The Brief

The big news in L.A. food-land this week is the $1500 price tag for Copenhagen restaurant Noma’s upcoming residency here in L.A. In this economy? I think I’d rather fly to Copenhagen. Nonetheless, if you’re lucky (and flush!) enough to snag a reservation, please report back.

While that did not make any of our staffers' resolution lists, Senior Marketing Manager Patricia Tumang has some food goals of her own, including getting a coffee at Quat L.A., trying some dipping ramen for lunch at Tsuke Artisan Noodle in Pasadena and getting a basturma sandwich at III Mass Bakery & Deli in Glendale (new). Much more reasonable (and probably just as tasty!).

On the music calendar this weekend, our friends at Licorice Pizza recommend new-school SoCal punks Together Pangea at the Teragram on Friday, old-school SoCal punks Black Flag at the Roxy, or Beastie Boys associate Mix Master Mike at the Venice West. Saturday, there’s the big iHeartRadio ALTer EGO show at the Forum with Green Day, Cage The Elephant, Good Charlotte, Sublime, Twenty One Pilots, Gigi Perez, Myles Smith and Almost Monday. Nikka Costa is at the Venice West, or head to Riverside to see legendary teen idol Shaun Cassidy at the Fox Performing Arts Center. Plus, a treat on both Saturday and Sunday: Jeff Goldblum & The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra will be playing the Troubadour, with a 4 p.m. matinee on Saturday for those of us who like to be in bed early!

Elsewhere on LAist, you can follow Northeast L.A.’s “treat trail,” learn about the challenges facing Long Beach’s Planet Books and catch up with last weekend’s Golden Globe winners.

Events

Morleigh Steinberg: Someplace, Somewhere

Through Sunday, February 8
Arcane Space
324 Sunset Ave., Venice 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

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Morleigh Steinberg

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Arcane Space

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The small gallery Arcane Space in Venice punches above its weight, with top-tier shows and a winding venue that lets out to a very cool, neighborhoody patio in the back. Choreographer and artist Morleigh Steinberg owns and operates the gallery, which has hosted inspiring new artists and group shows lately, but this time she’s showing her own work. Steinberg’s mesmerizing nature photos are printed on silver mylar substrate and show her adopted Ireland (she’s married to U2 guitarist The Edge) in a new — and possibly even more emerald — light that you can imagine.

I’m Not a Comedian, I’m Lenny Bruce

Sunday, January 18, 2 p.m. 
La Mirada Theatre
14900 La Mirada Blvd., La Mirada
COST: FROM $19.80; MORE INFO

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Courtesy La Mirada Theatre

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Freedom of speech is in the news daily, and no one championed the right to say what you want in a more direct way than comedian Lenny Bruce. Directed by Tony Award-winning actor Joe Mantegna, this one-man show (written by and starring Ronnie Marmo) combines Bruce’s classic comedy bits with biographical insight.

DTLB Live 

Saturday, January 17, 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. 
Promenade N. between Broadway and 3rd Street, Long Beach
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

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Courtesy Downtown Long Beach Alliance

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Usher in the new year with the Big Butter Jazz Band as the Downtown Long Beach Alliance kicks off the first DTLB Live!, a new recurring monthly event series bringing live music, crafts and family-friendly activities to the Promenade every third Saturday of each month. There will also be live swing dancers, a maker’s market with local vendors, food, drink and much more.

NFL Playoffs & Mimosas

Saturday, January 17, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. 
Chulita 
533 Rose Ave., Venice
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Watch the playoffs, drink a mimosa, soak up some sun on the patio — what could be better? There will also be tunes from DJ El Cizzle, and bottomless mimosas are $35.

Park Pages

Sunday, January 18, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. 
L.A. Historic Park 
1245 N. Spring Street, Downtown L.A. 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

This whole week has been summer in January, so keep the sunny vibes going and bring your book, a blanket and a donation for Project Angel Food to the L.A. Historic Park for the first Park Pages, a new monthly group read and hang. The Fleuria indie book truck will be there, along with plenty of fellow sun-loving bookworms.

About Last Night

Saturday, January 17, 8 p.m. 
Three Clubs 
1123 Vine Street, Hollywood 
COST: $23.10; MORE INFO 

If you thought your dates were bad, just wait until you hear the unhinged horror stories of some of your fellow single Angelenos at About Last Night. The regular storytelling showcase features locals getting up on stage and sharing their funniest, most outrageous dating stories.

