Category Archives: eat & drink

Giveaway: $60 FREE food at Your Favorite NORMS

Norms

NORMS is turning 60 this year!

And to celebrate, they’re giving away $60 worth of food to one lucky My LA Blog reader.

That’s a whole lotta late night grub!!

I mean where else can you get a steak dinner (plus two sides), a salad, soup AND a dessert for $9.99 in LA???

When I first moved here to LA, I used to eat at NORMS with my co-workers almost weekly (and don’t tell anyone, but I still prefer NORMS over Dennys).  I loved knowing that I could eat some decent, grubbing food for a good price.  And there’s always something to tempt you on the menu.  In fact, I just had a veggie burger there the other night on the way to the Girls in Tech event.

So here’s the deal…stop by the NORMS of your choice between now and Friday, November 27th (the day after Thanksgiving) and take a photo (or video) of yourself, your friends, your family, your food, your waitress, your receipt, you name it…just let us see that it’s at NORMS and leave me the link to your photo here in the comments and you’re entered. No purchase necessary.

UPDATE: if that all sounds like too much work and you just don’t have the time to swing by NORMS any time soon (I know just how crazy pre-holiday season can be), just leave a comment tell me why you enjoy NORMS or what your favorite thing to order might be.  We’re easy like that.  NO PURCHASE IS EVEN NECESsARY.

After Thanksgiving, I will use everyone’s favorite, handy dandy Random.org integer generator and pick a winner.  That lucky winner will win $60 worth of free food at the NORMS of their choice.

And if you tweet about this contest or post it on your Facebook page or become a NORMS fan on Facebook, I’ll even throw in an extra chance to win.  Just be sure to send me a screen cap or link to the tweet – each extra counts as one extra chance, so be sure to post them all individually in separate comments.

Best of luck!!!

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Post-Halloween Life Lesson

Reeses

Here’s what I notice…

When you don’t eat regular, American chocolate for a while and then eat it…it tastes like shit compared to European chocolate.

BUT…

If you keep eating those Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups you’ll eventually start to swear they’re the best thing ever created.

Why is that?

PS – did you know that they actually make a perfume to smell like Reese’s cups?  Gross!

reesesperfume

Los Angeles Deserves Bigger, Better Burgers!

I received the following LA special event in my mailbox today.  While I won’t be attending, there’s no need not to share it.  Hope you can make it and enjoy your bigger, better burger!

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By now you’ve probably already seen the commercials for McDonald’s new Angus burgers – smaller, more expensive, and cheap imitations of the Carl’s Jr. burgers they tried to replicate.

We don’t think that’s right.

And neither does J.B. Smoove (HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, FOX’s ‘Til Death), who says Angelenos should stand up against McDonald’s and their over-priced and under-whelming products.

So, come out to the Carl’s Jr. at 1111 N La Brea Ave in West Hollywood on Tuesday, September 15 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Try out the McDonald’s Angus burger next door and if you don’t like its taste, come right on over to swap it out for a fresh, Carl’s Jr. burger of your choice for FREE. You’ll even get a chance to meet J.B. Smoove in the flesh.

You deserve a bigger, better burger. And we can give that to you. Hope you can make it or tell your readers about our burger swap.

The Awesome Caramel Tequila Milkshake Recipe!

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Earlier this week, I mentioned the awesome Got Milk? event at BLD and their delicious (and sometimes odd) milkshakes. At that time, I wasn’t able to share the killer Caramel Tequila Milkshake.  Lucky for you, the Got Milk? gals took pity on me and tracked it down!!

This tasty concoction was created by BLD Restaurant Chef Mariah Swan.  Did you know they regularly hold Milkshake Madness events at BLD?  I didn’t, but you better believe I dug up the deets to share it with you.  The next two Milkshake Madness events are Sunday August 23rd and September 27th starting at 5:00PM. Until then, let this creamy adult milkshake help you stay cool this hot LA summer.

Just remember, if you decide to do shots before or after imbibing in this drink…you’re on your own!  Enjoy!!  😉

CARAMEL TEQUILA MILKSHAKE

1 pint vanilla ice cream
1/4 cup caramel sauce
1/2 cup milk
2 shots of tequila

Combine all ingredients and blend. Divide between two glasses and top with whipped cream, a drizzle of caramel sauce and enjoy!

