LAist has gazed into the crystal ball of costume trend prediction to bring you the definitive list of must-have, will-see costumes this season. Whether you're wandering West Hollywood, attending LACMA's Muse Costume Ball, getting KCRW krazy at their holiday masquerade, or visiting 12 of LA's most haunted places, there will be be no shortage of Gagas and Biebers, Gone Golden Girls and Easy Riders, and probably some anxious TRON-sters getting their Halloween ya-yas out early. We are also bracing for the glittered, bloody, zombified versions of... more ›

While ordering tacos this past weekend, Pat at Eating L.A. noticed that Cardone's Deli on Sunset had been replaced by a new place called The Vegan Spot. "There are seriously a lot of vegan places in Silver Lake and Echo Park already. (Cru, Flore Cafe, Elf, at least four Thai places, etc.) So we're just wondering, are there really that many vegans on the near-Eastside?" more ›

In the decadent tradition of hand-massaged, beer-fed Kobe beef, a new taste sensation is coming to California: La Quercia artisanal pork. These happy little piggies are raised on an organic farm in Iowa and fed a diet of acorns, just like the famed pigs of Spain's jamon iberico. EaterLA had the scoop yesterday:

These acorn-fed pigs are supposed to produce amazing meat, as they do in Italy and Spain. The company that's responsible for said pigs makes some of the best prosciutto in the country, found on only a few top menus in LA. But more importantly: There were only 45 pigs available, and only 10 SoCal chefs got to participate in the program, which means we'll start seeing this much ballyhooed pork on select local menus.

The only thing hotter than the Southern Californian fires on the web today is a company in Irvine, who, unfortunately, are being recognized today for something that they probably don't want. The amazing lucky streak of the Colorado Rockies came to a halt today when they released World Series tickets exclusively online - and the site crashed. Paciolan runs the site. So all those ravenous and loyal Rockie fans who unanimously said WTF all... more ›

Would you pay $85 for truffle mac n' cheese? Or would you rather enjoy the cheaper, classic versions at Larkin's or Lucky Devil's? The Glutton over at the LA Times samples the goods for you. What do we want? Conservation programs, access to healthy food, and promotion of renewable energy! When do we want it? Whenever the Senate gets around to voting on the Farm Bill. There's still time to make your voice heard.... more ›

The LA Department of Water and Power seem to think that LA will just sit back and let them raise rates, hide money, and allow themselves to get rich. In the last few weeks the public utility has been exposed for a few troubling trends and actions that we quietly await to see what Mayor Tony, and our other elected officials, will do about it. On Sunday the LA Daily News discovered that over... more ›

I like to consider myself a green person. I mean every time I leave the house I ask myself if my destination can be reached without a car, which is why I find myself riding a bicycle/subway/bus often. However I always come across others who are gung-ho about nascent eco-trends (drives a Prius, shops only at Whole Foods), who are so caught up in Green Commercialism that they never stop to evaluate its benefit for themselves. You're not positively contributing to the environment just because you drink Fiji water! Oh, and as a side note, the transport of one bottle of Fiji water to your local grocery store burns 1 kilo of fossil fuel, 27 kilos of water, and generates 1.2 pounds of greenhouse gases. more ›

This week ended with the launch of the seventh and final Harry Potter installation. But while the world was consumed with Pottermania, it's important to remember that there were more serious things going on in the world, too - two of them in -Ist cities. more ›

Today we will look at one of my least favorite fashion occurrences. This has been going on for far too long, and I have lost the self-control to tolerate it. As with all moronic fashion trends, for months I patiently photographed the idiocy and awaited its disappearance. The problem we face today is that the Sausage Mc Muffins simply are not going away. So I must ask you Los Angeles: how can we eliminate... more ›

Need a one-stop shop for all things fashion? Look no further than Intuition, located at 10581 West Pico Blvd. more ›

We admit it. We love year-end Best Of lists. Why? We think lists by a variety of people are a far better way to see trends and discover new acts than say award shows or sales charts. If it weren't for Best Of lists it's rare that you'd hear so much about TV on the Radio, The Cold War Kids, The Hold Steady, Joanna Newsum, or the Knife - and who knows, maybe it's... more ›

One of our favorite local food blogs is Eating LA, which is helmed by Pat Saperstein, a senior editor at Variety. LAist asked her to put together her own Best of 2006, which she has so kindly shared with us; we can't help but notice that she likes pork and--if we may interpret--dislikes the deluge of Pinkberry frozen yogurt shops. Is it coincidence, we wonder, that she, too links the year to the pig, like... more ›

Every week in Living in Sin, Jen Sincero provides advice to LA's sexually confounded. Sign up for her newsletter and have it sent to you every week. Ask Jen your questions: all are posted anonymously. Dear Jen, My problem seems to be that I'm simply not attracted to women my age (with a few exceptions), and the younger women I am attracted to want nothing but platonic relationships with me. My friends try to... more ›

One of our favorite local photogs (who has caught more Project Runway contestants out "in the wild" than anybody we know) found Waz Up Sportswear in Inglewood last weekend and we're left with a quandary. Should we be laughing harder at the obviously poor planning that left the small business a victim of the fickle friendship of pop culture trends or that at the time of this brilliant business decision, the proprietors couldn't get the phrase to look quite right or a more exciting sign? more ›

