Issue 09 — European Staycations🍷🧀, Cocktails🍸 + Wild Wild Horses 🐎
Do you still eat at Sqirl? Just wondering!
News Bites:
This ‘Wine Table’ by Swedish designer, Gustaf Westman is a need, not a want. 🍷
Fatty Mart just opened in Mar Vista, and it’s alllll over my FYP. 🛒
I don’t eat chicken, but the new green garlic goddess chicken sammie at Kismet Rot. looks soooo good. (I’m a sucker for pea tendrils) 🥙
Miyoko Schinner (of Miyokos Creamery) has been Removed as CEO From the $260 Million Vegan Cheese Brand that she founded. It was announced in a joint statement. 🧈
Starbucks heard olive oil was trending and dropped the Oleato — coffee infused with extra virgin olive oil. (Huge missed opportunity for Graza if you ask me.) It’s giving bulletproof coffee, but with an even smaller fan base. ☕️🫒
3 Years and $11 Million Later, the Huntington Tea Room Is Finally Reopening this week — Traditional Tea starts at $62. For $75 you also get a lobster salad with shaved black truffles + a glass of sparkling wine. 🥂 🇬🇧 (vegan + gf menus available too)
A Mexican/Italian Restaurant? OK! ‘Amiga Amore’ just opened on York.
European vibes without leaving LA🍷🧀 🍽️ 🦐 🐟️ 🍋
If you see rattan bistro chairs or blue tables sprinkled with orange drinks, you’re off to a great start. Maybe wear something from the new LSG Tapas collection.
Capri Club, Eagle Rock — Apertivo hour every hour — spritzes, negronis, and amari, aranchini, olives and salady things. Lasagna Mondays! The hard part is finding a place to sit.
Café Triste, Chinatown - It’s a little bit chaotic and the cheese comes with a side of cigarette smoke. Everyone is hot. It’s basically Paris. 🚬
Barra Santos, Cypress Park — from the people that brought you, Found Oyster. Barra is a Portuguese wine bar with a short menu of salty snacks. ‘Hot girl food’. Everything is delicious, service is even better.
Greekman’s, Silver Lake — If there are crispy potatoes on the menu, I will be ordering them. The branzino is laid over a bed of herby lemony orzo and it hits every time. They serve water out of these Fish Pitchers. I couldn’t tell you why, but I kind of want one. 🐟 💦
L&E, Silver Lake — Not many LA spots are 2 stories… plus there’s something just so quaint about Silver Lake Blvd, the way it wraps around the reservoir… lined with shady trees. Tables for 2 on the sidewalk. I’m not a huge shrimp person, but I LOVE their shrimp cocktail.
Figaro Bistro, Los Feliz — So the food isn’t greeeaaaat and neither is the service, but judging people while swallowing a dirty martini + basket of fries? Feels like vacation. (PS. this was literally overheard at Figaro)
Or if a CDMX ‘staycation’ is more your vibe: 🇲🇽 Get tacos at Ditroit DTLA, Loreto, or Damian.
What I ate and drank this week:
Sorella x Layla Bagels Pop-Up: I’m typically a lox girlie, and @maxsyummy’s lox did not disappoint — but the ‘Sorella Bagel’ was surprisingly my favorite, which featured their new house-made Two Year Cheddar + spicy fig jelly. Both bagels were on super crispy bagels by Layla’s . (I still haven’t been to Layla’s actual location yet, but I can tell, if you like Courage, you’ll be into Layla’s…) 🥯
The Guava Caipirinha at Goldline: it’s been my favorite cocktail on Fig for years! Tastes best when Gabriel is behind the bar.
Barra Santos: Chilled Rosato and Tuna Crudo are no brainers, but the Endive Salad was the star: with toasty almonds, malvarosa cheese, oranges, cilantro, sherry + smoked paprika vinaigrette. Still thinking about it.
Chloe’s x Gem Brunch: My friend Chloe hosted a brunch with Gem, and the spread was absolutely STUNNING — favorites were the Dukkah Carrots + Giant Vinegary Corona Beans.
Good House Keeping’s Yuzu Cocktails: Good Riddance + Everything Zen. Yuzu Co. is just everywhere all of a sudden! 🍋
🐴 Did you scroll down for Horses?
Anders Lindseth’s piece, Hovering over 10,000 Acres is both striking and unfortunately relevant — currently on view at Giovanni’s Room in LA.
🛑 TW: domestic violence + animal abuse
ICYMI, a chef of popular Italian restaurant Horses accused her husband and business partner of killing the family’s cats (and then some…) 🐈 In the divorce filing she also asked for a domestic violence restraining order. ‘Both parties allege physical abuse by the other. Johnson claims that Aghajanian dragged her across the floor, while he says she burned him with kitchen utensils.’
TBH, I don’t have a whole lot to say — It’s all just sad + unfortunate. It’s starting to feel like the restaurant version of the Depp / Heard trial.
In any case, if you want to understand more of what’s going on, here’s an LA Times article for my millennials, and a Tiktok for my zillennials.
If you’re wondering if people are still dining there, the answer is yes. 🍝
“If the quality of the establishment is there, everything else that is happening, it’s not affecting the dish, It’s noise.” A man waiting at the valet stand said he’d first heard about the scandal from his friends over dinner. He said he asked his waiter about the cats, and the response was “No comment.” — LA Times
This whole Horses situation has me thinking about Sqirl #MoldGate... 🐿️
It’s QUITE different, but I’m curious…
*Don’t worry, this poll is anonymous. I’m convinced people still go, they just don’t post it on instagram. 🤷🏼♀️
Lastly — New Footer Just Dropped! 🦶
I’m going to start ending my emails with the ‘Last Issue’s Most Clicked Link’. I love seeing what content y’all are most interested in and figured you might too. Anyway, here it is.
This really is going to be the 👏 patio 👏 to be at this summer 🍹🦪 👇
Going to every single one of these restaurants