Photo by Professor Salt

The cylindrical god in its El Toro Bravo manifestation

​
Here's to hoping my Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America is hitting the cultural caliente list at the right time--and it is, if you go by recent histories on Mexican food published by mainstream publications. I know Smithsonian Magazine is working on something because they called me for comment about the tamale wagons of 1900s California (but never got my comment . . .). Its blog did a good piece on the history of Fritos, and The Daily, Rupert Murdoch's iPad-only publication, just published a history of the burrito.

But that Daily article, like most Murdoch-owned news efforts, is laughably wrong, relying on half-truths and Wikipidia-ed myths to spin a tale suitable for a gullible public.

To wit:
More >>

Dave Lieberman

​
Why is Bella Pizza & Calzones at the Irvine Spectrum lying about being kosher?
More >>

​Earlier this morning, Anne Marie posted about the Girl Scout Cookie ban proposed by a Girl Scout named Taylor from Ventura, California. It set my blood boiling, especially this quote:

"But most disturbing to me and my family, is that they've also admitted to already have placed transgender boys throughout America without letting everyone know."

There's a reason for this, Taylor: they probably didn't feel like putting a family into the spotlight while people like you call them freaks. Also, the last I checked, membership in the Girl Scouts was not up for popular vote, and I don't remember my sister having to submit to a panties check before reciting the Girl Scout Pledge.

The result is that I'm going to buy more Girl Scout Cookies than usual... once I find them.
More >>

Flickr user army.arch

​
God bless our troops, but goddamnit, they're having it tough right now. Between a military that's shrinking, a lack of proper care for vets who need it, the thankless job of serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, and a bunch of dirty hippies like me questioning why they had to go there in the first place, they don't get nearly enough love.

And the food! MREs, of course, need no explanation, but for those troops who want to eat edible food, they're going to have to pay more now.
More >>

Photo by Christopher Victorio

Kleiman (at right) with some random weirdo...

​
UPDATE: Due to the overwhelming demand by the public, Angeli will stay open one more week--it's last day is now Jan. 13. As I originally said: if you've never been to this Southern California landmark, go while you can. And spend mucho dinero--we owe it to our friend!

ORIGINAL POST, DEC. 29, 2011, 7 A.M.: Evan Kleiman needs no introduction to these pages, but here's a brief one for new readers: a Southern California food icon whose Angeli Caffee was one of many iconic restaurants that brought sophisticated cuisine to the region during the 1980s, longtime host of Good Food on KCRW-FM 89.9, pioneering proponent of farmer's markets, and my co-host whenever we host a Happy Hour here in Orange County. To paraphrase Howard Stern lingo, she's a friend of the show bar none.

And it's because of that that we break out of our OC-specific zone to report the sad news: Angeli Caffe is closing on Jan. 8 after 27 years.
More >>

Lucero

​It seems Chik-fil-A isn't the only fast-food chain with asshole workers in Irvine. Yesterday, Irvine PD arrested Burger King employee Luis Maximino Lucero Ballinas after a weeks-long investigation in which they discovered he had repeatedly stolen money from a disabled woman.

The woman's parents became suspicious after noticing she would return home from Burger King without all of her money, and alerted police, who monitored Lucero for the past month with the cooperation of Burger King management and caught him yesterday taking the woman's money without giving her change or ringing up the sale.
More >>

Photo by Christopher Victorio

Kleiman (at right) with some random weirdo...

​
Evan Kleiman needs no introduction to these pages, but here's a brief one for new readers: a Southern California food icon whose Angeli Caffee was one of many iconic restaurants that brought sophisticated cuisine to the region during the 1980s, longtime host of Good Food on KCRW-FM 89.9, pioneering proponent of farmer's markets, and my co-host whenever we host a Happy Hour here in Orange County. To paraphrase Howard Stern lingo, she's a friend of the show bar none.

And it's because of that that we break out of our OC-specific zone to report the sad news: Angeli Caffe is closing on Jan. 8 after 27 years.
More >>

Flickr user yarhargoat

​
It gets fatiguing reading the same articles on travel to Mexico that parrot the U.S. State Department over and over again. Precious few of those people have ever actually been to the places they're writing about, but they turn the fear dial up to 11, the result being that Americans are more convinced than ever that all they have to do is put el dedito pequeñito south of the border and they'll end up dead.

It was refreshing, then, to read an article in the Washington Post last week by Andrea Sachs called "Mexico: A guide to which parts are safe to travel to, and which are dangerous" (though that title needs some work). Surely this would calm the hysteria, right?
More >>

Tumblr user lolwhut

The offending receipts

​
UPDATE: Chick-Fil-A has just issued a statement that confirms the above incident happen, which should shut up the skinheads and conservative who believe racism doesn't exist anymore.
More >>

Jenny Chui

Presenting: Street legal not-so-dirty dogs.

​No, seriously: There are people out there who are too lazy to wrap bacon around hot dogs themselves? Answer: Apparently. Spotted at Superior Grocers City of Industry location.