The tagline for the release covering the 2011 Xtreme Eating "awards" list is the very un-ironic phrase "Big eats...big Americans." The annual report put out by the Center for Science in the Public Interest points out a few of the nation's biggest gut buster menu items available around the country from some familiar restaurants. So if you're looking to pack on the pounds (or don't mind a big time gross out) take note of these enormous edibles. more ›

This week's Sepulveda Blvd explosion took the life of firefighter Brent A. Lovrien, and as the LAFD mourns the loss along with Lovrien's friends and family and the city at large, the sacrifice so often made by our firefighters is on many minds. more ›

No! This just can't be happening! I scrupulously avoid reading anything published by the LA County Department of Health, because otherwise I would never be able to eat anywhere ever again. Unfortunately, my friend Donna just alerted me to the fact that Doughboy's, provider of our red velvet cake fix, made the Health Department's Food Facility Closure List for the period 05/31/2007 through 08/31/2007. Due to vermin infestation. Quelle horreur ! In reality, I... more ›

Cold Stone Creamery is hosting their fourth annual World's Largest Ice Cream Social and it's today! From 5-8 pm, help yourself to a FREE ice cream cone from Cold Stone. Lucky for us, there are lots of locations in Los Angeles! In exchange for the free cone, you will be asked to make a donation to the Make-a-Wish Foundation and 100% of the proceeds nationwide will go back to them. The free scoops will... more ›

Sometimes grabbing an ice cream cone on a mellow LA evening can be a quick, inexpensive, and wholly satisfying thing. Having recently found ourselves exiting the Red Line at Pershing Square, on our merry way to an evening of Grand Performances, we were presented with the idea of snagging a cone at the just about to close for the evening Grand Central Market. The Market happens to be one of our favorite destinations for food and people watching downtown; this time we were in an out in seconds flat, for less than a dollar apiece. The Tropical Zone Ice Cream & Juice Bar--one of the two ice cream vendors there--is at the front of the market, on the Hill Street Side. They have a decent selection of standard flavors; we're not sure who their supplier is, and, unlike Bennett's, Fosselman's, and Mashti Malone's, we're pretty sure they don't make their own. One scoop of Rocky Road was loaded onto a regular cone, followed by one scoop of Strawberry Cheesecake on another cone for our ice cream indulgent companion. Happily we licked our 90 cent cones and almost literally walked off into the sunset. Dusk started to inch its way over the city, as we slurped down our ice cream. Craving: satisfied. Sure, Tropical Zone can't boast more than their bargain prices, but for this time, that was plenty to do it. We'll rank them #4. This week our Ice Cream summer was quick and dirty style. We'll be out tasting again next week... more ›

Would you believe that it's our fifth week of ice cream tasting, and we're still as giddy as a kid in a candy store when we get in front of those freezers full of creamy, sweet goodness? This is why we feel slightly apologetic for having put the young lady behind the counter at Bennett's this weekend through her paces with our eager sampling and mild line of questioning. Bennett's, located in the north east corner of the Farmer's Market, has been family owned since 1963, and they make their own award-winning delicious flavors of ice cream on the premises. Typical for a tourist trap locale like the Farmer's Market, the cost of a cone is a little over the top, with a single scoop costing $3.00. We sampled our way through the case, starting with a couple of their most popular, like the coffee ice cream with caramel and banana concoction called "Fancy Nancy" (we regret not asking how it got its name), and "Choffee Choffee" which was another coffee based flavor with chocolate covered coffee beans in the mix. Both flavors were tasty, not too rich and not too sweet. We took a taste of the lighter and tangy Key Lime, which is one of our top pie picks, and makes for a decent ice cream taste, although not as thrilling as we'd hoped. The Green Tea was a bit nondescript, so we'd advise to head to Mashti Malone's for the more exotic tastes. Cherry Vanilla was a fantastic offering, with the cherry part thankfully not crossing over into the medicinal taste, as cherry can so often do. But we settled on a flavor we confess we've had there before, and a flavor that we don't often order: Butter Pecan. Our co-taster (who dove eagerly into her Mocha Almond Fudge the second it was passed to her) was happy with her choice, but had a little flavor envy. We tried to balance the melting danger with enjoying every lick; Bennett's ice cream is quite good, and is worth savoring! A trip to Bennett's can definitely serve as the upside to a trip to the Farmer's Market, if being there isn't necessarily your cup of tea. Final rankings so far in LAist's Ice Cream Summer have this spot pulling a respectable 3rd place! more ›

Okay, so here's the thing about LAist's Ice Cream Summer: We don't expect to find anything revolutionary in ice cream. We don't hope to uncover a hidden gem. We feel we should spend just as much time on the places that are, to the purists, perhaps just a bit less desirable. Places that are more, shall we say, ubiquitous. Places that exist, that enjoy some popularity, and that just happen to be popping up all over the city. Well, all over the country. Such is the case with the franchised purveyor of ice cream, Coldstone Creamery. They're certainly an ice cream option in LA, so we're counting them in. more ›