Photo By: Trent Parke, Bondi Beach, Australia, 2000
Summer break is almost here, and I remember that feeling on an almost cellular level: that sense that you’re floating upon a current of unstructured time, where your grasp of what month it is loosens, and days are judged by the number of swims and sweets that you can cram in. My desire for a real summer is alive and well, even though my ideal summer day has changed a bit since then. (My current dream would take me to go to a Greek island where yogurt is served with a quarter inch of honey, the internet is so spotty I can’t possibly work or read about the latest horrors, and where I can swim whenever I want in cerulean water.)
Unfortunately, my life couldn’t be further from this Aegean dream. Living under a budding authoritarian regime, while being a working parent whose time is scheduled within an inch of its life, isn’t exactly a recipe for a footloose and fancy-free summer. There are a million reasons to keep my head down and continue to be a responsible adult. But where’s the fun in that?!
I may not be able to recapture that vague, adolescent sense of loosened time this summer, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t still go exploring for something extraordinary. And in order to lean into that, I’m gonna have to fuck off far more in my life. Leave work early, stay up late, eat ice cream for dinner, have one too many drinks, and seek out ways to vacation in this city.
First things first, I plan to leave work early on a Friday to spend the afternoon at the beach, swimming until the sun sets. After that (or maybe a few days later), I’ll grab a friend and pretend we’re in a Greek cave at Cento Raw Bar, while getting my seafood fix. Then I might dance until I’m drenched like it’s 2am (when it’s actually 7 at night) to get my blood flowing. Finally I’ll head over to Café Tristeto drink the night away and catch the feeling of Eastern European cool at this perfect little wine bar. But hey, that's just me. Pick and choose your own fantasy getaway from the local options below and get in touch to let us know if we forgot anything!
-Betsy Kalven
Cultural Events
Photos (top left to bottom right): LACMA; Public Assembly, Photo: Brian Roedel; Wat Thai Weekend Market; Aunt Yvette's Kitchen, Photo:Kimberly Kirven; AUTOBODY autobody; Cactus and Succulent Sale and Show.
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June 3 - Joe Mande con Amici (Largo at the Coronet) Comedy is not my comfy place but when Loose Land friend (and comedy expert) Anne Hong pointed me towards Joe Mande’s show at the iconic Largo my ears were perked. I just binged (and loved) all of Hacks, what an absolute delight. Mande’s deadpan performance as a Las Vegas hotel concierge opposite Hannah Einbinder is sweet and fun and if his Executive Producer credits are any indication, I can’t wait to see who the Amici are gonna be. (MR)
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June 7 - Once Upon A Time In Hollywood(Hollywood Forever Cemetery) What do you get when you combine cults, psychedelic rock, 1960’s Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino, and a cemetery? The most iconic way to spend a saturday night in LA this month. (BK)
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Through June 8 - A Doll’s House, Pt 2 (Pasadena Playhouse) Travel back in time—and then travel back to the present again— in this spiritual sequel to Ibsen’s iconic drama. Lucas Hnath is the playwright, and suffice it to say that, although Hamlet 2 might be the funnier concept, Doll’s House 2 carries more heft, as it puts Ibsen’s proto-feminist insights under a 21st-century microscope. (DH)
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June 8 - Screening: Agnès Varda’s Mur Murs (Philosophical Research Society) Keep with the films-about-Hollywood theme, and go see this visual treat by my all-time favorite French director, Agnès Varda, in which she chronicles the murals of LA - most of which now are gone. It’s like visiting the LA of yesterday. (MR)
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June 13 - What the Zone?! (Scribble) I grew up going to Bread and Puppet Theater every summer so eerie, highly political, oversized puppets really give me the summer feels. I recently learned about LA’s own renegade collective, Freak Nature Puppets, and my interest was obviously piqued. I’ve been stalking their instagram and the next chance to see them is at a recurring variety show they put on at Scribble. (BK)
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Anytime - Wat Thai Temple Food Market (North Hollywood) It’s all Thai all the time at the Wat Thai Temple Food Market, where 15 different vendors pop up every weekend in the parking lot of a Buddhist temple. And frankly, the less options I have, the better. Mango sticky rice, boat noodles, papaya salad, chicken satay—there’s diversity enough in Thai cuisine alone. (DH)
