4 Star All Stars

Top Chef 3 in Miami officially starts next week (June 13th) but tonight at 10pm on Bravo is the 4 Star All Star Challenge brings back some of the more popular contestants from the past 2 seasons to compete for charities.

You can see 5 minutes from tonight’s episode over on Yahoo. It looks pretty good. They only show the quickfire challenge, but the contestants have to prepare a dish using 2 eggs, with one hand behind their back.

Looks like it could be a classic episode.

Redwood Bar & Grill

by Anthony Vargas

When Trader Vic’s in Beverly Hills suddenly closed its doors, I was inconsolable for days on end. The nautical-themed restaurant was a mainstay in the United States since the 1950s and seeing it slowly disappear has been too much to handle. Luckily for us, the fine people at Redwood Bar and Grill have recreated this era with a few modern touches and an edgy soundtrack.

What was once a dive bar dominated by L.A. Times staff writers and cranky old judges is now what people mistakenly refer to as a “gastropub.” To set the record straight, the Redwood Bar and Grill is a restaurant for the simple fact that waiters take your order tableside. In a true pub, or “gastropub,” one would order through the bartender.

Getting to the Redwood is as easy walking down the plank. Located on Second between Broadway and Hill Streets, street parking has always been easy to find and nearby freeway access makes this spot a great place to hit before a show in Silver Lake or Hollywood.

Walking in through the smoking patio, which is adorned with anchors and fishing net, prepares one for a transition into a world of pirates, mermaids and all things nautical. We were quickly seated at one of the white vinyl booths and handed a wonderfully simple menu.

The cheeseburgers cannot be recommended enough. They were served open faced with a huge helping of sweet potato fries and beautifully ripened tomatoes. The patty itself was thick and juicy which made it a bit messy, but most burgers are. The bun was slightly toasted; it was just a joy all around especially while Iggy Pop was playing on the jukebox.

The calamari and fried cheese plates are also great for nibbling while enjoying a few cocktails. All around I noticed the food to be well-presented and of high quality. The wait staff was consistently friendly and quite fashionable to boot.

The drinks were my only slight disappointment. My Tanqueray #10 gin martini was served in a still warm glass and had far too much vermouth. The tonic in my vodka tonic seemed flat and, overall, I felt the bartending staff was rather intermediate compared to the tip-top kitchen staff.

The jukebox has almost every CD imaginable and can even download songs not currently on disc. I have also seen several bands play at this venue and DJs who played a wonderfully eclectic mix. Coupled along with a mature nautical theme, you might almost feel like a band of indie kids took over the local yacht club.

As seen in The Rockit News.

Redwood Bar and Grill, 316 W. Second Street, Los Angeles, CA. 90012, (213) 680-2600

Close to: The Bordello, La Cita, The Smell, Bar 107, Mr. T’s Bowl, The Mountain Bar, Grandstar Jazz Club, Standard Hotel, Casey’s Irish Pub.

Cooking with Gordon Ramsey

These are the perfect scrambled eggs according to Gordon Ramsey. They do look pretty delicious, and the recipe seems to be beyond easy.

I like my scrambled eggs wet, but if you prefer them dry this might not be for you.

Give it a try. And if you don’t have creme fraiche, a little sour cream is said to be just as good.

Good find by Serious Eats.

And here’s a great looking crispy salmon with crushed potatoes and fresh crab meat.

Threadless Foodtees

Some more great tees from Threadless.com.

First, “The Elusive Chocolate Moose” and second, “It Makes Toast!“

Prices are $15 for a guys tee, $17 for a girls, $40 for the hoodie, $17 for the kids, and $20 for the onesie.

Threadless tees go quick, so order yours before they sell out.

Billions of Vitamins

I guess they should’ve waited a couple more months before they released Diet Coke with vitamins, cause Coke now has all they vitamins they could ever want.

Coca-Cola said last week that it would acquire Glaceau for $4.1 billion in cash to gain a foothold in the fast-growing enhanced water market.

Yes, that’s right - that’s a “b.” I wouldn’t even need very much stock; I’d be pretty happy with 10 percent of that total. Which is exactly what rapper 50 Cent will collect; he bought that much of Glacéau back in 2004, when the company released a grape-flavored Formula 50 version of its Vitamin Water in his honor. Formula 50 sold over 10 million bottles in its first 6 months. How does Jeff Gordon’s Chardonnay compare to that? (from Food & Wine’s Mouthing Off)

While it’s not exactly a cheap purchase, I think it makes a lot of sense for Coke. Vitaminwater has had huge growth of late, and that looks likely to continue. With sales of soft drinks flat or even declining, it needs something to drive revenue growth. (from bloggingstocks.com)

Photo from Flickr.