LA days

A few weeks ago I had to go to LA to speak at a conference. It was kind of a last minute thing and could be done at little cost to my company thanks to the recession - airfares and hotel rates are incredibly low - and the conference comp'd the cost of the show.

My friend Doreen had some frequent flyer miles burning a hole in her pocket and a big desire for respite from work and parenting. So she came along.

It worked out great. Doreen's sister Joni lives in Woodland Hills, so we stayed the weekend to hang out with her. It turned out to be a delightful get away.

The conference was at the Loews Santa Monica - a hotel I know well. Bob and I have each been there for business and we liked it so much we once stayed there for part of a family vacation. It's right on the beach with a view of the pier and sunsets. My favorite part? Getting up at 6am to run to the Sidewalk Cafe and back.


Joni drove in for the two nights we were at the hotel to treat us to dinners - it's fun having a big sister to spoil you! Joni is a blast - it was so cool to get to know her.

California style, we drove to both of these restaurants, even though one was right down the street.

Boa
101 Santa Monica Blvd.
Excellent service. Welcoming and a good vibe. Pear martinis, oysters, filet mignon, yummmm.


Chinois on Main
2709 Main St., Santa Monica
This is the third time I've been to the home of Wolfgang Puck's original Asian Fusion restaurant. Had some great beef and salmon but the dish we kept talking for days was the crispy spinach. I popped over to the exhibition kitchen and asked how they make it. They pointed to a commercial wok with super hot flame, loads of oil. They then put perfectly dry baby spinach leaves in and flash fry them for a few searing seconds. The result is like potato chips...but better...spinach chips. They leave you wanting more.

My speaking engagement went well and after the conference, our amazing host Joni picked us up for a shopping trip to the mall to shop in Orange County - South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa.

My goal was to buy a pair of jeans. Joni, the consummate shopper, welcomed this as a challenge. With her expert advice, I ended up with a great pair of 7's. That's me modeling them. Not!

After that we settled in for lunch with Joni's friend Annie and watched the housewives of Orange County on parade. I have never seen so many women dressed to the 9s for a day of shopping, or seen so many gorgeous plastic, sculpted bodies. Extra points for the really old broads who looked eerily and precariously not old. Such amusement required at least 2 glasses of wine. I can't remember the name of the restaurant, but we got a 3 course meal for $20 each and it was, by far, the best food I have ever had at a mall.

We spent the next 2 hours or so driving the packed expressway back to Joni's house in Woodland Hills. Hey, when in LA...

That night we met up with Joni's husband Memo, at their favorite neighborhood sushi place in Tarzana. I can't remember the name of the place - it was divine. Best spicy tuna rolls ever. Exquisite. Really. We rolled off happily to bed at Joni's beautiful home.

The next morning we walked over to Calabasas for coffee. It was yet another beautiful sunny day in California and - yes! - we got a California girl to go for a walk.

From there we decided to take a drive down to Ventura. We poked around in the bohemian shops and then fell in love with We Olive, a shop specializing in California olive oil. The highlight is a tasting bar where the expert staff guides you through an olive oil tasting, teaching you about the different flavors and nuances of olive oil.

We tasted a combination of Blood Orange infused olive oil and balsamic vinegar and walked out of there with 6 bottles between the three of us. But not before we asked for recommendations to a good wine bar. They pointed us down the road and off we went.

We walked into Paradise Pantry and felt right at home. Casual and quiet, we had flights of reds and whites and a platter of cheese and olives. What could be better?

We grabbed a coffee and a chocolate and drove home by way of the Channel Islands and various other amusing destinations suggested by the in-board navigation system of Joni's Mercedes. Doreen perked up when she saw the ocean and the sailboats. We even ducked in to an open house on the beach ...$2.5 million I think it was.

We got back in time for a dip in the pool in Joni and Memo's oasis of a back yard.

That night we were invited to tag along to a party. Memo is Persian and I was very excited to go to my first Persian party at the lovely home of a young family in Sherman Oaks.

It was a night of great welcome, warmth, laughs, eating, drinking and dancing. All generations were there - babies, teens, grandmothers, etc. And at this party they had both kinds of music - disco and Persian.

Dance, drink, toast, laugh...repeat.

And the food! The women had been cooking for 4 days and served a feast of kabobs, rices, eggplant, greens. I wish I could remember the names of all the dishes - but there was a lot of tequila before dinner (which was served around 11pm) and also this horrible green stuff called Chartreuse which has got to be some of the oddest tasting and strongest spirits I've ever been forced to drink by dancing Persians.

We got home by 2am (much to the chagrin of the partygoers who continued 'til daybreak) in time to sleep for 2 hours before the car service arrived to whisk us off to LAX and back to New England, just in the nick of time. Any sooner and I'd have morphed into a California girl and started booking plastic surgery appointments.

Thanks to Joni and Memo and all the wonderful people I met along the way on the trip. And thanks to Doreen for taking a break and just going for it!

All that and, if you can believe it, I did not have my camera. D'oh!