Syria

All We Want For Christmas: A Wish List From The LA Weekly Food Team

It's that time of year, when material and consumer lust the joy of giving is upon us. There are a million food-related gift guides out there, many of them touting all that's new and exciting in the world of cooking gadgets and indulgent eating. But I thought, rather that scour the web for gift ideas ... More >>

Armenian Film Festival

Ben Gibbard: Folks' Obsession With My Personal Life Is Disappointing

Amidst a divorce with Zooey Deschanel, Death Cab For Cutie frontman Ben Gibbard soldiers on, focusing on a solo project, following baseball blogs, and jogging. Though the first single from his recently-released solo album "Teardrop Windows" has folks assuming that he's jumped back on the emo train, ... More >>

The 5 Things You Need to Know About This Week's Review of Mezze

This week, Mezze is the subject of my review. While I hope you'll take the time to read the full review, I offer this Mezze-review-for-dummies blog post. Food: Middle Eastern influenced New American, with a focus on small plates, but also a few fantastic entrees and a selection of flatbreads. From ... More >>

Kristen Stewart, L.A. Director Rupert Sanders Apologize for Affair; Sexual Tension on Set Was Palpable

All anyone can talk about this morning, aside from that stupid 3.7-mag in Marina Del Rey, is 22-year-old Kristen Stewart's far-from-alleged fling with 41-year-old Los Angeles director Rupert Sanders on the set of Snow White and the Huntsman. They're pictured making out in the new issue of US Weekly ... More >>

Fanatics! Henry Rollins' KCRW Show Tomorrow Night: Cramps, Andy Warhol References

KCRW Broadcast #156 for Saturday, March 17, 2012 See also: Henry Rollins: The Column! Rebelling in Sweet Home Alabama Fanatics! I am writing you from what's left of a night off in Washington DC. I had a good day driving around town with Ian MacKaye. A few hours ago, we drove by the house where Min ... More >>

Occupy L.A.: An Arrestee's Story

Ted Soqui​Editor's note: Matt Kresling was arrested last Wednesday along with 292 others at the Occupy L.A. encampment. He submitted this first-person account to the Weekly share his reasons for involvement - as well as explain what happened after the arrestees were separated from the watchful ... More >>

5 Best Gelato Shops in Los Angeles

Guzzle & NoshAssorted flavors at Gelato Bar in Los Feliz.​Yesterday, we listed the 5 Best Ice Cream Shops in Los Angeles. Today, we move onto gelato. Taxonomy is crucial in these matters. 5. Gelato Bar (Los Feliz, Studio City): Owned by Gail Silverton (sister of Mozza pizza queen Nancy), Gela ... More >>

National Geographic's Top 10 National Dishes Guess What Americans Like To Eat

Anne FishbeinBurger Kitchen's breakfast hamburger​Food blogs aren't the only publications with endless lists or pictures of pretty things people like to eat. National Geographic, the magazine many of us fondly remember from grade school science classrooms and dentists' offices, is the latest t ... More >>

A Recipe For Freekeh Salad With Grilled Zucchini: A Freaking Good Salad

Jeanne Kelleyfreekeh and grilled zucchini salad​ Bulgur and farro are great, but have you tasted that other wheat grain, freekeh? Freekeh (also frike or frikeh) is a fire-roasted green wheat that's grown in Turkey, Syria and Lebanon. With a distinct green color and a smoky, nutty flavor, freek ... More >>

Henry Rollins: The Column! Howdy Neighbor, Let's Rock This Joint

Timothy Norris​[The one and only Henry Rollins contributes a weekly column and far-reaching reportage to the music section of the LA Weekly. Look for your weekly Henry Rollins fix right here on West Coast Sound every week and make sure to tune in to Henry's KCRW radio show every Saturday eveni ... More >>

Omar Souleyman at the Echo 7/12/11

Gustavo TurnerFrom Syria with Love: Omar Souleyman​ Who: Omar Souleyman Band Where: The Echo When: Tuesday, July 12 Remember Konono Nº1? In 2005, decidedly non-"World Music" types went bonkers over the Congotronics album, and this amazing Congolese dance troupe with makeshift instruments fo ... More >>

