Spotted on Sunset near Silver Lake Blvd. yesterday. It just made me laugh. I wish I’d had time to see what kind of good shit they had!

Last Saturday night was Classic Eats #13 and for a few minutes there, I thought it was going to be just me. But a few minutes later Vampiress joined me and it was a twosome for the evening. And I would like to say, you all missed OUT!

Pann’s is a classic 50′s diner with all the details you love, long counter, big vinyl booths and a menu full of milkshakes. Also classic? The owner, Jim Poulos, son of the original owner George Panagopoulos, who opened the place in 1958. Jim was incredibly friendly, telling us great stories, including one about how his father went to court to legally change their last name to Pann, but was shot down in front of the judge by his wife who said they might have a son named Peter and she would NOT accept the name Peter Pann. The choice became Poulos and the restaurant name is history.

The food goes beyond what you think of as “just diner food.” Every weekend they smoke their own beef and pork for ribs and brisket. They make most of their own breads and biscuits and did I mention the milkshakes? HEAVEN!

The palm trees and neon sign greet you from the parking lot.

The door itself is, um, uh….well I’m not sure what it is (art?) but I know I like it.

Here is the awesome interior taken by Vampiress:

Vampiress has a full flickr set here, check it out!

She ordered the Saturday night special of Brisket and kindly gave me a bite. The BBQ sauce is yummy and the brisket required no knife at all.

I went with the classic Dreamburger and fries. The fries arrived just the way I like them — extra crunchy! The burger was perfectly cooked and oh so juicy. Mmmmmm.

Then we went wild and ordered milkshakes. Somehow we were so drunk on the creamy dairy goodness we never took a photo! The shakes arrived in the classic tall shake glass with the silver sidecar still half full of milkshake! Lactose intolerant? Wow, stay clear of these! There are about 20 different flavors to choose from. There lots of other fountain desserts as well, but that will have to be another visit.

Then it was time to head over to the Buggy Whip, but as were were both FULL we simply had a soft drink, soaked up the interior and called it a night. The Buggy Whip has some classic signage:

I especially love this sign for the piano player “Fabulous and Talented.” AND talented?? Dude, I’m there. Sadly, we were too early for the musical piano stylings of Peter Wagner. So much to come back for.

How many old-timey men does it take to change a clock?

Hey LA, don’t forget that Saturday night is when we “fall back” into Pacific Standard Time. Maybe then it will actually feel like Fall!

Along with turning your clocks back one hour, this is also a great time to change the batteries in your smoke detectors.

Enjoy that extra hour!

Here endeth the PSA.

Tomorrow night is it! Classic Eats #13 at Pann’s and The Buggy Whip.

5PM at Pann’s then after some classic diner yumminess, we will have dessert or post dinner cocktails at The Buggy Whip at 6:30. As ever I’ll have my big sign out.

Please let me know if you are coming so I can save enough space. Over 35 people voted but only two people confirmed. Easier to get a table that way but not nearly as much fun!

See you tomorrow night!

Pann’s
6710 La Tijera Blvd
LA 90045
323-776-3770

The Buggy Whip
7420 La Tijera Blvd.
LA 90045
(310) 645-7131

Vote yes on Prop 21! Help save California State Parks! Wait…what day is it? [checks election returns] Oh crap.

Well, here’s another way to help our amazing parks and have a blast while doing it. The CA State Parks Foundation is having a weekend of movies showing off State Park locations used in the films.

Are you a Star Wars fan? Would you like to meet Mark Hamill and Billy Dee Williams? Here’s your chance! The highlight of the screenings will be a showing of Star Wars: Epsisode VI Return of the Jedi at 1:30 pm on Saturday (11/6). Mark Hamill will do a Q&A after the show. Billy Dee will sign autographs beforehand (for purchase). Jedi used Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park and Jedidiah Smith Redwoods State Park for Ewok related locations.

At 4:30 on Saturday, they will screen M*A*S*H* and a Q&A with Elliot Gould will follow. There will also be screenings of two the tv episodes of M*A*S*H* with additional Q&A. Both the film and tv show used Malibu Creek State Park for many of their locations.

Sunday brings Sparticus (Hearst San Simeon State Historic Monument) and Planet of the Apes (Malibu Creek State Park) with a Q&A afterward with actor Lou Wagner who played Lucius.

Ticket prices are $10 (adult) $8 (child) for individual movies. You can also buy 3 movie packages for $25 (adult) and $18 (child). What a deal to see these movies on a big screen!