Chopstick-Making Workshop

Saturday, January 17, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. 
Allied Woodshop
4160 Whiteside Street, East L.A.
COST: $160, MORE INFO 

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Courtesy Ali Chen Studio

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More than one of our LAist staffers had “go to a woodworking workshop” on their 2026 L.A. resolutions list. What better time to start than just ahead of the Lunar New Year with this chopstick-making workshop at Allied Woodshop in East L.A., led by Ali Chen?

Greatest Story Ever Told with Guillermo del Toro 

Saturday, January 17, 2 p.m.
Academy Museum 
6067 Wilshire Blvd., Miracle Mile
COST: $5; MORE INFO

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MGM

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This is for my fellow film nerds and our raison d’etre for living in L.A. The Academy Museum (for only $5!) hosts this screening of a 4K restoration of 1965’s The Greatest Story Ever Told, plus a lecture from Guillermo del Toro talking about George Stevens’ career on the film’s 60th anniversary.

MLK Celebration: Dream @ Blu’

Sunday, January 18, 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. 
Blu' Arts & Wellness Gallery
580 Pine Ave., Long Beach
COST: FREE, DONATIONS WELCOME; MORE INFO

An afternoon of poetry, music and art honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. awaits you at the Blu’ Arts gallery in Long Beach. The day features acoustic jazz and spoken word poetry curated and hosted by Tommy Domino, an author, poet and teacher. Plus, enjoy the gallery’s work by current artists-in-residence, Shelton Gillis, Mohammed Mubarak and Wan Jean the Artist.

MLK Day Concert

Saturday, January 17, 7:30 p.m. 
Skirball Cultural Center 
2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd., West L.A.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

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Courtesy Skirball Center

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The sounds of the Inner City Youth Orchestra of L.A. will fill the Skirball Center to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at this free concert. The group is the largest Black-majority orchestra in the nation, with more than 100 musicians and choir singers total.

Jam Session 
Friday, January 16, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. 
SteepLA 
970 N. Broadway, Ste. 112, Chinatown 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

One of my favorite discoveries of 2025 was the charming SteepLA, a teahouse in a Chinatown plaza that also houses restaurants and art galleries. They are launching jazz jam sessions, starting with one on Friday in their courtyard. Tea cocktails and their after-dark menu will be available.

Some government funding streams for L.A. County’s public health system are drying up, and officials are turning to private philanthropy to fill the gap.

A new privately funded foundation launched Thursday to strengthen public health services after $50 million in federal, state and local funding cuts to the county’s Department of Public Health since early last year.

“It is really a hard day for our community when we have to ask for private donations to fund a public good, but unfortunately, we've lost too much money to not take this important step,” said Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer.

In February, the county’s Public Health Department closed seven clinics, with six remaining open. About half of the patients seen in those clinics are uninsured, according to county officials. The department also cut hundreds of staff positions.

Ferrer is on the board of the new foundation, The Fund for Advancing Public Health LA, which held its first meeting Thursday.

She said the fund will help the county maintain its basic public health infrastructure, including disease prevention, health promotion, environmental health, and emergency response efforts.

Other board members include several health insurance executives, as well as actors Sean Penn and Danny Trejo. Board member Saree Kayne of the R&S Kayne Foundation pledged $150,000 to the fund Thursday. Kayne said she hopes the donation encourages others to give.

The foundation aims to raise $2 million this year.

More cuts expected

L.A. County Supervisor Holly Mitchell said it’s crucial to have an alternative funding stream to protect services for the county's most vulnerable residents.

“We are saving public health,” Mitchell said. “This fund represents a new approach, one that brings together government philanthropy in the private sector to invest in community-based solutions, protect vulnerable populations, and strengthen our public health infrastructure.”

Officials say more public health cuts are coming, through the federal budget law known as the "Big Beautiful Bill," which slashes funding for Medi-Cal.

The county Department of Public Health anticipates losing up to $300 million in revenue over the next three years because of the federal budget bill and other potential funding freezes. Federal funding accounts for almost 50% of the public health budget, according to county officials.

Mitchell also led an effort to put a half-percent county sales tax increase to fund public health on the June ballot.

