TO COOK OR NOT TO COOK THANKSGIVING DINNER (CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE)

Out of nowhere, it seems that Thanksgiving has reared its not-so-ugly head. I'm finding it a little hard to believe that it's officially the holiday season, and that tomorrow kicks-off the unrequited food-fest that is sure to cause a spike in the number of New Year's resolutions to be made for 2009.

This time last year I had holiday cheer pouring out my asshole. This year, not so much. It's almost as if time is moving way too fast for me to enjoy it day-to-day.

At any rate, tonight I party. Tomorrow I drive, with a friend, up north to spend the holiday with my sister and some family friends. It will be a nice time to see familiar faces from the East Coast. It will be less fun trying to work my way around dinner without feeling the need to stuff my face as if it were my job. I know that Thanksgiving Day is the one day where I should care less about my caloric intake, and care more about the things I'm thankful for. While food makes me happy, this year I am not putting it on the top of my "what I'm thankful for" list... but I'll try to enjoy it as best as I can. (That, or I'll drink my Thanksgiving dinner. At least I can pee out a bottle of red wine, theoretically speaking. Although... I know it's nearly not as fun as eating turkey drowning in gravy with stuffing and mashed potatoes on the side. Fatticus Rex, is my name.)

For those who are sticking around the area, and who aren't adept to the world of the kitchen, then here's a little something for you...

Joe's Restaurant in Venice is offering Thanksgiving Dinner for $58/adult and $20/children. Choose from brined turkey, roasted venison, cod sous vide, or an autumn plate (adults; children may order off the "childrens' menu"). Chef de Cuisine Michael Bryant is sure not to disappoint with his passion for cooking surely influencing even the special holiday menu.

So if slaving away in the kitchen is not your cup-of-tea, then let the experts do the cooking for you. For a taste of home, make your way to Joe's. I, on the other hand, will be fighting traffic up the 5-freeway to spend the holiday in The Bay. Fun for me. (HA!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

(Photos from joesrestaurant.com)
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Joe's Restaurant, 1023 Abbot Kinney Boulevard, Venice, CA 92091, 310.399.5811 (reservations)

SEE YOU AT THE L.A. FOOD SHOW

The team behind California Pizza Kitchen (CPK) has opened their second L.A. Food Show in Beverly Hills (the original LAFS is in Manhattan Beach). Touted by many as "CPK without the pizza," LAFS boasts a pretty enormous menu which is a cultural mish-mash. Patrons will find influences from Chinese, Thai, Mexican, American, and Italian cuisines (among others).

I personally have this thing against restaurants belonging to national chains (think Rocksugar in Century City, aka "the Asian Cheesecake Factory, but cooler"), but I'm hoping that LAFS does well. I'm sure it will fulfill the needs of the area's tourist market, and might be a nice respite from BH's pricier set of mediocre offerings. I just hope it lasts longer than Foodcourt L.A. (I make the connection because of the similarities in their names. "Foodcourt L.A." was a horrible name. It brought to mind Chick-Fil-A and Cajun Express situated right beside each other in a busy mall foodcourt. "L.A. Food Show" sounds like a traveling gig for food vendors and buyers; equally idiotic name.)

Best of luck, LAFS!
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L.A. Food Show, 252 N. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210, 310-550-9758

UGLY-SHOES CENTRAL

I love my Saturday mornings. I love not having to wake-up to an annoying set of alarms (I have two). I love being able to sleep in (although for some strange reason I still end up waking up around 7AM no matter what time I go to bed the Friday night before). I love waking up to make a fresh pot of GREAT coffee (because the coffee at work sucks; and I work for a hospitality chain... go figure). I love actually cooking a Saturday-morning breakfast. I love the idea of doing absolutely nothing, but almost always ending up finding something to do.

I had to drop something off at the post office, so I pushed myself out of the apartment about a half-hour past noon. Then I did the obvious: Saturday recon at The Promenade. If time permits, and lately this has been a Saturday morning ritual for me, I would get up and head over to The Promenade. It's kind of dangerous that I live so close to it. It's even more dangerous that the list of stores runs like a litany of my patron saints: Zara, MNG, Banana, Club Mon, J. Crew, Urban, Benetton, etc. Throw in Barnes & Noble, Border's, Jamba Juice and The Coffee Bean and I've got my own personal resort (of sorts). Top that off with the Saturday morning Farmers' Market that takes place right on Arizona. Combine all of these things to make a perfect Saturday morning in SaMo. This is my life. What the hell?

