When I go to a restaurant that has been open only for a few days, I don’t expect things to be perfect. I expect a bit of a problem with the service and perhaps some of the dishes won’t come out of the kitchen just right. So it was a surprise when I had lunch at La Cachette on Ocean Avenue a week or so after they fired up the oven.... Read more →

I have a friend who constantly criticizes me. He has a very sarcastic personality so he plays it off as humor. Recently he’s been blatantly ignoring me when we are in a group situation or making me feel as if I am not welcome. Then all of a sudden, he’s really nice to me. As far as I can tell, I’m not changing my own... Read more →

At the newly opened Lemonade, on the corner of Abbot Kinney and Venice Boulevard, Chef Alan Jackson is filling a gap that has existed in the Venice dining scene for a surprisingly long time: thoughtfully prepared, picnic-perfect food for all ages and appetites that can be can be taken to go or eaten in house. Chef Jackson’s decision to... Read more →

Have you ever found a restaurant by fluke, and then that restaurant turned out to be one of your new favorite places to eat? Well, that exact thing is what connected me to my favorite Thai restaurant, Lattitude Thai, which is located at 2906 Lincoln Blvd. in Santa Monica. It is a small, family-owned restaurant and its food is definitely full... Read more →

What do Tony Kushner, Larry Kramer and Moises Kaufman have in common? A lot. They are all award-winning contemporary playwrights. They have all been civil rights activists. They are all Jewish. They are all gay. And, in one way or another, these life experiences all turn up as themes in their plays. Take Kaufman, whose last production was... Read more →

I didn’t set out for this column to be about serious things. I wanted to write about fun toys, cute silly days and adorable things my son says. But this column is about what is going on in our lives as a family. And our lives this year have been challenging. I had a miscarriage in January. A lot of people don’t talk about... Read more →

NEW YORK — The chatter died down as all eyes turned to a member of the cadre, who given the events earlier that day had something important to say to his ROTC students. It was just hours earlier that four planes hijacked by terrorists crashed into the twin towers in Manhattan, the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pa., killing thousands of... Read more →

Publisher iUniverse presents us with a novel by Joan Del Monte in the mystery and detective line. The formula is there. We have an amateur detective, in this case a female writer, a side kick, the private investigator from whom she is taking an adult school class and a body, along with the murderer who is not revealed until the end. It is... Read more →

Despite the popularity of adding EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) to a frying pan every time a burner is ignited on some popular cooking show, olive oil is not always the best choice for cooking. Yes, olive oil does boast major health benefits such as the antioxidant oleocanthol, an anti-inflammatory. Olive oil is also rich in monounsaturated... Read more →

A reclusive old man wanders from room to room in a cluttered, old-fashioned apartment that hasn’t been attended to since his wife passed away. The furniture is from another era and the walls and bookcases are filled with tchotchkes accumulated over a long lifetime. Old spice bottles and seasonings stand in rows on the shelves in the... Read more →

VENICE — At a Greek dive on Washington Boulevard, Finian and Ciaran Makepeace along with Conor Gaffney, who together comprise one of Westside’s most popular folk bands, The Makepeace Brothers chatted about their roots, their new CD, “Live In San Diego,” and their dedication to political activism. Finian... Read more →

GENERAL COMMENT: I’m a big fan of lobster rolls in general. Not only do I like to eat them, but I’m always interested in the surprise of what comes out of the kitchen — sometimes it’s like a sushi roll with fried chucks of lobster inside; sometimes it’s like a California roll, with avocado and other veggies. One... Read more →

Dear New Shrink, In just two weeks my second child will be leaving for college. I am excited for this new opportunity and for him but I find myself much more anxious than when my first child went off to college. While he doesn’t talk about it often he has said a few times that has mixed emotions about leaving home. He will be on the... Read more →

Each year, the U.S. News and World Report guide to U.S. schools gives a few days of glamour to academia. PR departments of colleges note with pride that their college is “moving up” in the rankings. What too few parents and prospective college students understand is how distant these rankings are from reality. The largest single... Read more →

LINCOLN BLVD — The year was 1969. The role was “Villager” in Homestead High School’s performance of “Tea House of the August Moon.” The man was John Paizis, then a sophomore, who was appearing onstage for the first of what was destined to become many, many performances. “I got so immersed in , and... Read more →