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August 29, 2013 / Heather Somaini

I wrote about Wolvesmouth over 6 months ago when Craig Thornton was featured in the New Yorker and Tasting Table. Well now Craig is at it again and created a two week artist residency called CUT YOUR TEETH with Matthew Bone at the Santa Monica Museum of Art. After reading about Wolvesmouth, I dreamed up the Eat+Drink Supper Club - we will hold our 5th dinner next month! I wonder what this will make me come up with?

Animal Instinct: A Secret Dinner in a Forest. (In a Museum.)

You’re deep inside a dark forest.

You stumble across some animals. They appear to be stuffed.

You look up to see a dangling chandelier—weird. Also, it appears to be made out of teeth.

Behind you, something clatters.

You’re either at an astoundingly mysterious new dinner party inside a museum, or something pretty bad is about to happen…

Prepare your game face for Cut Your Teeth, in which LA’s hottest underground dinner party, Wolvesmouth, steps into a museum exhibit that’s basically a full-on creepy forest—tickets go on sale Friday at 9am.

Cut Your Teeth
at Santa Monica Museum of Art
2525 Michigan Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90404
310-586-6488
official website

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tags / cut your teeth, drink, eat, eat+drink, eatplusdrink, food, food wizard, foodie, la foodie, urban daddy, urbandaddy, wolvesmouth

July 31, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

I love Urban Daddy, they come up with some of the most awesome stuff and their imagery is great. I’m definitely checking out this store the next time I’m down Venice way….
Gant Rugger
The other day, something terrible happened.Yo… — I love Urban Daddy, they come up with some of the most awesome stuff and their imagery is great. I’m definitely checking out this store the next time I’m down Venice way….

Gant Rugger

The other day, something terrible happened.

You walked into a shop. Poked at a pair of pants. Tried on a shirt. And unfathomably, nobody handed you a beer.

Fair to say you’ll never set foot in that place again…

Take your first look inside Gant Rugger, the brand’s first West Coast shop—it’s fully stocked with Americana-ish clothes and cold beer—now soft-open on Abbot Kinney.

If you’ve been an Ivy Leaguer, captain of the crew team or a toothpaste model… you might’ve picked up one of these oxfords before. If not, you might have gotten one at Barneys anyway.

Which brings us to now. When you walk into this bright, white-walled shop with an old gymnasium’s wood floor, you’ll find… all of it. Everything they’ve got. Think preppy oxfords, swim trunks, button-down shirts and conservative blazers—lots of plaid and stripes, lots of red and white and blue. So you can gear up here for the Dodgers game or a boat trip, and look like you’re in a commercial for Dodgers games or boat trips.

FYI, the doors are open now, but they’re still filling out the shelves—the official opening is in a couple weeks. Just know that if they like you (and we like your odds), they’ll crack open a beer for you while you browse.

Yes, the beer’s already here.

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tags / urban daddy, gant rugger, design, fashion

July 31, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

I’ve been watching them build, design, remodel this place every weekend on my weekend rides. I ride right by it on Rose on my way to the beach. I’m so happy it’s finally open and running. And it looks pretty cool too!
Superba Sn… — I’ve been watching them build, design, remodel this place every weekend on my weekend rides. I ride right by it on Rose on my way to the beach. I’m so happy it’s finally open and running. And it looks pretty cool too!

Superba Snack Bar

If there’s an Italian grandmother anywhere near you right now, tell her to look away.

Go ahead. We’ll wait. (And we won’t ask why you’re hanging out with Italian grandmothers.)

Okay. So there’s a new spot in Venice that’s getting sort of blasphemous with their pasta. As in… they’re spiking it.

Introducing Superba Snack Bar, an open-air cube of scallops, beer sangria and, yes, spiked pasta, opening Thursday in Venice.