If approved by voters, that proposal, known as Measure ER, is expected to raise about $1 billion a year for county safety net health services, including about $100 million for the public health department.

Board members

The Fund for Advancing Public Health LA announced its founding board of directors, which includes:

• Dr. Barbara Ferrer, LA County Department of Public Health director
• Debbie I. Chang, Blue Shield of California Foundation CEO
• Sean Penn, actor and co-founder of Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE)
• Martha Santana-Chin, LA Care Health Plan CEO
• Saree Kayne, R&S Kayne Foundation CEO
• Danny Trejo, actor and restaurateur
• Jarrett Barrios, an executive at the American Red Cross
• Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Charles R. Drew University College of Medicine Dean
• Kristin McCowan, an executive at the Los Angeles Dodgers

The Rose Bowl in Pasadena may be a centenarian, but it’s holding up pretty well as it continues to host events on its way to a starring role in the LA28 Olympics.

But before it can host the soccer final, it needs fixes, especially to the infrastructure serving the bathrooms and drinking fountains. Fears of a toilet backup while in the world’s spotlight led Rep. Laura Friedman to seek federal funds for upgrades. On Thursday she announced she secured just over $1 million.

“Two years from now, athletes around the world are going to compete for gold right where we are standing. This is not the time to find out whether or not these pipes are up to the task,” Friedman said.

The planned work, she added, will lead to improved water flow capacity and water drainage, eliminating the risk of backups and emergency maintenance.

The funds came from the House of Representatives Interior and Environment subcommittee. The fixes, an official said, will be completed by the LA28 Olympics.

The funds, however, are a drop in the bucket when it comes to what’s needed to make needed improvements to the Pasadena venue.

Officials, including (left to right) Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation President Dedan Brozino, Deputy Fire Chief of the City of Pasadena Tim Sell, Congresswoman Laura Friedman, and Rose Bowl Stadium CEO Jens Weiden announced infrastructure funding for the 103-year old Rose Bowl.

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Adolfo Guzman-Lopez/LAist

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“Over the  next 20 years there's about $200 million that we need to put in and that's everything from updating light fixtures to updating gas, water, wastewater lines, etc.,” said Dedan Brozino,  president of the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation, the nonprofit that supports the Rose Bowl stadium's preservation and enhancement.

Getting venues ready will be expensive

The money is a much-needed win at a time when elected officials in city, county, state and federal offices have been struggling to find the funds to get L.A.-area venues ready for the global Olympic stage in two years.

The entrance to a men's bathroom at the Rose Bowl.

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Adolfo Guzman-Lopez/LAist

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A $360 million proposal to spruce up asphalt in parking lots around Exposition Park won’t be done in time for the Olympics, as originally planned. Meanwhile, just up the street, there’s concern that a $2.6 billion expansion of the L.A. Convention Center, which is hosting Olympic wrestling, fencing and judo in 2028 won’t be ready for the Olympics.

Additionally, to save money, LA28 organizers moved Olympic diving to the Rose Bowl complex last year because it has two Olympic-sized pools, while the Exposition Park complex doesn't and would need expensive upgrades.

Topline:

About the chick: The chick hatched March 14. The zoo opened its Cape vulture enclosure in February 2025 after years of planning to encourage the birds to roost and nest, welcoming a new breeding pair that year. When it grows to be an adult, it’ll have a wingspan of 8 1/2 feet.

About the enclosure: The L.A. Zoo said it spent years developing the vulture habitat, which was designed to mimic the vultures’ natural environment in South Africa and nearby countries. Dominick Dorsa II, the zoo’s director of animal care, said in a statement the successful hatching is “a testament to the design and construction” of the habitat.

How to see the chick: You can’t for the time being. Zoo officials are keeping it away from visitors until the chick matures, though you can still see adult Cape vultures at the zoo’s enclosure.

Though visitors will have to wait until the chick matures to see it in the enclosure, you can still take in the impressive eight and a half foot wingspan of the adult Cape vultures.

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Courtesy Jamie Pham/L.A. Zoo

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What zoo officials are saying: “Welcoming a Cape vulture chick is a thrilling moment for our team and a beacon of hope for African vultures,” the L.A. Zoo’s curator of birds Rose Legato said in a statement. “Vultures are one of nature's most misunderstood marvels, and I cannot wait for our guests to eventually watch this chick grow and learn just how vital they are to our ecosystems.”