Our state parks are an amazing resource and I hope you’ll support them by simply enjoying them. BONUS: if you ever wanted to find movie and tv locations and take your picture in those exact spots here is a list of state parks and the movies they played a part in.

The full weekend schedule is here along with theater locations for each day. (This info is directly from the event website.)

Saturday, November 6th

The Paramount Theater
The Studios at Paramount
5555 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 9003

12:30PM – Autograph signing with Billy Dee Williams andDavid Barclay
Autographs available for purchase from Billy Dee Williams for $40 and from David Barclay for $25.
1:30 PM - Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi(Running time: 134 min.), followed by Q&A with Mark Hamill
4:30 PM - MASH (Running time: 116 min.)
6:30 PM – Q&A with Elliott Gould
7:00 PM – Intermission
8:00 PM - M*A*S*H (2 TV Episodes)
9:00 PM – Q&A with actors William Christopher (Father Mulcahy) and Jeff Maxwell (Igor, the Cook), Charles S. Dubin (director), Gene  Reynolds (co-creator), Burt Metcalfe (producer), Dr. Walter Dishell (medical advisor), and Ken Levine (writer).

At Saturday’s screenings, popcorn and bottled water is included in the ticket price. A taco truck and bar will be on site with food and drinks for purchase.

Sunday, November 7th

Darryl F. Zanuck Theater
20th Century Fox Studios
10201 West Pico Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90046
1:00 PM - Spartacus (Running time: 198 min.) Introduction by film archivist Robert O.Neil.
5:00 PM (UPDATED)- Planet of the Apes (Running time: 112 min.) Q&A with actor Lou Wagner (Lucius) and the film’s makeup artist Daniel Striepeke.

Thanks to all who voted for their candidate for Classic Eats 13!

The Winner with 50% of the vote is: LAX Adjacent – Pann’s and The Buggy Whip!

We will meet at 5:00pm this Saturday night (11/6) at Pann’s for classic Googie signage and awesome diner nosh, then traipse on over for an after dinner cocktail at The Buggy Whip around 6:30pm. As ever, look for me with the Classic Eats sign at both places.

If you are going to come this Classic Eats, please comment and let me know so I can save enough space at each place.

Thanks for voting and I look forward to seeing you there!

Pann’s
6710 La Tijera Blvd
LA 90045
323-776-3770

The Buggy Whip
7420 La Tijera Blvd.
LA 90045
(310) 645-7131

As of this very moment (the moment in which I’m writing, not the moment in which you are reading) The LAX Adjacent option is leading the polls! Bahooka is a sorta close second and also participating: Traxx/Philippe’s.

If you haven’t voted – DO IT! If you have voted, thank you and please coerce all your regular friends and lizard friends to join in.

Classic Eats #13 is Saturday, November 6 and our theme is: Post Election Comfort Eating. No matter who or what you voted for on November 2, let’s all get together and celebrate with or cry into some comforting classic LA eats.

The evening will begin at approximately 5-5:30pm (depending on where we go) You have three candidates/propositions to choose from (see below) and when you have decided, please click here to vote!

No matter where we go, I look forward to seeing you there! Vote Vote Vote!

Downtown Delights

I’m pulling up a classic night from the Classic Eats archive: Classic Eats #2 from January 2009. This was such a great combo, I want to do it again! We will start at that awesome LA Landmark: Union Station and have a lovely cocktail at Traxx Bar while admiring the fab spanish/deco train station. Many of you ride the rails in LA so you have probably been to/through Union Station a few times. It’s like stepping back in time. And Phillipe’s is over 100 years old, which is OLD for LA, so let’s go dipping!

Union Station (Traxx)
Phillipe’s

Off The Hook: Bahooka

This might be a trek for some of you, but hey, it’s going to be so worth it! This place is INSANE! Born in 1967, full of fish tanks and fish of every color and type and size, wacky giant sized tikis and even crazier flaming drinks. I’d never heard about it until recently, but dang, it looks worth the trip! I can’t do it justice. Click that link!

