It’s James’ 29th birthday and his three closest friends have come to take him on a journey to his favorite place on earth: a secluded cove on Barafundle Bay, on the western coast of Wales. As they start out, their banter is filled with private jokes and obscure references, and much of it is muffled.... Read more →

DOWNTOWN Apparently, “it’s getting real in the Whole Foods parking lot” these days. Believe it or not, that’s the jump off into a popular viral video that has racked up 2 million-plus YouTube views in less than a month. The video, “Whole Foods Parking Lot,” follows David “DJ Dave” Wittman as... Read more →

It’s fun for a restaurant reviewer to find something special, that few people know about. Tiato Market Garden Café is one of those places. Hidden away in an office building on Colorado Avenue, it’s not your typical restaurant. It offers a beautiful outside patio, it’s hidden from the street and there’s little... Read more →

Dear New Shrink, I have a very hard time getting the rest I need each night. My doctor has given me some medication but told me not to take it every evening. I don’t really want to take it at all but sometimes it is the only way I can sleep for more than a couple of hours. I often fall asleep but wake up within a few hours and toss and... Read more →

“In Our Name” is a hauntingly beautiful film, the second in the series of new independent films that comes to us as part of the From Britain With Love film festival playing in Santa Monica. It tells the story of how difficult it is to return to civilian life after a tour in Iraq — but this time from a woman’s point of... Read more →

DOWNTOWN — A growing movement created by foodies for foodies that revolves around trading tasty treats has made its way to Santa Monica. Pam Leelayuwapan, who has just recently been introduced to the food swap phenomenon, has created the first Santa Monica Food Swap as an extension of her growing love for all things... Read more →

Do you have any idea of how many pizza places there are in and around Santa Monica? There’s no way that I could begin to try even half of them. On the other hand, in order to write this article I did visit about 50 of them, so I have some idea about it. The first problem with writing about pizza is that, like some other things in life,... Read more →

The trade alliance OCeanfront, comprised of the four Orange County coastal communities of Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach and Dana Point, wants to make sure you know that Orange County is the ultimate ocean getaway with 42 miles of pristine coast and just a gas-friendly hour’s drive from Santa Monica. And in case you... Read more →

“A Memory of Two Mondays” is not one of Arthur Miller’s more recognizable plays, but it should be. Especially at a time like this, when the American economy is going through a Great Recession. “Two Mondays” is set in 1933, during the Great Depression, when the unemployment rate was 25 percent and people clung to... Read more →

With Father’s Day swiftly approaching, I can’t help but think about what it might mean to be a father. Being a woman, I can only imagine, and then of course I have to think, well there are so many different types of fathers out there. Some run for the hills and don’t even claim their children. Others fall in love with their... Read more →

DOWNTOWN — “Toast” is the first film to come to America in a new independent series called From Britain with Love. Presented by the Film Society of Lincoln Center, the UK Film Council, and Emerging Pictures, the six-film series will be screened one a weekend from June 18 to July 24 at the Laemmle Theaters in Santa Monica,... Read more →

I was disappointed to see that Santa Monica Place’s The Market, which opened last month, is, in large part, just another high-end food court, competing with the other food court on the same level (that I love). I had hoped that it would be a real market, with high-end products to take home. But then I ran into Piero Selvaggio, the... Read more →

THIRD STREET — At Michael’s the magic word isn’t “please.” It’s “burrata.” The restaurant that pioneered fresh, seasonal California cuisine is offering its customers a complimentary farm-to-table bar bite of their choice with the purchase of mixologist Jason Robey’s farm-to-glass... Read more →

SEX! SEX! SEX! OK, now that I’ve got your attention, let’s talk about English. That’s Maria Gobetti’s message in playwright Lissa Levin’s “Sex and Education,” now having its West Coast premiere at the Victory Theatre Center. Gobetti plays Ms. Edwards, a once-enthusiastic English teacher who is leaving... Read more →

Dear New Shrink, I am hoping to take a vacation at some point this summer. I have been working in my current position for the past three years and the only time I have taken off has been for holidays. This has been an especially stressful year so I am in dire need of a true vacation. My boss is very strict about time away from the office so I... Read more →