Just look for a sign that looks like it’s made up of big Scrabble tiles: S-U-P-E-R-B-A. Hey, that’s 13 points. Also, it marks the place you’ll want to go with a bunch of friends after a leisurely beach day, when everybody’s hungry for fried duck eggs, sweet corn gazpacho and futuristic pasta—the rigatoni’s made with rye, there’s amaro in the agnolotti sauce—from Jason Neroni (Osteria La Buca). To drink: beer sangria, an unholy mix of Belgian white ale, prosecco and apricot juice. Or just… a beer.

Technically, you could down this stuff inside or outside. Inside goes full loft-dweller (funky wallpaper, chrome-heavy open kitchen, towering ceilings), and the patio looks like a pool deck, with a row of teal-tile seating. Un-technically, though, the wall of windows between the two spaces will usually be opened up entirely, so it’s one big, breezy spiked-pasta party.

No need to let technicalities get in the way of spiked pasta.

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tags / dine, food, foodie, la, los angeles, superba snack bar, urban daddy

July 24, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

The latest edition in the Drago family of restaurants has hit LA. It HAS to be good! I’m a big Drago fan although I don’t get to go much. Check it out and let me know how it is!
Osteria Drago
There is a time and a place for lasagna.Th… — The latest edition in the Drago family of restaurants has hit LA. It HAS to be good! I’m a big Drago fan although I don’t get to go much. Check it out and let me know how it is!

Osteria Drago

There is a time and a place for lasagna.

The time is always.

And the new place is Osteria Drago, an airy hideout of Italian-ness from one of the city’s most trusted masters of marinara, now soft-open on the Sunset Strip.

You’ll find this place in the former home of Il Sole, but a few things have changed. First, it looks more like a beachy little find on the Amalfi Coast, with white walls, bleached woods, a smooth marble bar and a deep, deep wine list.

And maybe most importantly, the new man behind this is Celestino Drago, who’s served you more power dinners of osso buco and sangiovese at Drago Centro these last few years than your accountant would care to tabulate.

Which doesn’t mean you’re stopping with the power dinners. Next time you’re meeting your client in WeHo rather than Downtown—here you go. All the squid-ink spaghetti and spinach lasagna with prosciutto and reggiano you could want.

If you need privacy for your meeting, the place is full of quiet corners—there are three interconnected little coves and an intimate front porch. All of which, we should note, translate nicely into a date-type situation.

Or even just an actual date.

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tags / drago, osteria drago, urban daddy

July 24, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

I just think this LOOKS really cool. Who knows if you fall off the side of the hill or not….
A Sexy Cube Above a Mexican Vineyard
And now, a quick test of your spirits knowledge.Guess which one exists:A) Mexican merlot.B) Norwegian tequila.C… — I just think this LOOKS really cool. Who knows if you fall off the side of the hill or not….

A Sexy Cube Above a Mexican Vineyard

And now, a quick test of your spirits knowledge.

Guess which one exists:

A) Mexican merlot.
B) Norwegian tequila.
C) Guatemalan champagne.

If you’re still unsure, you clearly haven’t lived… at least not in a cube suspended above Mexican wine country.

Introducing Endémico, a new collection of well-appointed cube dwellings built into the mountains of Mexico’s hidden vineyards, opening today in Valle de Guadalupe.

If you’re looking to ditch your troubles and fall off the grid/wagon for a while, Mexican wine country is your play. You’ll live in a 200-square-foot box—actually, a modish cabin sticking up from boulders on stilts, with a wall of glass overlooking the sprawling vineyards below, and a wine cooler from which you can sample its many fruits.

You’ll rise in the afternoon and toast your late-summer fling with a glass of grenache on your private sundeck (don’t worry: you’ll be given complimentary sombreros at check-in). Between wine classes and day trips to Tijuana, you’ll have your hands full, which is why you should set aside some time to just frolic in a Hollywood Hills–style infinity pool that spills over a cliff’s edge and feast on Chocolata Clam au Gratin from the hotel’s restaurant.

Which pretty much covers the wine-pairing food groups.

