Amy Scattergood

Yassmin Sarmadi at Church  Credit: Photo credit: Anne Fishbein

Sarmadi Buys Out Steven Arroyo at Church & State

Yassmin Sarmadi has bought out her business partner Steven Arroyo at the downtown bistro Church and State. The deal was official at the end of last week. Arroyo's Los Feliz Cobras & Matadors recently closed; the last Cobras is the flagship location on Beverly Boulevard. "He was less involved in......
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Cooking With Christopher Walken: 'Man Makes Chicken With Pears'

If you liked Cooking With Werner, you'll love this one, in which Christopher Walken cooks chicken with pears. Unlike the Werner Herzog skit, this video actually features Walken himself. No dancing, no sudden violence: just a man thoughtfully preparing chicken and roasted pears. Of course YouTube is littered with Walken......
French fries at Umami Burger; Credit: Photo credit: Umami Burger

Top 10 French Fries: Runners-up + The Lost Fries

Which French fries didn't make our Top 10? Well, it's a tough call. Just think about how many fries there are to be had in Los Angeles; the mind reels. Two that almost made it were those at Umami Burger and at Campanile, which are, ironically enough, only a few......
Credit: NBA

7 Eleven Opens New Store: Free Pizza + The Laker Girls

Who'd have guessed that the debut of a new 7-Eleven would be such a grand event? This Friday's opening of the new convenience store in Compton will occasion the kind of fanfare normally reserved for oh, I don't know, a celebrity-named community center or a new hospital wing. In addition......
The Point in Culver City: grassy knoll and construction site; Credit: Photo credit: Amy Scattergood

The Point in Culver City: Reopening Under New Ownership

Because of the construction on National Blvd. in Culver City, you might not have noticed that The Point, the casual restaurant in the Hayden Tract that Beacon's Kazuto Matsusaka and Vicki Fan opened only two years ago next month, closed a few weeks ago. Because of the Light Rail transit......
The Anti-Griddle: better than plastic; Credit: eBay

Top Chef Masters Kitchen Toys: The Anti-Griddle

You know the Top Chef sets were seriously outfitted for the Top Chef Masters shows. You don't turn that crowd loose in a kitchen and not give them the good stuff. Mark Peel, Campanile chef-owner and recent Top Chef Masters alum, says that in addition to a fully-stocked kitchen and......