Thanks to @Freddysmama and the entire LA-based Got Milk? team for hooking a gal up

Um…Got Milk? Better Yet, Got Milkshakes?

Then how about a salted caramel milkshake?

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“Milk is not only a healthy beverage, it’s also the basis for many fun drinks like milkshakes. Drinking a milkshake brings out the kid in everyone, but each flavor highlights a person’s personality.” ~ Chef Mariah Swan

You know, there’s just something bliss-like about attending a party with milkshake shooters being passed around the room. Not just any milkshake shooters either. Now, these shakes were the creation of LA hot spot eatery, BLD’s Pastry Chef Mariah Swan (as where the passed pastries – lemon bars, magic bars and strawberry shortcake cookie concoctions) and the Got Milk? team.

My favorite by far was the Salted Caramel shake (recipe below) followed closely by the Caramel Tequila shake (sadly, no recipe was provided). To be honest, half of them didn’t sound all that enticing to us so we didn’t get around to trying all of them. But the ones we did try were quite good.

This really was heaven in a frosty glass. But believe it or not, there truly is such a thing as too many milkshakes – even if they’re only in shooter-sized glasses.

There were quite a few different flavors getting passed around – Blueberry Malt; Frozen Mexican Chocolate; Orange Dreamsicle; High School Musical’s Monique Coleman creation, Cookie Jar Milkshake; an oddly delicious, peanut butter cheesecake and so much more. We noticed at least eight or more frozen temptations going on around the room.

If you’d like to try out some of the recipes from the event (sadly, the caramel tequila recipe isn’t available but you better believe I’m doing what I can to track down this recipe), you can find them here (along with many other yummy milky concoctions).

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And did I mention that there were also tarot readers there? Seriously, milk shakes, pastries and tarot readers.  What a fun event!

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It was also great to socialize with other bloggers, such as Liz at Los Angelista, Sally at Any Given Sundry (who has to have one of the coolest and most fascinating jobs out there and is great photographer) and the big winner of the evening, Liz from Thoughts of a Mommy (a relatively new blogger to the scene).

To get you through the rest of summer season, here’s the recipe for their amazing Salted Caramel Milkshake:

1 pint vanilla ice cream
1/4 cup caramel sauce
1/2 cup milk
1 tbs salt

Combine all ingredients and blend. Divide between two glasses and top with whipped cream, a drizzle of caramel sauce and enjoy!

You know what they say…milk, it does a body good 😉

The Joy of Book Club Meets the Joy of Cupcakes!

Talk about the joining of two great ideas!  And what a great way to celebrate that we’ve been joining together to discuss books for over 4 years now!

So here’s the deal…back when I was planning my birthday, I was craving some Strawberry Lemonade cupcakes from Layers Cupcakes (I tasted them a month or so earlier at a local cupcake meetup).  Thing is, I wasn’t able to afford them at the time, so I did what any good blogger would do and well, I blogged about this sad turn of events.

Ebony of Layers Cupcakes (Facebook Fan Page) did what any good, modern business woman would do and checked her links (or had an alert set up) and got notified about my post. layers_cupcakesShe then offered up the opportunity for me to taste some of her new, Naja Tea-infused cupcakes and asked if I wouldn’t mind blogging about them (Naja Tea Facebook Fan Page & Twitter).

Well, better than just me sharing my thoughts…I asked the whole gang of book club gals (at least the ones in attendance) to share their thoughts as well.  And yes, the teacher in me created a form for them to share their thoughts anonymously.

Overall, we definitely enjoyed the cupcakes quite a bit and the experience of tasting and sharing feedback, even more so (did I mention that our group has quite a few foodies and bakers in residence).  The Mix and Mingle was a hit, but Sassafras didn’t seem to have as many fans.  Everyone pretty much agreed that we were hoping to taste more of the tea’s flavor.

To get a feel for our thoughts, I randomly divided the stack in half and one batch of comments for each flavor. Here are some of our thoughts (in no particular order):

Mix and Mingle

  • This was my favorite.  Nice and light, very moist, but could maybe have used a bit more intense frosting – it seemed too light for the cupcake.
  • I probably should have tried this one first.  The flavors were still  lingering from the Sassafras. This one had more subtle flavors and I liked the topping.
  • I liked this one! Very tasty and delicious cake!  Frosting is light and fluffy.  I might have wanted to have a bit more substantial (thicker?) frosting.
  • This is delicious for such a light cupcake!  Love the vanilla and coconut combination.
  • Crumb is too moist for that filling – cake needs more structure.  Flavor is great.  Frosting is too creamy.  Needs some salt.