I couldn't help but notice, as I usually do, the different kinds of shoes that were worn on The Promenade this morning. And suffice to say, I think it's definitely safe to conclude that the L.A. area is definitely "ugly-shoes central." My friends and I are always having conversations about how all of the ugly shoes in the country seem to find their way to Los Angeles to die. But bless the hearts of all those who go and buy them anyway.

The weird thing is that so many people claim L.A. to be some fashion mecca. In some ways, sure. If you're looking for premium denim, then L.A. is definitely the place to be. Same with all of that "Hollywood/Rocker chic" madness which, to me, is nothing short of a good idea gone bad. I'm personally over cross bones and bleeding hearts on everything from jackets and t-shirts. Oh, and the annoying "Ed Hardy" logos that are splashed across those equally annoying t-shirts that everyone seems to want to wear is so... annoying. Wearing logos was so high school/college.

I guess L.A. will never be NYC or London, Paris, Milan, or even Tokyo. But it's definitely got it's own charm. But somehow the shoes that come to L.A. have been devoid of anything remotely charming. I mean you can walk down Melrose, Main St. in Santa Monica, or even in Old Town Pasadena and find an amazing set of shoes in random stores, but why is it that no one seems to want to wear those out? Instead, I find poorly-chosen shoes that obviously missed the re-call inspection that should've rightfully kept them from seeing the light of day.

One chick was wearing these red pumps. They were tomato red, and had these ugly white pieces of frayed cloth sticking out from inside the shoe. I wanted to believe that she had mistakenly inserted toilet tissue in her shoe, but when I took a closer look I found that I was wrong. I wanted to whip out my camera phone to take a snapshot, but then my eyes caught another pair. Some older woman wore this half-boot/half-shoe creation that had a panty-hose-like sheer wrap thingy going on all up and down her ankles. I forgave her because she looked like she was 60-something. But after a minute or so I had to renig on that. That choice she made before she walked out her house this morning was nothing short of fucked-up.

Then the dudes. Man. I thought that the guys back home in the DC area had some of the most boring tastes in shoes. The men in L.A. are definitely not boring when it comes to shoe choice, but that doesn't mean that they're any better than the women. I saw a man wearing these moccassin-style boots, which might've looked good if he were sleeping in a wigwam. I mean, really? Was he that serious? Still, another guy was wearing these boots that looked hot from afar, but the close-up glimpse almost blinded me. Fellas, do NOT sport bling on your shoes. Put that shit on your fingers, on a chain, or even in your mouth, but don't be puttin' that shit on your shoes! The rhinestone cowboy look was out when I was like 2 years old.

Luckily my ugly-shoe sightings were halted when I got to Zara. I eyed a jacket on the mannequin in the window, went inside, found it, tried it on, and bought it. Knowing what other damage could've been done in that same vain, I left The Promenade as soon as I made that purchase. And if I know what's good for me, I won't go back there in the next few Saturdays to come.

No more spending, and hopefully no more ugly-shoe sightings at The Promenade for me.

PRE-THANKSGIVING SWEETNESS...

With Thanksgiving (that’s “skanksgiving” to all my homies back in the 301/202/703 –ha!) just around the corner, it is only fitting that people start to share in the joy that is the holiday season. Eff the gift-buying, gift-giving, and crowded malls. The holidays, after all, are all about the food.

Now here’s something I “borrowed” from my friend, Jess Spino (aka Jessie “I’m so excited! I’m so excited! I’m so…scared!” Spano); her blog - “Jessie’s Recipes” - is chock-full of good stuff. This one’s called DEATH BY CARAMEL BARS:

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Death By Caramel Bars


Ingredients:
3 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 cups unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs lightly beaten
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup uncooked regular oats
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
6 (2.07-oz.) chocolate-coated chopped Snickers
1 (14-oz.) can dulce de leche (found with other Mexican ingredients, or on the baking aisle)

Combine the first four ingredients in a large bowl and stir well. Combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter mixture, stirring just until blended. Fold in chopped candy bars.

Spoon batter into a greased aluminum foil-lined 13" x 9" pan coated with cooking spray, allowing foil to extend over ends of pan (the pan will be very full). Spoon dollops of dulce de leche over batter; swirl slightly into batter with a knife.

Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 5 minutes. Remove to a wire rack, and cool completely. (This may take several hours.) Use foil to lift uncut brownies out of pan. Peel foil away from sides of uncut brownies, and cut into bars. Makes about 2 dozen bars.

