On a Quest for Danish Pastry, Swedish Meatballs, and Authentic Norwegian Cuisine
By Larry Levine – It’s done. I’ve eaten Danish pastry in Denmark and Swedish meatballs in Sweden, two of the three goals I announced before we left on our recent 16-day Norwegian cruise. The third goal, authentic Norwegian food in Norway, well, that didn’t go so well.... Read More
“I found my love in Avalon, beside the bay …” / AL JOLSON’S WORDS STILL RING TRUE
By Larry Levine – My love affair with Avalon, Catalina Island began before I ever saw it. As a boy in Brooklyn, I listened devotedly to variety shows on the Crosley tabletop radio next to my bed. I heard Al Jolson sing, “I found my love in Avalon, besides the... Read More
A CENTURY OF MEXICAN FOOD HISTORY / 90-year-old Ron Salisbury is overseeing the 100th anniversary of El Cholo restaurant
Ron Salisbury wakes up every morning and, like millions of others, he heads for work. That’s where the similarity ends. Ron is 90 years old. That puts him among the oldest one-half of one percent of the people in the United States. Then there’s the matter of where Ron... Read More
TRAKTIR / where solidarity meets Old Country Ukrainian food
By Larry Levine – We came for the solidarity and stayed for the food. And now, a year later, on the one-year anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, we’re here again, at Traktir. For the solidarity and the food. Traktir is a Ukrainian restaurant in Tarzana CA,... Read More
MARK OKUDA’S ROCKET RIDE TO SUCCESS AT THE BROTHERS SUSHI
By Larry Levine – Mark Okuda eyed the slab of blue fin tuna on the cutting surface with respect. He turned it to a slightly different angle and paused the blade over the pink toro. The fat content promised a morsel that would melt on my tongue. One final... Read More
ESSAYS FROM IRELAND AND ENGLAND – 2022
By Larry Levine – CHAPTER ONE – GETTING THERE NO LONGER IS HALF THE FUN OF TRAVEL There’s an old saying among vacation travelers: Getting there is half the fun. It’s clearly is from another time, a distant memory of an era when travel was more glamourous and far... Read More
WHILE WE WAIT TO SMILE AGAIN / a food writer rides out the pandemic
By Larry Levine – I wonder where they are, the four men whose combined years may total one-third of a millennium. They were there so many days, regulars at a table in the back corner of Angelini Osteria on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. With the cork extracted and the... Read More
MELISSE / a story of the life-cycle of a Michelin-starred restaurant
By Larry Levine – Five hours before the opening of Josiah Citrin’s newly re-christened restaurant, Citrin, in the Santa Monica CA space in which he previously operated the Michelin-starred Melisse, we sat down for a scheduled half hour interview about the... Read More
MUSSO AND FRANK GRILL TURNS 100 / a Hollywood landmark prepares to celebrate
By Larry Levine – It’s in the middle of a block in the heart of Hollywood California. Thousands of people walk by every day. Mostly they are tourists. They are looking down at the names of the celebrities on the stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Some are... Read More
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