Down on Fairfax folks are excited about the LA late-night noshing institution Canter's Deli's upcoming 75th anniversary. This mainstay of mile-high smoked meat on rye is celebrating the big 7-5 by offering 75-cent corned beef sandwiches from 12 noon until midnight on Monday March 20th. While this is pretty exciting food-stuff, we're slightly more tickled to have discovered that Canter's is so in the mix with current trends that they have their very own MySpace page. (And now you know that this LAist isn't anywhere near hip because we couldn't think of anything hipper than "in the mix with current trends" to say.) In any event, we're guessing Canter's, that old geezer (who is "up for anything" so long as it's not the High Holy Days, according to their profile) is going to be pretty popular come Monday on their diamond anniversary; at last tally, they've got an impressive 1349 friends on their list. Are you one of them? more ›

Mark Vallen has been making art in Los Angeles for more than 30 years. A native Angeleno, Mark has integrated the city's residents and landmarks into his work since his teens, when he worked on seminal LA punk publication Slash Magazine and captured the early punk scene in a series of sketches, drawings, and paintings. Mark continues the DIY spirit by supporting LA's contemporary art scene, advocating for change against the status quo and sharing his opinion about the current state of painting and culture on his blog, Art for Change. more ›

We suppose we're going to have to cop a "better late than never" stance as we offer up this belated year-end look at food in LA. Actually, we've been thinking about this one since the day before we boarded a plane in mid-December for our long-ish holiday trip, when the waiting area at our nail salon already had their copy of Los Angeles Magazine's January issue, featuring their picks for the top ten restaurants of the year, but ours was not in our mailbox; for us that meant we'd be getting the word late, and, we suppose, better late than never. (Of course, we're kind of not impressed by their picks, so even though it sounds like we're passing the buck a bit, all in all it's a moot point.) But you'll still love us, right? more ›

Ned Colletti and the Los Angeles Dodgers have been busy trying to clean the mess left by former GM Paul DePodesta. In spite of the injuries that decimated the roster, there was no doubt that the pennant was winnable down the stretch.. Instead of banding together to try and salvage the season, infighting and poor play killed any chance the team had. Eventually killing not only their post-season hopes but costing the DePodesta his job and forcing manager Jim Tracy to find happiness elsewhere. more ›

In the battle of the Thursday Home sections, the NY Times smacks the LA Times down without even breaking a sweat. Just look at those web pages: the NY Times has a gorgeous photo that will make you drool, even if a cedar-sheathed house with a copper tower doesn't sound like your thing. The LA Times, on the other hand, starts with a jumble of text that's not been copy edited for the web, and has just the first line of the main stories with a complete paragraph of a minor one. The LA Times has NO pictures accompanying their stories, highlights the linen designs of Jane Seymour (yes, that Jane Seymour) and the photo gallery (mostly of stuff to buy) appears to be the same one that was up last week. Meanwhile the lead NY Times story comes with an audio-enhanced slideshow, and their Currents slideshow about LA design trends pops merrily across our fair city. Alas, LA Times, alas. more ›

We have a list about a mile long of sushi restaurants in Los Angeles that we want to hit up, and thankfully a gaggle of gal-pals who are game to try new places. Recently we rounded up the troops for a taste test-drive at Little Tokyo's Sushi Gen. We'd done just a tad of research--mainly noting that just about everyone had something positive to say about the high-quality of fish served at this popular, moderately priced sushi joint, including the LA Times, who listed Sushi Gen earlier this year in their feature on Advanced Sushi. Our visit was at lunch time, and even though it was barely noon, the wait was about twenty minutes for a table for four. Had it been less crowded, or fewer of us dining, we would have eagerly opted for the sushi bar. But a table it was to be, and so we sat down and dove into the menu. more ›

A new season is here. And we’re not talking about the crisper fall-ish weather of late. Or even football. LAist is ready for the fall TV lineup. So bring it on. more ›

Abandon hope of understanding space and time, all ye who enter the Bonaventure Hotel. more ›

To most people, the thought of a drug dealer invokes an image of a shady character standing on a street corner in a bad part of town. Obviously not all drug pushers fit this meme, as is evidenced by the club going, PDA wielding black tar peddler. The black tar we are referring to is not heroin, but the cilia coating carcinogen contained in tobacco. In a city that forbids smoking indoors in public areas it makes sense that unwacky tobacky conglomerates would focus some of their marketing energy and technology on tracking their club going addicts. more ›

The LA-based consultant, called Directives West, works with more than 70 retailers, including Nordstrom, Federated Department Stores Inc., Abercrombie & Fitch and Tootsie’s. more ›

Here at LAist, we like to watch trends. And then after watching said trends we like to take notes about said trends. Of course, following taking said notes about said watched trends, we like to type on our laptops about them and bring them to your attention. more ›

NBC4 reports today that ABC has issued an apology for their steamy pre-game intro to its "Monday Night Football" broadcast that featured some of the actresses from "Desperate Housewives." more ›

For starters, the 2005 Zagat reveals some interesting trends. Angelenos eat out more frequently than the average American. We forgo home cooking on average of 3.8 times a week in contrast to the average habit of eating out 3.3 times. Despite the increased hike in the cost of living in LA, we shell out an average $30.17 per meal, a mere 56 cents more than last year. It's still below the $30.95 you'll spend on average in any given American city, and considerably less than the mean cost of a meal in New York City ($37.06). We also contain more top-rated Asian restaurants than any other city in the U.S. more ›

That trendy item? Candles. more ›

Over the course of the next week, LA's temperatures will take a nose dive into the 70-degree territory, hovering in the 70-73 range through most of the week and then, once again, reaching back up to the 80's just in time for the big weekend. Meteorologists confirm that as December approaches, the cool-down will continue to exhibit these "strange trends" that result in cooler temperatures, less blinding sunny days and possibly rain. more ›