A helping hand sparks an intergenerational friendship.
Locals
Health
The eatery opens an outpost in Studio City.
Redefining a nest in Longridge Estates.
Real estate veteran Carol Wolfe assesses the market.
Miraval in Tucson, Arizona.
Waldorf Astoria Pedregal in Cabo.
From holiday shopping to pampering, our list of go-to spots in the Valley.
Spectacular local listings.
The joys of doing nothing in December.
Labradoodle
Life is better in motion
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Straight From the Heart
When I think of the word “philanthropist,” I think of two types. The first is a person with wealth who wants you to know about it. They sport all the trappings of wealth—designer labels, expensive jewelry, luxury car—and enjoy having their name brandished on a building, bench, or list of donors. Nothing wrong with that. Generosity deserves recognition. But there’s a second type of philanthropist, one with considerably less material wealth. And they don’t want recognition at all.
Isabelle Rosa fits into the latter category. I first met her in 2019 when we did a story in VB on her father’s dessert delivery company, which she helped launch. Her dad, a former caterer to the stars, was down on his luck. Isabelle helped him create a plan for Giovanni’s Tiramisu and execute it. With her savvy social media skills, she got Giovanni on the radar of several media outlets—and the company was up and running.
I started following Isabelle on Instagram, and in the ensuing years noticed her posting about how she and her dad are helping children in a Ugandan orphanage. He donates a portion of his company’s proceeds; she established a GoFundMe.
Earlier this year, Isabelle caught my eye again. She was posting pictures of one of her neighbors and a link to a GoFundMe for him. Like her dad, Tom Lux was elderly,
financially strapped and in need of human connection. Isabelle could have looked away when she saw his rumpled figure walking slowly down the street. Instead, she introduced herself, and then as we share in our article (page 60), she took it upon herself to help Tom improve his life.
It wasn’t as if she didn’t face challenges of her own.
The 32-year-old had recently separated from her husband and shut down their company selling Tesla parts, which she found unrewarding. But she found a way to help Tom, ultimately developing a real friendship with him—a guy 50 years her senior.
Their friendship is a reminder to me of the importance of intergenerational friendships. We all tend to socialize with people of our same general age and place in life. If you have toddlers, you tend to socialize with young families. Empty nesters tend to socialize with others at that stage. But I believe there is real value in integrating into our lives friendships with people at different stages. We can gain a lot by connecting and learning from one another. It is all about being open to that possibility.
It’s also a great reminder as we head into the holiday season: It is not the grand gestures in life that matter most, but rather the small, thoughtful ones. The ones that come straight from the heart. Isabelle and Tom are a testament to that.
Linda Grasso, Editor-in-Chief
PHOTOGRAPHED
SIP & SPARKLE
FESTIVE COCKTAILS INSPIRE JEWELRY AND ACCESSORIES FOR DAZZLING HOLIDAY PARTIES. Produced & styled by Kara Mickelson | Photographed by Shane O’Donnell
Grand Dom watch with 18-karat gold case by Dubey & Schaldenbrand, $53,900; Rose gold skeleton Helvetic cufflinks by Tateossian, $470. All available at Medawar Fine Jewelers in Rolling Hills Estates; medawarfinejewelers.com
RUBY ROSE MOCKTAIL
2 ounces pomegranate juice
2 teaspoons rose water
2 teaspoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons pomegranate molasses
6 drops lemon bitters
decorative ice cubes
3 ounces sparkling water
6 fresh mint leaves, stemmed and torn
1 tablespoon fresh pomegranate seeds
½ teaspoon dried rose petals, optional
Combine the first five ingredients in a pitcher. Stir and pour into a rocks glass over ice. Top with sparkling water. Stir in mint and pomegranate seeds, and garnish with dried rose petals.
Madge pink opal stone ring set in 18-karat gold, $6,500; 10-karat gold
Heavy Oval chain link bracelet, $3,400, shown with removable 10-karat charms in peridot and pink tourmaline, $1,800 each. Jewelry designed by Lisa Ziff and available at Stacey Todd in Studio City; staceytoddboutique.com
THE JV1 VESPER MARTINI
2 ounces gin
1½ ounces vodka
¼-ounce Cocchi Americano
Place all ingredients in a shaker. Shake and pour into a chilled coupe or martini glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.
18-karat gold Flora ring, $5,000; 18-karat gold chain link bracelet, $5,550. Jewelry designed by Lisa Ziff and available at Stacey Todd in Studio City; staceytoddboutique.com
CLASSIC AVIATION
2 ounces Aviation gin
1½ tablespoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon crème de violette
1 tablespoon maraschino liqueur (clear) brandied cherry or lemon twist
Place ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake, strain and serve in a chilled coupe or martini glass. Garnish with a brandied cherry or lemon twist.
Oval purple garnet and diamond ring, $2,399; 14-karat gold necklace with circular pendant with light and dark pink sapphires and diamonds, $8,998. All jewelry available at Ben Bridge Jeweler, Westfield Topanga; benbridge.com
BEAUTY & GRACE
2 ounces B&B liqueur
½ ounce St. George Spiced Pear Liqueur
Place room-temperature ingredients into a mixing glass. Stir and pour into a brandy snifter or a rocks glass with ice.
Interlocking pavé diamond ring, $3,699; ring with baguette and round diamonds, $6,599; ring with oval and round diamonds, $24,999; 24-inch silver and black rhodium necklace with black diamonds, $4,499. All jewelry available at Ben Bridge Jeweler, Westfield Topanga; benbridge.com
Holiday Hot Spots
J’ADORE LES FLEURS
A flower boutique offering stunning floral arrangements for any occasion and season. From elegant bouquets to unique designs, we provide beautiful solutions to brighten every moment.
11030 Ventura Blvd., Studio City
818-763-2989 jadorelesfleurs.com @jadorelesfleurs
THE COLLECTIVE SHOP
Discover unique vintage and new art and collectibles curated by interior designer Danielle Decker. Great gifts for the person who loves all things home or someone with exquisite taste.
20929 Ventura Blvd., Suite 20
Woodland Hills
747-444-9290
thecollectiveshop.net @_the_collective_shop
VOYAGE ET CIE
From candles to perfumes to health and wellness products, Voyage et Cie is revered for its intoxicating scents. A treasure trove of unique gifts—for men and women. Give the gift of an exquisite fragrance!
13035 Ventura Blvd., Studio City 818-387-6358 | voyageetcie.com | @voyageetcie
VALLEY SALT CAVE
A holistic wellness center with one large and two private Himalayan salt caves. We offer dry salt therapy (halotherapy), sound baths, guided meditation, massages/Reiki and retail.
20929 Ventura Blvd. #12
Woodland Hills
818-963-7646 valleysaltcave.com @valleysaltcave
VOYAGE ET CIE PHOTOGRAPHED BY JENNA PEFFLEY
For The Whole Family
MUSIC, ART, ANIMALS—AND A WAY TO GIVE BACK THIS HOLIDAY SEASON.
LA ZOO LIGHTS: ANIMALS AGLOW
Tour the zoo at night to explore an immersive landscape filled with dazzling lantern sculptures of animals among blooming flowers, towering trees and glowing rivers. This year’s experience includes a magical alpine forest with majestic pine trees and snow-loving animals, spectacular holiday photo spots and the return of Santa. Runs November 15–January 5; lazoo.org
THE MAKING OF AN ENCHANTED FAIRY HOUSE
Participants in this workshop will work with stained birch wooden pieces, hand-carved miniature wooden furniture and home accessories, paper florals, and dried mosses, all to create a magical heirloom fairy house inspired by Irish Celtic folklore. December 7, 3–6 p.m.; fourseasons.com/westlakevillage
NOCHEBUENA: A CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR
Vocalist Camila Fernández, granddaughter of the legendary Vicente Fernández and daughter of Alejandro Fernández, joins the mariachi-infused holiday performance that celebrates Mexico’s many vibrant regions. Also featuring Ballet Folklórico de Los Ángeles, which brings music, dance, and sumptuous traditional costumes to life. December 7 & 8; thesoraya.org
ARTURO SANDOVAL SWINGING HOLIDAY
As part of the LA Phil’s Deck the Halls concert series in December, the multiple-Grammy-winning Arturo Sandoval makes it a jumping, jiving, jingling night at Walt Disney Concert Hall, performing a program of holiday favorites. December 23; laphil.com
HOLIDAY CONCERTS AT
SUN DEC 1 7:30PM
Leslie Odom, Jr. The Christmas Tour
2 PERFORMANCES
SAT DEC 14 11:30AM & 2:30PM Holiday Sing-Along
Melissa Peterman, host John Sutton, conductor
WED DEC 18 8PM
Jennifer Hudson The Gift of Love
4 PERFORMANCES
SAT–SUN DEC 21–22 2PM & 8PM Home Alone in Concert
Hollywood Bowl Orchestra David Newman, conductor
2 PERFORMANCES
TUE DEC 31 7PM & 10:30PM
New Year’s Eve with D-Nice & Friends
Big Daddy Kane • Kenny Burns • Jon B. Case • Estelle • Johnny Gill • Lady London
Next • Nice & Smooth • Mike Phillips
Tweet • Tisha Campbell, host
Come early to hang out in our NYE lounge, complete with photo booth— and a free glass of champagne!