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tags / urban daddy

July 13, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

I used to shop at this hardware store every now and then - very curious to see how it is as a restaurant!
Laurel Hardware
Nails. A hammer. A thing to attach a doohickey to another thing.These are things you find at a hardware store.Pork belly. Gin. … — I used to shop at this hardware store every now and then - very curious to see how it is as a restaurant!

Laurel Hardware

Nails. A hammer. A thing to attach a doohickey to another thing.

These are things you find at a hardware store.

Pork belly. Gin. A magical courtyard.

These are things you do not find at a hardware store.

Until—you guessed it—now.

Take a look at the rustic splendor of Laurel Hardware—a secret garden of red meats and infused cocktails under the sign of an old hardware store—soft-open today in West Hollywood.

First, yes, this used to be a legit hardware store, and that’s the old sign still overhead out front. Only now, you probably shouldn’t show up in a tool belt.

Because what’s inside is rather stunning. Up front is pretty nice and all, with a large, white counter and the promise of a hearty lunch. Nothing wrong there.

But down the hall at the back is what’ll really grab you—a big, sexy space with roomy booths, houndstooth lounge chairs and wood floors from the Coney Island boardwalk. If you’re here with a bunch of friends to grab some eggplant pizza, soft-shell crab and grilled peaches over profound discussion about plastering, take over one of the communal tables.

But most importantly, this place could come in handy for a date-type situation. Because even farther back is a totally hidden little courtyard filled with Tuscan Sunsets (gin, lemon, Aperol, Thai basil and black peppercorn) and ancient olive trees.

No assembly required.

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tags / urban daddy, laurel hardware, los angeles, west hollywood, food, foodie, dine

June 29, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

They had me at “steak”.

Family MattersMeet the Mosner Family. They Do Steak.

Life is simple.Be born. Achieve great things. Have a few laughs. Play bridge. Expire.We’re just being honest. Don’t get all melodramatic about it.But this is … — They had me at “steak”.

Family Matters
Meet the Mosner Family. They Do Steak.

Life is simple.

Be born. Achieve great things. Have a few laughs. Play bridge. Expire.

We’re just being honest. Don’t get all melodramatic about it.

But this is Friday. And this is the Friday before the Fourth. And this is as good a time as any to focus on the positive.

Starting with the heroic amount of meat you’re about to throw on the grill…

Which, from now on, you’ll be procuring from the Mosner Family Brands Online Shop, your new go-to for impossibly miraculous meatstuffs from the same family who’s been keeping Jean Georges and Daniel Boulud in steak for years, available now.

Rib eyes. Veal medallions. Lamb racks. You can get those things anywhere. It’s true. But considering you give a damn (okay, a lot of damns) about what goes over your charcoal, you’ll be happy this place exists. What we’re trying to say is… this is pretty much the best stuff you can get.

You see, the Mosner clan has been in the butchering game since the ’50s. They’ve been stocking some of New York’s most exalted steakhouses ever since. And somewhere in between, they discovered the Internet.

Which brings us to the part where you go online and pillage through natural Angus USDA prime strips, Colorado lamb loins, Berkshire pork rib chops and, yes… even veal hot dogs.

It’s the Fourth of July. Not a game.

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tags / urban daddy, mosner family, 4th of july

June 26, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

I know it’s all the way over on La Brea but we can do it. We can get in our car and drive our tired butts over there and have a Sourdough Belgian Waffle. We can. I know we can.
The Sycamore Kitchen
This isn’t going to be pretty. But it’s im… — I know it’s all the way over on La Brea but we can do it. We can get in our car and drive our tired butts over there and have a Sourdough Belgian Waffle. We can. I know we can.

The Sycamore Kitchen

This isn’t going to be pretty. But it’s important.

It’s about… this morning. The insistent shriek of the alarm. The pillow marks still on your face in traffic. The overpowering Monday-ness.

And the fact that you weren’t on a La Brea courtyard patio with the paper, some Stumptown coffee and a plate of pastries from the esteemed Hatfield’s crew…

Let’s see that this doesn’t happen again. Take your first look inside The Sycamore Kitchen, a sunlit haven of coffee, pastries, eggs and sandwiches for the first two meals of the day, finally opening Wednesday.

