I got a sandwich along with an apple. That's pretty it.
Pretty plain and pretty crumbly, not all gluten free meals have to be like this.
Thursday, November 19, 2015
JW Marriot Gluten Free
During the Connected Car Expo at the JW Marriott LA Live, I saw that there were no salads or gluten free options for their boxed lunches. I requested one, and the serving manager was very accomodating.
I got a sandwich along with an apple. That's pretty it.
Pretty plain and pretty crumbly, not all gluten free meals have to be like this.
I got a sandwich along with an apple. That's pretty it.
Pretty plain and pretty crumbly, not all gluten free meals have to be like this.
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Ralph's Tailgate Event
Through the years of shopping--and believe me, I do shop a lot--I've gotten a few Ralph's Tailgate event tickets, earned through the purchase of participating items, mostly through the use of coupons. I always tossed them out, thinking it wasn't of interest to me.
At a recent Grand Opening of my local Ralphs store, I earned one of these again. And I went.
And it was fantastic. This year you can purchase $25 worth of participating products or pay $40 at the door ( minus $5 if you show them the Ralphs app on your phone). What you get is unlimited food and drinks from major companies such as Farmer Johns, Foster Farms, Coca Cola, Coors, etc. Procter and Gamble gives away samples with fan opportunities and freebies available as well. You can load up your bags with all the free food and take it with you. No one bats an eye. (On my first go, two ladies stood by the cupcake table commenting on how much a person took. Underscore: hung out at the cupcake table all day.
I even saw a homeless woman who probably searches for receipts on the ground--and I don't blame her--for those tickets. It's a great deal.
Hint: UCLA games at the Rose Bowl get far less people than that for the USC games. A shuttle takes you from near the Memorial Park Gold Line station to the Rose Bowl. I found a great parking space a couple of blocks away from the station and was able to take the shuttle back and forth so I could grab more stuff. They do run out of food more quickly at UCLA games but the time I went, they opened early and it was pretty empty when I arrived.
It's a great deal, and there are freebie opportunities outside of the tailgate. There are a bunch of tailgate events going on, some private, some first come, first serve, and some other booths you can walk up to. If you're at the Ralph's tailgate, I suggest bringing bags, And some of the companies like State Farm and Toyota will give you a bag for their free swag. Look for the Test Drive opportunities outside as well.
For Ralph's, there are In and Out priviliges.
Foster Farms is one of the sponsors. On the product checklist, it says "Select varieties." Calling the 800 call center yielded no help. But whole chickens and tray-ed chicken parts did generate points toward getting a ticket!!
Last one this year is for the UCLA-USC game.
It's a deal.
At a recent Grand Opening of my local Ralphs store, I earned one of these again. And I went.
And it was fantastic. This year you can purchase $25 worth of participating products or pay $40 at the door ( minus $5 if you show them the Ralphs app on your phone). What you get is unlimited food and drinks from major companies such as Farmer Johns, Foster Farms, Coca Cola, Coors, etc. Procter and Gamble gives away samples with fan opportunities and freebies available as well. You can load up your bags with all the free food and take it with you. No one bats an eye. (On my first go, two ladies stood by the cupcake table commenting on how much a person took. Underscore: hung out at the cupcake table all day.
I even saw a homeless woman who probably searches for receipts on the ground--and I don't blame her--for those tickets. It's a great deal.
Hint: UCLA games at the Rose Bowl get far less people than that for the USC games. A shuttle takes you from near the Memorial Park Gold Line station to the Rose Bowl. I found a great parking space a couple of blocks away from the station and was able to take the shuttle back and forth so I could grab more stuff. They do run out of food more quickly at UCLA games but the time I went, they opened early and it was pretty empty when I arrived.
It's a great deal, and there are freebie opportunities outside of the tailgate. There are a bunch of tailgate events going on, some private, some first come, first serve, and some other booths you can walk up to. If you're at the Ralph's tailgate, I suggest bringing bags, And some of the companies like State Farm and Toyota will give you a bag for their free swag. Look for the Test Drive opportunities outside as well.
For Ralph's, there are In and Out priviliges.
Foster Farms is one of the sponsors. On the product checklist, it says "Select varieties." Calling the 800 call center yielded no help. But whole chickens and tray-ed chicken parts did generate points toward getting a ticket!!
Last one this year is for the UCLA-USC game.
It's a deal.
Friday, October 23, 2015
John Kelly Chocolates
I'm a fan of candy. Most anything candy. I can eat a whole bag by myself in less than half an hour without problem.
I appreciate good food but favor quantity over quality--with exceptions, of course.
John Kelly recently invited journalists to their small factory in Hollywood to showcase their Halloween offerings which included their Pumpkin Spice Truffle Fudge. It looked yummy in the factory. And I'm not saying it wasn't tasty at home.
But there's one thing I don't like about so -called high end chocolates: the utter bitterness of it. I want sweet. Maybe not to the point of "So sweet it hurts" but I don't get in to bitterness in chocolates. And with the chocolates that were included in the press gift bag, much of the chocolate was bitter.
The shaped skull for Halloween was incredibly hard to bite into. And it wasn't as tasty, sorry to say, as those chocolate rabbits you get during Easter. But it probably cost 10x the price.
Clearance holiday candy. That's what I'm about.
I appreciate good food but favor quantity over quality--with exceptions, of course.
John Kelly recently invited journalists to their small factory in Hollywood to showcase their Halloween offerings which included their Pumpkin Spice Truffle Fudge. It looked yummy in the factory. And I'm not saying it wasn't tasty at home.
But there's one thing I don't like about so -called high end chocolates: the utter bitterness of it. I want sweet. Maybe not to the point of "So sweet it hurts" but I don't get in to bitterness in chocolates. And with the chocolates that were included in the press gift bag, much of the chocolate was bitter.
