been doing too well. why vegetarian? for the resolution revolution of course! http://12-resolutions.blogspot.com/) for the entree, i chose the wild atlantic striped bass. and for the dessert, i went with the mascarpone cheesecake. a lighter version than the typical cheesecake, but it's cheesecake, so how light could it possibly be? let's not lie to ourselves.
but first things first, i have to admit that i was slightly distracted from the food last night by some very negative dinner conversation. and i've decided that bad dinner conversation is WAY worse than completely dead air. and as everyone knows, eating out is as much about the company and the conversation as it is about the food. and if the conversation kills the mood, you can't even resort to focusing on the food b/c you've totally lost your appetite. at least with dead air, you can direct your atention to what's on your plate. plus negative chatter really messes up your first impression of a restaurant. so if there's a place you really want to check out, pick your dinner date accordingly. with that, i premise this abbreviated review with the apology that my taste buds weren't quite as sharp as usual last night.
so before we even ordered, one of the servers came out with an amuse bouche. this is usually a sign of chi-chi fare. unfortunately, the amuse was a combo of tuna and potato. this was yet another sign of a downward spiral, as i don't like tuna and i hate potato. eek. the flavors weren't heinous, but needless to say, i was more impressed by the thought of the amuse than the amuse itself. as for the salad, it was a yummy combo of flavors and textures. i'm not the biggest fan of apples, but i think i prefer them slightly grilled over completely raw. and who can't get enough of candied walnuts? it was a pretty basic dish, but a light way to start what ended up being a pretty heavy meal.
the fish. well, the skin was WAY crispy (the way i like it) and the meat was flaky (though a little dry). unfortunately, the presentation was seriously bland. there was some green celery puree and some orange carrot puree on the plate, neither of which looked very appealing. there was no sauce at all, which would've been better w/the fish than the slightly grainy vegetable purees. and to kill the dish, the chef set the fish on top of a white mess of POTATO PUREE. as i reiterate yet again, I HATE POTATO. needless to say, that was just gross. i had to try and flake off the fish w/o getting too much potato on my fork. talk about ruining taste AND texure. ick.
the dessert. mascarpone cheesecake. not a bad concept, but not a light one either. and when you've had a heavy meal, a light dessert option should at least be offered. what did i have to choose from? a chocolate tart. been there, done that. blueberry pie. ummm, how does that even belong on the menu? so random. and probably saturated with sugar. so i pretty much didn't have too much room to maneuver. granted, i ate it all. but it's dessert, it's restaurant week, and it's me w/no self-control once i've started in on something. needless to say, i felt seriously weighted down when i left. emotionally AND physically. talk about ending the night on a crappy note! i so did NOT deserve that. boo!
this just means the week's going to get better, right? lol. staying positive. (thanks, derek!)
3 on fourth
1432A 4th st
santa monica, ca 90401
310.395.6765
http://www.3onfourth.com/
Sunday, February 3, 2008
GO GIANTS!
FYI that i didn't watch the game, nor did i want to watch the game, but boy does it still feel really good that my home team kicked some new england butt tonight. GO GIANTS!
a little green
in case you're interested in helping the environment, but not willing to commit your body and soul to the cause (at least not yet), you can get great daily tips on how you can save the world a little bit(e) at a time! check it out: http://www.idealbite.com/
mr. noodle drama
a quick note on a westwood staple. i'd been in love with noodle planet forever when i was advised by a fellow asian sista that mr. noodle was even yummier. while their dishes tend to be somewhat smaller, i must admit that the flavor combinations are quite good.
to start, i can't say much for the little bowl of pathetic noodle cracker things that they give you at the beginning of your meal. (those should get dumped ASAP.) but none of the meals i've ever had there have been remotely under par. while their menu options are significantly fewer compared to noodle planet, isn't it better to do fewer dishes well than more dishes mediocre-ly?
during my most recent visit, i had the chinese sausage fried rice (which i ordered primarily for the yummy chinese sausage since i really don't like rice -- and yes, i'm still asian) and my dinner date (who shall remain nameless for reasons indicated below) had the beef pad see ew (which bears a strong likeness to the beef ho fun that our people know and love -- thick noodles covered in shiny grease -- mmm....).
as a sidebar, i must comment on mr. noodle being located at the center of the world, particularly since it's situated right next to the infamous diddy reese. as soon as we walked in, we spotted a mutual friend and her roomie sitting right near the door. as we sat down, i had to look twice b/c the girl at the next table looked uber familiar. ah yes, the gym girl that'd ended up in my friend's play reading. and as i was waiting for the bathroom (where someone was obviously giving birth since i was waiting for what seemed like an infinite number of minutes), i noticed our friend yakking it up with her former TA and his friends who'd just come in from the cold. it's nice to know that you can always bump into familiar faces even in a super bloated college town like westwood village.
as a follow-up to the sidebar, i absolutely must elaborate on the second reason for mr. noodle being located at the center of the world. here it is: because apparently my dinner date (a friend who oozes fun AND sarcasm) is apparently the sun and her smile brightens up the room -- at least for our server!!! OMG. i swear i couldn't stop laughing. not b/c the comment was untrue or anything (b/c it so isn't!), but let's just say the scenario in which the comment came out was totally laughable. the one bad thing about mr. noodle is that the waitstaff can barely speak english. not that this is heinous, but when the communication sucks, it sucks.