Obviously, you know Hatfield’s. Plenty of elegantly casual dinners there, dates and deals, and popcorn. Good times. But they kept forgetting about all those hours before dinner. Until now.

Watch out for the vast courtyard that popped up out of nowhere on La Brea, and that’s your place—it looks like a breakfast factory, all brick and concrete and bare beams inside. The product: iced Cubanos with cinnamon-vanilla milk. Sourdough Belgian waffles with salted maple butter. Oatmeal stout gingerbread loaves. And on and on. Suddenly, your quick little café breakfast has six courses.

Which should tide you over until lunch—you’re often in the neighborhood for a quick visit with neighbors like American Rag, Feal Mor and General Quarters, and it’s about time somebody threw a charred-flank-steak sandwich into the mix.

The second most important aspect of lunch behind new pants.

The Sycamore Kitchen
143 S La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-939-0151
official website

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tags / sycamore kitchen, la brea, los angeles, la, dine, dining, food, doofie, urban daddy

June 15, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

Does it get any better than this…alcohol and ice cream?
Coolhaus
Sandwiches.Suffice it to say, you’re a fan.Little bread. Little turkey. A slice of provolone or two if there’s time. Boom… sandwich.But this is summer.Which means, among … — Does it get any better than this…alcohol and ice cream?

Coolhaus

Sandwiches.

Suffice it to say, you’re a fan.

Little bread. Little turkey. A slice of provolone or two if there’s time. Boom… sandwich.

But this is summer.

Which means, among other things, that your sandwich intake should probably involve some type of ice cream.

And that your ice cream intake should probably involve some type of tequila.

And that this should probably all come in the form of Coolhaus Spiked Ice Cream Sandwiches. It’s the first time the famed LA-based ice cream sandwich truck has ever delivered nationally. It involves tequila, bourbon and candied-bacon ice cream. And it’s all there for you right now exclusively on Perks.

This is simple, really. It’s hot outside. You’re hungry. And you enjoy beverages that are specifically engineered to make you less than 100% sober. That’s where these things come in.

Things like Abuelita Mexican chocolate ice cream laced with mezcal and sandwiched between two snickerdoodles. Things like whiskey-soaked chocolate-chipotle-BBQ ice cream flanked by potato chip Skor bars.

And more importantly, things that the cream wizards over at Coolhaus have set aside for you and only you.

And whoever else is reading this. But still…

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tags / coolhaus, urban daddy, ice cream, food, foodie, dine, dining, los angeles, la

June 13, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

They had me at donuts…delivered…to my door!
Fancy Donuts at Your Door
J.R.R. Tolkien once said the most beautiful phrase in the English language is cellar door.This was a huge, huge mistake.Because obviously—and we say this with all du… — They had me at donuts…delivered…to my door!

Fancy Donuts at Your Door

J.R.R. Tolkien once said the most beautiful phrase in the English language is cellar door.

This was a huge, huge mistake.

Because obviously—and we say this with all due respect—the most beautiful phrase in the English language is… donut delivery.

Take a look at the enticing offerings at Donut Snob, LA’s new web-based purveyor of donut-y goodness, now delivering throughout the city.

We probably don’t need to tell you why you’d want a bunch of fancy donuts to show up at your door. You’ve got a meeting. You’re planning to wake up next to somebody who’s both ravenous and discriminating on Saturday. You’re… alive.

So we’ll just tell you that these babies are a bit classier than what you’d find at your standard shop. (Not that there’s anything wrong with a standard donut.) Try the Campfire—filled with chocolate ganache and topped with graham cracker crumbs and a torched handmade marshmallow—and you’ll see what we’re talking about.

The options will change based on what’s in season. The baker is really feeling berries right now—so you can absolutely get the Berry Best, with a mixed berry coulis center and topped with fresh raspberries, blueberries and blackberries.

You always try to start your day with some fruit.

