Valentine's Day

Anna Greer and Tina Stormberg: Owners of L.A.'s Oddest Bikini Shop

One of the fascinating Angelenos featured in L.A. Weekly's People 2013 issue. Check out our entire People 2013 issue here. Best friends since preschool, Anna Dewey Greer and Christine (Tina) Stormberg moved from Omaha to Los Angeles to open a bikini shop that was also a life/art project and also a g ... More >>

Natashia Deon: Defense Attorney By Day, Novelist By Night

One of the fascinating Angelenos featured in L.A. Weekly's People 2013 issue. Check out our entire People 2013 issue here. At 24, Natashia Deon thought she had her whole life figured out. Despite hanging around L.A. nightclubs while working as a teenage promoter for radio station 92.3 The Beat, she ... More >>

10 Best Burlesque Shows in L.A.

Modern burlesque may have its roots in retro culture (and the objectification that was prevalent in the past), but today it's become an undeniably empowering form of expression for the women who do it and a unique form of entertainment for an avid fan base that goes way beyond the turn-on. Cheesy i ... More >>

10 Best Moments at Last Night's Wayne's World Reunion

See also: *The Five Most Culturally Significant Wayne's World Songs Last night, the cast and crew of the SNL sketch-turned-feature Wayne's World gathered at the Academy -- of all places -- to celebrate the film's 21st anniversary. (It probably helped that host Hawk Koch, executive producer of Wayn ... More >>

Happy Hour: Jay's Bar in Silver Lake

Place: Jay's Bar, 4321 W. Sunset Blvd., Silverlake; (323) 666-1898. Hours: Daily 4 p.m.-7 p.m. Deals: $1 off all drafts and wine by the glass; $1 sake shots all day; $3 cans of PBR and bottles of Coors Light; $3 off draft pitchers and wine by the bottle. Five options for food -- including fresh c ... More >>

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including a Pycho-Sexual Boxing Match

Pycho-sexual spectacles got nods from our critics this week, including Illyrian Players' Lord Blackberry's Apocalypse and our Pick of the Week, Tender Napalm. Nice reviews also for Doma Theatre Company's Dreamgirls at the MET, Sarah Ruhl's Eurydice at A Noise Within, Latino Theatre Company's Melacho ... More >>

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including an Unusual Look at Motherhood

This week, our critics enjoyed composer and musical director Gregory Nabours' 90-minute musical The Trouble With Words (Coeurage Theatre Company at the Unknown Theatre) as well as a quartet of one-acts at the Lillian under the collective title Unscreened. This week's Pick goes to Dorothy Fortenberry ... More >>

Theater to See in L.A. This Week, Including Prancing Horses on a Stage the Size of a Football Field

The Canadian troupe Cavalia wowed critic Lovell Estell III this week with its equestrian spectacle Cavalia's Odysseo. Good notices also for Diane Glancy's The Bird House at the Autry National Center, and for a revival of Carlos Murillo's Dark Play (or Story for Boys) at the Whitmore-Lindley The ... More >>

Q & A With Nigella Lawson: On Her New Cookbook Nigellissima, The Taste, And Whether There's Too Much Food on TV

As always, Nigella Lawson has a lot of balls in the air. Her new show The Taste with Anthony Bourdain, Ludu LeFebre and Brian Malarky, has turned out to be quite a hit. At the same time, she's just released her 9th cookbook, Nigellissima, which celebrates the flavors of Italy. We sat down with her o ... More >>

L.A. DUI Checkpoints In Hollywood, Downtown Starting Tonight

We hope you're enjoying your Valentine's Day hangover. Don't turn your weekend into a heartbreaker: The LAPD has announced three DUI checkpoints for the weekend, including one in the heart to of Hollywood clubland tonight. From what we hear, the drunk-driver bust is not too romantic. So here's yo ... More >>

The Best Concerts in L.A. This Week

Monday, February 11 Hindu Pirates SILVERLAKE LOUNGE The days of oh-so-crude adjectives like "surf" and "garage" are well behind O.C.'s Hindu Pirates now. For while the Pirates are in fact darlings of the surf-skate industry, as evidenced by their clean and pristine session last year at Hurley's in- ... More >>

Product Review: The Pizza Baking Steel, A Thin Crust Game Changer?