Souleyman Transcends Oriental Tropes

The Thursday Edition: A Roundup of Newspaper Food Stories

Flickr/dubh​ What's the country reading today food-wise? Here's a roundup of some of the food-related stories from other newspapers, many of which print their food sections mid-week. And remember, even if you don't actually buy papers these days (or not; this paper is free), it's where most of ... More >>

Henry Rollins! The Column: Listening to Ramones in Tehran

Timothy Norris​[The one and only Henry Rollins contributes a weekly column and far-reaching reportage to the music section of the LA Weekly. Look for your weekly Henry Rollins fix right here on West Coast Sound every Wednesday and make sure to tune in to Henry's KCRW radio show every Saturday ... More >>

Theater Reviews: Charles Dickens' Great Expectations, Looking for Paul, The Night of the Tribades

Also, The Sunset Limited, Uptown Downtown and more

What To Cook On A 2,500-Year-Old Boat, Part 1

Danielle EubankThe Phoenicia sets sail.​When Danielle Eubank signed on as the expedition artist (a fabulous title I don't see often enough on resumés) for the Phoenicia, a facsimile of an ancient Phoenician vessel that would spend two-and-a-half-years sailing around Africa, she expected a lac ... More >>

A Snack Without Borders: Kibbeh

D. GonzalezKibi at Mariscos Yucatan​ One type of appetizer, many different spellings. Kibbie, kibi, even quibe. Through migration and trade, kibbeh, a Middle Eastern meze standard, has integrated itself into the cuisines of Brazil, and Mexico's state of Yucatan. And since Los Angeles is hom ... More >>

Iraqi Metal Band Acrassicauda to Play First L.A. Show Ever

Iraqi Metal Band Acrassicauda to Play First L.A. Show Ever

Don't Ask, Don't Tell: Aladdin Nuthouse Nuts

I am a regular patron of Aladdin Nuthouse, one of the better Armenian nut vendors in town, a place with a half-dozen kinds of melon seeds, delicious sesame peanuts, and a way of roasting hazelnuts and almonds that not only brings out the full, round flavor of the nuts but leaves them rimed with salt ... More >>

Old World Meets New Age in Thriller Nowhere-Land

A.W. Hill's Stephan Raszer is the thinking man's private eye

Messy Shoppers, Guatemalans and Lebanese Wannabes

Painting Through Pirate Waters: Danielle Eubank, Expedition Artist on the All-Wood Phoenicia Sailing Around Africa

Voyage led by British businessman Philip Beale; waterscapes on display at L.A.'s Found Gallery

Reporters on the Wrong End of the News

The new report from Reporters Without Borders on the safety of world journalists is depressing for the very "good" news it brings. Namely, in 2008 there were fewer reporters killed on assignment (60) than during last year (87). However, in another reminder -- however grim -- of the growth of Intern ... More >>

Movie Reviews: Heavy Metal in Baghdad, Postal, War, Inc.

Also, The Cool School, Refusenik and more

Syrian Brunch Sundays at Sham

Spice-scented pleasures

The Chosen Pancake

From Iran to Uzbekistan, the foods of the Jewish Diaspora

Shit, Meet Fan

Middle East goes to brink while Bush fiddles about

Juxtaposed

The personal and the political

Articulate Snarls

The return of protest rock

The Vanishing

Let There Be Light

6 Photographs by Teun Voeten in Iraq, the Gaza Strip and Liberia

Behind Enemy Lines

Joe Scarborough goes to the trenches of Hollywood

The Back Story

Holy Shiite

The Back Story

Let a hundred pipelines bloom

Letters

The Television War

The Back Story

Why we fight

Domestic Targets

With war on, opposition to Fed’s pursuit of Iraqis and others wanes

Overtaking History

The Baghdad stakes

The Back Story

Watching Big Brother

Volunteers monitor round two of Ashcroft’s “special registration” program

Feelings of Insecurity

Inside the U.S. roundup of Muslims

As the World Turns

Not your regular news

A Baghdad Diary

Journey into the abyss

What They Want

Pushing the Envelopes

War Requiem

Amos Gitai’s unholy Kippur

Piecemeal Peace

Shifting politics end 14-year siege in Lebanon