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xox J
As you can see from our numerous food posts, Joanna and I have a tendency to eat a lot, and not necessarily incredibly healthy things. There’s a huge buzz right now about fresh pressed juices, and to be honest, I initially didn’t see the draw in it. But I realized after all the junk (food, alcohol, caffeine) I put into my body, a detox is necessary.
Delivery: You get 6 juices, 1 chlorophyll water & 1 aloe water. They also include a little card on the first day with instructions on cleansing.
After a completely miserable 1st attempt at manually juicing myself, I decided for the 2nd round to just order from Pressed Juicery. Even though it is $70/day (delivery included), it’s actually cheaper than most places. They deliver early (around 4 am) and email you where they left the box too. For 6 juices, 1 chlorophyll water and 1 aloe water, I think it’s worth not having to prep and juice yourself. You can also pick it up at the stores themselves for a little less than $50/day.
While it is recommended to not drink coffee, I needed to. So I started with just one cup of black coffee- no milk or sugar added.
Pressed has 3 different cleanse options with Cleanse 1 being the easiest and Cleanse 3 being the most intense (more green juices). If you think $70/day is too expensive, you can try juicing yourself at home, which is much cheaper. Just be prepared to spend a lot of time especially for the prep!
Needed 2 Greens 1 this day to get me going!
But other than the cleanses they offer, I love having a bottle of Pressed Juicery around. Having a Greens 1 (Kale, spinach, romaine, parsley, cucumber, celery) in the morning makes me feel much more refreshed and healthy. I personally cannot stand ginger in my drinks, so I loved that Pressed has non-ginger options!
A Detox 4 (cucumber, pineapple, coconut h2o, aloe vera) is incredibly refreshing and my favorite on a hot day and especially after a Bar Method class. I tried Detox 3 (grapefruit and mint) but it was definitely too hard to drink for me, too tart. I usually add half a Splenda to my grapefruits anyway, so Detox 3 was not ideal for me.
For the more “dessert-like” drinks, my favorite would have to be Coconut mint chip (coconut meat, coconut h2o, cacao, mint)! I cannot get over how it tastes like mint chocolate chip ice cream. It’s so delicious.
One of current seasonal drinks. It definitely has a kick to it, but I love that spice! I prefer it over sweet juices.
Juices range from about $6.50 – $8 per bottle. There are 3 locations plus a truck that goes to Malibu (Follow @PressedJuicery on Twitter for location and time). While I have never been to the Brentwood location, the West Hollywood one has a small parking lot in the back – please note some spots are reserved. The Downtown Los Angeles location just opened, Monday July 16! I’m so excited because now I can grab some juices before and after work. If you cannot find street parking, the underground structure at the Cooper Building is $5 for the first 30 minutes. For more information, check out their Website- www.pressedjuicery.com.
xox Grace
Pressed Juicery Brentwood // 13050 San Vicente Blvd, #120 Los Angeles, CA 90049 // 310.451.1010
Pressed Juicery West Hollywood // 8714 Santa Monica Blvd West Hollywood, CA 90069 // 310.854.4407
Pressed Juicery Downtown // 860 South Los Angeles st Los Angeles, CA 90014 // 213.688.9700
Summer time. Beaches. Bikini season. You can’t hide that fat behind the chunky sweaters, jeans and scarves anymore. Unfortunately living in LA doesn’t really allow you to hide that fat for too long anyway. I hate going to the gym on a regular basis. I don’t even know how to work out properly anyway plus I get so bored. So when I do work out I try my best to attend a class since you can’t leave the class in the middle of it!
Jo introduced me to Bar Method ages ago. Admittedly I wasn’t a huge fan my first class because I associated working out with major sweating and cardio. However, I stuck with it and immediately was hooked. It’s absolutely addicting.
Bar Method thigh work makes you shake like crazy! But the shake is proof that you’re burning fat. (Credit: Bar Method Dallas)
Bar Method is a full body, 60 minute workout. It works all your muscles with small movements and creates a long, lean dancer’s body. It’s deceptively challenging. I thought it’d just be lots of stretching and breathing, but it’s so much more. And you can definitely tell that it works. I mean just look at the gorgeously toned instructors, and that’s enough motivation and proof. Plus you can feel the burn in all those positions in thigh, seat and curl. I personally hate (well I guess more love to hate) chair with ball in thigh work, waterski seat work, pretzel with ball in seat work and zingers for seat.
Chair for thigh is one of the moves I love to hate. Add a ball to squeeze, and it’s even that much more amazingly painful! (Credit: Bar Method Naperville)
Seeing this kind of flexibility is what keeps me going. (Credit: Bar Method DC / Bar Method Silverlake)
Follow @barmethodmimi and @TheBarMethodHQ on Twitter for more information about Bar Method. There are studios all over the US and so many in LA! West Hollywood, West LA and Brentwood are all owned by Mimi, so you can use your classes at any of the 3 studios. But there are also studios in Pasadena, Encino, Burbank and Silverlake (opening July 14th). You can check out all the studio locations at www.barmethod.com. There’s an introductory special – $100 for one month! It’s a great deal, and afterwards, you can purchase packages or continue with monthly packages.
Happy shaking!
xox Grace
The first all-foie gras dinner I attended was in October 2011 at Animal and ever since that dinner my love for foie gras has only grown. In fact, I’ll be attending another foie gras dinner on Monday, May 21 at Son of a Gun. So far this has definitely been my favorite all-foie gras dinner. All the dishes were creative and incredibly delicious and it surpassed the high expectations I had.
