December 18: The Tar Pit One Year Anniversary Party

It’s been quite a year for The Tar Pit, the “modern day watering hole” from Chef Mark Peel that opened in December 2009 after much anticipation and speculation. Following the departure of a stellar opening team that included Audrey Saunders and Marcos Tello, The Tar Pit forged onward. On a recent Sunday evening, a lively…

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December 9: La Descarga Winter Cocktail Menu Launch

On Thursday, December 9th, La Descarga is debuting its Winter Cocktail Menu, an extensive list of 21 drinks from Steve Livigni and Pablo Moix. The Winter Menu is evenly divided between Classics and House Cocktails, including a whiskey barrel-aged version of its excellent Tapping the Admiral that should be ready just in time for the…

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At Big Bar, Cocktails Speak Softly and Carry a Big Kick

Not content to be a Los Feliz favorite serving hearty fare, artisanal baked goods, craft beer and fine wine, Alcove Cafe and Bakery recently opened Big Bar, where Bar Manager Juan Sevilla (previously at The Edison and Soho House) has created a cocktail menu of classics, variations and signatures. Big Bar and Alcove share a…

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Cocktails, Punch and the Art of Entertaining with LA Times Magazine

With the holidays just around the corner, a recent Saturday afternoon was the perfect time for The Art of Entertaining, a day of shopping, tastings and educational sessions focused on home entertaining. The inaugural event, presented by LA Times Magazine, was held at the Home of the Avenues, a showcase house exhibiting art, furniture, appliances…

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Liquid Fridays at the Buffalo Club

Longtime Santa Monica restaurant The Buffalo Club recently launched Liquid Fridays, a weekly happy hour with a rotating menu of specially-priced cocktails made with a featured spirit. Actually it’s happy hours, since Liquid Fridays runs 6-7pm and 10pm to midnight. The night I stopped by with Caroline on Crack and SocialDomain Co-Founder John Colletti, the…

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Sampling the New Fall Cocktail Menu at Dominick’s

Last week, while I was at a birthday bash for Bill Esparza (Street Gourmet LA), I sent a text to Caroline on Crack, who had made the short walk from Bill’s party at Petrossian West Hollywood to nearby Dominick’s to check out the new fall cocktail menu. Me: “How’s Dominick’s?” Caroline: “Lovely. They set me…

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A Taste of The Macallan 64 Years Old Sells for $16,000 to Benefit charity: water

A remarkable crystal decanter, containing some of the rarest single malt Scotch whisky in the world, arrived in Los Angeles yesterday for the penultimate stop of its global fundraising journey. Earlier this year, The Macallan and Lalique partnered to produce the one-of-a-kind decanter, made using the ancient cire perdue (“lost wax”) method. Created in conjunction…

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A Hot Time at Jonathan Gold’s Second Annual Union Station Cocktail Party

Jonathan Gold recently hosted his second annual Union Station Speakeasy Cocktail Party, featuring cocktails by the bars of 213 and gourmet bites from some of L.A.’s top restaurants. The event was a fundraiser for Zócalo Public Square, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit that provides a nonpartisan forum to prominent thinkers and doers via lectures, panels, salons, screenings, webzine and annual conferences.

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