Bahooka
4501 N. Rosemead Blvd.
Rosemead, CA 91770
(626) 285-1241 -or- (626) 285-7514

LAX Adjacent: Pann’s and The Buggy Whip

If you’ve raced to catch a plane, speeding along La Tijera from mid-city, you’ve seen both Pann’s and The Buggy Whip. Maybe you’ve promised yourself “One of these days I’ll leave enough time to stop in.” Now’s your chance! Pann’s has been a Googie landmark and family owned since 1958. They’ve got excellent, classic diner food, served in an excellent, classic diner. It’s so classic that movies shoot there often. You may recall Pulp Fiction’s diner scene…?? That was Pann’s. Just look at all that Googie Goodness! The Buggy Whip is a classic red velvet booth, live piano player, bar/lounge/restaurant/banquet room all in one. It’s been named one of the best steak places in LA and is a bit pricey to prove it. I thought it best to start at Pann’s then mosey over to the ‘Whip for a post dinner cocktail or dessert in the lounge. I’m hoping there is a giant brandy snifter on the piano for tips…

Pann’s
6710 La Tijera Blvd
LA 90045
323-776-3770

The Buggy Whip
7420 La Tijera Blvd.
LA 90045
(310) 645-7131

Saturday, November 6 is Classic Eats #13 and our theme is: Post Election Comfort Eating. No matter who or what you voted for on November 2, let’s all get together and celebrate with or cry into some comforting classic LA eats.

The evening will begin at approximately 5-5:30pm (depending on where we go) to give you plenty of time to come and share in the history of LA eateries then move on to more modern Saturday endeavors. But then again, you may never leave as some Classic Eats Evenings have been known to hit midnight!

You have three candidates/propositions to choose from and they are:

Downtown Delights (Classic Eats Reprise): Traxx and Philippe’s
Off The Hook: Bahooka
LAX Adjacent: Pann’s and The Buggy Whip

Scroll down to read about them all in greater detail. When you have decided, please click here to vote!

No matter where we go, I look forward to seeing you there! Vote Vote Vote!

Downtown Delights

I’m pulling up a classic night from the Classic Eats archive: Classic Eats #2 from January 2009. This was such a great combo, I want to do it again! We will start at that awesome LA Landmark: Union Station and have a lovely cocktail at Traxx Bar while admiring the fab spanish/deco train station. Many of you ride the rails in LA so you have probably been to/through Union Station a few times. It’s like stepping back in time. And Phillipe’s is over 100 years old, which is OLD for LA, so let’s go dipping!

Union Station (Traxx)
Phillipe’s

Off The Hook: Bahooka

This might be a trek for some of you, but hey, it’s going to be so worth it! This place is INSANE! Born in 1967, full of fish tanks and fish of every color and type and size, wacky giant sized tikis and even crazier flaming drinks. I’d never heard about it until recently, but dang, it looks worth the trip! I can’t do it justice. Click that link!

Bahooka
4501 N. Rosemead Blvd.
Rosemead, CA 91770
(626) 285-1241 -or- (626) 285-7514

LAX Adjacent: Pann’s and The Buggy Whip

If you’ve raced to catch a plane, speeding along La Tijera from mid-city, you’ve seen both Pann’s and The Buggy Whip. Maybe you’ve promised yourself “One of these days I’ll leave enough time to stop in.” Now’s your chance! Pann’s has been a Googie landmark and family owned since 1958. They’ve got excellent, classic diner food, served in an excellent, classic diner. It’s so classic that movies shoot there often. You may recall Pulp Fiction’s diner scene…?? That was Pann’s. Just look at all that Googie Goodness! The Buggy Whip is a classic red velvet booth, live piano player, bar/lounge/restaurant/banquet room all in one. It’s been named one of the best steak places in LA and is a bit pricey to prove it. I thought it best to start at Pann’s then mosey over to the ‘Whip for a post dinner cocktail or dessert in the lounge. I’m hoping there is a giant brandy snifter on the piano for tips…

Pann’s
6710 La Tijera Blvd
LA 90045
323-776-3770

The Buggy Whip
7420 La Tijera Blvd.
LA 90045
(310) 645-7131

Are you a Gleek and a pet lover? Then this event is for you!*

The Rescue Train is holding its 5th annual Race for the Rescues event this Sunday, October 24 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The day will include a 5k, 10k and kids fun run along with lots of entertainment along the way. The proceeds benefit 10 non-profit pet rescue organizations in LA. There will be a huge silent auction, face painting for the kids and lots of pet shopping to dress up your four legged friend in time for Halloween. And if you were looking to adopt a new four legged friend, there will be dog and cat adoptions all day through the LA Animal Services and Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA.

And  your celebrity hosts for the event? Jane Lynch from Glee along with Carrie Ann Inaba from “Dancing With The Stars” and Danielle Fishel from the Style Network’s “The Dish.” Get your Gleek on!

Registration starts at 7am with races starting at 8:30. All events will wind down around 1pm. For a full schedule of events and to sponsor racers or make general donations to The Rescue Train, click here.  For more general info on The Rescue Train, please click here.

*I’m looking at you, Blogging.la author Queequeg!

