Le Pain Quotidien in Studio City

After walking about 5.5 miles there was rumbling in my stomach. Deciding on what and where to eat in Studio City  is always hard because there are so many great places to eat.  Passing this little bistro while on that 5.5 mile walk and stopping in to eat on the way back was the plan. . The bakery and communal table was esthetically pleasing, and the food also looked great.  I asked the waiter to tell me what the place was famous for and the first thing  he pointed out was the Quiche Végétarienne.   This  was one of the things that I was considering after looking over the menu.  The next thing he suggested, which was his absolute favorite was this fabulous spinach salad with baked goat cheese, thinly sliced apples and caramelized nuts.   It is obvious from the description which one I decided on.  This salad was served with two different slices of their famous breads.   It was incredible.

I was equally as pleased with the service.

Le Pain Quotidien in Studio City

After walking about 5.5 miles there was rumbling in my stomach. Deciding on what and where to eat in Studio City  is always hard because there are so many great places to eat.  Passing this little bistro while on that 5.5 mile walk and stopping in to eat on the way back was the plan. . The bakery and communal table was esthetically pleasing, and the food also looked great.  I asked the waiter to tell me what the place was famous for and the first thing  he pointed out was the Quiche Végétarienne.   This  was one of the things that I was considering after looking over the menu.  The next thing he suggested, which was his absolute favorite was this fabulous spinach salad with baked goat cheese, thinly sliced apples and caramelized nuts.   It is obvious from the description which one I decided on.  This salad was served with two different slices of their famous breads.   It was incredible.

I was equally as pleased with the service.

Winterlit Concert feat. – Santa Monica Discovery

Andy Grammer

Andy Grammer got his start  busking on Santa Monica’s 3rd Street Promenade, where he played his guitar in front of the McDonalds for three years.  In 2009, Ben Singer saw Andy  there and signed him on to manage his music career.   Tonight, Andy Grammer  returned home to give a free concert where he got his start, on Santa Monica’s 3rd Street Promenade. Andy’s first album debuted June 2011 He will be performing at the Annual Santa Monica Winterlit Celebration and Concert along with YouTube sensation, Savannah Outen

The City for Entertainment

With my 50th birthday only four days away, I received an email for a vacation package to Las Vegas, and since I had never been I decided to check it out. Most of Friday, I went back and forth from website to website trying to find the best deal to Las Vegas. LA City Tours has a bus tour that I thought would be fun, since I was going alone, but I was not too excited about the hotel that they were using. When I was reading through the reviews, there were none on the hotel itself, they were all about getting the best steak for the buck. Since I am not a steak lover, I was not impressed, so I decided to skip on that package.  My search continued.  Priceline, Jetblue Airlines, and US Airways all had pretty good packages for Las Vegas, with a choice of hotels. After researching the hotels, I decided on a package from Jetblue with the New York New York Hotel and Casino.  It was definitely the best value.

New York New York Hotel and Casinoue.

Inside the hotel and casino is like a city, with street signs, coney island, coffee shops, even a rollercoaster. Since I love New York City, this was a great reminder for me. The room was nice and very comfortable.

Park Avenue Deluxe w/ King Bed

I am telling that this place is huge with about 15 different places to eat all under one roof.

Inside NY NY

Inside NY NY

view of the casino floor

Waking up here on my 50th birthday was fun. At first I thought that I was way out my league, because I am not a big party girl, but after walking the strip the next day, I felt nothing but amazement. Most of that amazement was in the architecture and everything being bigger than life on the strip, a.k.a. Las Vegas Blvd. Even in the middle of the week the strip was jammed with people from every part of the globe. I met two separate couples that flew to Vegas from Australia.

For me this trip was mostly for discovery. discovering what everyone loves about Vegas. Now I didn’t catch any of the shows or win any significant amount of money, but I did enjoy the atmosphere and some great food. When I go back, yes I am going back, I will go to see a couple of shows and visit a few more fabulous restaurants.

It would not be Vegas if you don’t see at least one Elvis Impersonator

Or two

mouse over and click for more photos of Las Vegas

Eating in Chicago

I thought Los Angeles had some of the best restaurants, but I was blown away in Chicago.  Yesterday I had lunch at this beautiful little restaurant called Friends Sushi located on Rush Street in downtown Chicago. This is a place where my girlfriend Al often goes for lunch, because it is only a short walk from her Michigan Ave. office.  It was a small place on a side street, but it was cute and the food was fabulous.

I arrived in Chicago on Friday after midnight and sat up talking with my friend from Philly until a little past day break.  Yes the sun was coming through the windows.  After only a couple of hours sleep we set out to get breakfast. Allison knows how to find the gems in any city, especially the one that she is so passionately in love with. So we ended up at  this quaint little restaurant called Big Jones in Andersonville.  Th menu at this restaurant is what I would consider southern with a Cajun flair, but much healthier than expected. It is fancy but affordable and the owners and staff were warm a welcoming.

Chicago, Illinois

I use to go back and forth from Savannah to Chicago when I was young.  My mother’s sister lived there and it was going to the big city to me.  My aunt was extremely protective when I would visit, so we only did the touristy things and go shopping. It was not until this last visit that I was able to see what a beautiful city Chicago really is.  I had no idea how beautiful the architecture was there.  Even though I probably would not have appreciated it before now.  I am really in awe of how my girlfriend new the history of the various buildings in the downtown area.  I remember going to Marshal Fields, which is now Macy’s, and amazed at how large it was. Well I was in the big city.  My girlfriend, whom I met in college is from Chicago, actually she is from a sub-burb called Lake Forest, but she now lives in the South Loop. degrees, and that is nice.

From where she lives you can walk to Michigan Ave., Lakeshore Drive, and State Street, where there is an abundance of shopping and great restaurants.  She has been trying to get me to move to Chicago for many years, but it never happened.  In the last few years, I was always afraid of the winters there.  Yes they are bad enough to make you afraid if you are not use to them, and sometimes when you are use to them.  My Aunt has since passed away, but her daughter is still there with her family. My cousin has thought of moving away from Chicago because of the winters and because she is so far away from family, but I think she has resigned to spending the rest of her life in Chicago, because it is what she knows.  I don’t get the feeling that she loves the city as much as my girlfriend does, but she seems to be very proud of Chicago.

It would be hard to leave sunny California and move to Chicago, but it is not impossible, because there is so much more there that is addictive.  Even though, when they are having sub-zero weather, in LA it may be 55 degree and that is nice.