This ends up being nice and tall with pockets of caramel goo. For an over-the-top dessert, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzle with caramel sauce (though the bars hold their own naked…).
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Today Jess brought in a pumpkin/chocolate brownie thing that’s totally yummm-o. And to add to the pre-Thanksgiving fat-fest, Tracey (one of our other friends) brought in the death by caramel thing. Nozomi (another friend) cut me a small piece that resembled the state of Oklahoma, and I inhaled it (mind you, I had eaten two pieces of Jess’ prior). Afterward, I walked into Tracey’s office to tell her how awesome it was, but before I could even open my mouth she gave me this warning:

“Wendel, before you go back there and get another piece of it, I have to tell you that everything in it is super bad for you!”

She proceeded to pull up the recipe to show me what was in it, and I told her I wasn’t even thinking of going back for more (but secretly I was). When she pulled up the recipe, and told me how much butter she used, I almost cried. And these wouldn’t have been tears of joy, nor tears of sadness… but tears of FEAR; fear that the butter would make me double, maybe even triple, in size.

Instead of going back for more, I decided I’d share the recipe with others so that the fat may spread to everyone else besides me.

Get to it, folks. The holidays are literally right around the corner…

LA-DI-DAAAAAA...

Just thought that I'd update. I've been on the slow road to the restaurant/bar scene lately, opting for quiet nights at home. I think I'm secretly wishing that it would get cold. It's mid-November, and there are fires burning in SoCal. Maybe I'm still not used to it after these past few years, but damn. Can I get a wind-chill factor? Can I have a reason to bust out my space heater? Can I wear a coat already? Put on boots? A scarf even?

OK. I digress.

Just to update you (or not), I haven't been out lately. I went to Comme Ca again last weekend, but this time for brunch. I figured that blogging about my dinner experience there (from a couple of months ago) would serve the same purpose, so eh. Brunch was awesome, though! Had the quiche, and it made me happy. It was almost just as good as my Dad's (love my Dad's quiche). That same weekend I also finally hit up Rush Street in Culver City, but only for drinks. I'd been wanting to check it out for a while, and from what I was able to eye (from other peoples' plates) the food looked good. I have yet to try it. (Vodka-sodas, though, were great, and did the job.)

In other news, yesterday I suffered a loss. Yes, friends, I lost my Prada sunglasses while out Christmas shopping for my God-children. I'd like to say that it was a loss all in the name of gift-giving, but that's too easy. And truthfully, it just doesn't sit well with me. It was a loss that I couldn't stand to bare for a couple of reasons:

1) I wasn't drunk. I was sober as all hell. The last pairs of sunglasses (D&G and Emporio Armani, respectively), were lost during random drunken nights. Those I can blame on the effects of alcohol; my mind was clearly not working right, therefore the loss was easier to bear. (PS: I also lost a pair of Versus sunglasses, too, but I think in the end I didn't really like them enough to care, even though I spent just about $200 on them. Whatever.)

2) The whole incident was (is) a real-time affirmation that I do not need to purchase designer sunglasses ever again.

I noticed I was missing them when I got into my car. All I remember was realizing, out loud, that "I don't have my Prada sunglasses!" Knots started to form in my stomach, and sweat started to form on my brow. The thought of losing another pair was too much to handle.

I threw my stuff into my car, and then back-tracked all the way back to the store. I walked in, without trying to look too obvious (I didn't want the workers to see me there again, with no shopping bags; so weird), and I started skimming the floor around all the areas that I had walked through. When I got to the back of the store, I was literally screaming in my head: "St. Anthony, help me! St. Anthony, help me!" Then I realized that sounded too selfish, so I changed it up a tad: "St. Anthony, PLEASE help me!" Ah, it was too late. They were nowhere to be found. And I thought to ask someone, but at that point I had come to terms with the fact that no one would rightfully turn in a pair of Prada sunglasses. Someone ganked that shit.

I returned to my car, defeated, and proceeded to the gym. When I got to the gym at work, I was the only person there. I walked right into the men's locker room, plopped my bag on the bench, and fell to the floor.

I had a moment.

I grudgingly got changed, then went to the workout room. I got on a treadmill, and before I started my run, I had a mini-meltdown. I was literally screaming, at the top of my lungs (and hitting things around me): "WHY DOES THIS ALWAYS HAPPEN TO ME!" I was on the verge of tears, but nothing would come out. Instead, I ran a mile in less than 10 minutes (which I haven't done in YEARS), so today I am sore because of it. (I got on the elliptical afterwards.)

When that was done, I went home and drank a bottle of red wine to mourn my loss. And I secretly went on-line to look at possible replacements. That went on for a good few minutes before I realized that I was being an idiot.