Sassafras

  • I found this to be delicious.  Not much of a summer flavor since it was more spicy and fall-like.  Very moist, maybe too moist if that’s even possible.
  • The yam mousse overpowered the other flavors making it more difficult to taste.  Meringue is a little mushy.
  • Too many flavors – very confusing for the palate.  Crumb is very wet. Icing not complimentary.
  • This is a nope!  Did not like.  Too many spices and flavors going on.
  • Frosting should be creamier (less fluffy).  Good flavors for fall, but probably too many rich flavors for spring/summer.
  • I love the taste of the cake – a great surprise to have the yam.  It was a little moist, but I don’t mind that.  The meringue didn’t add much, maybe a cream cheese frosting would be better.

My husband wasn’t invited to share his thoughts (but he did get to eat some leftovers). He said that these were the best cupcakes he’s tried of what he’s tasted around town.  He loved that they were flavorful, but not overly sweet (his typical complaint about cupcakes).

I don’t know about you, but now I’m craving some cupcakes!

There’s a World Cocktail Week?

Why didn’t anyone tell me?!?

Who doesn’t need an excuse for a cocktail.  I say bring it on baby!

According to the Museum of the American Cocktail “World Cocktail Week, celebrated from May 6th -13th was established to promote a better understanding, appreciation, and respect for the cocktail and its history.”

I’m all for a little celebration.  Does it count if I just spent $100 on wine for tomorrow’s party? 😉

Respondez Vous S’il Vous Plait

Okay, I’m going to go on a bit of a rant here, please forgive me.  But why is it that some people seem to have such challenges responding to an invitation?

I know I’m not alone here as I heard about it (and experienced it first hand) during the wedding planning days. Yes, I had more people show up to our wedding than responded to the invitation (and one guy was even kind enough to show up in jeans and with a pretty skanky mistress date!)

rsvpTo me it’s quite simple…if someone has to make reservations, pay money, order food or drinks or just plan something out right, then it’s important to RSVP.  You can’t just ignore each and every contact they send.  More importantly, you can’t just show up at the event and expect to be welcomed with open arms.

It’s just rude.

So I’m sure you can see where this is going.  Yes, I still have not heard from a good chunk of the people that I have invited to my dinner next weekend.  And yes, I do need to get cracking on making those reservations and ordering the cake and booze.  I’m not sure what to do next.

I sent out a “save the date” email (yes, lame to do it via email, but it was all kind of short notice and I wanted to give folks as much advance notice to avoid the whole missing RSVP thing – yeah, that’s working in my favor here, I see).  I sent out the actual evite.  I then sent out an email to everyone (local) that either hadn’t yet opened the evite or hadn’t yet responded to remind them to let me know if they could make it so I could make reservations.

Did it work?

Well, it got me four more RSVPs, but I still have about ten more people that I’m waiting on.  I even made sure to point out that gifts aren’t expected, that I just want to share the day with friends.  I really don’t know what to do now.  I’m totally fine estimating up on the headcount, but to be honest, it kind of sucks.

I’m kind of thinking that if I have to go through hoops to get friends to join me in a birthday celebration, then maybe it’s not the celebration that’s the issue. No, this isn’t a whiny post (well, it might be a little whiny – I mean whining and ranting are so closely related – but it’s not a “woe is me” sort of thing). I mean, I didn’t get to be on the verge of 40 wondering about who my friends are.

Life happens, sometimes you have the best intentions, but sometimes you just can’t make something.  I get it.  It happens to all of us from time to time. But if someone is going above and beyond asking for an RSVP, then please, take a moment to send an email, a text, leave a message, or just check a little box.  It won’t take much time on your end, and it will make things much easier on their end.  Trust me.

The moral here…RSVP dammit!

Okay, on to much more important things to focus on this beautiful Friday…

Happy May Day to you all!

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The Birthday Plans Continue

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Things are progressing along nicely in LA Blogger Gal’s 40th Birthday Extravaganza planning. I do believe I’ve settled on a location.  With luck, we’ll be outside in this amazing garden setting, chowing down on Greek food (my fave!).  A friend of mine recommended the location from a place where she’s eaten before.  And since she’s held staff meetings there, she also knew they could accommodate groups.

