For many of us, it's the season of weekends spent roaming the roads of Southern and Central California. This week, my Press Play conversation with Madeleine Brand focused on Ojai. For such a small town (only 7,500 permanent residents), there are a surprising number of places to eat well. I'm sharing my roundup of eats in this coming Tuesday's Substack. Check it out and tell me where Madeleine and I should visit next. Temecula? Cambria? Santa Barbara? Or maybe we'll brave the heat and hit up La Copine in Yucca Valley. After you hear the women behind the restaurant, you'll want to head there too.

Some of us are staying put and devoting ourselves to the grill, the outdoor portal to summer eating. I was lucky enough to join cookbook author Noah Galuten behind the grill as he put together his Backyard Burger. His simple tips made a memorable burger. I wish I had one now.

Inspired by this week's interview with Ella Quittner about her book Obsessed with the Best, I mused on how uncomfortable the pursuit of perfectionism is for me in the latest Good Food substack. If you're not already a subscriber you should check it out.

You should also check out your local farmers market if the photo of Gillian's cart (see below) is any indication of the bounty of fruit on offer. Or maybe don't. Once you get accustomed to farmers market fruit, it's impossible to enjoy what's on supermarket shelves.

Have you had a swim yet? Why not? Being in water calms nerves. We could all use a good dip.

—Evan

THE GOOD FOOD TEAM'S DINING HIGHLIGHTS

Evan: On this week's show, Noah Galuten talks about his Backyard Burger. I had the opportunity to watch him make it in his backyard and, of course, eat one. We've all cooked burgers on the grill, but how many are actually delicious? This one was perfect in its simplicity. Check out his technique and up your backyard burger game.

Gillian: The best thing you will eat this week is probably at the Wednesday Santa Monica Farmers Market. If you think I'm exaggerating, ask the people who start lining up for Andy's Orchard at 5:30 AM. (The market opens at 8:00 AM.) In my cart this week are Anya Candycots from Andy's Orchard, Golden Lady mangoes from Wong Farms, and every variety of melon on the table at Weiser Farms. The best thing I ate this week will be whichever one of these I ate most recently.

Laryl: With so many options, many Angelenos (including myself) hunt down the latest and greatest spots to indulge. Visiting Scopa Italian Roots in Venice this week, I was reminded to circle back on neighborhood staples. Yes, chef Antonia Lofaso and executive sous Darrek Anderson lean into seasonality, but I could actually smell the watermelon when a dish of amberjack crudo came to the table. Along with the aroma, the sweetest of ravioli with corn and crab tasted like the beginnings of summer.

Elina: After shooting this video of chef Andrew Ponce making his seasonal summer salad of nopales, tomatoes, and whipped feta, I had to visit A Tí in Echo Park for dinner. Everything was fabulous — the snap peas with hoja santa crema, the grilled shrimp rubbed with chile de árbol and salsa negra, the confit duck thigh in a 972-day-old mole. But this vegan aguachile, made with peaches, squash, cucumbers, and charred serranos, surprised hell out of me in the best way. Sweet, tart, and just a little bit spicy.

WHAT I'M CONSUMING

WEEKLY RECIPE: I'm in a bean salad kind of mood. But not just any bean. I've been craving Corona Beans, also called Gigantes in Greece. They are big and meaty with a fluffy interior. Once you cook them, they're perfect for any number of bean salads, like this simple one from Judith Barrett's Fagioli: The Bean Cuisine of Italy. If you don't want to spend time cooking dry beans, look for the biggest canned lima or butter beans you can find. (Photo courtesy of Rancho Gordo) GET THE RECIPE

TASTY THINGS TO DO

• The Garagiste Wine Festival returns to Los Angeles on Saturday, June 20th, showcasing more than 30 micro-production wineries from nearly every California AVA. And for the first time, the festival will present a selection of wines from small-production wineries in New Zealand. $70-$106

• Smorgasburg LA celebrates its 10th anniversary as well as Father's Day on Sunday, June 21st. To mark the occasion, you'll see several alumni vendors doing collabs alongside the market's current lineup.

  • Bub & Grandmas x Shady Grove Foods

  • Evil Cooks x Trompo y Carbon

  • Carnitas El Momo x Barranco's Fruit

  • Cheezus x Franzl's Franks

• On Tuesday, June 23rd, San Diego chef Claudette Zepeda comes to Maydan Market for a dinner celebrating the global diaspora across the Middle East and Mexico. $150/person

• On the morning of Wednesday, June 24th, Claire Wadsworth and Nikki Hill, the women behind La Copine in the High Desert, will be signing their cookbook at the Santa Monica Farmers Market.

• On Thursday, June 25th, Dunsmoor welcomes Vern's, a beloved Charleston spot, to its Friends with Benefits series. The night will feature a five-course, family-style menu. $135/person

TASTY THINGS TO READ

• Breaking news! "Popular Snacks Contain High Levels of Additives and Contaminants." You mean my Flamin' Hot Dill Pickle Everything Bagel Stuffed Crust Cheesecake Cheeto Poofs aren't organic, local, sustainable, and unprocessed? I, for one, am shocked. Shocked, I tell you!

• Our long national nightmare is over. After more than 30 years, McDonald's is bringing back its fried apple pie. In honor of the 250th birthday of the United States, the molten, deep-fried pies will be available at most US outposts of the fast food chain for a limited time starting June 23rd. Back in 1992, McDonald's replaced the fried apple pie with a "healthier" baked version… except the baked apple pie has 10 more calories than the fried version.

• "Why is there a supplement craze if they don't even work?" Planet Money asks. We know the answer: Money. Thanks to lax regulations, the $70 billion supplement industry, a grab bag of gymcrack medicinals made from opaquely sourced ingredients touting unproven benefits, is set to double in the next seven years.

AWWW

We can't get enough of these baby Tibetan foxes.

To see more of what I'm consuming, including recipes, events, and other stories, check out my Substack!

—Evan