On our quest for the perfect pizza crust, we've broken pizza stones (more than one), tried all of the mock pizza oven tricks (Bricks!) and talked with chefs like Jeff Mahin over at Stella Rosa about our unfulfilled crust expectations. And now, the Baking Steel. Baking pizza on steel is an idea Mah ... More >>

Top 6 Weekend Food Events: ''Save the Waves" Fundraiser, Ray Garcia Lobster Demo, Food Art, Mexican Market Tour, Rum Tasting Downtown L.A. Dishcrawl

"Save the Waves" Fundraiser Support the Long Beach chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, an environmental advocacy group, with a multicourse, seafood-centric dinner from local chefs. The menu includes albacore tartare (from David LeFevre and Ray Hayashi of Manhattan Beach Post), smoked trout with kum ... More >>

LuvAmp Wants to Open Up Your Heart (Don't Be Scared)

The notion of opening your heart through music definitely sounds like cloying new age stuff. Tony Moss is aware of that. But he also knows that music can actually open the heart up, as proven by quantifiable data (having to do with electromagnetic fields and planetary energetics). It's called heart ... More >>

The Nerdiest Holiday Display in Los Angeles

See also: *5 Artsy Things to Do in L.A. This Week *Our Calendar Section, Listing More Great Things to Do in L.A. Nothing says happy holidays to a nerd like a shelf full of vintage action figures in Santa caps. That's the sight that greets customers outside Curry House in West Los Angeles, drawing ... More >>

Rick James' "Super Freak": Why This Song Sucks

[Editor's note: Why This Song Sucks determines why particular tracks blow using science. It appears on West Coast Sound every Wednesday.] Song: Rick James' "Super Freak" History: This was the song that Bobby Flynn performed on Australian Idol 4! Also, Rick James sang it in 1981. p.s. HOLY FUCK, ... More >>

Jason Nash Is Married : Larry David Meets Lucy Ricardo in One of the Best Web Sitcoms You're Not Watching

"It's a funny thing with me. Things seem to go poorly when I am around them." A little bit clueless egoist (think Larry David) with a little Lucy Ricardo thrown in, Jason Nash plays more or less himself in his web series Jason Nash Is Married , soon on the Comedy Central website, in which he's a st ... More >>

Make Us Laugh, Funny Boy!

Jason Nash

10 Bars Most Likely to Get You Laid in L.A.

If there's one thing Valentine's Day hammers home, it's the suckiness (or lack thereof) of being solo. We're talking S-E-X, people, and for you poor souls who had an unsatisfying week sans even a prospect for V***** or D*** (we're talking body parts, not venereal disease), it's time to put it all b ... More >>

Ryan Adams - Disney Hall - 2/17/12

Ryan Adams Disney Hall 2-17-12 See also: Why Ryan Adams Isn't Allowing Photos Better than... Listening to Love Is Hell in its entirety on Valentine's Day because Heartbreaker just wouldn't be depressing enough. Unless that's your thing. I guess I'd consider myself in the 90th percentile of Ryan ... More >>

LA Weekly Flickr Pool Reader Photo of the Day: Nutella Brownies for Valentine's Day

This LA Weekly Flickr pool photo, taken by photographer Cooking On The Weekends, manages to combine most of the key elements of Valentine's Day into one shot -- and one recipe. You've got the hearts, the chocolate, the pretty colors. You even have Nutella, which is what some of us plan to eat for di ... More >>

Lady Danville's Van Flipped Over. It Was Inspiring

Trio Lady Danville formed in 2007 by two former UCLA a cappella boys and a musical theater major. Capturing the yearning harmonies and earnestness of college scene bands like Guster and Fleet Foxes, they've ridden that wave around the country, opening for Ben Folds, pop-punk band Jack's Mannequin an ... More >>

William Shatner on His New Solo Show, on Broadway and at the Pantages

Mexicali Taco & Co. Opens Next Week

B. MesirowAn asada cachetada and a vegetarian vampiro​There is something undeniably wonderful about eating in a parking lot late at night. The fresh air, the view, the fact that calories don't count when you're using your trunk as a table. We were initially a bit worried that the magic of Mex ... More >>

Cook This...Get Laid, Or How to Have a Really Happy Valentine's Day

Why should it be believed that only a man's stomach is the gateway to his heart? Women just as easily -- perhaps more easily -- get their fires lit by a man who cooks. And if the guy's really smart about it, he can parlay that spark from kitchen to the bedroom. If you need help figuring out exactly ... More >>

Ben Flajnik: Winemaker First, TV's The Bachelor Second

Sonoma MagazineIn the vineyard with The Bachelor and partners​Most people dream of quitting their day job to be on TV. ABC's The Bachelor Ben Flajnik says his reality star turn is a means to an end: His heart is in winemaking. (He auditioned for The Bachelorette originally as a way to pursue ... More >>

What's in Season at the Farmers Markets: California-Grown Truffles, No Violence Required

Somewhere in a back alley outside of Paris, $30,000 worth of black European truffles is changing hands. Asking the seller about the truffles' origins could send them packing to another less inquisitive buyer, so the buyer ponies up quietly and hauls off the heavily perfumed, cloth-lined crate while ... More >>

Mexicali Taco & Co. to Open Restaurant

Hallelujah! Mexicali Taco & Co., famous for its vampiros and considered by many the purveyor of the best taco in Los Angeles, is finally opening a brick-and-mortar restaurant -- and it's spitting distance from where its humble parking lot stand once stood at First & Beaudry.

