Andy Gavin's Blog, page 160
February 15, 2013
Il Grano – Buon Anno
Restaurant: Il Grano[1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]
Location:11359 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025.310.477.7886
Date: December 28, 2012
Cuisine: Italian
Rating: Modern Italian to die for
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After my stellar birthday meal at Il Grano, and with the closing of Drago, Il Grano has become one of my favorite westside Italians. With my parents out for the holidays, my mom wanted to go.
The sleek interior space.
From my cellar, we start off big. Parker 94, “the stunning aromatics of the 1996 Barolo is full-bodied...
February 14, 2013
Crash Valentines
In honor of Valentines, I share with you both a cute fan pic, courtesy of die hard fan Daisy Parker, and fan Aaron White’s latestmasterpiecestop motion Crash Bandicoot fan video: Rise of the NeoBots.
And the best thing — which makes this oh so apropos — is that they’re a couple!
Enjoy!
February 13, 2013
Tasty Dining – Wuhan Dry Hot Pot
Restaurant: Tasty Dining
Location:301 W Valley Blvd,Ste 101.San Gabriel,CA91776
Date:February10, 2013
Cuisine: Wuhan Chinese
Rating: One Note
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We Hedonists venture out again into the San Gabriel Valley for some more regional Chinese, this time to the heartland province of Wuhan. Like nearby Szechuan and Hunan this area of China is known for its chile-dominated heat. This particular place specializes in “dry pot” which is like a stir fry / hot pot hybrid that is sizzledtable-side.
The usualunassumin...
February 11, 2013
Hinoki and the Bird
Restaurant: Hinoki & the Bird
Location: 10 West Century Drive, Los Angeles, Ca, 90067
Date: January 26, 2013
Cuisine: Modern American Tapas
Rating: Excellent new cutting edge LA/Asian
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Hinoki & the Bird comes from the David Myers Group, which once included flagship Sona. On opening, I was blown away by that restaurant, and it seems to have been LA’s last greathoorayin the full on formal dining sector. Hinoki as much more casual, serving what is mostly modern California small plates with Asian infl...
February 8, 2013
Spago – 2005 White Burg part 1!
Restaurant: Spago
Location:176 N Canon Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210.(310) 385-0880
Date:February5, 2013
Cuisine: American
Rating: Mind Blowing
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Faithful readers know that I love Burgundy. There is no wine area in the world, red or white, that is so focused. More, or less, this glacial valley in Eastern France only grows two grapes: red Pinot Noir and white Chardonnay. It does so in a minimalist manner that emphasizes the exact geographic and micro-climate conditions of small named parcels of land –...
February 5, 2013
The Last of Us – Zombie Time
Yes I know, they’re “infected”, but name change or no, it’s still Zombie Time! Here is a recent video with some infected – enjoy!
and, even better, this Story Trailer:
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February 4, 2013
Hedonism in the Desert – Azeen’s Afghani
Restaurant: Azeen’s Afghani
Location: 110 East Union Street, Pasadena, Ca, 911103. 626-683-3310
Date: January 31, 2013
Cuisine:Afghan
Rating: Awesome!
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Another week and another Hedonist dinner. We braved traffic to take on Azeen’s Afghani in Pasadena, dominating therestaurantas usual with a giant table.
The elegant room is covered in murals.
We aren’t the only ones who love Azeen’s.
The menu. This place is amazing AND will not break the bank.
Billecart-SalmonChampagneto open.
Pakawra-e-badenjan.Batter...
February 1, 2013
Adventures in the Screen Trade
Title: Adventures in the Screen Trade
Author: William Goldman
Genre: Memoir / Writing Guide
Read: January, 2013
Summary:Fascinatingand Terrifying
Having recently begun adapting my novel Untimed into a screenplay, I’m doing my usual slog through the relevant homework. What more can we say about William Goldman than: ThePrincess Bride (both the novel and the screenplay). If that doesn’t make you feel invincible, then takeMarathon Man, All the Presidents Men, orButch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. And...
January 30, 2013
Hawaiian Noodle Bar
Restaurant: Hamura Saimin
Location:2956 Kress St.Lihue,HI96766.(808) 245-3271
Date: January 20, 2013
Cuisine: Hawaiian Noodles
Rating: Tasty Noodles
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Saimin is a noodle soup dish unique to Hawaii. Inspired by Japanese udon, Chinese mein, and Filipino pancit, saimin was developed during Hawaii’s plantation era. It is a soup dish of soft wheat egg noodles served in hot dashi garnished with green onions. Kamaboko, char siu, sliced Spam, linguiça, and nori may be added, among other additions.
Hamura Sa...
January 28, 2013
Life of Pi – part deux
Title: Life of Pi
Author: Yann Martel
Genre:LiteraryAdventure
Read: November 18-20, 2013
Summary: Effective and Affecting
The film version of Life of Pi stuck with me for days. I’mfascinatedby the transmutation stories undergo from one medium to another, and in the middle of adapting my own novel Untimed, so I picked up the book. Plus, when a film is based on a novel, the later is usually superior.
This is true here. The book is deeper and itsallegoricalpresentation much clearer, but the film trans...
