Falling For You: A Guide to Fall in LA (Part 2)

For Fun:

• What better time than Fall to enjoy the season’s finest apples, figs, broccoli, escarole, and tomatoes, and cook a comforting meal at home. Take a pie baking class or fresh pasta making class. There are many fun cooking classes around the city: Sur La Table at the Grove offers a wide variety of classes as does The New School of Cooking in Culver City.
• On the first Friday of every month the Natural History Museum is open late for you to roam around and see their exciting scientific exhibits. They have live music, custom tours, and discussions.
• Oktoberfest is officially here! From September 17 - October 25^th Alpine Village is transformed into a drinker’s wonderland. Dawn your finest lederhosen and be prepared for long lines and bounties of beer.
• With the changing of the seasons comes the changing of our favorite music venues. Say goodbye to the Hollywood Bowl until next summer, and hello to Walt Disney Concert Hall for all of your LA Phil needs. With Gustavo Dudamel conducting, this season is sure to be an experience!
• Beer and a movie please! Silverlake Wine presents Saturday nights at Barnsdall Park. They offer an artisanal beer tasting followed by a movie screening. And if you haven’t sampled LA’s ever-growing army of roaming food trucks, this is the place to find them parked.
• What says Fall better than pumpkins? I love everything about pumpkins - from their orange hues to the tasty confections made from them to carving them. There are a few pumpkin patches around the city, or you can drive out near Bakersfield and see a magical array of shapes, sizes, and colors. For something local try the Calabasas Pumpkin Festival, a weekend event of pumpkin patches, pie eating contests, and more.
• Of course there are many options for a spooky ghostly Halloween. For a good scare and scream Universal Studios Halloween Horror Nights is one big scary movie backlot. Hollywood Forever Cemetary celebrates Dia de Los Muertos Oct. 31st with a day of costumes, ceremonies and more in honor of the dead. For something a little less creepy try the LACMA costume ball, where you can admire creative costumes over cocktails.
• Talk a walk and get to know your neighborhood a little better. The Fallen Fruit organization has created neighborhood maps listing areas of public fruit trees ripe for the picking. Grab a friend and bring a tote and pick some public fruit. The organization holds community jam making, as well as nocturnal fruit forages. Take your gathered fruit and make your own Autumn jam.

I hope you enjoy a festive, fun, fruitful Fall!

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Falling For You: A Guide to Fall in LA

Summer is melting away into Fall, however subtle that change may be in Los Angeles. The nights are getting a little cooler and a little longer. The farmer’s markets are overflowing with apples and figs and squash. It is time to put away the bikinis and dust off your Halloween costumes!

For Eats and Drinks:

• October 4-9 and 11-16 is Restaurant Week in Los Angeles again. DineLA is hosting specially priced three-course menus many different participating restaurants in the city. This is your opportunity to indulge in that restaurant you’ve always wanted to try, but at an affordable price point.
• Bistro LQ has a special menu available through Fall in addition to their regular dinner menu. September 29 & 30 is pot au feu night, October 17-28 is cassoulet night, and November 16 & 17 is choucroute night.
• On Monday nights Little Dom’s is featuring a $15 prix-fixe supper featuring three courses of seasonal specials. Dago red and white wines are available for $10 a bottle and Peroni is a mere $2. A comforting Monday night meal to get the week started off right.
• Cozy up with the one you love or a close friend and make some s’mores over a small fire right at your table. Luna Park offers s’mores for dessert. They provide the graham crackers, the chocolate, and the marshmallows and you build yourself a tasty treat.
• With Fall comes pumpkins and what better way to enjoy them than a pumpkin cupcake or scoop of pumpkin gelato from Joan’s on Third. Come October through November you can be sure to enjoy them!
• Sit close to the fireplace or enjoy the cool air on the outdoor patio above - the new Rockwell VT bar is sure to provide tasty Autumn inspired libations to keep you warm and toasty. It officially opens this weekend October 3rd!
• Fall always makes me think soup. My favorite place for soup is Le Pain Quotidien. With so many locations to choose from, you are never too far from a simple, savory, oh-so-delicious bowl of hot soup.
• The Hatfield's have moved l0cals, but their former space now houses Eva, the new restaurant by Chef Marc Gold. Eva will surely satify your Fall food needs. Their seasonally fresh and changing menu currently includes a creamy onion soup, burrata ravioli with a corn glaze, and an assorted hot out of the oven cookie dish.