For National Bourbon Heritage Month this September (yes, it's a real event as of last year), we offer two scrumptious ways to celebrate America's native spirit. The first, a classic bourbon cocktail. Wild Turkey Bourbon Manhattan (pictured above): 2 parts Wild Turkey 101 1 1/2 parts sweet vermouth 1 dash bitters Stir well with cracked ice and strain into a Manhattan or chilled martini glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry (or a brandied cherry,......

Inspired by the popular Big Apple BBQ Block Party in New York, the L.A. BBQ Festival will take place at the Santa Monica Beach North Parking Lot on September 13-14. Enjoy the grilled meats from some of the top pitmasters around the country. Tickets are $10 a day or $50 for a two-day fast pass that gets you admission on both days, shorter lines for food and beer, and more (food/drink not included though). But......

Miss Peaches on Lankershim has just premiered a new weekend barbecue menu for the summer. This cozy little cafe, formerly known as Angelina's, brings a welcome breath of southern comfort to NoHo. Famous for their fried chicken, Miss Peaches usually only pulls out the barbecue for its popular catering department. But this summer you can get your fix while relaxing at a table surrounded by their white picket fence. Miss Peaches 5643 Lankershim Blvd. North......

Surprisingly, the West Side has quite a few impressive barbecue joints, which are hole-in-the-walls. One of these is Mr. Cecil's California Ribs. We found it on Pico Blvd., one block west of Bundy Ave. The restaurant sits in this unique, little, round building. The tables are few, but the place is very cozy. The menu feels slightly limited, but maybe our eyes skipped some parts of it because we knew exactly what we wanted...RIBS......

Orange County's fast-food favored son, Carl Karcher, died yesterday at the age of 90. It started as a hot dog cart, and grew to eventually become a ubiquitous fast-food mega-chain with the trademarked happy star. We all know Carl's Jr. as the place to get big burgers for a few bucks, but for Ohio-born Carl Karcher, things really kicked off in Anaheim in 1945 when he and his wife Margaret opened Carl's Drive-In Barbecue, which......

Jurors began deliberating yesterday in the second degree murder case of Reseda resident, Mark Allen Steffen, who is accused of killing his girlfriend and stuffing her body into his shed for a month and a half. He says he kicked her out and her dead body mysteriously reappeared in his house, so he put her body into the shed until finding proper burial. Prosecutors say this is clearly murder. The 58-year-old part-time auto repossessor, on......

I know, I know, KevCheng is a food blogger, what's with the DJ spinning up there? Now, I've never been a huge "Let's go hear a DJ spin" kind of guy, so when I was invited by a friend to go to a "lounge" and listen to "House Music," I just wasn't very motivated; especially when I learned it's on Sunset where it's usually $15 just to park. $15!? That's one night at Korean......

Orlando, Florida's Walt Disney World is quite a different ride than our local Anaheim day-tripping Disneyland. For one, the Florida theme park is all about kids and family, family and kids and some more kids, kids, kids (so there is Pleasure Island, but the name is just sort of weird to start with). So other than never growing up, what else is there to remember about a few days at the massive theme park? Food.......

Those of you living meat-free, rejoice! October is World Vegetarian Awareness Month. Some vegetarians are doing it for the health reasons, some to support animal rights and live cruelty-free, and others to protest the increasing McDonald-ization of the world's food supply. The World Vegetarian Day website is offering a free trip to Vegetarian Summerfest for one lucky winner who contributes a story about what they are doing to celebrate their lifestyle choices this month.......

Driving through K-town traffic to review Ruen Pair, I caught the unforgettable scent of Korean Barbecue wafting through the air, and since I haven't reviewed a Korean place in a while, I decided to hit it up on my next meal. Tahoe Galbi is $16.99 for all you can eat, and they specialize in beef short ribs. Indeed, out of all the items we tried, the marinated Tahoe Steak Galbi was the best. The marinade......

You can reproduce the amazing flavors of true Santa Maria BBQ in your backyard on a much smaller scale, using a 2-3 lb. tri-tip in place of a 20 lb topblock. Looking to watch your urbane clique revert to their primal roots, forsaking knife, fork, and plate for fingers, bulged eyes, and wide smiles? Want to see your veggie and vegan friends split into groups of people either salivating because they want a taste, or are fully repulsed at such a carnivorous feast? Want to make something awesome, with $20, and at the last minute for a group of 4-5 people? This is your answer. ...

Every Friday, LAist is taking you on a trip down to Orange County to uncover the unique dining experiences that await adventurous eaters willing to explore beyond the county line. With the holiday weekend and the news that The Pig was closing down, I was in the mood for some barbecue. I wanted that heavy feeling in your stomach that you get when you’ve ingested a whole cow and/or pig, when your fingernails reek......

I found out that there's good reason why I don't go to Thai town often, because to get there in Friday evening traffic means a good 40 minutes of bumper to bumper traffic through Korea Town, with the scent of a billion Korean Barbecue joints wafting through the air. I swallowed hard and tried to concentrate on the bumper in front of me. It was tough, but I eventually made it to Ruen Pair......

If you're like most Americans, you'll be on your way to a barbecue at some point this weekend. Of course you'll want to do the right thing and help out your host with the menu -- but who wants to slave over a blazing grill in this heat? Here are some super quick and delicious side dishes you can bring along as an offering to the hospitality gods -- that great crowd-pleaser, Potato Salad,......