I’m still not crazy about the corkage fee, but with luck, I can use this recession in my favor and negotiate her down.  Worse case, we just provide champagne instead of wine and champagne.  In turn, we’ll provide some appetizers as well.  It should be fun.

I need that headcount though so I can either order my cake (mmmm….Porto’s cakes, c’est ci bon!) or go with cupcakes (mmm…those strawberry lemonade cupcakes from Layers Cupcakes – but ohhhhh, the price).  Cupcakes totally rock, and don’t require any cutting, but man, they’re a small fortune compared to just getting a cake.  And let me just say, that Chocolate Grand Marnier sounds incredible.

And now, after poking around Porto’s website, I’m jonesin’ for a potato ball.  Guess where I’ll be going later today?

And of course in the midst of all my party planning, I was called out by and out-of-town friend that reads my blog for not inviting her.  Seems I was so focused on my local friends and getting things moving, that I didn’t get around to inviting those that I knew wouldn’t come, but would still want to be invited.  Same thing goes for the in-laws.  I still need to invite them even though I know they won’t come.

I never can really think of things that I want for my birthday (for some reason, I guess because we pick names and do lists I can for Christmas).  Then again, it doesn’t help that from the hub’s I’ll be getting my party (no other gifts there) and from my closest friend back in NM, money is tight.  So if someone where to ask me what I want, all I’d really be able to suggest is that dry cleaning/garment bag at Delight (wow, they really do need to work on their site – that “share this” post didn’t even share a link or photo, or description), a whisk, a digital frame and my new white dream purse (which is apparently others’ dream purse as well since Zappos is running low). Ooh, and I think I’d like this book…The Think Big Manifesto: Think You Can’t Change Your Life (and the World) Think Again.

Okay, off to sit down with the hubs over a bowl of oatmeal.  Love lazy Sundays.

PS – Speaking of birthday celebrations…Happy Birthday Ju-Ju Coop!

It’s Almost That Time

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Yes…it’s almost my 40th birthday!

Holy cow, I can’t believe I’m going to be 40.  Remember when you were just a kid and forty just seemed OLD.  Well according to Sephora (and their Beauty Insider email), I’ll be 40 in less than two weeks.

Oh.My.God!  Less than two weeks!

Maybe we should put a little perspective in place here.  I’m not freaking out because I’m turning 40.  At all.  In fact, I tend to think of it more as a rite of passage and a title that I’ve earned.  Now turning 30, that was an entirely different story and scared the shit out of me.

No, what I’m concerned with is that I’ve yet to plan my party.  And I’ve yet to plan anything for our 5th wedding anniversary that happens mere days before – but I’m choosing to push that aside as we’ll more than likely celebrate later with a weekend away somewhere.

So back to the birthday extravaganza…

I sent out a save the date email last week some time – classy, I know.  Last night I sent out the evites – super classy, I know.  Today, I only have two RSVPs!  Which again, I guess I can’t really worry about since well, I haven’t actually finalized the restaurant location either.  Or at least, that’s what I’m telling myself.  Though at least I have narrowed the location down…to somewhere in West Hollywood.

I was originally thinking about Amalfi on La Brea.  I love that place.  Very romantic (or in this case…celebratory), great food and good prices.  But…they’ve got a $20 a bottle corkage fee and their menu doesn’t change outside of the daily specials (which for Italian is kind of odd, at least here in LA).  The manager also didn’t seem too keen on my wanting to have a party on a Saturday night.  So I guess, if he’s not that interested in our business, I can look elsewhere.

So maybe some of you LA gals can help me out.

I’m looking for a restaurant in Hollywood, West Hollywood or Mid-City, that can easily handle 25-30 people.  Menu has to be about $20-30 per person.  We’d like to bring in our own wines so we can cover at least that part of the meal, so we need a decent corkage fee.  At the $20 a bottle fee that Amalfi charges,  we’d be looking at a small fortune just in the corkage fees (not counting the cost of the wine itself), so we’re hoping to find something more tolerable.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Okay, now it’s back to business for me.  I have a gazillion emails to get out today for upcoming contest giveaways

And yes, I know I still need to pick a winner and send out that thank you giftie for giving me the names of some of your favorite products to check out (a long, long time ago).  I haven’t forgot about that…I just haven’t found the time.  I will.

photo by Cafemama