Features Archive

CHEFS, NOT BABES / how we sell cars in the 21st century

By Larry Levine – While in college, Joyce earned spending money as a model at car shows. Manufacturers and dealers hired her to stand beside their cars in a swim suit and heels. Her job was to look lovely, smile and hand literature about the cars to men who stopped by. We dated a few [...]
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A VEGAN IN A WORLD OF OMNIVORES

By Pam Giarrizzo - Eating in restaurants used to be so much simpler. Back in the day, I’d look at the menu and try to decide between the rib-eye steak and the grilled pork chop, between the linguine with prawns and the lasagna with Italian sausage. But about nine and a half years ago, I [...]
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MEMORIES ARE MADE OF THESE / 12 memorable meals from the year gone by

By Larry Levine – “You’re lucky, eating so many great meals in great restaurants.” I hear statements like that frequently from people who assume I created a restaurant web site (atLarrys.com) and this online food magazine as an excuse to eat great meals in great restaurants. They have it backwards; the great meals in great [...]
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ON THE GO / SACRAMENTO – a wonderful destination for a celebration, some great restaurants and outstanding sightseeing

By Larry Levine – It was a perfect celebration for a food lover – four days in Sacramento commemorating two significant events and eating at four memorable restaurants. The original purpose of the trip was to celebrate Jennifer’s birthday with our son Lloyd, his wife Edie and their daughter Alise. We arrived in town a [...]
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LOUVAR – a fish you may never taste, or even see

By Larry Levine – “Perhaps one of the most prized and sought after fish on the West Coast, a fish shrouded in much mystery …” “… the best fish I ever tasted.” “Buttery, but not rich … A slight crunch like halibut fin … Smooth texture, no gristle …” These quotes rained down on my inbox [...]
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SUMMER BARBECUE FLAVORS TO LAST THROUGH THE CHILL OF WINTER / recipes to tide you over to spring

By Larry Levine – Summer is long gone – a faded rose, as the song says – and now autumn is behind us, too. Even in sunny southern California we face the chills of winter and the early sunsets. Outdoor grills and barbecues are put away, while we wait for spring, when the days will [...]
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FUKUSHIMA: A LESSON FOR CALIFORNIA / the nuclear threat to the state’s agriculture and the world’s food supply

By Larry Levine – The Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant sits on the coast of California 197 miles from downtown San Francisco, 170 miles from downtown Los Angeles. It’s 119 miles from Diablo Canyon to Fresno and 103 miles to Bakersfield, both in the heart of California’s great Central Valley, one of the most important [...]
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THE AGE OF COMMENTARYUS / strange happenings from the world of food blogs

By Larry Sheingold - (This is one of an occasional series by Larry Sheingold exploring the world of volunteer internet dining reviews.) With apologies to the musical, Hair. This is the dawning of the Age of Commentaryus. We’ve always had opinions. Always shared them. But thanks to the internet, never has so much commentary been offered for [...]
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FUSION WITHOUT CONFUSION / from youthful necessity to Hawaiian sophistication

By Larry Sheingold - I was a fusion food pioneer. Didn’t intend to be. But surviving the 1960’s on dollars a day meant recipes-of-necessity. And that often called for blending culinary cultures. So blend I did. Spaghetti topped with canned chili. Tortillas and peanut butter. Or my staple: “idiot’s delight,” an inspired sauté of cabbage, [...]
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IRKS, PEEVES AND IRRITANTS FROM THE WORLD OF RESTAURANT DINING / what really bothers you?

By Larry Levine – At the risk of sounding like an old curmudgeon, I want to devote a few paragraphs to a discussion of some of the things that can and do go wrong in a restaurant and things that become either pet peeves, major irritants, or just downright unacceptable. Call it an invitation to [...]
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