A love letter to…

The food scene

Over the past two decades, the chefs of Los Angeles have evolved from culinary stars to directors calling the shots, striving toward a diverse food scene. During my time as entertainment editor for my university’s newspaper, I couldn’t imagine a more exciting life than that of a rock music journalist. By the time I got to graduate school, however, the dean of journalism insisted there would come a day when I would tire of the whole spectacle. He was right, and I ended up working in public relations for several years. But the pull of journalism was strong, and so I cold-called Boulevard , an L.A. magazine known for its restaurant reviews and features. The publisher said, “Send me writing samples, and we’ll talk.” As my last full-time gig was as the staff writer at a Los Angeles hospitality P.R. firm, I faxed him fact sheets, chef biographies, and new openings announcements. He called me an hour later with an assignment to cover the city’s best high tea services. By then, L.A. had chefs whose names traveled beyond California, but the table was set for a new generation. It was an era when restaurateurs vied to turn L.A. into a food destination to take seriously. Boulevard opened the door to two decades-worth of assignments requiring me to thoroughly explore the city’s culinary landscape. I witnessed talented young chefs (Curtis Stone, Neal Fraser, Ray Garcia, Ludovic Lefebvre, Roy Choi, Ori Menashe) emerging, all determined to make their establishments places of culinary adventure rather than celebrity hangouts. Here are my three top dining recommendations.

Kaviar

Walking into Kaviar in the L.A. Arts District expands one’s boundaries of what defines a Los Angeles sushi bar. Guests pass through an ornate Art Deco cocktail bar before going down into the dining room, which has Samurai armor on display. The menu, crafted by executive chef John Hans Yeo, chef de cuisine Roberto Rangel, and sushi chef Tengis Itka, continues the adventure with dishes uniting sustainable California-sourced ingredients and an assortment of caviar, including Aureta Caviar, named for the restaurant partner Aureta Thomollari. kaviarrestaurant.com

Asterid

Chef Ray Garcia, who became a hometown hero through restaurants such as Broken Spanish, heads in a fresh direction leaning heavily on seasonal vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers sourced from local growers. This ensures there is always something new to try (sunchoke rösti, maitake mushrooms with turmeric aioli, or lamb shank with charred eggplant purée, flatbread, and pickled chilis), reflecting L.A.’s multicultural makeup.

As Garcia’s preparations at Asterid are as visually stunning as they are flavorful, it is fitting that it adjoins Gehry’s Walt Disney Concert Hall and is framed on the other side by The Broad museum. asteridla.com

The Hideaway

This Mexican steakhouse is tucked into the first floor of the Rodeo Collection, a Beverly Hills shopping enclave, with striking interiors that evoke the classic Mexican restaurants that were once prolific in Southern California and Baja.

The kitchen team, led by chefs Alex Moreno and Viet Pham, deliver sophisticated international twists on main courses and pequeños (small plates) including beef tartare and Alaskan king crab. thehideawaybeverlyhills.com

Elyse Glickman has written for Food + Travel and Global Traveler, and is founder of lucirerouge.com

A taste of the city Mexican-inspired glamour at The Hideaway’s chic bar (above) and the ultramodern exterior of Asterid (below left) demonstrate the variety of dining options in L.A.

L.A. to-do list

The Hollywood sign

A love letter to… Family life

It was the Mediterranean climate that drew my immigrant father to Santa Monica, but as a child growing up here, the allure for me extended far past the weather—and changed over the years. As a teen, I loved the ramshackle energy of street performers in nearby Venice Beach, the lines that snaked down Hollywood sidewalks leading into the nightclubs, the view of the city lights that sparkled like stars as we dropped from the top of the 405 freeway to visit my cousin in the San Fernando Valley.

As a young adult starting life after college, I moved from the beach scene to the city scene. The pull of West Hollywood beckoned my boyfriend and me. We harnessed that energy at the rock ’n’ roll coffee shop, where we wrote late into the night.

The siren call of the ocean brought me back to Marina del Rey. After work, I’d rollerblade down the boardwalk nicknamed The Strand. The salt air whipped my hair as I headed toward Santa Monica on the path from Pacific Palisades to Torrance.

Once my boyfriend and I married, I moved into his home in the countryside of Los Angeles, the West Valley. Although it’s further from the beach, it was still just a 15-minute drive—my husband and sons regularly seek out the surf. The city is full of parks where our children learned how to go down slides and ride bikes. Our life is dominated by cheers for our kids as they play on their sports teams. On weekends, we gather with friends and their kids in our backyard pool or in bowling alleys, or at concerts in the park. Over the years, my life has taken me through most of L.A., while my father knew he had found his golden space and never left Santa Monica, the city that reminded him of home.

Rina Baraz Nehdar is an award-winning travel journalist and founder of L.A. Family Travel

Shore thing

Santa Monica Beach has golden sands and perfect waves for surfers and sun-seekers of all ages.

The Hollywood fi lm industry can trace its roots back to 1907 when bad weather drove a small Chicago moviemaking company westwards to fi nish a shoot. More fi lmmakers followed its lead and by 1912 at least 15 independent studios were making movies around what was to become Hollywood. The town’s cinematic crown was forever ensured when the Hollywoodland sign was erected three years later. Although the epic $21,000 billboard was for the Hollywoodland real estate development, it soon became synonymous with American movie making. In 1944 it was donated to the City of Los Angeles, and “land” was removed during a repair in 1947. To mark the sign’s 100th anniversary this year its 45-foot-high (13.7 m) letters have been painted a bespoke Hollywood Sign Centennial White, and there will be a series of unique experiences, gala occasions, and fun activities taking place. hollywoodsign.org

Festival of Books: April 22-23

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is the largest event of its kind in the U.S. Established in 1996 the celebration of the written word regularly attracts 150,000 attendees. This year’s festival, which takes place on the University of Southern California campus, will feature hundreds of authors and events for all ages, from book readings and signings to performances and cooking demos. events.latimes.com/festivalofbooks

Keith Haring at The Broad: May 27–Oct 8

In late spring The Broad will present the fi rst ever museum exhibition of Keith Haring’s work in L.A. Keith Haring: Art is for Everybody will feature more than 120 artworks and archival materials, showcasing the breadth of media Haring worked in, including video, sculpture, painting, and drawing, as well as representations of his public projects, from subway drawings to the politically charged murals of his later career. Significant works from the ’80s will be accompanied by posters illustrating Haring’s activism within the HIV/AIDS crisis. thebroad.org

Words: Kathryn Saville Reilly