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title: David Lebovitz and His Wonderful World of Chocolate
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 Plus: Brown liquor, the fundamentals of flavor, and a fish-killing robot.

| Not rendering correctly? View this email as a web page here. Last Sunday, KCRW collaborated with Vanessa Anderson aka Grocery Goblin on our second reading in the Stories In-Store series. The writing prompt was Egg. Gathering at Fresco Community Market in Hermon to read essays were Bill Addison (his transformational arc as a writer and cook via the egg), Khushbu Shah (eggshells), Tatiana Ettensberger (memories of her Korean mom), Meghan McCarron (an excerpt from her fantasy fiction), and Jamie Feldmar (a trip in the desert merges with her father's oft-told story). Vanessa ended the evening with her layered musings on the doomsday fish. I talked about Jonathan's dislike of eggs and how challenging it was during the time of small plates, and I related a weird mom story around egg salad. Listening to Bill's story triggered another childhood egg memory for me. When I was little, probably under ten, I spent a lot of time at my friend Paula's house. So much time that my presence at breakfast wasn't unusual. We sat at her kitchen dinette table with a formica top that had a bookshelf floating above it, which I found very comforting. It was like we were tucked into a booth. Paula's mom always made us fried eggs and toast. Paula couldn't choke down the whites, and I was deeply offended by the yolks, so without thinking we started to swap with each other. There wasn't much conversation about it. We became like an old married couple, accommodating each other's needs and desires. I eat the whole egg now. This series is bringing me so much joy. There is something about gathering in the evening in a grocery store to hear people read their writing that is uniquely satisfying. It's as if the venue highlights the food focus, but is casual enough to embrace the quirkiness of the endeavor. After all, we are gathered to focus on ideas loosely surrounding or inspired by food but not consume it. A relief in a way. Thank you, Vanessa, for developing the idea! The last evening of this series centers Gourmet and takes place on November 15th at the Golden Poppy Market in Cypress Park. Keep your eyes peeled for announcements. Good Food, Part 1 (Apple) (Spotify): Chocolate devotee David Lebovitz credits the ingredient with sweetening his ex-pat life in Paris. Robert Simonson enters the spirit world of bourbon and rye cocktails. Good Food, Part 2 (Apple) (Spotify): Molecular biologist Nik Sharma uses science-forward thinking to deepen flavor and better understand cause and effect in the kitchen. Jamie Feldmar reports on the AI-powered robots built to kill fish via the Japanese process of ikejime. —Evan THE GOOD FOOD TEAM'S DINING HIGHLIGHTS Evan: As I prepared to interview Yotam Ottolenghi, I kept coming back to the photo of his One Pan Black Chickpeas with Baharat and Orange (see above) from Simple Too. I realized that I could make it with what I had in the house by making a few small changes. I had dry black chickpeas in the pantry. Even better, I had cooked Domingo Rojo (my fave Rancho Gordo bean) in the fridge. My pals are firmly Italian-focused, so I left the baharat behind in favor of fennel pollen. This photo is before the sploosh of yogurt, but man, was it good. Although I had made chicken, this was the dish that got demolished. Gillian: I've had several memorable bites in Paris this week, but dinner at Occasion, a relatively new restaurant in the 10th, reminded me that sometimes a meal can grab you by the lapels and demand attention. I could tell you about the bathroom, which had an asarotos oikos floor and old episodes of Maïte (the French Julia Child) playing over the speaker. Or the vintage flatware and knife rests. (Turns out occasion in French means secondhand.) But instead I'll tell you about the dessert: a hazelnut olive oil cake with rosemary cream, black olive sorbet, the last of the mirabelle plums and the first of the season's citrus. It was clear-eyed, confident, unpretentious, and wow, so delicious. Laryl: Flour + Water, the San Francisco pasta mecca, popped up this week at Bell's, the French-inspired bistro, in Los Alamos. The highlight of the meal was the Agnolotti dal Plin, a traditional pasta from Piemonte. Fresh pasta dough is rolled out and filled with a classic meat mixture of roasted beef brisket, pork shoulder, and pork belly. To make this a true Flour + Water and Bell's mash-up, the pan sauce is finished with a spoonful of au poivre and a couple of drops of sherry vinegar. Italy meets France for a uniquely California dish. Elina: I popped into Bar Fortuna, chef Brian Bornemann's new Italian cocktail bar concept, which just opened on Main Street in Santa Monica. The cocktails were great! We only tried one pasta, and it was tasty, but what really left us wanting more was the pork chop. Can't go wrong with a perfectly grilled and seasoned hunk of meat. WHAT I'M CONSUMING WEEKLY RECIPE: I made Yotam Ottolenghi's One Pan Black Chickpeas with Baharat and Orange from his latest book, Simple Too, for my gal pals last week (see below for what mine looked like before the yogurt addition). I made a couple of changes, but the essence of the dish — the melding of beans and their rich liquor with green olives (Castelvetrano are Nocellara), cherry tomatoes, and oranges — is now an essential flavor for me. Olives aren't in the title, but they were my favorite part of the dish, more mild after cooking with all the other flavors. I look forward to making it as written with the black chickpeas and baharat. Photo by Jonathan Lovekin. GET THE RECIPE TASTY THINGS TO DO In Historic Filipinotown, Lost Cove Tiki visits Chinese-Malaysian restaurant Rasarumah for a two-night Halloween takeover, October 28th-29th. Expect pupu platters and Ugly Drum pastrami eggrolls. $95/person (food only). Make a reservation! Nearby, inspired by the nostalgia of TGI Fridays and Office Space, Thunderbolt transforms into its '90s alter ego, Thundies Bar & Grill, October 28th–31st. Expect riffs on Long Island Iced Teas, Margaritas, Mudslides, and Orange Creamsicles, as well as apps like spinach artichoke dip, chili cheese fries, and a Bloomin' Onion. Evan Kleiman will host a conversation with pioneering food policy scholar Marion Nestle at UC Santa Barbara on October 29th, 2026. In Food and the Body: The Politics of What We Eat, they'll explore how corporate and political power shape the American diet and our bodies. Break out your secret dance moves! Modern Argentinian restaurant Fuegos joins forces with Paella Club to host a Halloween party with a costume contest on Thursday, October 29th. Find more events and food recs like these in the KCRW app! FOOD NEWS It's been a big week for vintage Downtown LA establishments! First, there was word that Cole's plans to reopen in November with a new menu, new ownership, and the same Bukowski sign. Now comes news that The Original Pantry will also reopen in November with a new owner and a new purpose — raising funds for Hope the Mission and serving as a job training and support system for people trying to escape homelessness. In other restaurant news… SAY HELLO Gilbert Pérez Bar, an "elevated Mexican rum bar" located above Daisy Margarita Bar in Sherman Oaks, just opened its doors. Birdie G's reopened at the Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel in Century City. Modern Japanese izakaya Little Luck opened on the Sunset Strip. Porto's is coming to the Inland Empire. SAY GOODBYE Santa Monica Italian restaurant Tar & Roses will close October 24th. La Brea cafe Sycamore Kitchen closes this week. Bagel + Slice in Highland Park shuttered October 18th. The WeHo location of Alana's Coffee Roasters will close October 30th. The other locations remain open. Vegetarian Middle Eastern/North African spot Mazal in Lincoln Heights will close November 13th. AWWW Maybe all chihuahuas should wear Chucky costumes all the time. KCRW 1900 Pico Blvd.  Santa Monica, CA 90405  You received this email because you are subscribed to Good Food Newsletter from KCRW. Update your email preferences to choose the types of emails you receive. Unsubscribe from all future emails. |
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