I am going to have to pass on the designer sunglass thing for a while. (Even though, after I went back to the store to look for my glasses, I walked into Loehmann's to see what was there. I was close to buying these ugly-ass Dolce and Gabbana aviators when I realized that I was being a total drone, and looking to replace something so material that it shouldn't even matter to me.) And it doesn't matter to me. (Well, until after the holidays it won't matter to me. Ha.)

So that's the latest and greatest with me. I'm sure I could dish on fun-ner stuff, but I chose to share this story because there is a moral to it: DO NOT WEAR YOUR DESIGNER SUNGLASSES OUT IF YOU'RE MORE THAN LIKELY TO LOSE THEM.

Side note to all those suckas who are now in possession of my Versus, D&G, Emporio Armani, and - now - Prada sunglasses... I hope that you're happy. You are stylin' at my expense, and my sheer stupidity. It's my fault, but in the end you're still in possesion of my sloppy seconds.

Fuckers.

DROP! COVER! HOLD ON!

Get ready SoCal-ians...

Tomorrow, November 13th, Southern California will host the largest earthquake preparedness activity in U.S. history: The Great Southern California ShakeOut.

This drill is based on a potential magnitude 7.8 earthquake, which can happen along the San Andreas Fault. Per reports, this would be approximately 5,000x larger than the 5.4 earthquake we felt here in late July. And as reports say, it really isn't a matter of IF, but a matter of WHEN an earthquake of this size will happen. It's possible that it may happen in our lifetime. Eeek!


So the drill will call for SoCal-ians to DROP! COVER! and HOLD ON! The activity will be done to allow us to practice this exercise. In the event of a big earthquake, it's possible that there would be little time to protect yourself against falling/shifting objects and/or strong shaking. It's important to know that the first thing to do in an earthquake is to drop to the ground, seek cover (like under a desk, table, or even doorway), and then hold on for dear life.

10:00AM tomorrow, the drill starts. It should last abut 60 seconds. If you're not near a table or desk, then run to a corner of the room, then crouch down and cover your face and head with your arms.

For more info, and additional earthquake preparedness tips for the home/office, go to www.ShakeOut.org.

Be safe, SoCal!

WOOHOO FOR DEMOCRACY!

So... Barack Obama won the long-awaited presidential race for the U.S. Not that I ever had any doubts. Even though I was never a hard-core Obama fan, I just knew that he was going to win; he represents the new wave of politics that the next generation will surely follow and take part in. He won my vote in the end, and last night's declaration was nothing less than emotional for me. His speech was great (until towards the end when he started to sound preachy. For some reason I can't stand it when anyone gets that "preachy" tone in their voice... and it's nothing against the person. I think I just shut down when I hear someone talk in that kind of way. LOL.), and it was simply done. No frills. Just Barack being Barack.

John McCain's speech was nice, too. Personally, I thought he ran a decent race up until he chose Sarah Palin as his running mate. I think that was one of the things that did him in. Also, I think that he was just caught up being a Republican at the wrong time; the Republicans are in a somewhat toxic state right now, and have a lot of cleaning up to do within their party. Not that the Democrats are without their issues, but after eight long, arduous years of the Bush agenda into play, the Repubs really need this time to spend working on re-building themselves, and re-evaluating their stance on everything. I was just floored by McCain's gracious speech (even though he had a bunch of booing losers in his audience).

The non-winner of the night, however, has to go to Michelle Obama. I'm sorry, but what the hell was she wearing? On the biggest night of her husband's political career, she chose to wear that red/black dress? And of all of the pieces in Narciso Rodriguez's collection, she had to wear that one, didn't she?! Oh, Michelle. Well, she's got four years with us, so let's hope that she will not make the same mistake again. (Ahahaah! Still love ya, lady!)

GO VOTE...!

The time has come, folks.

Get out and VOTE!

At this point, it really doesn't matter who you vote for. Just go out and do the deed. Personally, I haven't voted since Clinton's first win. (Yes, that was YEARS ago.) And I know that a lot of people have been disappointed, or shocked, that I - of all people - had not exercised my right to vote, especially after all of the things I was involved with back in college. But after years of being jaded, I've decided that now is the time to get back into the swing of things, and to start caring again.

I grew up in an extremely Republican household. And while I have always been socially Democratic, I've remained fiscally Republican. Right now, though, I am so over Bush, but I personally haven't been touched by either party (at all) this election season. Despite this, I do know that what I definitely want is change. That said, I'm sure you can figure out who I'm leaning towards. But hey - look at it this way... the country goes through change every so often - some years the Repubs win, some years go to the Dems. All I know is that we need change, and change - whether good or bad - keeps us moving. And moving forward is what we need to do.

Let's handle this.

VOTE!