Donut Snob
213-373-4898
official website

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tags / urban daddy, donut snob

June 08, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

Always looking for a new watering hole on the westside….
The Corner Door
Generally speaking, you come down firmly on the pro-palm-tree side.So it seems wrong to finally get out of the office, rally your friends, put the top down and… h… — Always looking for a new watering hole on the westside….

The Corner Door

Generally speaking, you come down firmly on the pro-palm-tree side.

So it seems wrong to finally get out of the office, rally your friends, put the top down and… hole up in the back of some dark bomb-shelter bar.

You live in LA. Even when you’re inside, you’d rather be outside.

So take a look at The Corner Door, an elegantly low-key corner spot for burgers and drinks with plenty of windows that open up to let the outside in, now open in Culver City.

First off, yes. There is a corner door. So they’ve got the whole truth-in-advertising thing happening for them. Gives you an instinctual sense of trust.

You should probably rely on your instincts here, since you can drop in easily for a seat at the bar or a tall communal table for some cocktails both classic and crafty—an Old Fashioned, sure, or maybe a Fortune & Glory, with gin, cantaloupe and absinthe. Wouldn’t be the first time some gin led you to fortune and glory.

But if the nearby Waterloo & City is packed—and you’re feeling more like a burger, fried brussels sprouts and some cider-glazed wings than some veddy English pâté anyway—you’ll want a table up front under those open windows, with views of palm trees, meter-free parking and sky.

The meter-free parking gets you every time.

The Corner Door
12477 W Washington Blvd
Culver City, CA 90066
310-313-5810
official website

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tags / urban daddy, the corner door

June 08, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

They had me at “brownie”.
Beverly Hills Brownie Company
Consider the brownie.There’s nothing all that profound to consider here—it’s just that brownies are really good. You kind of want one. And the city is incomprehensibly shy on all-br… — They had me at “brownie”.

Beverly Hills Brownie Company

Consider the brownie.

There’s nothing all that profound to consider here—it’s just that brownies are really good. You kind of want one. And the city is incomprehensibly shy on all-brownie emporiums.

Or was…

Take a look at Beverly Hills Brownie Company, a fancy little shop filled with endless squares of rich, rich chocolate, now open on Beverly Drive.

You’ll find it under a big crystal chandelier—yes, this is a brownie shop; yes, you’re in Beverly Hills. It’s a bright little bakery where pretty much everything is impossibly white, like it just got its SAG card on a toothpaste commercial.

Everything, that is, except for all those brownies behind the counter. They’re made individually here, so each square of decadent chocolate has a crisp crust all around the edges. And, well, “gooey” would not be a terrible word to describe the delicious center.

They’ve got chocolate. They’ve got Andes mint. They’ve got red velvet, poppy seed and vanilla—but most important of all is the Black-Out, with semisweet, bittersweet and milk chocolate… and chocolate frosting. The options change, but generally you can plan on hitting this spot whenever you need a big box’s worth of appreciation directed your way at an afternoon meeting.

If you plan on sharing.

Beverly Hills Brownie Company
315 N Beverly Dr
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
310-275-1295
official website

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tags / urban daddy, beverly hills, brownie, beverly hills brownie company

June 01, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

They had me at wine and Venice.
Dry Tour: A New Old Wine Bar in Venice
We know.The holiday weekend is so close you can taste it.And oddly enough, it tastes like wine, cheese and wild boar salami…That’s the plan, anyway, assuming you take the … — They had me at wine and Venice.

Dry Tour: A New Old Wine Bar in Venice

We know.

The holiday weekend is so close you can taste it.

And oddly enough, it tastes like wine, cheese and wild boar salami…

That’s the plan, anyway, assuming you take the opportunity to hole up at Dry Tour, a historic new wine bar and dining room just steps from Venice Beach, officially open as of today.

You’ll find the place stowed in an old building that’s been stripped down to its 1904 roots—the chipped tile floors and ceilings are now as they were more than 100 years ago. But we think you’ll agree that adding some Edison bulbs, a bunch of wine bottles from all over and a gray marble bar… well, that represents some progress in the right direction.