TUE DEC 17 8PM Chanticleer
MON DEC 23 8PM
Arturo Sandoval Swinging Holiday
STARTING DEC 1
Winter Wonderland
Arrive early and visit our Winter Wonderland! Enrich your holiday music experience—drop by BP Hall for hot cocoa, cocktails, and plenty of holiday cheer.
laphil.com/winterwonderland
SOHA TOY DRIVE
Teach your kids the spirit of giving by bringing an unwrapped toy to the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association’s 26th annual toy drive at Gelson’s on Van Nuys Boulevard. Benefits kids under the care of the LA Department of Children & Family Services. December 8, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
HOLIDAYS IN THE VALLEY: ‘TWAS THE NIGHT
Returning for its sixth season, this year’s performance by the San Fernando Valley Master Chorale brings the holiday favorite The Night Before Christmas to life with beautiful choral music. The performance includes recognizable classics along with songs you might be hearing for the first time. December 8; sfvmc.com
THE NUTCRACKER
The Los Angeles Ballet’s rendition of the classic holiday favorite The Nutcracker is a treat for the entire family. LAB stays true to the traditions of the classic holiday story while giving it a unique Southern California twist. The performance will be staged at several venues throughout the LA area. December 6–28; losangelesballet.org
A VERY KOSHER CHRISMUKKAH
A fun-filled concert featuring classic holiday favorites by Jewish composers and festive Hanukkah tunes performed by the Valley-based LA Jewish Symphony. December 14; lajs.org
HOLIDAY GOSPEL BRUNCH
Enjoy Sunday brunch at Vitello’s while listening to the music ministry FAME from LA’s First AME Church. The high-spirited holiday presentation will be led by director of music Larry J. Dennis and band director Carlinhos Rochas. Every Sunday in December from 12:30–2 p.m. (doors open at 11:30 a.m.); vitellosrestaurant.com
JOY FOR ALL
Nochebuena: A Christmas Spectacular
Featuring Ballet Folkórico de Los Ángeles and Mariachi Espectacular with Special Guest Camila Fernández
$43–$138
Dorrance Dance: The Nutcracker Suite
Duke Ellington & Billy Strayhorn, arrangement
Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky, composer
$48–$118
The World Famous Glenn Miller Orchestra
In the Holiday Mood
$43–$95
Lea Salonga: Sounding Joy
The Holiday Tour
$52–$157
SWEET HONEY IN THE ROCK®
50th Anniversary Tour
Celebrating the HolyDays
$43–$95
Dorrance Dance
How We Celebrate
FIVE NOTEWORTHY LOCALS SHARE THEIR HOLIDAY PLANS AND TRADITIONS.
MICHAEL BERGIN
Former actor known for Baywatch and featured in the docuseries After Baywatch: A Moment in the Sun on Hulu.
Currently runs the Valleybased real estate firm The Bergin Group.
Our favorite holiday tradition has become what we call my “residual tree.” I use my residuals from when I was on Baywatch. They can be anywhere from 3¢ up to $90. I put the checks in envelopes with bows all laid out in the shape of a Christmas tree on the back of our front door. Taking turns, the kids (now ages 24 and 20) get to select an envelope and keep the money. It’s hilarious when they select one with a couple cents in it.
Each year we also host an annual holiday party with neighbors, friends and clients. It’s always such a fun evening, and a great way to introduce new neighbors to older ones. It’s also great to reconnect with past clients and friends that we haven’t seen in a while.
MAYIM BIALIK
Actor known for The Big Bang Theory and Blossom; currently executive producer of the documentary Mom & Dad’s Nipple Factory, now streaming on Apple TV+ and Prime Video.
We celebrate Chanukah, and because the Jewish calendar is lunar, our holidays shift depending on the moon cycle. This year, the eight-day festival starts after Christmas and goes through New Year’s. We eat delicious food fried in oil, and we light the chanukiah (an eightbranched menorah) every night. We also sing songs in Hebrew and Yiddish, and we actually do play dreidl, which is a spinning top with four sides.
My older son will be home from college after his first semester, so it will be a special Chanukah this year. I usually host a little Chanukah party for friends, and I spend most of the time in the kitchen frying latkes (potato pancakes).
PHILLIP FRANKLAND LEE
Owner of Scratch restaurants and Pasta|Bar, which in 2024 retained its Michelin star for the fourth consecutive year.
For Thanksgiving, we typically have 40 to 50 people over. We serve margaritas and I cook the whole thing. Believe it or not, I stay traditional— mainly my grandmother’s recipes. I marinate the turkey in a trash bag inside an Igloo cooler overnight with melted butter, herbs, lemons, oranges and pineapples. Margarita (his pastry chef wife) serves her famous sourdough and butter and usually a few pies. With our daughter Aurelia being 2½, she’s excited for Christmas, so this year is going to be super magical. Margarita and I don’t usually get each other anything too big. Our lives are our gifts; we really focus on our daughter.
JOEY VAHEDI
Actor currently costarring in The Chosen, now streaming across multiple platforms including Netflix and Hulu.
We do Secret Santa and White Elephant every year with family, and it gets quite rowdy! We also have Ugly Xmas Sweater parties, and love to watch holiday movies. Shoutout to Elf and Harry Potter!
One of my favorite events is the big Christmas party our family has with cousins, uncles, aunts, etc. It’s
FRANK BUCKLEY
Anchor on KTLA 5 Morning News and host/executive producer of Frank Buckley Interviews airing on weekends on KTLA 5
On Christmas Day, I wake up before everyone in the family and start a fire in the fireplace. I put KTLA on TV, so we’ll have the Yule log burning on TV and a real fire burning in our living room. My wife, Elena, and I look forward to having our sons (Ben, 27 and Sebastian, 24) home with us for Christmas Day, and we all open presents together. Later, we bring my mom over for Christmas dinner. In between, I expect we’ll watch basketball and movies like Home Alone
On New Year’s Eve, Elena and I host seven or eight couples who are longtime friends for a small potluck party. Josh Mankiewicz (Dateline correspondent) and his wife, Tee, have made a rib roast the past few years and I make martinis. We watch the ball drop at midnight in New York (9 p.m. our time) and have a champagne toast and dessert before we call it a night!
usually filled with loud conversation, amazing food, and watching football. A lot of us are in a fantasy football league together and the trash talk runs rampant. In recent years we’ve added some holiday games with prizes, which tends to make the environment even more lively. It’s fun to see people’s competitive side come out. What potentially winning a Starbucks gift card does to a person—incredible!
DR. ELLIOT M. HIRSCH
Elliot M. Hirsch, MD, practices the full spectrum of plastic and reconstructive surgery, bringing years of training and experience to every procedure he performs. His full-service, on-site medspa provides nonsurgical facial rejuvenation procedures such as Botox and other fillers; chemical peels and facial treatments; lasers; and PRP to reduce wrinkles, add volume and work in conjunction with other treatment options.
Dr. Hirsch specializes in both cosmetic and reconstructive breast surgery including microsurgical and other forms of complex breast reconstruction, reduction, lift, augmentation and implant removal and revision. He performs several cosmetic surgery procedures that can enhance patients’ aesthetic appearance, including body contouring after massive weight loss and facial plastic surgery—all of which are greatly enhanced by medspa treatments.
A Los Angeles native, Dr. Hirsch grew up in Westlake Village and attended Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, where he graduated with Phi Beta Kappa and Omicron Delta Kappa honors. While there he received the Curt P. Richter Award for outstanding research in the field of behavioral biology.
After completing his undergraduate studies, Dr. Hirsch returned to Southern California for medical school at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, where he
graduated with highest distinction and was elected into the Alpha Omega Alpha honor society as well as the Order of Arête. Then Dr. Hirsch completed an integrated plastic and reconstructive surgery residency at the prestigious Northwestern Memorial Hospital program in Chicago, where he received several awards for his research and teaching.
Dr. Hirsch is an active researcher in the field of plastic surgery and has co-authored more than 40 manuscripts and book chapters. He has received several grants for original research projects and holds patents for wound care devices. Dr. Hirsch is board-certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and is involved in multiple research studies on the outcomes of his breast surgeries. His technique for breast implant removal and breast lift has been published in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal, and patients come from all over the country for this specialized surgery.
The office of Dr. Hirsch is now in a brand-new location directly off Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks. Plan your visit and take advantage of the clinic’s exciting medspa specials.
ELLIOT M. HIRSCH, MD, INC.
4419 VAN NUYS BLVD., SUITE 214, SHERMAN OAKS 818-825-8131 | HIRSCHPLASTICSURGERY.COM
PHOTOGRAPHED BY JEFFREY FITERMAN
5 Ways to Up Your Fitness Game
VB EDITOR LINDA GRASSO TRAVELS
THE VALLEY IN SEARCH OF WAYS TO TAKE HER HEALTH AND FITNESS QUOTIENT UP A NOTCH. HERE SHE GETS CANDID ABOUT HER FINDINGS—AND THE RESULTS.
1SPINERGY
Spinergy’s marketing declares that the audiovisual setup for its indoor cycling and yoga classes is designed by the same engineers who commissioned Sphere in Las Vegas. Suffice it to say I had high expectations when I walked into the Sherman Oaks studio.
I signed up for a yoga class at what turned out to be an amply sized, dimly lit room with an overhead projector that flashed large naturescape images (sunset, forest, etc.) onto the wall that participants faced during class. Over the course of the hourlong class, five different images were displayed while relaxing music played
in the background. (A couple of classmates informed me that the cycling classes are more visually entertaining. They take riders on scenic journeys all over the world via fast-moving HD footage.)
While the tech component was a bit of a letdown, the class was not—largely due to the excellent instructor. In many, if not most, yoga classes, the instructor sits and watches participants in formations even if they are wildly—and sometimes dangerously—off-kilter. The instructor at Spinergy not only demonstrated everything at the front of the class, but he also interacted with participants, gently offering corrections. He also had a fun sense of humor. The scented cool towels available at the end of class were another positive.
2YogaSix
I’m generally not a fan of hot yoga. Yoga is hard enough. Why introduce an uncomfortable amount of heat? That said, I really like YogaSix in Studio City. Don’t get me wrong—I avoid the classes
that are 100°. The heat makes me feel like I am going to pass out. Plus I just don’t see the benefit. But YogaSix also offers classes where the heat is at a more tolerable level. The Restore class is set at 88°; it’s also slower moving with longer holds on poses. The more challenging Restore & Sculpt class is set between 90° and 95°, depending on teacher preference. In that class, participants exercise with hand weights.
A big positive here—I’ve had six different instructors, and all are top-notch, offering thoughtful pacing, good music and ample corrections. In our post-COVID world, one rarely experiences hands-on adjustments from instructors. Yet some still do at YogaSix—they always ask permission first—and I like it. Instructors are engaged and—with the kind of thoughtful yogaspeak that teachers tend to do—engaging
One note: The space can be tight when classes are full. On those occasions I avoid setting up near shirtless men. In my experience they tend to inadvertently flick sweat. A final positive: Underground parking is easy.
3F45
The F45 fitness franchise offers 45-minute high-intensity interval training with barbells, ropes, rowing machines and more. In-studio trainers guide the workouts, while flat screens demonstrate the various activities. Actor Mark Wahlberg owns a minority stake in the company and is promoted as the face of the brand.
That is precisely why, when my husband joined F45 during the height of COVID, I was reluctant to accompany him. Although I’m in decent shape, I couldn’t imagine that a workout espoused by the muscular actor would work for me. But I wanted to get out of the house, so I capitulated.
