3 Things to Chew On: April 24

April 24, 2015

I can’t believe it’s been three months since I last posted. It’s scary how time flies and how easy it is to get distracted by little things. But no worries, the Culinary Tales and travelogues will resume next week (barring distractions).

 

For now, here’s a new series on the blog where I’ll post some random findings or musings that I can’t see doing a whole post about. It’ll be all over the place and I hope you like it.

 

1. Mac & Cheese with a Twist

Public School makes a great mac and cheese with shaved chorizo, kale (oh, just stop with the kale madness already) and salt and vinegar chips. I tried to recreate this at home, minus the kale and chorizo… okay, okay, I just wanted to make it with the chips, and crumbled up some Pringles Salt & Vinegar (my favorite.) It didn’t quite work. I’ll try it again next time with Kettle Chips, which I’m sure will work much better. It’s definitely an interesting way to add crunch and flavor to a classic, if formerly boring, dish.

 

 

2. Try that Hole in the Wall Restaurant!

I’ve been driving by Locanda Positano for years and always wondered about it. It’s a hole-in-the-wall Italian restaurant in Marina del Rey, situated between a car wash and an animal clinic. Thanks to Groupon, I finally got a chance to try it and boy, have I missed out all these years. It’s now one of my new favorites. It’s tiny – I could fit the dining room in my living room – but quaintly romantic. The food is some of the most delicious pasta I have ever had (and that’s saying something since I hit up Drago Centro the night before, also spectacular.)

 

Here’s the thing… it means something when you’re at an Italian restaurant, and the bread comes and they give you three kinds of olive oil to go with it.

 

 

3. Coachellla

I’ve been wary of music festivals ever since my friend Jenna and I were almost trampled to death in a mosh pit at Lollapalooza. But I finally got to go to Coachella after all these years. I was working off-site mostly, mind you, and only caught Kaskade and Florence and the Machine (which was the only act I wanted to see anyway.)

 

There’s a lot of walking (warning: it gets mighty dusty) and it’s damn hot (bring sunscreen and hats). It’s got a Woodstock-meets-the-digital-age vibe (instead of hippies, you’ve got hipsters in fedoras and floral crowns.) And it’s grown so huge (and expensive) over the years… ironic considering it was born from Pearl Jam’s boycotting of Ticketmaster more than 20 years ago.

 

Driving home was a nightmare: stop-and-go for six hours just to get back to L.A. In an attempt to wait out the traffic and ease up on my brake pads which are in dire need of replacing, I pulled into Morongo Casino for a lunch and blackjack break. I won $300. Best part of the weekend.

 

 

 

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