Time Warner Cable Launches 'Ryan Gosling On Demand' for Valentine's Day

From "The 20 Most Flawless, Perfect Pictures Of Ryan Gosling At The Airport." Really.​You're welcome, Time Warner, for the free publicity. Don't get used to it. But this time, you knew exactly how to rope a lady blogger into covering your clunky, last-century cable services: all Ryan Gosling, ... More >>

Report: Treating Workers Well Helps Bottom Line

As the restaurant industry's busiest and most profitable day of the year (Valentine's Day) approaches, ROC has released two reports: a study challenging the idea that restaurants can succeed only by keeping labor costs low and a Diners' Guide spotlighting restaurants that aim for sustainability -- n ... More >>

Do You Schmear What I Schmear?

Best 2011 Baking Books For Those In Need Of A Martha Stewart Detox

CakeSpyRainbow Cake From "CakeSpy"​We all have a friend or two who is in dire need of being weaned from their Martha Stewart entertaining habits or persistent Rachael Ray cookie book fixes. But handing them the latest crémeux-filled pastry book from Michel Roux is only going to send them into ... More >>

Warpaint: Back From The Road, Ready For The Bowl

Steve ApplefordWarpaint's Emily Kokal, Theresa Wayman, Stella Mozgawa and Jenny Lee Lindberg.​The road can take some getting used to for a young garage band. For the ladies of Warpaint, the last seven weeks riding tour buses and airplanes across Australia, Japan, Europe and the U.K. took a ser ... More >>

Why Los Angeles Schoolkids Get Lousy Meals

Barbie, 7 Kens Scale Mattel Headquarters in El Segundo, Protest Doll Boxes Made From Indonesian Rainforests

Molly Peterson/KPCCProtest Barbie has brief wig malfunction​Apparently inspired by last month's super meta Disney protest -- in which Burbank activists dressed as Mickey and Minnie chained themselves to the front gates of corporate headquarters and hung a banner reading "Disney: Destroying Ind ... More >>

Samwell (of "What What in the Butt" Fame) Will Make Personal Calls for You for $9.95

​Looking for the perfect gift, just the right way to send your condolences, or maybe to thank that potential employer for the interview? Samwell has you covered. For just $9.95 you can have Samwell make a personal call: that's right, the "What What In The Butt" guy is available for live pho ... More >>

Music to Pick Up/Download

Mormons, Incest and Weird Car Crashes: The Sordid Saga of The 5 Browns, Utah's Version of the Von Trapp Family

The 5 Browns: A sordid saga​Today's incredibly strange music story comes courtesy of the great fellow Western state of Utah. There once (back in the '90s) was a quintet of classical piano-playing siblings--the Mormon version of the Von Trapp family from Sound of Music, if you will. Three adora ... More >>

Meet Your Busser: Gilbert Solorza (First in a Series)

​ We spend a lot of time, here at Squid Ink, writing about restaurants and their food. How it tastes, how it smells, how it looks. Sometimes, we even talk about where that food comes from. Maybe we celebrate the chef who cooked it. One thing we almost never discuss: The people who, day-in and ... More >>

Compton Cricket Team 'Homies & the Popz' to Rep U.S. in Tourney Down Under (BONUS: They Rap About It)

Compton Cricket ClubThis is not a joke​A dozen dreamers from the hood, one geographically displaced athletic passion. Dare we say Jamaican bobsled team? Nah, but the Compton Cricket Club is nine times as street. Even streeter: These guys might actually have a chance at beating "comparably com ... More >>

Top 10 Unmissable Bands Inexplicably Hidden on the Coachella 2011 Poster

Top 10 Unmissable "Small Type" Acts of Coachella 2011

House on Genesee

Where showcasing is a way of life

Happy Hour: Suede Bar & Lounge in Downtown

Celia SoudryVodka-Pineapple​ The Place: Suede Bar & Lounge, 404 S Figueroa St., Suite 102, Los Angeles; (213) 489-3590. The Hours: Monday through Friday, from 4 to 8 p.m. The Deals: $4 well drinks and house wine, $4 draft beers, $4-$6 appetizers. Celia SoudrySuede Bar & Lounge​The Di ... More >>

Q & A With Rustic Canyon Chef Evan Funke, Part 2: Duct Tape as Kitchen Tool, Pasta-making in Italy Home Again

Yesterday we left off the first part of our interview with Rustic Canyon executive chef Evan Funke when he was still at Spago, where he worked his way up the ranks during and after culinary school, and he'd just started telling us about not being able to walk anymore when we stopped. Sorry. Consider ... More >>

Manny Pacquiao: The Fight of His Life

Boxer goes for his greatest win yet — congressman

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