I ended up liking F45—and went regularly for about two years. I’d estimate that most of the participants are under 40, with heavy attendance by the under-30 crowd. I was intimidated at first, but after a while I simply committed to going at my own pace with a weight level that worked for me. When I couldn’t do, say, 30 burpees in a row, or jump onto and off a 3-foot high box for an 8-minute interval, I just modified the move.
I like the brevity of a class that is under an hour, and I could see a distinct difference in my muscle tone after a few months. Some advice: Bring earbuds to drown out the painfully loud random sounds on their playlists that are blasted throughout. You don’t get too much from the trainers. (How could you with all the noise?) While friendly, they mostly walk around the gym and shout generic encouragement. “You are killing it, Linda!” A final word: Because you don’t get much in the way of corrections, proceed with caution. Unless you know what you are doing, as with all of these communal box gym high-intensity workouts, you could put yourself at risk of injury.
4Salt Cave
Salt therapy, which has been known to reduce stress, anxiety and inflammation and to improve sleep, has been around for ages.
Halotherapy, offered by Valley Salt Cave in Woodland Hills, takes traditional salt therapy up a notch. During the treatment you recline on a “zero-gravity” chair in a dimly lit communal room. The walls are made from bricks of Himalayan salt; pebble-size salt covers the floor. As you kick back, for the first 10 minutes a guided meditation plays on the sound system, followed by instrumental music. All the while ground salt is aerialized with a machine called a “halo generator.” The equipment breaks down salt into fine particles to create a dry salt therapy environment. Valley Salt Cave coowner Kari Shulman describes the miniscule particles as acting like a “toothbrush to the lungs,” helping with health issues like asthma, bronchitis and cough.
Treatments are also available in a private room or a massage room. You can request the add-on of having a
When
Vered of
sound therapist in on your session. Sound therapy uses sound frequencies and vibrations to promote physical, mental and emotional well-being. In fact, a sound therapist was there the day I had my treatment. She was conducting a session in the communal salt room for a family that was coping with a loved one’s death. I found my entire 45-minute experience calming and
relaxing. However, regardless of the health issue you are trying to address, more than one session is recommended to reap maximum health benefits.
5StretchLab
After experiencing pain in my hip joints while sleeping, I started going to a physical therapy center in Encino. The facility does not allow patients to request a specific therapist, so each session started with a therapist asking the same generic question: “So what can we help you with today?” We’d then waste the first five minutes talking. Out of five sessions, only one PT actually touched me. Most of my half hour was spent with an electrical stimulation device taped to my hip and a hand massage gun—another waste; I have my own at home. The final 10 minutes were spent doing exercises with a PT trainee.
StretchLab, on the other hand, is all about physical contact. Choosing from a 25- or 50- minute session, you work with a stretch practitioner, or “flexologist,” in an attractively appointed communal room on a low, padded table. All of the practitioners have completed an accredited in-house training program, and had prior experience as a credentialed fitness or wellness practitioner. At the Encino outpost where I go (there are also branches in Studio City and Woodland Hills), the terrific flexologist I work with is studying for his doctorate in physical therapy; half of the practitioners there have a BS in kinesiology. Bottom line: It is evident from “hello” that they know what they are doing.
Flexologists customize routines for each session depending on a person’s goals. You’ll find patients who want to increase mobility and flexibility, decrease muscle aches, improve posture, and reduce recovery time. One lady I recently spoke to at StretchLab is just a firm believer in the health benefits of stretching— from better balance to sleep. Speaking of sleep, I’ve been going once a week for about three months (I’ve also committed to daily exercises recommended by my flexologist), and I’ve noticed a reduction in night pain as well as an additional bonus: an uptick in my ability to stretch during yoga. ■
NATURAL BEAUTY
Dr. Sherly Soleiman combines her skills as a physician with those as an injectables expert at Cosmetic Injectables Center in Sherman Oaks, and makes natural-looking results her mission.
Medicine, you might say, is in Dr. Sherly Soleiman’s blood. She was raised in a family of doctors. Yet when she voiced interest in medicine, her traditionally minded family—of Jewish Iranian descent—objected.
“Everyone thought if I were a doctor, I’d be intimidating as a woman. And being a doctor can be challenging; my father, an ob/gyn, was on call 24/7. He would come home from deliveries at midnight and then be called right back into the hospital.”
But she didn’t let up. She graduated from Loma Linda University School of Medicine in California, and then, with a specialty in family medicine, worked in the medical and surgical urgent care clinic at Kaiser Permanente. Years later, while raising three children with her husband, Dr. Bobby Soleiman, a periodontist, she ran her own medical practice in Encino. But after nearly a decade, she became disenchanted with medicine.
“It wasn’t what I had signed up for. Unless you live in a rural community, most people with a health issue automatically go to a specialist. They skip the primary-care practitioner. So my job became one basically of filling out forms. I wasn’t forming meaningful relationships or using brain cells.” Having to navigate all the red tape with insurance was another negative.
As luck would have it, a negative experience with her own health sparked her next career. She had some filler injected under her eyes and “It was horrible. I looked bruised for months. So I started
researching what might have gone wrong. And I became fascinated with injectables.” She took some intensive training programs, and started offering injectables to her patients at her practice, and “The injectables side of my business grew like wildfire while medicine kept dwindling.”
In 2013, Dr. Soleiman launched Cosmetic Injectables Center (cosmeticinjectables. com), and she has never looked back. “It has been much more gratifying. I love the artistic aspect of my job. People are happy. They come in smiling; they leave smiling. For me, it is just a happier experience.”
In 2019, Cosmetic Injectables Center relocated to a spacious facility with nine treatment rooms on Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks. As a national trainer and speaker for Allergan, the company that makes Botox and Juvéderm, Dr. Soleiman is a nationally recognized expert. That may keep her name in the forefront of the industry, but it is her studied, light touch that keeps patients coming back.
“That’s my passion. Injectables are a wonderful tool to enhance a person’s confidence, but the result has the opposite effect if they look awkward and out of proportion. I see so much of that.”
She describes herself as an honest minimalist. “I genuinely want people to look better. So if something is not going to look great, or the requested product isn’t going to achieve their goals, we’ll have a discussion. It’s all about education.”
In addition to injectables (fillers, Botox, Sculptra, threads) Cosmetic Injectables Center offers procedures that include
microneedling, platelet-rich plasma (PRP), platelet-rich fibrin (PRF), and EZGel. The center also offers body shaping procedures like Morpheus8 and Emsculpt Neo as well as a weight loss program that combines GLP-1 medications with diet and exercise. This past fall Cosmetic Injectables Center opened a second location in Beverly Hills, which offers only injectables.
However, Dr. Soleiman believes that the most effective anti-aging tool is not among her services, and patients can do it for free. “Just exercise. That alone is the best thing you can do to fight back against aging.”
COSMETIC INJECTABLES CENTER
SHERMAN OAKS & BEVERLY HILLS 818-322-0122
With husband, Dr. Bobby Soleiman
Jon & Vinny Go Valley
JAMES BEARD AWARD-WINNING CHEFS AND SERIAL RESTAURATEURS JON SHOOK AND VINNY DOTOLO BRING THEIR POPULAR NAMESAKE RESTAURANT TO STUDIO CITY.
Photographed by Shane O’Donnell
Written by Chelsee Lowe
Anyone who has kept tabs on the LA food scene over the past decade has heard of Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo. The chefs are regularly described as two halves of a whole—Jon is affable, Vinny aloof. Having now run numerous successful restaurants, the duo’s ability to swim in an industry where most people sink is noteworthy. Their beginnings were humble. They met and bonded in culinary school in Florida, and made their way west circa 2002. They eventually landed in the Valley, where they couch-surfed at Jon’s aunt’s place while rustling up kitchen work and catering gigs. For a while they shared a cell phone and a car, and it was a good day if they made $100.
The hustle paid off. They launched meatcentric restaurant Animal on Fairfax Avenue in 2008, and with its bold menu of lesser-used cuts of meat like chicken livers, pig tails and rabbit leg, the eatery quickly became a hot ticket and the darling of food critics. Son of a Gun, a modern yet nostalgic seafood restaurant, came next, followed by the French brasserie-inspired Petit Trois in Hollywood, in partnership with chef Ludo Lefebvre (who eventually bought Jon and Vinny’s interest out). With a solid track record, they opened the first Jon & Vinny’s outpost in 2015, also on Fairfax in Hollywood, and in partnership with sommelier and beverage director Helen Johannesen. A year later, Jon and Vinny took home the coveted Best Chef of the West James Beard Award.
“JON & VINNY’S IS A NEIGHBORHOOD RESTAURANT, SO THE VALLEY MAKES SENSE.
THAT’S WHAT WILL ESTABLISH US AS A NEIGHBORHOOD SPOT, WHETHER YOU WANT TO COME IN FOR A FULL MEAL WITH YOUR FRIENDS OR JUST TO HAVE A COCKTAIL.”
Jon & Vinny’s locations in Brentwood, Beverly Hills and Windsor Hills followed—and in September this year the duo opened a fifth outpost in Studio City. Beloved for its wood-fired pizzas and house-made pastas—plus bites like fried calamari, mozzarella sticks and marinara-braised meatballs—the eatery is an elevated take on the red-booth, red-sauce-oriented Italian joints of yesteryear. Diners can order among 18 varieties of pizza whose toppings include fennel sausage and bacon from premium purveyor Nueske. One pizza comes with a little gem lettuce salad on top. Eleven pasta dishes dot the menu, including a plate of spicy fusilli with vodka and basil. Among more than a half dozen meat dishes: a chicken cutlet with heirloom tomato and arugula..
The off-the-Boulevard location—on Moorpark Street a block east of Tujunga Village—was intentional. “Jon
PHOTOGRAPHED BY JOSHUA WHITE
& Vinny’s is a neighborhood restaurant, so the Valley makes sense. We’re relying on locals to support this place, so hopefully we make a good impression. That’s what will establish us as a neighborhood spot, whether you want to come in for a full meal with your friends or just to have a cocktail,” Jon says.
Inside the streamlined space are white oak banquettes, a small pastry case, and an open kitchen where workers whirl about. Green and white logo-emblazoned pizza boxes are stacked in high-up nooks, serving as just about the only visible decor. A monochromatic paper placemat is set in front of every guest—if you’re under the age of 10, crayons come with it. There’s a great bar reserved for walk-ins—this is the first Jon & Vinny’s to serve cocktails—and a window in the back for takeout.