so this pathetic little waiter comes up to our table and starts going on and on about how his friend (who was our server) is pretty much enraptured by my friend, her smile, her voice, and whatever else that he couldn't find the words for. b/c unfortunately, this waiter could barely string two syllables together and the whole thing was just a scene from a really bad romantic comedy. plus, i'm not quite sure how good of a friend this guy was, especially when he asked my friend to say a few nice words to our server when he came back. to be sure, we had no idea WHAT words she was supposed to utter, but i suppose her melodic voice was enough. does anyone think our server had any role in this madness?! was he seriously in love w/my friend? or just an innocent pawn in this bizarre mr. noodle play?!
b/c he didn't seem to have much of an expression on his face when he dropped off our food in a paper bag and walked away. but perhaps he would've fainted if he'd lingered much longer? my attitude: if he wanted a date, he should've just asked for it. why play these games?! especially when he AND his friend ended up looking way foolish.
at any rate, my poor friend was heinously embarrassed and glared at me for busting out at the table. i mean, i tried to hold it in, but no one could seriously expect me NOT to react. it was just...so bad...so so bad.... needless to say, neither of us are going back there anytime soon. regardless of the fact that the food itself was quite yummy. but then again, you have to have a minimum of $15 to charge, so that put a damper on things too. isn't having a minimum illegal btw?!
i love mr. noodle, but i could definitely do w/o the drama. fo sho.
Mr. Noodle
936 Broxton Ave
Los Angeles CA 90024
310.208.7808
http://www.misternoodle.com/fmain.htm
to start, i can't say much for the little bowl of pathetic noodle cracker things that they give you at the beginning of your meal. (those should get dumped ASAP.) but none of the meals i've ever had there have been remotely under par. while their menu options are significantly fewer compared to noodle planet, isn't it better to do fewer dishes well than more dishes mediocre-ly?
during my most recent visit, i had the chinese sausage fried rice (which i ordered primarily for the yummy chinese sausage since i really don't like rice -- and yes, i'm still asian) and my dinner date (who shall remain nameless for reasons indicated below) had the beef pad see ew (which bears a strong likeness to the beef ho fun that our people know and love -- thick noodles covered in shiny grease -- mmm....).
as a sidebar, i must comment on mr. noodle being located at the center of the world, particularly since it's situated right next to the infamous diddy reese. as soon as we walked in, we spotted a mutual friend and her roomie sitting right near the door. as we sat down, i had to look twice b/c the girl at the next table looked uber familiar. ah yes, the gym girl that'd ended up in my friend's play reading. and as i was waiting for the bathroom (where someone was obviously giving birth since i was waiting for what seemed like an infinite number of minutes), i noticed our friend yakking it up with her former TA and his friends who'd just come in from the cold. it's nice to know that you can always bump into familiar faces even in a super bloated college town like westwood village.
as a follow-up to the sidebar, i absolutely must elaborate on the second reason for mr. noodle being located at the center of the world. here it is: because apparently my dinner date (a friend who oozes fun AND sarcasm) is apparently the sun and her smile brightens up the room -- at least for our server!!! OMG. i swear i couldn't stop laughing. not b/c the comment was untrue or anything (b/c it so isn't!), but let's just say the scenario in which the comment came out was totally laughable. the one bad thing about mr. noodle is that the waitstaff can barely speak english. not that this is heinous, but when the communication sucks, it sucks.
so this pathetic little waiter comes up to our table and starts going on and on about how his friend (who was our server) is pretty much enraptured by my friend, her smile, her voice, and whatever else that he couldn't find the words for. b/c unfortunately, this waiter could barely string two syllables together and the whole thing was just a scene from a really bad romantic comedy. plus, i'm not quite sure how good of a friend this guy was, especially when he asked my friend to say a few nice words to our server when he came back. to be sure, we had no idea WHAT words she was supposed to utter, but i suppose her melodic voice was enough. does anyone think our server had any role in this madness?! was he seriously in love w/my friend? or just an innocent pawn in this bizarre mr. noodle play?!
b/c he didn't seem to have much of an expression on his face when he dropped off our food in a paper bag and walked away. but perhaps he would've fainted if he'd lingered much longer? my attitude: if he wanted a date, he should've just asked for it. why play these games?! especially when he AND his friend ended up looking way foolish.
at any rate, my poor friend was heinously embarrassed and glared at me for busting out at the table. i mean, i tried to hold it in, but no one could seriously expect me NOT to react. it was just...so bad...so so bad.... needless to say, neither of us are going back there anytime soon. regardless of the fact that the food itself was quite yummy. but then again, you have to have a minimum of $15 to charge, so that put a damper on things too. isn't having a minimum illegal btw?!
i love mr. noodle, but i could definitely do w/o the drama. fo sho.
Mr. Noodle
936 Broxton Ave
Los Angeles CA 90024
310.208.7808
http://www.misternoodle.com/fmain.htm
Friday, February 1, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)