'SUP CLUB #1 from Hot Knivez and Vimeo. We're totally digging LA food bloggers Hot Knivez, not least of all 'cause they're getting into it with the "food bloggers" over at the Los Angeles Times. They are vegetarian, beer-loving former line cooks who "believe in cheap groceries, cooking with high alcohol content beer and free leisure." We're thinking of asking them to our next LAist barbecue. Check out this clip, in which they prepare......

There are three very distinct communities housed in the jumble of high-rise office towers, apartment buildings and houses that make up Koreatown. There is the Koreatown of middle-class and wealthy Korean families, who live, eat, shop, party and golf in a faithful facsimile of their native country. There's the Koreatown of toil and danger, experienced by the Latinos and blacks occupying much of the neighborhood, working in the thousands of local businesses and (occasionally)......

LAist was comped front row seats by the Dodgers due to Malingering being struck by a foul ball last week, and she came back with some great photos, and earlier made fun of 4th of July on Venice Beach. But the biggest stories of the week was that the Mayor's Hot Tamale was revealed, and that a Kwik-E-Mart was erected in Burbank. Phillyist was busy doing the Fourth of July up right, exercising their......

Why aren't you barbecuing right now? What are you, a commie? Here are a few favorite barbecue recipes to help you celebrate our freedom from living under a regime that taxed the hell out of us! Freedom from a regime where the rich and politically connected were treated differently than the average citizen! Umm...here's to drinking beer with our friends instead of being at work! (BBQ Recipes after the jump!)......

Like most people, I have gone through my vegetarian phases, my vegan phases and the worst of all - my low-carb phase. So my cooking is pretty versatile. I have a lot of vegan friends who love barbecues, and it only takes a few minor changes to make them more comfortable. Even if you are super-carnivorous, you can still host a barbecue that will make your vegan friends happy. First of all, you want......

What with Paris Hilton's release earlier this week and the upcoming celebration of American Independence (sorry, Londonist!), we've been thinking a lot about freedom. Freedom to vote, freedom to choose, and most importantly, freedom to blog. Here are a few things we're happy we've been free to blog about this week. Being the nation's capital, DCist felt especially proud to let freedom ring this week by exposing the really important issues, like how sad they......

Did any of you catch Bobby Flay's Throwdown the other night? It's the show where he goes to different cities across the world and challenges some legendary food purveyor that his version of whatever traditional city food they're making will win a blind taste test. Usually, he loses, cause I mean COME ON: can anybody really make a cheese steak better than a Philly native? What about fish n' chips from some grotty bar......

This weekend marks the official start of barbeque season! If you've already mastered grilling, and are ready to move up to the next level, welcome to the world of smoking. Just remember, grilling is like a one-night stand and smoking is like a marriage. You should prep the ribs the night before and start smoking them six hours before serving. It requires a certain level of commitment. But the commitment is only one of......

It seems like good restaurants tend to cluster together. Maybe it is an ancient herding instinct. One neighborhood that is happening of late is Crenshaw and Adams. To see it today, you would never know that this corner has an infamous drug-laden past. Check out Jerry Stahl’s book, Permanent Midnight, for the whole sordid story. Nowadays, it’s all about the food. On the west side of Crenshaw, just next to the gas station, stands......

By now, everybody knows that the magical culinary wonderland that is Surfas will be closing its doors at its current location on July 1, no thanks to Culver City and one of the lamest enactments of eminent domain in Westside history. The latest news update on their website states that they will be moving to a nearby warehouse on July 1st and continuing to serve their customers, but hope to continue fighting the city......

Maybe it’s because of its residents' blogginess, but these days everyone seems to know that downtown LA is booming. However, flying way below the radar is Koreatown. Yes, you already know it’s the place to go for your late night barbecue and karaoke needs, but the boozin’, beef-eatin’ hood (best known to those outside LA as one of the places ravaged by the 1992 riots) has quietly been getting a $1 billion makeover that......

Huston’s Pit BBQ is a bit of an anomaly. It’s an aging, yellow-painted shack smack in the middle of Hollywood, on a stretch of Cahuenga that is also home to such hip, happening spots as Citizen Smith and the Hotel Cafe. You could easily walk right past it and not even register that it’s there. I know I used to, until one day one of our supervisors at work had them cater lunch –......

Either the folks at the Autry are the world's stupidest event planners, or they are the world's most deceptive ones. BBQ'n at the Autry is the first and only barbecue festival I've ever been to, where attendees weren't allowed to sample barbecue from the vendors in the competition. And the fact that this wasn't clearly and prominently mentioned in advance of the festival was a giant "fuck you" to all the people who came......

Photo by Pinky P. The Autry museum is hosting the second annual Barbeque Championship and Festival tomorrow, Saturday, April 14, 2007, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Griffith Park. 32 teams will be competing for some kind of smoke-and-meat-infused title -- and for the greater glory of barbecue. Because what could be better than marinated, rubbed, glazed and barbecued animal flesh? **If you want to prove yourself a true glutton you can enter......

A brush fire broke out just over an hour ago in the Hollywood Hills between Universal City, Burbank, and Toluca Lake. The fire broke out around the 3600 block of North Barham Blvd (shown above) according to KTLA. Nothing huge at this point, no evacs, but we're hearing about alot of smoke in the air -- and it ain't no barbecue. The chopper video shows flames creeping closer and closer to traffic. LAFD spokesman......

Drew Barrymore's favorite new band, the Swedish trio Peter Björn and John, filled the Red Eye Fly this afternoon as the headliners for the Little Radio barbecue. Hipsters were lined up down the street in the drizzle getting their lo-tops muddy in the puddles, and to be honest, the boys might be super sweet but their music isn't meant for a live crowd. It's mellow, introspective, and not at all partying. The whistle song,......