The Jon & Vinny’s franchise is a herculean endeavor; all of them operate seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Though the brand is known for its modern Italian dishes, Vinny says don’t ignore their breakfast, which “leans more American than Italian.” Offerings include
pancakes, bruleed grapefruit, porridge topped with strawberries, and a breakfast pizza with potato, egg, red onion and rosemary.
As with all success, there have been bumps in the road. When Jon & Vinny’s instituted an 18% service charge, they were the target of criticism—and a lawsuit. In a public statement, the duo said they were trying to provide “a more equitable way to compensate our workers.” Jon & Vinny’s dropped the service charge in June, and a state law prohibiting any such charge went into effect one month later. And, citing shifting priorities and increased operating costs, the duo closed Animal in 2023 and Son of Gun this past fall. Still, Jon and Vinny feel a sense a pride in what they’ve created.
“Who knew it would go this far?” Vinny asks. “Even if everything closed tomorrow, there’s still so much accomplishment in what we’ve done.”
Explaining their success, Vinny cites their attention to detail, passion for the work—and for excellence. “We are just relentlessly on the gas. We are constantly pushing ourselves and our team to be better.” ■
Dumplings on Demand
FOR
DUMPLING LOVERS, JODI LIN’S CREATIONS ARE UNPARALLELED, WITH PERFECTLY COOKED, DELICATE DOUGH WRAPPERS AND JUICY, FLAVORFUL FILLINGS. THEY ARE EVEN MORE IMPRESSIVE WHEN YOU DISCOVER THAT HER DUMPLING COMPANY IS JUST A SIDE HUSTLE.
Written by Heather David
Jodi Lin’s Taiwanese-style soup dumplings and her company, dumpLins, have developed a cult following. Loyal customers, garnered through word of mouth, place online orders at jodisdumplins.com or hit one of her pop-ups at local pubs and sports bars. At those events, Jodi makes the dumplings right on the spot.
Inspired by the Taiwanese cuisine of her childhood and taught by her grandmother, Jodi creates crispy fried dumplings that feature traditional flavor profiles like ground chicken, Napa cabbage, ginger—and a distinctive signature ingredient.
“I put sauce in the dumplings. When I first started making them for people, I would bring the dumplings in addition to all the sauces, and it just drove me crazy. ‘Why am I bringing soy sauce and sesame oil, rice vinegar and ginger and garlic?’ So I asked my mom what I should do. She said, ‘Just put it in the dumpling!’”
While dumpLin’s menu stays rooted in Asian cuisine, she also loves creating unique flavor combinations.
The popular “Midnight in Paris,” for example, features heirloom tomatoes, panko, garlic butter and basil.
Inspired by her Northern California roots—she’s originally from San Francisco—there’s the “Chef Curry With the Shot,” a nod to her fanatical love of the Golden State Warriors and the team’s star player, Steph Curry.
The Chef Curry has chicken curry, potatoes and onions. It’s fried with a little bit of panko, adding that extra crunch.
Jodi delights not only in creating but also in teaching. For those interested in learning the art of dumpling making, Jodi travels to private kitchens and classrooms to teach her skills. “My classes are for both kids and adults.
Basically anyone interested in learning,” she says.
When Jodi’s not stuffing, filling and cooking dumplings (her record is more than 1,100 for a single event) she is working at her full-time job—a demanding one.
For the last 16 years, she’s served as a Los Angeles County public defender.
When she began pursuing a law degree, she discovered she excelled at her criminal law classes. She took an internship within the LA court system, which turned out to be a defining experience.
“As soon as I started interning, I was like, this is it, this is where I belong. Everything just made sense,” recalls Jodi.
The dumpling making came later. As a young lawyer, she started bringing her homemade dumplings to office potlucks. The positive feedback got her thinking.
“People kept saying, ‘These are restaurant quality. You should sell these.’ It’s the biggest compliment you can pay someone when they’re cooking for you.”
With encouragement from friends and family, she launched dumpLins in 2016.
In the ensuing years, she’s expanded her menu to nearly 30 different flavors. One thing that hasn’t changed: the celebration of diversity through her food.
“Not only am I proud to represent my culture— which I get to share with so many people—I also get to share flavors from other places and cultures. It is the combination that makes it so rewarding.” ■
WHY NOT POP IN?
dumpLins Pop-ups Coming Up
December 21 & 28 and January 18 at Lawless Brewing Company in North Hollywood
December 27, January 8 & 31 at Hop Merchants in North Hollywood
Restaurant Guide
The holidays are here! Whether you are looking for the perfect spot to take family and friends or to host a festive event, here are some dining suggestions in the Valley that combine fabulous food and top-notch service with a warm, welcoming vibe.
Mercado
Celebrating 10 years on Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood! Join us for the very best Mexican food. We are open for dinner seven days a week. Happy hour daily and brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. Make a reservation at cocinasycalaveras.com or call us!
A casual, local gathering place for food, friends and wine. Our menu reflects a less complicated, grassroots approach to Italian country food inspired by Southern California.
EVA PERLMAN MAY BE 92 YEARS OLD, BUT HER MEMORIES OF SURVIVING THE HOLOCAUST ARE VIVID. IN FACT, THOSE MEMORIES— RECOUNTED AS STORIES SHE DELIVERS TO OTHERS—GIVE HER PURPOSE AND MAY VERY WELL BE WHAT KEEP HER ALIVE.
Written by Jane Ulman | Photographed by Shane O’Donnell
Eva holds a photo of herself at age 5. It was 1937, and Eva and her parents were living in Courbevoie, France, a Paris suburb, having left Germany four years earlier.
It may have been eight decades ago, but Eva Perlman remains haunted by dark silhouettes of Nazi soldiers ascending the steep slopes of the lower Alps in Vichy-occupied France, approaching the village of Autrans.
“I see them in my mind’s eye,” she says. “I still see them.”
Eva is sitting in the courtyard of Los Angeles Jewish Health in Reseda, the community where she’s lived since 2019. But 80 years ago, at age 12 and then Eva Hanna Gutmann, she was looking out the second-story window of an apartment her family rented in what they called “the yellow house.” As sirens blared, she stood there with her mother, Charlotte, and two younger brothers, all blond-haired and blue-eyed, belying their German Jewish roots. Eva’s father, Rodolphe, darker complected, had left only weeks earlier to fight with the French Resistance. It was July 1944.
A day or two later, they were startled by loud banging at the front door and the sound of German voices. “Madame, can you come downstairs?” Monsieur Ravaud, the Gutmanns’ landlord, called to Charlotte. She hustled the children into a bedroom and descended the staircase to face a Nazi colonel and his orderly. The officer was asking for a bedroom and meals. Charlotte spoke in feigned broken German, translating into French for the landlord, who could not refuse the request.
For the next two weeks, the colonel and his orderly slept in a room next to the three Jewish children. “We knew we were in some kind of danger, and we had to be noiseless and invisible,” Eva recalls. Charlotte, meanwhile, moved to a cot in the attic where she stood guard at the window every night. She knew Rodolphe could return at any moment, throwing stones at her window to alert her.
Eva was born in Berlin on May 18, 1932. By fall 1933, with Adolf Hitler the new chancellor of Germany and her father forbidden to work as a patent attorney, the family decided to move to Paris, where Rodolphe was offered
a position by a non-Jewish colleague, René Plasseraud. Rodolphe left in September, settling in Courbevoie, a Paris suburb. Charlotte followed with Eva in December. Eva’s brother Ernest was born there in 1935.
In summer 1938, with Charlotte again pregnant, they moved to a larger villa in Le Vésinet, another suburb of Paris. A second brother, Raymond, was born in April 1939, and in mid-July, Rodolphe’s parents, Bertha and Joseph Gutmann, joined them.
On June 14, 1940, Nazi soldiers marched into Paris. Soon after, at Plasseraud’s request, Rodolphe moved to Massay, a village 135 miles south, taking with him important legal documents as well as Eva, 8, and Ernest, 5. He rented a small castle with turrets and a glassroofed patio where he set up his desk and office chair. Charlotte remained in Le Vésinet with her younger son and in-laws.
In Massay, German bombers frequently flew overhead, prompting air-raid sirens to wail and the family to seek shelter in the cellar. Once a bomb exploded directly above the castle, shaking the cellar walls. When the all-clear signal sounded, they rushed upstairs to discover that a piece of shrapnel had pierced the glass roof of the veranda, embedding itself in Rodolphe’s chair. “Had he been there, he would have been killed instantly,” Eva says.
The Germans continued moving closer. Rodolphe, with Eva and Ernest, relocated 275 miles southeast to Lyon, renting an apartment in the suburb of Caluire-et-Cuire.
Charlotte, Raymond, and Rodolphe’s mother—whom they hadn’t seen for two years—joined them in late summer or fall 1941. Rodolphe’s father had died the previous January; his mother died a few months after arriving in Lyon.
In fall 1942 Charlotte traveled to the mountains above Grenoble, 72 miles southeast of Lyon, searching for a children’s home where Eva and her brothers would be safer. She visited dozens; all were full. Desperate, she visited one last home, called Clairefontaine, in Autrans. It too was at capacity with 30 children, but the owners, Geneviève and Roland Menthonnex, agreed to take
the three children. The couple was later recognized by Yad Vashem, Israel’s official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, as Righteous Among the Nations—a recognition for non-Jews who risked their lives to help save Jews.
On a rare visit to see the children, in spring 1943, Charlotte received a telegram from Rodolphe: “Stay there. I am coming.” He arrived a few days later, and they rented the second floor of the yellow house, owned by the Ravauds, a non-Jewish couple in their 50s with two daughters.
“We knew we were being hunted, but my parents tried their best to make our life as normal as possible,” Eva recalls.
Still, when alerted by local residents of possible danger, Eva and her brothers were rushed to local farms for protection, arrangements her father had made with farmers he had befriended, while he and Charlotte hid in the forest. Other times the entire family escaped to the forest.
Rodolphe clandestinely listened to the BBC every night. On the evening of June 6, 1944, he learned that the Allies had landed in Normandy.
On July 14, 1944, Bastille Day, the Gutmanns hiked to a mountaintop overlooking Autrans for a picnic. Suddenly planes roared overhead. They assumed these were Allied aircraft until they saw bombs being dropped on a valley below. The family rushed down the mountain to hide in the forest. “If I am forced to die, I will die with a weapon in my hand,” Rodolphe announced. The next day he and two friends joined the French underground, which was based nearby.