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June 26 - Public Assembly (Pico Union Project) One of the best nights I had last month was going to see Public Assembly’s latest performance of one-acts. To the uninitiated, on the last Thursday of the month, Public Assembly puts on a collection of one-act plays centered on an audience-proposed theme. This is truly community theater at its finest, with an engaged audience, pay-what-you-want price tag, and open bar. I will be promoting Public Assembly again and again in this newsletter, because it is the epitome of the kind of grassroots creative cultural experience that I crave in this vast, wild city. (BK)
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June 27-29 -Cactus and Succulent Sale and Show (The Huntington) Succulents might have seemed like a trend a few years back, but even without the lifestyle aspect, it’s hard to naysay these quirky little desert survivors. And whether you’re looking to spruce up your desk or drought-proof your garden, the options at The Huntington abound (and the people-watching’s not bad either). (DH)
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June 26, 27, 28 - Kamasi Washington Live at the new LACMA (LACMA) I moved to LA almost 13 years ago to work at LACMA. I still remember when Michael Govan pulled the entire team into the now razed Bing Theater to tell us there was going to be a new museum. After all these years, it’s finally here. I can’t imagine a better opening celebration for the new galleries, designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, than the renowned Washington playing to the empty galleries - a sort of musical blessing before the art meets the walls. These tickets are going to be hard to snag but damn man, try anyway! (MR)
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June 28 -Small Object Show (AUTOBODY autobody) I met artist-cum-gallerist Eli Bucksbaum on the street after an invigorating dance performance in a warehouse in Santa Monica - though it felt more like a New York City night. The gallery he runs—sandwiched between two autobody shops—opens quarterly for exhibitions focused on art & design, curated with his collaborator and co-founder Joseph Dieppa. Next up is a Small Object Show, in which artists will present works across mediums, with a maximum size of 10 x 10 x 10. Full line-up will be announced in early June. (MR)
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Anytime - Aunt Yvette’s Kitchen (Eagle Rock) Little Ethiopia has always been the go-to when you have a hankering for doro wat, but Eastsiders now have a spot in their backyard thanks to Aunt Yvette’s Kitchen. Like most good things in LA, Aunt Yvette’s is inside a strip mall, and a reservation is highly encouraged as this place is intimate. Start with the vegan platter and then layer on a protein from there (like the unexpected and delicious whole trout). (BK)
Ode To A Strip Mall: The Polka Strip
4112 Verdugo Rd. Photo: Philip Guerette
There’s a diverse array of top-notch strip mall restaurants in Los Angeles (Jitlada, Baroo, Sichuan Impression, etc.) but not a lot of great or even halfway decent strip malls that surround such places. And rest assured, after I have an astonishing meal that transports me to a far-flung corner of the globe, I also feel an immediate need to stock up on alkaline water and donuts, and do a load (or three of laundry). So even though I may not crave gulasz as deeply or as often as I do a morning glory salad, it’s Polka that we need to talk about today.
It would be going too far to say that Polka is Poland, because it’s not; but then again, when you’re inside, you also have to wonder: is it not, really? Because here are the things that I would expect from a Polish restaurant inside the actual country of Poland, and which I duly received the last time I ate at Polka: brighter than usual interior lighting; a remarkable level of quiet; delightful conversations with neighboring tables and servers (some of which, yes, was in response to the otherwise prevailing quiet), and delicious renderings of classic Polish dishes. (Here’s a link to an episode of Visiting… with Huell Howser, for the full video experience.) I’m talking cabbage rolls, kielbasa, pierogi, schnitzel, and of course gulasz. Do we need to line our bellies ahead of a dark and freezing winter at the moment? No we do not. But should we consider a quick trip to Poland, California for dinner tonight? Tak, powinnismy!
Whimsy Factor: Soviet-era levels of whimsy here. This strip has the basics—donuts, water, hair, and food—and nothing more.
Variety Level: Bare minimum, but at least it hits on all the major categories.
Life Expectancy, if Forced to Take Residency for an Extended Period of Time: 77.3 years (aka life expectancy in Poland less two years for donuts plus one for hydration)
Quality of Life Under Same Conditions: Not great. There’s more to life than food, water, and hair. Though I guess that’s why we don’t typically choose to live in strip malls.
