Latest Posts

Best Ethnic Cakes from Around the World

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L’Ami’s Best of Mediterranean Livens up Santa Monica Landmark

(Gerry Furth-Sides) If L’Ami Restaurant is not landmark space, it should be.  These days, L’Ami Restaurant’s cuisine may be more Mediterranean than  former incarnations as  French-Canadian and Italian among others, and it once again feels classic and sunny. For starters, the appealing Mediterranean men...

L’Ami’s New Year’s Eve Menu Transports Diners to the Alps

L’Ami’s menu celebrates the flavors and traditions of countries along the Mediterranean coastline.   For New Year’s Eve, 2016, Chef Francis Bey transports guests to the height of the Alps. Large parties are welcome, as well as private dining options, intimate gathering with family or friends, sophisticated reception ...

Chocolate (Honey) and Berries Are Best with — Almost Anything

(Gerry Furth-Sides) In the changing cycle of food favorites, dried fruit is back in fashion.   It transforms baked goods,   ice cream sundaes and absolutely shines on cheese or charcuterie platters. Dried fruit company Stoneridge Orchards and leading honey company Savannah Bee offer the very best variations of their perfect i...

ITALY’S SPARKLERS AND A NOTE ON CHEESE

Prosecco always seems like fun, more informal than Champagne, bright, casual, and often cheap. I was thrilled to find a bottle marked down to $5 at my supermarket. But later, I tasted Italian sparkling wines at their best....

Honey Bear Daisy Cafe Blooms with Best of East and West Coast

Editors Note:  THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED as of 2017 About the only true thing about Honey Bear Daisy’s homey “cute” name is that the place is friendly.  Otherwise the refined American regional, rustic dishes are layered with international flavors, and the airy, soaring space overlooking the ocean is as spi...

Melissa’s Tea Room Café in Italy Captures British History

  Melissa’s Tea Room café, nestled in Liguria on the northwest Italian Riviera, has earned the reputation of being a travel destination.  In one visitor’s words, “an experience that people come from around the world to savor.”  It revitalizes the age-old tradition of a relaxing tea with cakes in beau...

Chef Oliver Ross’ New Zealand Snapper: “Whole for the Holidays”

(Gerry Furth-Sides) Award-winning New Zealand celebrity chef, Chef Oliver Ross, shares his simple and foolproof whole roasted snapper recipe that is sure to impress every holiday party guest.  The healthy dish is a novel and refreshing departure from preparing roasted fowl.   This  New Zealand Snapper brought to the table...

Record-breaking World Cheese Awards 2016 in San Sabastián

The final Super Jury named Kraftkar, made by Norwegian producer Tingvollost, as the World Champion Cheese 2016.  The International Cheese Festival took place at the Kursaal Congress Centre in San Sebastián from 16-18 November 2016. For more information, visit www.internationalcheesefestival.eus. The inaugural International Ch...

“Hungry” Documentary Tells Story of Legendary Minority Chefs

“Hungry,” a film by Emmy Award-winning Logo Documentary Film, premiering on Thursday, November 17 at 9/8c on Logo, Chef Pink Delongpre (Bacon & Brine; Solvang, CA), Chef Sarah Kirnon (Miss Ollie’s; Oakland, CA) and Chef Dakota Weiss (Estrella and Sweetfin Poke; Los Angeles, CA) shatter the glass ceiling in th...