The two Nazis embedded in the yellow house, hunting Jews during the day and returning for food and rest each evening, finally left. “It was a miracle they didn’t burn down the house and kill the residents,” Eva says.
In late August Charlotte received a message that Rodolphe was 50 miles away and in need of clothing and money. Placing the children back at Clairefontaine, she and a friend set out on bicycles. But as she sped down the mountain, the brakes on her bicycle failed, and she lay sprawled across the road, bloodied with a
broken ankle.
Assistance eventually arrived, and Charlotte headed back to Autrans, fortuitously reconnecting with Rodolphe on the way. “The accident saved my mother’s life,” Eva says. If not for the fall, she would have missed him. Worse, Charlotte and her friend would likely have been stopped by the Nazis and executed as they were carrying men’s clothing and cash.
On October 10, 1944, Lyon was liberated, and the Gutmanns returned to their apartment. A year and a half later they moved back to Paris.
Eva returned to school, but as a Jew born in Germany, she felt like a second-class citizen, inferior and extremely timid. She struggled through her teenage years and beyond. After graduating high school, she spent a year in Israel, where she felt more free, and where her maternal grandparents had escaped after Kristallnacht. She returned to Paris and focused on becoming a pediatric nurse.
On June 23, 1953, Eva met Mel Perlman, an American who had been studying in Israel. “It was love at first sight,” Eva says. Less than six weeks later, on July 30, they married in a civil ceremony in Paris and two months later in a Jewish ceremony in Kansas City, Missouri, with Mel’s family.
Eva and Mel moved to Oxford, England, where Mel studied social anthropology and where their daughter Ilana was born in August 1957. Mel’s research then took them to Uganda. Their second daughter, Tamar, was born there in 1961 and son, David, in 1962.
Mel worked as an assistant professor at the University of California, Berkeley and then at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, while Eva studied accounting. But in May 1988 he died of leukemia, and a year later Eva moved to Los Angeles.
Eva rebuilt her life. She had been content in the role of being Mel’s wife her entire marriage, but after his death, she says, “I had no choice but to develop into a whole person on my own.”
She worked in accounting, and in 2011 she participated on her first March of the Living trip, accompanying a group of Jewish Los Angeles high school seniors to
two photos on the right, with Eva center, were
in 2012. The photo lower left shows a map of railway routes the Nazis operated to bring cattle cars packed with Jews to Auschwitz. Lyon, where Eva and her family lived in the early 1940s, was one of the departure stations. “Had we been caught, we would have been taken directly to Auschwitz,” Eva notes.
Poland and Israel. The trip was life-changing. “I found a purpose,” she says, along with a reborn sense of confidence. She traveled with the Los Angeles delegation for nine years, until the pandemic hit, and hopes to travel again in 2025.
Eva holds steadfast to her belief that Holocaust stories should be shared—and remembered. She wrote a memoir, Eva’s Uncommon Life: Guided by Miracles, published in 2019 and available on Amazon. She also speaks frequently at the Museum of Tolerance and the Holocaust Museum LA, as well as at synagogues, churches and other venues.
At 92 and a grandmother of six and great-grandmother of nine, Eva is determined to stay active—she still drives, even after recovering from knee surgery— healthy, and to continue speaking.
“I strongly believe we have to tell our story before we die,” she says. “This is what I live for.” ■
“We knew we were being hunted, but my parents tried their best to make our life as normal as possible.”
Eva with an album from her nine March of the Living trips, accompanying LA Jewish high school seniors on educational journeys to Poland and Israel. The experiences were transformative for her.
The
taken
Session Man
FRESH FROM TOURING WITH ERIC CLAPTON, NATHAN EAST TOUCHES ON EVERYTHING FROM WHY HE CHOSE TARZANA AS HOME BASE TO HIS CURRENT PASSION PROJECT—MAKING
Written
and photographed by
AN
ALBUM WITH HIS MUSICIAN SON, NOAH.
Rose Eichenbaum
You may not know the name Nathan East, but chances are you’ve enjoyed his brilliant bass playing. Nathan is one of the most sought-after session musicians in the industry. Over the past four decades he’s performed on more than 2,000 songs and hundreds of albums by some of the biggest names in pop, jazz, rock, R&B, country, and blues including Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Beyoncé, Stevie Wonder and Barbra Streisand. Nathan is also a founding member of the highly acclaimed smooth-jazz quartet Fourplay along with Bob James, Lee Ritenour and Harvey Mason.
Born and raised in San Diego, Nathan now lives in Tarzana. He says that the San Fernando Valley is a great location for bopping in and out of LA’s recording studios, but also a perfect place to live and raise a family. Nathan and his wife, Anita, raised their twins, Noah and Sarah, here.
“It’s coming up on 30 years since we moved into our beautiful two-story home in Tarzana,” he says. “It’s a wonderful community with friendly people, good schools and great restaurants. But above all, the Valley is a lot less hectic and trafficky than LA and has a really chill vibe going on. Maybe this is why so many musicians I know have chosen to make the Valley their home. It suits our temperament and has space for setting up our own recording studios.”
Nathan first discovered the electric bass at the age of 14. “As soon as I held it in my hands I could feel its magical power,” he recalls. He was soon playing in a band that caught the attention of R&B singer-songwriter Barry White. Although Nathan was just 16, White hired him to go on tour and perform at Carnegie Hall.
Calls then came in from such artists as Quincy Jones, Eric Clapton and Stevie Wonder, and Nathan’s career took off.
In addition to his recording schedule, Nathan tours regularly as a member of Eric Clapton’s band, which recently completed its 2024 world tour.
Another endeavor: producing his upcoming album, “Father/Son,” with his son, Noah, a gifted piano and organ player. “Making music with Noah has been one of the most gratifying experiences of my life,” he said. “There was a synergy and unspoken communication between us that I’d never experienced before in any recording session. Maybe it’s because we have the same blood running through our veins, and that DNA is reflected in our music.”
“Father/Son” is scheduled for release in January, and the duo will perform live in Newport Beach at Campus JAX on January 26. Then they’ll head to Baden-Baden, Germany, for an engagement in March. Also on tap in 2025: Nathan will perform in New York with Eagles guitarist Joe Walsh for VetsAid in November.
After countless sessions, tours, and gigs, today
Nathan can still vividly recall his initial feeling as a teenager about playing guitar. “It gave me a sense of purpose and the idea that I could make a real contribution to music via this piece of wood with strings on it.”
Indeed, more than a half century later, it is clear he has done exactly that. ■
MILT & DEBBIE VALERA
Providence Tarzana Foundation
Giving back has always been important for Milt and Debbie Valera, even when their modest early-career paychecks did not align with their ambitions. They remained steadfast in their charitable philosophy, however, and are proud of their current commitment to support Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center and the Providence Tarzana Foundation.
The Valeras are focused on their San Fernando Valley community, where Providence Tarzana Foundation is joined by California State University, Northridge (CSUN), the Valley’s many community colleges, the Alliance Marine – Innovation & Technology 6–12 Complex in Sun Valley, and programs and services that help foster youth and support Jewish causes.
“Our support for programs such as those at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center aligns perfectly with our philanthropic objectives,” Milt says.
“It’s not just about giving; it’s about community involvement as well,” adds Debbie.
Milt is chairman of the National Notary Association (NNA), an educational organization based in Chatsworth that serves the nation’s more than 4 million notaries. He’s a graduate of Los Angeles City College and CSUN. He worked in journalism and marketing before joining the NNA.
Debbie, the former executive director and current vice chair of the NNA, graduated from Syracuse University. After a career as a writer and editor, she partnered with her husband to build one of the largest publishers of books and educational materials for the notary industry.
The Valeras’ recent major contribution
to the Providence Tarzana Foundation resulted in the naming of the Milt and Debbie Valera Lobby at the medical center. The expansive space welcomes patients, families and medical staff, reflecting the Valeras’ spirit of generosity and community.
“We hope that everyone who enters the lobby will feel welcome,” Milt says. “We also hope that it will encourage others to contribute to the medical center through the Providence Tarzana Foundation.”
Milt and Debbie have always been drawn to causes that resonate with them personally, which led to their interest in supporting the foundation. “Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center was a perfect fit and coincided with our desire to keep our giving local,” says Debbie.
When asked what “the season of giving” means to the couple, they responded: “For us, the season of giving isn’t just December; it’s about making a difference throughout the year.”
The Valeras’ philosophy of giving extends beyond any single season. Their unwavering commitment to philanthropy is
“IT’S ABOUT MAKING A DIFFERENCE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.”
evident in their support of various causes and their active involvement in the community. They serve as role models for their family, which includes their four children, seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, demonstrating the importance of kindness, generosity and community spirit. Milt and Debbie’s generosity is not only transforming lives but also setting a precedent for future generations. As they continue their philanthropic journey, they inspire others to join them in making a lasting impact.
TARZANAFOUNDATION.ORG @PROVIDENCECEDARS
Isabelle & The Chess Champ
WHEN ISABELLE ROSA SAW AN ELDERLY, RUMPLED MAN SLOWLY WALKING DOWN THE STREET, SHE COULD HAVE IGNORED HIM. MANY OF US WOULD HAVE DONE EXACTLY THAT. BUT NOT THIS 32-YEAR-OLD. INSTEAD, SHE WALKED OVER TO HIM, AND WHAT TRANSPIRED BETWEEN THE TWO—WHO ARE 50 YEARS APART IN AGE—WAS SOMETHING RARE, UNIQUE AND BEAUTIFUL.
Written by Linda Grasso | Photographed by Shane O’Donnell
2024 was a year of change for Isabelle Rosa.
“The past few years, post-COVID, I’ve been taking stock of what I have, as a lot of people have been doing. I felt like the joy of my life had been sucked out in a lot of ways. I was existing, but I wasn’t living.”
She closed her business selling Tesla parts, separated from her husband, and moved from North Hollywood to Silver Lake. She also composed a list of things she wanted to do in the new year. On that list: She wanted to help people. “I don’t think I intended that to be a career choice. It just meant that I want to help if I can.”
One day in March, she noticed an older man wearing a suit jacket, walking. She’d seen him previously multiple times. “I was like, oh, he’s so cute. I was walking my dog, and he was directly across the street. My dog, who is very perceptive, stopped dead in his tracks. He would not walk. It was kind of a sign,” she laughs. “But seriously, something inside me said I needed to talk to him.”