The shaped skull for Halloween was incredibly hard to bite into. And it wasn't as tasty, sorry to say, as those chocolate rabbits you get during Easter. But it probably cost 10x the price.
Clearance holiday candy. That's what I'm about.
Monday, September 7, 2015
LA Times The Taste
The Saturday night event of LA Times The Taste was as good as a food festival can get. Superstar chef Ben Ford and Top Chef's Katsuji Tanaka excited fans, but the overwhelming favorite were lambchops from 10e Restaurant, an Armenian eatery in downtown LA.
Disappointment with the heat and the quality of the lunchtime events was a prevailing sentiment of the event. While Taste devotees pointed out that the weather was milder than last year, it was still undeniably hot. Sunday's BBQ themed event did nothing to cool down attendees, and it was reflected in the lower than normal turnout. But those who attended Saturday night were not disappointed.
Hosted by Times Restaurant Critic Jonathan Gold; Jenn Harris, Times Deputy Food Editor, Chef Michael Fiorelli of Love & Salt, and Master Bartender Vincenzo Maríanella, Saturday's Dinner with a Twist had so many great eats, it was food heaven.
Mi Piace offered up beautiful Smoked Salmon Strata as well as Braised Beef Short Ribs.
As reported from LA Food and Wine Festival, pork was in. But Doomie's Home Cookin brought vegan BBQ "Pork."
Sure there was plenty of pig to go around with one of my favorites, Ben Ford offering Pulled Pork tacos. The chef brought several whole pigs to go around.
Hopefully that will help the reporter who asked for his business card recognize him next year. What with a Ford's Filling Station at LAX and a bestselling cookbook, Chef Ford is #morethanjusthansolosson.
Tipple and Brinbe had no compunction about bragging about their marinated clams.
But you know what? They were right.
Loteria Grill handed out beautiful Tacos de Chiles en Nogada.
Saturday's lunchtime event highlights were:
Kye's BBQ Pork Mini Kyerito filled with Slow Roasted Heluka Pork Shoulder, White Rice/Quinoa Blend, and Poppy Seed Fennel and Cabbage slaw wrapped in a collard green.
M Cafe's beautiful Hijiki and Mizuna Inari with Pickled Burdock and Daikon.
Cafe Del Rey's yummilicious mushroom creations especially their Mushroom Pate.
Asian Box never disappoints, and they certainly didn't with their lamb meatballs.
Sunday offered fewer pleasures but saving graces were
Ocean Prime Beverly Hills' Crab Cocktail
Asian Box's Chicken-Ginger Porridge (jook/congee)
and 10E's Lamb sliders.
(wouldn't you know it--I dived in before I could take a photo which is very common at food shows!)
Disappointment with the heat and the quality of the lunchtime events was a prevailing sentiment of the event. While Taste devotees pointed out that the weather was milder than last year, it was still undeniably hot. Sunday's BBQ themed event did nothing to cool down attendees, and it was reflected in the lower than normal turnout. But those who attended Saturday night were not disappointed.
Hosted by Times Restaurant Critic Jonathan Gold; Jenn Harris, Times Deputy Food Editor, Chef Michael Fiorelli of Love & Salt, and Master Bartender Vincenzo Maríanella, Saturday's Dinner with a Twist had so many great eats, it was food heaven.
Mi Piace offered up beautiful Smoked Salmon Strata as well as Braised Beef Short Ribs.
As reported from LA Food and Wine Festival, pork was in. But Doomie's Home Cookin brought vegan BBQ "Pork."
Tipple and Brinbe had no compunction about bragging about their marinated clams.
But you know what? They were right.
Loteria Grill handed out beautiful Tacos de Chiles en Nogada.
Saturday's lunchtime event highlights were:
Kye's BBQ Pork Mini Kyerito filled with Slow Roasted Heluka Pork Shoulder, White Rice/Quinoa Blend, and Poppy Seed Fennel and Cabbage slaw wrapped in a collard green.
M Cafe's beautiful Hijiki and Mizuna Inari with Pickled Burdock and Daikon.
Cafe Del Rey's yummilicious mushroom creations especially their Mushroom Pate.
Asian Box never disappoints, and they certainly didn't with their lamb meatballs.
I could eat Pedalers Fork's Skuna Bay Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs forever.
Sunday offered fewer pleasures but saving graces were
Ocean Prime Beverly Hills' Crab Cocktail
Asian Box's Chicken-Ginger Porridge (jook/congee)
and 10E's Lamb sliders.
(wouldn't you know it--I dived in before I could take a photo which is very common at food shows!)
Sunday, September 6, 2015
LA Times The Taste: Ocean Prime Beverly Hills Crab Cocktail
Saturday, September 5, 2015
LA Times The Taste: Stella needs to Get Her Chill Back
What was up with Stella Artois? Uptight, veering toward tyrannical, the
Stella presence at LA Times The Taste definitely didn't fit with the groove.
First there was the anal cheese selector/beer sommelier Marc Stroobandt who demanded that guests have a beer in
their hand before getting a cube of cheese. He barked at the female pourers,
"Cidre!" as if they were his slaves. I've never seen someone so
uppity because he cuts cheese. What an ass.
Then at the end of the event when all guests wanted were some of the
glassware discards, the idiot volunteer made people join the beer line.
"Chef rules." The thing is the chefs had abandoned the booth long
ago.
Get over the rigidity, Stella. Otherwise, you're just sour and flat.
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Sunday LAFW Programming Update
For those of you wondering about the unrevealed Sunday
programming for the Los Angeles Food and Wine Festival, it is now up on the
website. Limited to 18 guests, Legendary
Champagne Krug will be paired with a decadent tasting of Black River Caviar
Tickets
should go fast so hurry and book your day of decadence.
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