About the species: Cape vultures are listed as a vulnerable species due to human activities and encroachment. According to the L.A. Zoo, African vultures are more closely related to eagles and hawks than vultures native to the Americas, like the zoo's California condors that hatched last year.

This story first appeared on The LA Local.

What should have been a celebration for formerly incarcerated youth completing a reentry program at the Boyle Heights Arts Conservatory (BHAC) last week instead ended with seven students and two staff members detained by the Los Angeles Police Department, according to witnesses. 

Now, nearly a week later, BHAC staff and city officials are demanding answers from the LAPD, with some accusing officers of racial profiling. 

According to the LAPD, officers observed a large group gathered on the corner of Cesar E. Chavez Avenue and Mott Street around 4:16 p.m. on March 26. Authorities then requested backup for what they described as “a large group surrounding officers,” LAPD Public Information Officer Tony Im said. 

The group, classified by police as an “aggressive gang group,” consisted of seven 18-year-old students from the BHAC’s Bridge Academy Movement (BAM) program and two BHAC staff members.

The BAM program pays formerly incarcerated youth to complete 200-250 hours in media and visual arts training to prepare them for creative careers. That day, students were set to showcase their work at the BAM program graduation for families and community members. 

Rene Weber, a teaching artist at the BHAC, had been with the students setting up for the ceremony minutes before the incident occurred. 

According to Weber, the students had gone to coffee across the street at Milpa Kitchen as they often did, when staff were alerted that they were being detained. 

Weber said he arrived to find students and a staff member pressed against the wall in handcuffs. 

Video from the scene, taken by a staff member at the BHAC, shows multiple officers surrounding the group. At one point, an officer orders a person to “get on the wall” and displays a stun gun.  

“No, none of that, these are kids right here,” the staff member replies.

Another staff member, Teotl Veliz, recorded a large police response.  

“I counted 12 cop cars, that’s at least 25 cops, and they had a helicopter,” Veliz said. “It was just so comedic, tragically comedic, that it was on their graduation day too.”

Officers established a perimeter with yellow tape along the side of Ashley’s Beauty Salon as local business owners and witnesses gathered around the students. 

“I was just incredibly disappointed in LAPD… because it became so apparent to everybody, all at the same time, that it was racial profiling and nothing else,” Veliz said.

Weber said officers gave shifting explanations for the stop at the scene, including blocking the sidewalk and possible underage vaping. After Weber told the officers that all of the students were 18, they said they would investigate whether the group had any gang affiliation. 

Police have not responded to questions about what led officers to believe that the group was gang-affiliated. 

Weber recalled pleading with the officers to let the group go and explaining to them that they worked across the street. Community members and local business owners also stepped in to vouch for the students. 

“Our job is to help them gain a new perspective on life,” Weber said. “They’re coming out of juvenile detention and they’re turning their lives around. We can do our part in keeping them off the streets and keeping them doing better but what does it mean if they’re going to be profiled and treated exactly the same way?” 

In total, seven 18-year-old students and two staff members were detained. BHAC staff said one student and one staff member were taken to Hollenbeck Community Police Station and released less than two hours later after advocacy from community members and Councilmember Ysabel Jurado.

The incident ultimately resulted in an infraction for smoking a cannabis e-vape on a public sidewalk, according to a photo of the infraction shared with the Beat. LAPD did not provide details about the people taken to Hollenbeck Station or the infraction. 

The graduation ceremony was cancelled that night and is expected to be rescheduled in April. 

“Graduation should be a moment of pride and possibility — not fear,” Jurado said in a statement. “I’m seeking answers about what occurred, and this underscores the need for stronger relationships between law enforcement and community organizations so moments like these are protected, not disrupted.”

Carmelita Ramirez‑Sanchez, the conservatory’s executive director, said she was grateful to the community and Jurado for advocating for the students’ release. Jurado met her at Hollenbeck Station within 20 minutes of being alerted to the incident, she said. 

“They had store owners, señoras, barbers, that ran out and were trying to explain to the police who our kids were,” Ramirez‑Sanchez said. 

Still, she said the incident tarnished what should have been a joyous celebration.

“I imagine that what this does is derail this entire idea that you can be an active participant in your own restorative growth,” she said.