Approaching the man, she noticed that his jacket was dirty and tattered. His fingernails were dark, and he was missing most of his front teeth. “But we started talking. He was very suspicious and reserved. He’s like, why are you being nice to me? During the course of an hour, I find out that he used to be a chess champion. Literally, he was the United States amateur chess champion in 1966!”
The man, whose name is Tom Lux, shared with Isabelle that he had been an electrician in the Navy during the Viet Nam war. Never married, no children. He’d lived alone in the same house, just down the street from Isabelle, for the past 40 years. “He told me that I was the first person who tried to talk to him in 15 years. Most of his interactions consisted of ordering from the same burger place a few blocks away.”
More conversations followed, and with each one Isabelle became more riveted. Tom, who is 83 years old, is a classic introvert—a guy who through most of his life kept to himself. After his Navy career, he worked as an electrician and then sold ads for the now-defunct
publication The Recycler. He retired in 2003. Two years later he was declared legally blind, losing his driver’s license. In the ensuing years, he found himself more and more alone, and, as he puts it, “a deep depression” set in. His family and most of his friends had passed, and all personal contact ceased during COVID. So did communication. Tom had no computer, internet, television or phone.
“I’d say during a two-year period I didn’t talk to a single person. Honestly, for most of COVID, I didn’t even know what was happening,” Tom recalls.
Most of his time was spent at a table at his rented home. With a chess notation book sprawled out, he’d play chess with himself. “You analyze what other players have done and then you play against that,” he explains.
When things started reopening, he started walking to his local burger place again. But he discovered that conversation had become difficult. “He said he had to reteach himself how to talk because he had basically forgotten,” says Isabelle.
When Tom invited her to his house, Isabelle discovered that it was ice cold and messy, with few provisions.
“So I went to Goodwill that day and I bought him a whole bunch of clothes. Then I bought some food for him. I could tell that he thought it was strange. Look, he had had no contact with people since basically before COVID. It was clear that he needed a little help,” she shares.
Isabelle started routinely popping over to Tom’s house for coffee and visits. The two would occasionally take walks. She started ordering on Amazon things he needed such as space heaters and dropping them off along with food. Tom gradually let down his guard and a trust developed between the two. At one point, Tom expressed concern about reciprocity in their friendship.
“He wants to feel useful, as a lot of people do. So the trade-off we made was that he would teach me chess. And he still does. He’s an incredible teacher. I mean, his level is off the charts. He memorizes the board, even at his age,” she says.
Not only has Tom taught Isabelle how to play the game, but he has also taught her how to read complex chess notation.
“She is a really fast learner and quite good,” he shares. Has she ever beat you? “No, not yet; but soon. It will be a good day when she beats me,” he laughs, taking a puff on his Camel cigarette.
Over the past year, during their twice-weekly coffeeand-chess sessions, Isabelle says she has enjoyed watching Tom blossom. “I think he was and honestly still is suffering from loneliness. But when I look back at when I first started hanging out with him and compare it to now, he is a different person.”
He has also gotten back his ability to converse. “He can discuss any topic with you, from astrophysics to Seinfeld to chess to quantum theory—anything, really. He’s very knowledgeable, good with puns, and great with language. His syntax is incredible. He is a very high-IQ functioning person. It’s like in that Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit. There’s this tunnel vision that occurs. I’ve seen that in Tom.”
Isabelle says she has learned that introversion can be tricky as a person gets older. “When you are younger, loneliness can just be a part of being an introvert. But as you get older, people move away; they pass away.
“And so for me, what has occurred is simply a friendship. It is not just me helping an old man. This is a friendship, and one where I’m learning something.”
That loneliness can get magnified.”
Watching the two play chess one sunny fall day at Isabelle’s house, one wonders if caution lights ever go off for her. Many, if not most of us, recoil at the thought of anyone being overly dependent on us—particularly a nonfamily member. We refrain from getting too involved.
“I didn’t see it from that perspective because when I look at Tom, needy isn’t the first thing I think of. The first word that comes to mind with Tom is intelligent. I see a very intelligent man. And so for me, what has occurred is simply a friendship. It is not just me helping an old man. This is a friendship, and one where I’m learning something.”
It is not Isabelle’s first intergenerational friendship. She was raised in a troubled home and often felt the need to get out of the house. She befriended an older lady who lived nearby. “She was probably close to Tom’s age, maybe a few years younger. I spent multiple years with her. She taught me how to knit. We watched the show Murder, She Wrote together. I’ve always seen people as people, not for their age or anything else, but
An article in Chess Life magazine about Tom. He was the United States amateur chess champion in 1966, and during the competition swept the field 7–0.
who they are, who their soul is.”
And this is not the first time she’s reached out to help an older person who was down on his luck. In 2019 we did a story in Ventura Blvd on how Isabelle helped her father, Giovanni, a former “caterer to the stars,” kick off his successful business, Giovanni’s Tiramisu. He was 71 then, and struggling financially. She helped him develop and market (on social media) a dessert delivery business. Five years later, Giovanni’s Tiramisu is still going strong, and it has put a spring in her father’s step. He now has what so many of us crave and find elusive in our later years: purpose.
“With Tom, I felt a similar feeling as what I felt with my dad. It was like this immense sense of sadness, grief and shock about the situation they were in. With both, I had this feeling I had to do something.”
Today Isabelle’s efforts to improve Tom’s life continue. She got his heat turned on, had his house cleaned, and has been trying to help him with his finances. Tom, who receives Social Security checks, has about $150 a month left over after paying rent. “He would go eight days without eating,” she says.
Tom apparently never signed up for VA benefits or Medicare, and Isabelle has spent the last several months trying to navigate all the red tape so he can start receiving monthly checks. She is also working to get a social worker assigned to his case. In the meantime, she has launched a GoFundMe that has put $20,000 directly into Tom’s bank account.
From a personal standpoint, Isabelle’s life is still in flux. She hasn’t yet decided on her next career, and she is in the midst of renovating a house in Toluca Lake— all of which raises the question: What will happen when she embarks on her next chapter, living miles away from Tom? She insists that she’ll continue to be in Tom’s life. “How could I not?”
A goal as of late: to get Tom to go to Griffith Park, where a group plays chess on Sundays. “He is still trying to work up the courage. He’s been used to seeing me. But I’m working up to that.” ■
Tom
Isabelle and
walking in the Los Feliz neighborhood where he has lived alone for the past 40 years.
PREPPING FOR THE HOLIDAYS
‘Tis the season to get your home organized!
The holidays are coming, which means cozy gatherings, cherished traditions and, yes, a bit of chaos. But don’t let the season overwhelm you! With some thoughtful preparation, you can create a welcoming space that lets you focus on what really matters: making memories with loved ones. Enter NEAT Method, a luxury organizing company that combines white-glove service with design expertise to transform homes across Los Angeles. NEAT Method believes organization is the foundation of graceful living and overall well-being—especially during a stressful time like the holidays. The company’s signature approach, refined over a decade, creates rooms that are both beautiful and functional. They streamline cluttered, disorganized areas so clients can thrive in their living and working spaces. Here, the NEAT Method team offers a guide to holiday prep. Take these steps now, and you’ll be ready to welcome both guests and gifts with open arms … and organized spaces!
PREPARE THE ULTIMATE GUEST HAVEN
Let’s face it—living out of a suitcase is no one’s idea of holiday cheer. Transform your guest room into a cozy retreat by clearing space in the closet (a few empty hangers work wonders) and emptying a drawer or two for folded clothes. Then elevate your loved ones’ stay with a thoughtful welcome basket filled with essentials they may have forgotten. Think travel-sized toiletries, snacks and a water bottle for midnight sips. Here’s a great touch: Tuck in a note with your WiFi network and password. It’s these simple gestures that help guests truly settle in and feel at home.
CRAFT A GIFT-WRAPPING COMMAND CENTER
Nothing dampens the holiday spirit quite like having to hunt down scissors at midnight or discovering an empty tape dispenser. Create a mobile gift-wrapping station that’s ready whenever inspiration (or necessity) strikes. A divided basket is perfect for keeping your supplies in order—one section for tools, another for gift bags. And don’t forget spots for tissue paper and ribbon.
Store smaller items like gift tags and embellishments in canisters within your basket. When it’s time for secret wrapping sessions, just grab your paper and go!
CLEAR SPACE WITH A PRE-HOLIDAY EDIT
Don’t forget that all those new gifts will need somewhere to live. Before the festivities begin, set aside time for a thorough edit. Start by gathering items that are broken, outgrown or simply collecting dust. Then tackle any duplicates. If you’re not using both simultaneously, keep your favorite and share the joy of the other item through donation. Need a little extra help? Enlist a trusted friend for feedback on what should stay and what should go.
Remember, an organized home isn’t about perfection; it’s about creating space for joy, connection and magical holiday moments. Not ready to take on these projects by yourself? NEAT Method offers expert organizing services and a curated product collection to help you discover the luxury of living beautifully organized.
RENOVATING A HOME WHILE TRYING TO PRESERVE ITS CHARACTER AND UNIQUE FEATURES IS TRICKY BUSINESS. BUT WITH AN EYE FOR DESIGN AND METICULOUS ATTENTION TO DETAIL, ANNAH AND BENNY ZAFRANI PULLED IT OFF IN LONGRIDGE ESTATES.
Shane O’Donnell |
Photographed by
Written by Chelsee Lowe
In one of Studio City’s most soughtafter neighborhoods, Longridge Avenue ambles up into the Hollywood Hills and toward several preserved open spaces. Stately homes on large, meticulously landscaped lots line the serene street. That beauty and sense of serenity is why Valley native Annah Zafrani has always wanted to live here.
“When I was growing up, I dreamed of living on Longridge,” she says. “I always felt like the people who lived on this street had made it.”
Annah and her husband, Benny, along with their two sons, were living in Valley Village when they spotted a traditional home for sale in 2013.
“It had great bones, curved walls and plaster molding. Built in 1941, it had character,” Benny recalls. They scooped up the two-story home, ultimately opting to take it down to its studs rather than build from the ground up. “We liked that it was old and that it had some charm,” Annah says. “We did not want—and this is something we both feel strongly about—one of those cookie-cutter, white box homes. We wanted it to feel more like us.”