It’s an intimate little spot, with just a few scattered tables and a dozen or so stools at the bar, so it’s best pulled out when you’ve spent the better part of an afternoon on a beach blanket with a date—and rather than driving home, you’re both in the mood to stand up, dust off the sand and walk a couple blocks to ride out sundown with some scallop ceviche, lamb shank and a bottle of sangiovese.

You’re generally in this mood when conscious.

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tags / dry tour, venice, wine, ca, la, los angeles, urban daddy

June 01, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

Must. Check. Out!
A Piece of Nantucket on the PCH
Let’s talk for a moment about our coastline.We’ve got miles of beautiful beach. Miles of beautiful beach bodies. And an oddly short list of beautiful Nantucket-style drinking shacks…Time to… — Must. Check. Out!

A Piece of Nantucket on the PCH

Let’s talk for a moment about our coastline.

We’ve got miles of beautiful beach. Miles of beautiful beach bodies. And an oddly short list of beautiful Nantucket-style drinking shacks…

Time to step inside SHOREbar, a two-level shanty of classic cocktailing that’s half Santa Monica, half Nantucket, soft-opening tomorrow just off the PCH.

You’ll find this place right between the Hungry Cat and Giorgio Baldi—so if you just had an oyster date that ain’t over yet, this is your new spot for a nightcap. You’ll see white-wood walls, nautical art and sweeping views of Malibu Coastline, Catalina Island and Newport Bay. (Those are the names of booths you can reserve in advance by phone.)

You’ll also want to keep it in mind after a Saturday afternoon on the beach with friends, when a pleasant pre-sundown lethargy demands a thorough, leisurely sampling of the cocktail menu from barman Vincenzo Marianella. If you spent some time running around on the sand in slow motion, you’ll want the Baywatch—it’s got gin, orange bitters and Campari, the color of a certain lifeguard’s bikini.

Oh, and upstairs, that’s the members-only area. When it’s up and running in a couple weeks, you can store your favorite booze in a locker, get delivery from nearby restaurants and everything will magically go to your house account. Just call and ask for a membership application—this place is from the h.wood guys, so you’re golden.

Also: s.monica would’ve been just ridiculous.

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tags / shorebar, urban daddy, dine, dining, food, nantucket, la, los angeles

June 01, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

Uh….do I really need to explain this? It’s GRILLED CHEESE. ON SUNSET.
Late Night Grilled Cheese on Sunset
Finally. You couldn’t wait for that holiday weekend to be over.All that sun and camaraderie and sweet, sweet barbecue smoke—it w… — Uh….do I really need to explain this? It’s GRILLED CHEESE. ON SUNSET.

Late Night Grilled Cheese on Sunset

Finally. You couldn’t wait for that holiday weekend to be over.

All that sun and camaraderie and sweet, sweet barbecue smoke—it was rough. When all you wanted was business attire, fluorescent lights and some earth-shattering intel on a late-night grilled-cheese emporium…

Take your first look at Heywood, your new spot for beautifully melted goodness between bread, soft-opening any day now on Sunset Boulevard.

It’s a simple spot next to Lark Cake Shop, and it feels sort of sunny even after dark—think yellow tablecloths and round mirrors radiating gold sunbeams. But you’re not really here for the atmosphere.

You’re here because it’s 1am on a Friday night, all of you just had a bunch of whiskey at the Thirsty Crow—or hey, it’s lunchtime—and you want, nay, need, nay, crave a Muy Caliente (fontina and spicy jack cheese on jalapeño bread) or the Bon Appétit Brie, with triple-cream brie on cinnamon-raisin bread with fig jam and raspberry sugar sprinkles. Yes. That.

So stay vigilant—they had an open house over the weekend, but just decided to close back up for a few days to take a deep breath before opening very soon.

Melting cheese is generally worth the wait.

