Besha Rodell

Drink This Now: Cold War Kid at Picca

Besha RodellDecember 27, 2012

There are plenty of cocktails around town this time of year that play with traditional holiday flavors -- orange, cinnamon, mint. And mostly, they're cloying, or at best fun and balanced but not particularly interesting......

L.A. Weekly Will Use a Star Rating System for Restaurant Reviews Going Forward

Besha RodellDecember 27, 2012

Beginning next week, L.A. Weekly's main restaurant reviews will come with a star rating. This week, in place of a restaurant review, I wrote an essay explaining the new system, as well as discussing how the decision to implement stars came about and why we think this is a good......

Exploring The Los Angeles Public Library Menu Collection, The New Years Eve Edition

Besha RodellDecember 26, 2012

Exploring the LAPL menu collection is an ongoing project in which we'll take a close look at the menus owned by the Los Angeles Public Library. Read about the project here. The tradition of New Year's Eve Champagne dining extends back at least as far as the menu archives at......

11 Great L.A. Chefs Tell Us Their Holiday Food Traditions

Besha RodellDecember 24, 2012

For the past couple of weeks, we've been talking to L.A. chefs about their holday food traditions. Here's a roundup of all of those great chefs and what they do for the holidays, food-wise, plus a couple of extras thrown in for good measure......

Chefs Cook At Home, The Holiday Edition: Animal's Jon Shook + A Recipe For Apple Sauce

Besha RodellDecember 23, 2012

For the past week or so, we've been featuring the holiday food traditions of L.A. chefs. Today, we talk to Animal and Son of a Gun chef Jon Shook (who is expecting a wee babe in the spring -- mazel tov) about latkes, brisket, ham and casserole. "I grew up......

Chefs Cook At Home, The Holiday Edition: Le Ka's Remi Lauvand + A Recipe for Shigoku Oysters

Besha RodellDecember 21, 2012

This week and next, we'll be featuring the holiday food traditions of L.A. chefs. Today, Remi Lauvand, chef at the new downtown restaurant Le Ka, talks about his holiday traditions. "I have some great friends who make sure I don't have to do too much during the holidays. I don't......

Best L.A. Novel Ever: Bret Easton Ellis' Less Than Zero vs. John Rechy's City of Night, Round 1

Besha RodellDecember 21, 2012

L.A. Weekly is determining the best L.A. novel ever by holding a tournament featuring 32 of our favorites in head-to-head matchups, until there's only one novel standing. For further reading: *Best L.A. Novel Ever: The Tournament Brackets *Best L.A. Novel Ever: More Matchups Two stream-of-consciousness, first-person narratives told by lost......

Chefs Cook At Home, The Holiday Edition: Sotto's Steve Samson + A Recipe For Tortellini

Besha RodellDecember 21, 2012

This week and next, we'll be featuring the holiday food traditions of L.A. chefs. Today, Sotto's Steve Samson tells us about his family's Christmas tortellini. "My mom is from Bologna so practically every special occasion meal, especially Christmas Day and Easter Sunday, is centered around tortellini. It's become a family......

Chefs Cook at Home, The Holiday Edition: Border Grill's Mary Sue Milliken

Besha RodellDecember 20, 2012

This week and next, we'll be featuring the holiday food traditions of L.A. chefs. Today, we talk to Border Grill's Mary Sue Milliken about her December traditions. "It can't be December without my stollen -- a fantastic buttery yeast dough studded with the best Farmer's Market dry fruit (cognac infused) and......

The 5 Things You Need To Know About Cortez in Echo Park

Besha RodellDecember 20, 2012

This week's restaurant review is about Cortez in Echo Park. We hope you'll take the time to read the full review, but here's a quick rundown......

Food

SusieCakes Turns 20 And A Chef Showdown At Level 8 – Here’s What’s Popping Up

Hollywood On The Coast Food And Wine All Stars Converge Underneath The Fig Tree

A French Fry Festival, Plus The Raising Cane’s Mothership Lands In Inglewood – Here’s What’s Popping Up

Music

PHOTOS: OUTLOUD Music Festival Lights Up WeHo Pride Weekend

Photos: Clave Especial Brings Their Música Mexicana Momentum to the GRAMMY Museum

EDC 30: ‘Pasquale Did That’ — How Insomniac Founder Pasquale Rotella Grew Dance Music Without Losing the Rave

Entertainment

How ‘Interview with the Vampire’ Costume Designer Lex Wood Turned ‘The Vampire Lestat’ into a Rock Star for Season Three

Director Travis Knight Brings His ‘Masters of the Universe’ Dream to Life: Reinventing He-Man’s Lore, Why He ‘Hates’ Skeletor’s Keldor Origin, and the Future of Eternia

The Boys: Glory Hall Immersive Museum Comes To Hollywood

Arts

Africa Curated Brings The Weight Of Holding to Honeypot LA

Art News: Time Is The Essence With Patrick Guetta And The Sound Of Water At Descanso Gardens

Artist Paul Tzanetopoulos Wants To Set The Record Straight On The LAX Pylons

Culture

Photos: Team U.S.A. Dominates Paraguay 4-1 in World Cup Opening Game at SoFi

The Clown Uprising at Hollywood Fringe 2026

Photos: World Cup 2026 Opens with Mexico Win

Cannabis

From Cannabis Pioneer to Mushroom Mogul: How Justin Hartfield is Mapping the Future of Wellness with ShrooMap

From Farm to Door: How Legal THCA Flower Delivery Works

Your Green Guide: Where to Celebrate 4/20 2026 in Los Angeles

Besha Rodell

Drink This Now: Cold War Kid at Picca

L.A. Weekly Will Use a Star Rating System for Restaurant Reviews Going Forward

Exploring The Los Angeles Public Library Menu Collection, The New Years Eve Edition

11 Great L.A. Chefs Tell Us Their Holiday Food Traditions

Chefs Cook At Home, The Holiday Edition: Animal's Jon Shook + A Recipe For Apple Sauce

Chefs Cook At Home, The Holiday Edition: Le Ka's Remi Lauvand + A Recipe for Shigoku Oysters

Best L.A. Novel Ever: Bret Easton Ellis' Less Than Zero vs. John Rechy's City of Night, Round 1

Chefs Cook At Home, The Holiday Edition: Sotto's Steve Samson + A Recipe For Tortellini

Chefs Cook at Home, The Holiday Edition: Border Grill's Mary Sue Milliken

The 5 Things You Need To Know About Cortez in Echo Park

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