Over the next year, the couple helmed a thoughtful rebuilding of the five-bedroom house, preserving many of the traditional elements they loved, including all of the exterior and interior molding, some of which was restored.
They retained the original footprint, with one exception: They pushed the kitchen’s exterior wall out a few feet to transform a galley kitchen into a more open and spacious one, with an expansive Calacatta Gold marble island. The absence of hanging cabinets adds to the light and airy vibe of the room, while the gray beige (aka “griege”) built-in cabinets complement Annah’s preferred color palette of muted earth tones.
The kitchen is Benny’s favorite space. “We spend 90%
of our time right where you are,” he says. “We talk, we have dinners, and sometimes that dinner is just our family standing around here. Some days the TV is on, and a football game is playing. We could go upstairs, but this is just more conducive to being together.”
The kitchen and eat-in dining area are adjacent to a sunlit family room with a custom linen sofa, a bespoke white oak record console, and a sculptural Roly Poly resin chair by British designer Faye Toogood. Layered rugs as well as pillows and throws in organic fabrics create texture and warmth.
In lieu of a formal dining room, Annah and Benny set up a pool room. The setting of many a family game (all four of the Zafranis play), the focal piece is a custom-built walnut pool table topped with gray felt. To Annah’s keen eye, the tournament green of a typical pool table didn’t work with the home’s color scheme. Also in the pool room: a gallery wall that features
striking paintings and sketches by their sons.
In fact, most of the art in the house is by their children, who surely get some of their creative talent from their parents. Benny is the CEO of sleepwear and loungewear brand Honeydew, while Annah is a former marketing executive at Universal Pictures who now runs the consulting company AZ Guide. In her spare time the interior design buff enjoys sprucing up the Longridge abode, whether she is replacing fixtures, bringing in new textiles, or obsessing over the softest dish towels.
Upstairs, the primary suite is light-filled and spacious and includes a sitting room, which for the time being is devoid of furniture. “It has had several incarnations over the years. During COVID I used it as a Pilates studio. But right now, I’m loving the empty space,” she says.
After a decade living in the house—the kids have left
A gallery wall overlooks a pool table with handsome gray felt topping. All of the pieces on the wall were done by the couple’s sons over the years.
“WE HAVE ALWAYS FELT THAT A HOUSE SHOULD BE COMFORTABLE AND LIVED-IN. WE WANTED EVERY ROOM TO FEEL SPECIAL AND INVITING.”
Floors throughout the house are wide chestnut-stained oak planks. “They remind me of the Crosby Street Hotel, which I love, and where we stay when we go to New York,” Annah says. The planks were cut and set in a herringbone pattern in a few areas including the primary bedroom, seen here along with labradoodle Milo.
the nest—the couple is as content within its walls as ever. “Honestly, there’s not a room in this house we don’t use,” says Benny. They have handpicked nearly every detail, so around each corner and on every shelf are objects that reflect the family.
Ultimately, it’s not the things in the house that Annah and Benny love—it’s the time spent together in all of the beautiful rooms they’ve curated.
“We have always felt that a house should be comfortable and lived-in. We wanted every room to feel special and inviting,” Annah says. “We loved that our boys felt proud of the house and good about inviting their friends over. As we are getting older, we are spending more and more time here. And our home continues to evolve as we do.” ■
A succulent arrangement in a concrete planter by Inner Gardens near the guest house in the backyard.
Desert Recharge
MIRAVAL ARIZONA RESORT & SPA HAS BEEN A DESTINATION FOR REGENERATING— AND IN SOME CASES REINVENTING—SINCE THE 1980S. AN EASY HOUR’S FLIGHT FROM LA TO TUCSON, WHETHER YOU WANT TO RELAX OR PHYSICALLY CHALLENGE YOURSELF, THE RESORT IS AN IDEAL PLACE.
Written by Linda Grasso
The secluded Miraval resort is in the middle of Sonoran Desert nature—replete with the classic landscape elements: stucco, dirt, decomposed granite and cactus. As the friendly receptionist checked my sister and me in, she handed us a small linen sack for our phones, informing us—in the nicest way possible—that electronics are prohibited from most areas of the resort. It was my first trip to Miraval; my well-traveled sister’s third. Insisting her experience at Miraval topped our visits together to both The Golden Door and Rancho La Puerta, she counseled me to bring only workout clothes. I’m glad I listened. Miraval is ultracasual. It is not uncommon to see people in spa robes eating dinner at Cactus Rose, the resort’s one full-service restaurant.
The sprawling 500-acre campus includes structures that range from meditation yurts to open-air massage tents. We visited in June, and although it was hot (105° during the day), many of the shrubs and trees still had blossoms.
The most appealing aspect of Miraval is its wideranging variety of classes, scheduled throughout the day. I’m not a morning person; for me, nothing is more frustrating than going to a resort that only has yoga available at 7 or 8 a.m. At Miraval, multiple classes and activity choices are available from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m., and most are included in your room rate. I loved the body-area-specific exercise classes. For example, I took a Glutes & Abs and a Happy Hips class. The resort also offers dozens of seminars on everything from maximizing your metabolism (who knew that the antioxidant properties of green tea were best absorbed when sipped hot and combined with lemon?) to getting better sleep.
Numerous group and private, fee-based activities and sessions are also available. (A typical guest package includes a $175 a night credit that can go toward them or spa services.) Choices include Better Sleep in Menopause & Beyond, Optimize Your Sex Life, The Power of Self-Compassion. The Spirit & Soul category gets pretty woo-woo: Discover Your Soul Mission, Dream Circle, Dharma: Find & Follow Your Life Purpose, and a hands-on Crystal Oil Infusions workshop. I enjoyed a class on upping your cooking game with plantbased combinations; my sister loved her private session with a clairvoyant.
Those with an adventurous streak can opt for the Desert Tightrope, where you walk on a tightrope 25 feet in the air—clinging to a series of ropes for support—while protected by a harness and tether. Or the Quantum Leap, which begins with a climb up a 35-foot pole. At the top you reach a small platform from which you step off—while tethered—and swing midair. My sister loved this activity. Unfortunately, I was recovering from foot surgery and couldn’t partake. But I did enjoy some firsts. I tried a barre class—taught by a former ballet dancer—and I attended a class on the bells and whistles of iPhone photography. Most of the teachers and instructors I had over a three-day period filled with back-to-back classes were enthusiastic, personable and informative.
The basic rooms are scattered across the resort in U-shaped structures, numbered in the 100s through the 400s. Our room was small and dark, with tired towels and dated furnishings. An older model air conditioner blasted icy gusts through a large ceiling vent above my
bed—and it roared on and off all night. My suggestion: Pay more for a room in the 500s or 600s. They are larger and have outdoor patios, showers and firepits. For multiple bedrooms, guests can opt for a villa or the newer villas, called “retreats.” Built just six years ago, they offer updated amenities, furnishings and decor. Some even have pools.
All meals are included in the room rate and can be enjoyed at the Cactus Flower Restaurant. Lunch is a colorful, expansive buffet with all kinds of farm-fresh salads, healthy soups and sandwiches. Guests can also order from a small menu with a couple of daily entrees like a meat burger or a burger that is beet-based. For dinner, a handful of rotating entrees are available, with options such as halibut on a bed of peas and wild mushrooms, and short ribs atop mashed potatoes and pearl onions—our two favorites. The focus is on healthy ingredients and controlled portions, yet we were always completely satiated. Also in the main hub: a café and a bar, which each night is the spot for a lively happy hour. Cocktails and an interesting array of California varietals can be ordered by the glass (alcohol is not included in the room rate). One of the things I loved about Miraval—no matter where we were eating or drinking, the staff never made us feel rushed. We never felt any pressure from them to turn a table or vacate a bar stool. Can’t remember the last time I felt like that in LA.
The resort has four pools, including one filled with saltwater. Despite the heat, guests could be seen throughout the day, lounging on chairs with glasses of wine, frozen grapes, popsicles—all available at the poolside bar.
We thoroughly enjoyed our time at Miraval, but, to be candid, it needs an update—from decor to landscaping. The resort was acquired from a private equity group by Hyatt Hotels & Resorts in 2017, and it is surprising that the corporation hasn’t given it any (visible) love. Many of the concrete pathways—particularly near the older rooms—are stained and in sore need of a power wash. From the body scrubs to the massages, the spa services are top-notch but the facility itself is not. The
THE MOST APPEALING ASPECT OF MIRAVAL IS ITS WIDE-RANGING VARIETY OF CLASSES, SCHEDULED THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
old-school sauna and the steam room, which dripped very hot water from the ceiling, felt subpar. The absence of an infrared sauna, considered a must-have nowadays for upscale wellness, is another negative.
Sustainability is another area where Miraval needs to improve. The resort provides refillable water bottles upon check-in, but plastic cups and straws abound. And for a place with so many insightful classes on nutrition—emphasizing the need to avoid processed, packaged foods—the presence of Coffee-Mate by the in-room coffee maker seems off. Why not place a tiny container of milk or cream in the mini fridge like so many resorts do? To the sophisticated spa consumer, these have become basics. Miraval, with its entry-level price point of $1,675 per person per night in June (the offseason), can and should do better.
Who goes to Miraval? Mostly women. Mothers with daughters. Pairs and groups of friends. Women recently divorced, or empty-nesters looking for a new path. We did see a few men, most of them there with wives—a few of whom were pregnant. I couldn’t help but think: What a fabulous thing to do with your partner before your life as a couple is upended by a precious new life. Despite the resort’s flaws, most of the guests had been to Miraval before and were planning on coming back again—a testament to a unique form of magic that Miraval has created as an oasis in the middle of the Arizona desert. ■
Cabo Auténtico
COMBINING OLD-WORLD CHARM WITH HIGH-END SERVICE, THE WALDORF ASTORIA PEDREGAL IN CABO SAN LUCAS IS AN ESCAPE IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD.
Written by Linda Grasso
The first time I visited the resort property at the base of Pedregal Mountain at the southern end of Cabo 12 years ago, I was captivated. On the water, surrounded by mountains on either side, Pedregal has its own long stretch of private sand beach. Enchanting.
It was called Cappella Pedregal at the time and was owned by a local family. I reveled in its authenticity. Everything—from the architecture to the furnishings— felt as if I were visiting a historic resort in Mexico City.
Pedregal was sold to Waldorf Astoria in 2019, and I was curious to see what, if any, changes had been made. Although I love the Waldorf Astoria brand in general, I felt apprehensive. Sometimes a large corporation puts its own stamp on a resort, inevitably sapping away some of its authenticity and appeal.