Photo of "Jetta Rose," one of many pets who need homes via Rescue Train

You know those tiny pockets inside your regular front jeans pocket? The one that is supposed to be for a pocket watch or something? Schader Park is like that pocket – TINY!

This lovely little slip of a park is along Cloverfield Blvd, just south of Santa Monica (Click on the map image to go to the map.)

And it’s not large. But what it lacks in size it makes up for in charm, shady benches and lovely trees.

And that is all there is to say about this wee green space!

After our last great evening out at The Smokehouse, I can’t wait to see where we go next for Classic Eats. I’ll post the voting info in a couple of weeks but for now, save the date!

Saturday November 6!

Waterloo and City is a recent addition to the spectacular list of restaurants that call Culver City home. I’ve been three times and have tried many things on the menu (all super delicious) but when they bring the dessert menu over I wave them away with a very posh  ”Bring me the sticky toffee pudding!”

Oooooh boy.

The sticky toffee pudding itself is hot and melty with the cakey part soaked through with the toffee part. But the kicker, the thing that gets me every time is the salted caramel that the pudding is bathing in. I could honestly have a bowl full of the caramel and be done with it, but you need the pudding part to break up the caramel overdose. On top is “milk ice cream.” I don’t know what that means exactly, sort of feels redundant. But who cares because that kiss of creamy goodness involves itself so beautifully with the toffee, caramelly goodness. I could see myself getting more intimately involved with this dessert, it is so sexy. Whew. Is it hot in here or what? [fans herself]

Get on over to Waterloo and City and try all of their yumminess (their special last night of the pasta with brown butter sauce and garlic foam with shaved truffle on top nearly did me in). Their menu changes often, which makes going often really fun, but if they ever EVER take this dessert off the menu…oh they’ll be in Barney!

Waterloo and City
12517 West Washington Blvd. (that’s the south one)
Culver City (the very West part)

Television icon Stephen J. Cannell died last night. He was only 69. Television might not be what it is today without all the amazing characters and shows that he created and wrote. Among many others were: The Rockford Files, The A-Team, 21 Jump Street, Baa Baa Black Sheep, The Greatest American Hero. (And my personal sentimental favorite Tenspeed and Brownshoe.)

We attended a Writer’s Guild Panel a few years ago about his legacy and career and no one had a bad thing to say about him. He was clearly a man who was open to helping anyone out, offering support and creative criticism and encouragement to all who showed gumption and talent. His own work ethic was legendary, cranking out scripts after script and later, novel after novel.

Mr. Cannell’s work might not be considered “art” but he created entertaining, fun, full-of-life tv. He will be sorely and sadly missed by so many in the business, myself included.

I gave up most* fast food about ten years ago after reading “Fast Food Nation.” I loved my Mickey D’s french fries and quarter pounders, but it only took a very short time to adjust and I don’t miss them at all.

How could I when there is Versailles garlic chicken so nearby! I started calling it my new fast food as ordering and pick up are a snap. They have so much ready to go all day that it takes no more than five minutes from ordering to walking out the door. But unlike a bag of fries sitting in your passenger seat, you can’t start digging in until you get home. And it is torture to smell that garlicky garlicky chicken as you drive.

I started going to Versailles’ Venice Blvd. location in the early 90′s when I started working at Sony. Culver City was a backwater then (hard to believe these days) and so the options for a close lunch spot off the lot were Versailles, Bamboo and the Sagebrush Cantina. The chicken or pork lunch specials at Versailles were cheap (probably about $5.99 back then) and speedy. And I’ll be honest and say I’ve never, in all these years, tried anything other than the chicken and pork lunch specials. Ever. It’s crazy, I know. There is a two page menu and I’ve heard tell of delicious ox tail platters and squid ink rice but I’ve never strayed.

When I was single, the lunch was basically two meals in one. I mean look at all that food! You’d eat your incredibly satisfying meal at lunch, then take the rest home for either lunch the next day or dinner the next night. What a bargain. Today’s lunch special is $8.99 on week days only. I ordered this on Sunday and it was $12.99. However, for the $13 you get a half a chicken, rice, beans, plantains and grilled onions. The lunch special is usually just a quarter chicken, but still plenty of food for two meals.

And there is something in that garlic sauce. My husband swears he just doesn’t like it–too salty, too garlicky. And yet…I’ll come home, salivating at the thought of my leftover chicken for dinner and when I get to the fridge, it’s gone. GONE. I was planning three meals out of the above box of food this week. But I’ll only get two as the hubs asked politely if he could have some after all…it’s that good.

Versailles is in five locations around the southland. Check out all the details here.

*I still eat at In-N-Out occasionally as well as Poquito Mas…