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tags / urban daddy, food, dine, dining, la, los angeles, heywood

June 01, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

Loooove movies outdoors…at night.
Alfresco Movie Nights in Hollywood
The good news is, Hollywood hasn’t dared to try and remake Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.Yet.The better news is, you can catch it on the big screen this summer anyway.With basket… — Loooove movies outdoors…at night.

Alfresco Movie Nights in Hollywood

The good news is, Hollywood hasn’t dared to try and remake Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

Yet.

The better news is, you can catch it on the big screen this summer anyway.

With baskets full of wine and cheese, spread out on the welcoming grass of Hollywood’s new backyard…

Introducing Oscars Outdoors at Academy Hollywood, your new outdoor movie joint from the kind folks who hand out the Oscars—tickets go on sale this Friday.

What you’re looking at here is a 40-by-20 screen mounted over the lawn of the Academy’s new Hollywood complex, and they’re making movie night real easy for you.

1) Take a look at the calendar of Friday and Saturday night screenings happening throughout the summer—think Oscar-y classics like Casablanca and more modern, less award-winning fun stuff like Raising Arizona. (Cage was robbed.)

2) Get tickets. They’re five bucks.

3) Show up at 6:30pm, when the gates open, and park in the free lot. All you need is a blanket, some low chairs… and as much wine and cheese as you and your date can carry. (Surprisingly strong, that one.)

4) Don’t worry if you forgot the food. There’ll be a rotating cast of trucks on-site, selected to complement the movie being screened.

Let’s just say the casting couch got a little strange.

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tags / movies, film, hollywood, los angeles, la, urban daddy, oscars outdoors at academy hollywood

May 24, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

Ya gotta love this! It doesn’t get much better!
Sprinkles ICE CREAM!!!
You’re not usually one to get all riled up about cupcakes. Usually.But it’s so nice out. You want ice cream. And if, hypothetically, somebody were to take that ice cream … — Ya gotta love this! It doesn’t get much better!

Sprinkles ICE CREAM!!!

You’re not usually one to get all riled up about cupcakes. Usually.

But it’s so nice out. You want ice cream. And if, hypothetically, somebody were to take that ice cream and put it between two cupcake tops…

You might kind of want to put that in your face immediately.

And right on cue: introducing Sprinkles Ice Cream, an old-fashioned ice cream parlor that just might revolutionize the ice cream sandwich, opening Thursday in Beverly Hills.

So yeah, Sprinkles. You’ve heard of it. You may or may not have made a 3am run to their cupcake ATM to make someone in your bed happy. But now… now is your time.

You’ll find the new ice cream shop right next door to the cupcake mecca (and that ATM), and it looks… like an ice cream shop: a clean, simple spot with swaths of bright white and penny tile. Step up to the counter and you’ll see flavors from classic vanilla bean to salty caramel to Cap’n Crunch—the obvious choice when they open at 10am.

You can get it in a sundae, in a float or in a red velvet waffle cone. All of which is fine and good. But really, you’ll probably want to ask them to take that ice cream and put it between two red velvet, vanilla or dark chocolate cupcake tops from their neighbors.

Vastly better than a cup of sugar.

Sprinkles Ice Cream
9631 S Santa Monica Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
310-274-7890
official website

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tags / sprinkles, sprinkles cupcakes, sprinkles ice cream, urban daddy

May 11, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

I love anything solar!
Eton Rukus Solar: A portable, solar-powered sound system
The pool. The beach. The resurrection of that clown-head sprinkler thing from third grade. It’s all happening. More specifically, it’s all happening in your very imm… — I love anything solar!

Eton Rukus Solar: A portable, solar-powered sound system

The pool. The beach. The resurrection of that clown-head sprinkler thing from third grade. It’s all happening. More specifically, it’s all happening in your very immediate, very bronzed future. And by default, so is music. You’ll need Buffett. You’ll need Marley. You’ll need…

A solar-powered Bluetooth sound system that looks like Johnny 5’s head from Short Circuit.

Enter the Etón Rukus Solar, a new piece of fully portable, summer-ready hardware that wirelessly streams your phone’s playlist all day using nothing more than the sun you’re already under, available now.