But Pedregal wows from the moment your vehicle enters through a torchlit, private tunnel. Walking through the open-air lobby of the 119-room property, you can’t help but exhale. Handed one of the best margaritas I’ve had in years, we headed for our suite.
One thing I’ve always found interesting in Cabo is that at the high-end resorts, people tend to sit jammed side-by-side at the pools instead of opting for the beach. So I typically opt for the beach. With such a fabulous beach at Pedregal, it’s seemingly a no-brainer. Yet at Pedregal I choose to sit at the pool. Lounge chairs are nicely spaced, and the two large infinity pools gracefully twist and turn along the coastline, creating a serene ambiance.
Dinner at El Farallon is a must. Perched by the ocean at the base of a mountain, the location is dramatic. Our sons still talk about the first time we took them and sat at a table near the water with waves splashing us as we enjoyed our meal. (You can, by the way, sit elsewhere and avoid getting wet.)
While you wait for your table, grab a glass of bubbly on the terrace, site of a champagne bar that offers more than 15 varieties by the glass. The menu offers a multicourse meal (fish or meat plus salad and soup) with several local fresh fish options including sea bass and red snapper. Portions are small—four bites to my piece of fish—but after the meal, we were perfectly satiated.
Don Manuel is another dining option. The eatery may not have the dramatic setting of Farralon, but the fare is more interesting. During our stay, the resort was hosting its biannual Festival of Flavors, during which an acclaimed guest chef helms the kitchen. (We also attended a memorable tequila tasting by Casa Dragones as part of the event.) The chef, Mitsuharu “Micha” Tsumura, owner of Maido in Lima, Peru, suggested short ribs—something I’ve never ordered. With meat that had been cooked for 50 hours in a Japanese Peruvian soy-based sauce, they were spectacular. Terrific service matched the eats.
Every visit to the 12,000-square-foot oceanside spa starts with a cleansing foot scrub with local herbs and lime. Treatments are designed around the moon’s phases, and emphasize indigenous ingredients and therapies. For example, the Nourishing Moon features a honey, brown sugar and jasmine scrub, which is followed by a body wrap and scalp and body massage. I enjoyed a wonderful basic massage. Although I did not sign up for a hot stone massage, the masseuse noted the knots on my back and incorporated the therapy into my treatment. Heavenly.
Bottom line: Pedregal still feels like a rich celebration of old-world Mexico. In fact, the change in ownership has resulted in some improvements, including 24-hour room service and a courtesy car. Pedregal remains memorable—and authentic. ■
All the rooms and suites offer private balconies with plunge pools and dramatic views. Shown here: a beachfront villa.
With carved wood, wrought-iron, brassstudded furniture and earthy tones, the decor is part of Pedregal’s charm.
At El Farallon—Pedregal’s signature open-air restaurant—it’s not just about the food, but also the scenic location.
One of the curvy infinity pools at Pedregal.
The Valley Market Now
CELEBRATING HER 50TH YEAR IN REAL ESTATE, IN 2024 CAROL WOLFE WAS THE #1 INDIVIDUAL AGENT IN TH E ENCINO OFFICE OF RODEO REALTY. SHE IS RANKED AMONG THE TOP AGENTS BY THE WALL STREET JOURNAL AND REALTRENDS ’ AMERICA’S BEST REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONALS. HERE VB EDITOR LINDA GRASSO ASKS CAROL FOR HER ANALYSIS OF THE CURRENT STATE OF VALLEY REAL ESTATE.
What does the market look like right now?
The market is currently very active. Although inventory is above its all-time low in 2023, it’s still at historically low numbers. A normal market is a five- to six-month inventory level. Currently we are averaging about a 3.5-month inventory level, which is up from a 2.5-month inventory level a year ago. While we are not seeing as many crazy multiple offers as we saw a year ago, we are still seeing very good activity.
What has been the impact of the federal interest rate drop of 0.5 percentage points in September?
Rates have actually gone up since the Fed drop in September. They were around 6% at the time of the drop, down from 7% just 90 days earlier. Unfortunately, they are now back up to the mid-6s.
There are forecasts for another rate drop in November. Are you seeing buyers holding back?
Not really. Buyers are sophisticated and know that they can refinance when rates drop. They know that now that inventory is a little higher, it’s a great time to buy.
What is the status of home prices?
Earlier in 2024 we were seeing year-over-year price increases of about 8%. That has dropped to around 3.5%. So prices are still going up but at a level closer to inflation.
In recent years, we’ve seen several areas well north of the Boulevard undergo lots of new builds and renovations, and sales prices above $2 million and higher. Which neighborhoods have seen the most dramatic changes?
Amestoy Estates in Encino, and the area of Encino north of the Boulevard and east of Hayvenhurst because of the popular K–8 school, Hesby Oaks. Other areas: College Acres and Walnut Acres in Woodland Hills and Melody Acres in Tarzana. With the new Rams training camp at Warner Center, the Village and the newly remodeled Westfield Topanga is also attracting buyers.
It is not just the attraction of having a larger, flat lot that is incenting people to move north. Homeowners
insurance has become increasingly difficult to get for houses south of the Boulevard due to the threat of fire.
What is the best time to put a home on the market?
I tell clients not to pay attention to time of year and to sell when they want to sell. There is a general perception that spring is the best time, but that is not always true. In December, the inventory typically drops down to very little, as a lot of people are waiting until after the holidays to list. With few choices for buyers, that could result in a great price.
The National Association of Realtors changed the commission structure for Realtors. Can you break down the changes and share what impact that has had?
Nothing really has changed except buyers now know in advance how much their agent will be paid. Most sellers understand that buyers have a hard enough time coming up with the down payment and closing costs and are still paying the buyer’s agent’s commission. I like the fact that buyers now have to sign an agreement with the agent they choose to work with to view homes. ■
16105 Woodvale Road, Encino
for $4,050,000
Oaks 1.1+ Acre Estate
SOLD
16355 Tudor Drive, Encino
Sold for $2,706,000 ($307,000 over asking)
18045 Sweet Elm Drive, Encino
for $2,900,000
Encino View Estate
17072 Oak View Drive, Encino
Offered at $1,899,000
1 Story Mid-Century with View! SOLD
1 Story with View!
4752 Haskell Avenue, Encino
Sold for $2,500,000 ($501,000 over asking)
4700 Sq. Ft. Fixer Upper
SOLD
2625 Cardiff Avenue, Los Angeles
Sold for $1,625,000
Beverlywood Builder Opportunity
Don’t take my word for it. Here is what my clients say:
We are overjoyed to send this letter to express our appreciation of your work on selling our house. Your decades of experience in our neighborhood are well documented, so we’re just confirming this to be true. We were most impressed with your communications. You were readily available throughout the process – all phone calls were promptly returned, emails and texts answered with little wait, but most notably, you initiated communications throughout so we were always knowledgeable about each step. With your help, we too became conversant in the lexicon of the trade. Barely a day went by that we didn’t hear from you, and this helped ease the stress considerably. Your marketing materials and tactics were spot-on – the MLS listings, advertisements in print and online, the video, social media, and so forth showed the house beautifully. Your time with possible buyers and other brokers was well apportioned too, with the open houses and taking potential buyers on private visits whenever requested to further promote the property. You negotiated prices with potential buyers (laid these out clearly in a table for us to consider the financial options), and you got everything set-up with escrow. You were well-versed in every document needing signature, alert for every potential hurdle and competently worked independently with no need for prompting or badgering – you were the one always moving the process through each step – from the initial meeting to the final closing statement. We are grateful to have had you as head of our house-selling team and know that your skills and experience will serve others equally well. Carol and Susan Becker
Photography by Inda Reid
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’Tis the Season… To Stay Home
THE JOY OF DOING NOTHING IN DECEMBER.
Written by Richard Lowe | Illustrated by Yuiko Sugino
The holiday spirit is everywhere in the Valley, from festive decor along Ventura Boulevard to neighborhood pockets upholding traditions of excessive lighting and garishly large blowup Santas. As we hightail it toward the end of the year, I’m reminded of how much I’m looking forward to the twoweek break. Not because we have any big plans—in fact, quite the opposite. Despite the FOMO-induced urge to travel, for me and my family, ’tis the season to stay put. Not leaving Los Angeles in December is the real Christmas miracle. It may sound “bah humbug,” but truth is I’m not really a Grinch. (That might surprise some of you more loyal readers.) I still enjoy a lot about the holiday season: the gatherings, decorations, endless pie and inevitable changing into stretchy pants. It’s just that I’ve discovered there’s a real joy in doing nothing to end the year. For us, the first 50 weeks move at a breakneck speed. That’s why a few years ago, I finally convinced my globetrotting wife to hit the brakes. Since putting down my foot—and my luggage—we’ve found new ways to celebrate. Instead of being guests, we’ve become the hosts, inviting family over and sharing our perfect 75° weather. Last year, we took our family to the Malibu Pier. We wore shorts and walked on the beach. Our guests’ hometown is rainy and cold, so naturally, they loved being here.
Even my wife, the intrepid explorer, has embraced it. She’s started a new Christmas Eve tradition of dressing all
of us up and going to Lawry’s restaurant with our family friends, the Chos. While we eat a far-too-cold spun salad and way-too-large slices of prime rib, our kids exchange gifts, and we listen to the carolers. And then, of course, there’s Christmas morning, made all the more special by waking up in our own beds. Rather than opening presents in a hotel and belaboring the fantasy of Santa by explaining how he schleps his sleigh through the lobby and up an elevator, we get the comfort of our own home.
However, the best part of staying here is the vibe. Oh, the vibe. The city goes quiet, and it feels like nothing is stirring, not even a mouse. In these moments it feels like the Valley belongs to me. Our morning strolls in the crisp, cool air feel more serene. Traffic has died down. The farmers market feels calmer. Call me a simple man, but coasting down an open 101 to a free-flowing 405 in the middle of the day is pretty damn close to bliss. And the parking? You haven’t lived until you’ve felt the thrill of a street lined with open meters.
So, let it snow, let it snow, on a near-empty Valley. I’d recommend it, but that would spoil my fun. Turns out, the less the merrier. So, to you and yours, wishing you a happy holiday. Now please go enjoy your trip. ■
Richard, his wife and two daughters decorate their Christmas tree in Studio City.
