Michele StuevenAfter the AutoZone Hollywood fire on Highland Ave. on Saturday, Nov. 16, neighboring Fat Sal’s sandwich shop didn’t waste any time. Like a phoenix from the ashes, they are back with Club Fat Sal’s down the street at 1154 N. Highland. They’ve already launched DoorDash deliveries from their new location, and doors are open to the public daily from 11 a.m. to 3 a.m.
“After watching the epic fire that ravaged Fat Sal’s Hollywood, I went home and tucked my four-year-old in at night and realized what was important,” Josh Stone, Fat Sal’s co-owner said in a statement. “No one was hurt or injured. The very next morning I woke up early and got to work. I found a suitable location for a new restaurant and secured it by 1 p.m. that day. The Fat Sal’s team and I worked tirelessly through the day and night and were able to open for business the following day.”
Courtesy Mother Wolf
Mother Wolf Chef Evan Funke welcomes Chef Sarah Cicolini of Rome’s famed SantoPalato.for an exclusive collaborative dinner series. Together, they will present a special Four Hands feast, showcasing the finest flavors of Cucina Roma. The menu will include five courses, offering a blend of signature dishes and new creations that highlight the very best of truffle season. Some dishes will be crafted solely by Chef Sarah, others by Chef Evan, alongside dishes that combine each Chef’s skill and technique. Reservations are available via Resy at $281.25 per person (price includes 20% gratuity, 5% admin fee, and sales tax). The event takes place Wednesday, Dec. 11, and Thursday, Dec. 12, with dining available between 6:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.
American Beauty, the Venice Beach steakhouse known for its wood-grilled steaks, seafood, and seasonal vegetable dishes is heading east toward the Fairfax district. The new location will introduce weekday lunch and weekend brunch alongside its classic dinner menu. The expansive space will feature an airy, indoor-outdoor horseshoe bar and floor-to-ceiling stackable doors that open to the cozy front patio with fire pits, as well as plush booths, hand-painted murals, and a back patio under trees and string lights. The new location opens on Saturday, Nov 30.
Omni Hotels & Resorts are toasting the season at Blitzen’s Bar, the annual holiday pop-up featuring cocktails from mixologist and star of Netflix’s Drink Masters, Julie Reiner. Featuring 12 festive libations, including two non-alcoholic options, Reiner brings her signature touch to the menu. Festive options include Tidings of Whiskey & Joy and Baby It’s Cold Outside. Get into the spirit of any 13 Omni locations now through Monday, Dec. 30.
American Beauty (Jakob Layman)
James Beard Finalist and Food + Wine Best New Chef and cookbook author Caroline Schiff, formerly the Executive Pastry Chef of the acclaimed Gage & Tollner in Brooklyn, will present a preview of her forthcoming Diner concept for one weekend only within Siete at Santa Monica Proper.
Offering dinner for only two nights – Friday, Dec. 6, and Saturday, Dec. 7, the three-course pre-fixe menu will kick off with a welcome cocktail followed by fun twists on diner classics and signature maximalist desserts for $100 per person. Standouts include spinach artichoke fritters and Black Forest cake bombe flambée. Reservations are available on OpenTable HERE.
One day only, Schiff’s prix-fixe two-course brunch menu will be offered on Sunday, Dec. 8, and will include options like the Challah Amaretto French Toast with whipped cream and roasted plum jam or the Onion Bialy Toad in a Hole with Herby Salad. Reservations are $85 per person and include free-flowing mimosas and bloody marys. Available on OpenTable HERE.
Black Lagoon, Krampus’ Cove is an immersive cocktail pop-up that plunges guests into the dark and twisted world of Krampus returns for its third year to Los Angeles, From Thursday, Dec. 5 through Monday, Dec. 23, Coles’ French Dip will be transformed with black Christmas trees adorned with doll heads, skeletons, skulls, and faux severed body parts and will feature an interactive ticketed show with Krampus and the evil elves for board games with two seatings scheduled every night aside from Tuesdays at 6:30 PM and 8:30 PM. Tickets to purchase are now available on Eventbrite linked (here).
Drink highlights include Better Watch Out with Fords Gin, cranberry rosemary syrup, lemon juice, Bitter Queens Caribbean Bitters, Red Snow with vodka, coconut peppermint syrup, Lustau Amontillado sherry, lemon juice, and absinthe, Red-Rum-pum-pum-pum served hot with Diplomatico Reserva Rum, Lustau Vermut Rojo, Lustau Oloroso Don Nuno, buttered rum batter and Bitter Queens Caribbean Bitters, Santa Slay with ancho chili Mezcal, Cafeto Coffee Liqueur, Creme De Cacao, Lustau Oloroso Don Nuno, cold brew, Bitter Queens chocolate walnut bitters, and toasted milk as well as the Jingle Hell with cranberry rosemary syrup, lemon juice, and tonic water.
What’s Popping Up is a column in the L.A. Weekly that explores everything new in food and drink.
Tidings of Whiskey & Joy (Courtesy Blitzen’s Bar)