Think of this as the more practical, less… questionable alternative to setting up a DJ booth on the beach (and with about 100% fewer wires). Or by the pool, by the grill or wherever else you feel like filling the air with the adult contemporary musical stylings of John Tesh’s Skrillex remix (it’s new).

The point is, you can take it anywhere.

No, really. It’s got a handle. And it’s also got a 40-square-inch solar panel embedded into the side, the ability to hold an all-day charge with six hours of sunlight and two full-range speaker drivers.

Not to mention a charging port for your iPhone.

You really outdid yourself this time, sun.

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tags / eton rukus, solar powereed sound, urban daddy

May 08, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

Leather is pretty awesome….
Hell Yeah: Introducing Hellbrand Leatherworks
Sonofabitch.Sorry, we had to get that out.It’s just that, well… we came across some things recently.Things that make you want to jump on the back of an unbroken … — Leather is pretty awesome….

Hell Yeah: Introducing Hellbrand Leatherworks

Sonofabitch.

Sorry, we had to get that out.

It’s just that, well… we came across some things recently.

Things that make you want to jump on the back of an unbroken quarter horse, ride bareback into a fireworks-testing facility and sing “Power and the Glory” through a bullhorn.

We’re talking leather here.

Just a heroic amount of American-made, apocalypse-proof leather.

Take a look at Hellbrand Leatherworks, your new munitions depot for hand-stitched wallets, Horween messenger bags and other cowhide-related essentials, available online now.

This is the story of a guy named Edward. Who met a guy named Jarvis Hellbrand. Who has the most amazing name ever. Also, who taught Edward everything he knows about the old-world techniques of turning animal hides into magnificent things that go in, on and around your body.

But most importantly, this is the story of how the next time you buy a cup of coffee, Edward doesn’t just want you to brandish a new wallet. He wants you to brandish a Chromexcel Horween leather money chalice that he handmade using techniques from 100 years ago.

Same principle applies for when you need to keep your pants from falling down (tan belts with brass buckles). Or if you need a place to store a ham sandwich and some duck calls (camo messenger bags made with boot leather). Even things to put your toothbrush in (leather fanny packs).

Kidding. It’s dopp kits.

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tags / hellbrand leatherworks, fashion, design, urban daddy

May 04, 2012 / Heather Somaini / Source

I seriously think this would be the funniest thing ever if I could even remotely trust anyone I work with to pull it off without cracking up in the middle of a meeting!
Today’s Corporate Meeting Challenge: How to Turn the Boardroom into a Game… — I seriously think this would be the funniest thing ever if I could even remotely trust anyone I work with to pull it off without cracking up in the middle of a meeting!

Today’s Corporate Meeting Challenge: How to Turn the Boardroom into a Game

So there you are.

Sitting at the head of a comically gigantic boardroom table.

Afternoon meeting time.

Everyone’s talking about blue-sky thinking. And circling the wagons.

And then, from across the room… you hear it: “We can comb this pony’s mane until our fingers go numb; it’s not going to let us tie little ribbons in it until we give it some sugar.”

Somebody give that guy 30 points.

Welcome to Today’s Corporate Meeting Challenge, a new Tumblr/secret game/best secret Tumblr game ever that involves you, a few accomplices and gently making fun of corporate buzzwords, online now.

The real beauty here is in the simplicity: office words can be ridiculous. And you’re about to intentionally say ridiculous office words in your next meeting. Without anyone knowing you’re secretly mocking them. For points.

You’ll start by assembling a group of about two or three silver-tongued coworkers to go in on it with you. Then you’ll all hit the site and commit a few quotes (beginner, advanced or bonus) to memory.

Fast-forward to that meeting.

Right around the time when someone from accounting drops a synergy bomb, you’ll chime in with a straight face and a 20-pointer like: “We really need to whip our brooms back and forth here, people.”

Heads will nod in agreement. Interns will take notes… and you will be on the board.

It’s this or finger football.

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tags / urban daddy, today's corporate meeting challenge, tumblr