Oysters, Oyster Shell Gelee, Foie Gras Terrine, Rye Toast, Camembert (Chef Ludo Lefebvre)
Powdered Terrine, Celery Root baked in Salt & Wild Fennel Branch, Coffee, Oro Blanco (Chef Michael Voltaggio)
Foie Gras Soup, Black Pepper Crackers, Seared Foie Gras, Baby Turnips (Chef Roland Passot)
A simple foie gras dish cooked perfectly and omg, that soup. Grace and I were jokingly saying that she should go to the kitchen with her cup and say “please sir, I want some more”.
Foie Gras Beignet, Coca-Cola Caramel, Corn Mayo (Chef Ludo Lefebvre)
Um, so… I had to literally shove the whole beignet in my mouth fast since my dinner companions were greedily eyeing it. I’m obsessed with beignets so of course, if you put foie gras in it my obsession multiplies by 100. Everyone at the table said this was one of the best dishes that they’ve ever had. A bold statement since we all eat a lot.
Foie Gras Ssam, Rhubarb Char-Siu, Herbs, Green Curry, Peanuts (Chefs Vinny Dotolo & John Shook)
This was a favorite at the first foie gras dinner at Animal so I was very excited to see it again. The flavors were exactly the same and it was just as delicious as the first time.
Beef Rossini “Tongue in Cheek” (Chef Michael Voltaggio)
Foie Gras Icebox Cake, Fermented Raspberry, Citrus, Yogurt, Hazelnut (Chefs Vinny Dotolo & John Shook)
I need this to be my wedding cake.
Foie Gras Night at Animal // 435 N. Fairfax Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90048 // 323.782.9225
xox Joanna
Dress: Kate Spade, Shoes: Christian Louboutin
2 weeks ago, A and I took our engagement photos in Santa Monica. Instead of going for a typical photoshoot on the beach, we opted for something a little more playful with large balloons from Geronimo Balloons, cotton candy, and a ride on the Ferris wheel. Our talented wedding photographer Esther Sun mainly works with film and I love how the images came out!
Dress: Anthropologie, Necklace: Kate Spade, Shoes: Christian Louboutin
xox Joanna
Before I talk about my amazingly delicious dining experience at Best of LudoBites: Foie Gras Night, here are some reasons why I have been MIA:
1. I got bored. Which actually happens quite frequently. I put 110% into whatever I’m interested in at that moment to a point where it becomes annoying and unfortunately, I quickly get sick of it. And frankly, I got sick of talking about food. Compared to most food bloggers my dining experience has been limited and while I may know a little too much information about Tom Ford’s life, what I know about chefs are very limited. My taste buds are not snobby and yes guys, I do eat El Taurino quite frequently and enjoy it. (Carne asada burrito, no beans, with sour cream and cheese. Green and red sauce on the side.) As long as my mouth is happy eating good food, I’m fine dining at a 5-star restaurant or at a questionable hot dog stand on the street.
2. LA in Stilettos was having an identity crisis. Food blog? No. Fashion blog? No. Lifestyle blog? Too general. What is it? I still don’t have the answer to the question. There’s plenty of food blogs you can check out if you want detailed information about where to dine at and what to order and there’s gorgeous fashion blogs where you can really draw inspiration from. Unfortunately, as of now, LA in Stilettos is neither. But I do think Grace and I have something special to offer.
3. Busy with life. I didn’t realize how much time blogging took up and with my upcoming wedding, I’ve had 0 energy and interest. You would also think that 2 people running this blog would mean twice as many posts, but Grace is just as busy as I am finishing courses to graduate early, and working a part-time internship.
4. Does anyone read this?
But despite the reasons that I listed (and others I haven’t), I’ve kind of missed blogging. I may not be a great writer, I’m still working on being a better photographer, and my style may seem just okay, but I’m going to keep blogging. I have no idea where this blog is going, but we all have to start somewhere. Hopefully with age, this blog will only get better (kind of like George Clooney).
——
If I die of a heart attack at the age of 26, please feel free to sue California on my behalf. (A says suing California over my death by foie gras incident isn’t possible, but whatever, I’m going to stick by it.) With the ridiculous foie gras ban going into effect on July 1, 2012, I’ve been consuming an abnormal amount of foie gras. If I’m at a restaurant and there’s foie gras on the menu, I’m getting it. If there’s a special foie gras dinner, there’s a very good chance I’m at it.
Foie Gras Cromesqui “MM”
These balls were such a tease. You pop one in your mouth and it’s an explosion of foie gras and I kid you not, my eyes were closed and I literally moaned. Balls + moaning. We seriously wanted more balls in our mouths. (Insert several dirty jokes and snickers). I’m definitely jealous of the Wednesday diners, because they got two.
Foie Gras Dynamite, Tuna, Lichi
Foie Gras Miso Soup, Radish, Turnips
Foie Gras Black Croque-Monsieur, Grappes
Officially my new comfort food. What’s not to love about Croque Monsieurs? Add some foie gras to it and it definitely becomes a fancy, decadent comfort food that I can see myself devouring on a rainy day. (Seriously, why must this delicious goodness be banned?!)
Foie Gras “Crepinette.” Morels, Pears, Green Asparagus
Foie Gras Sundae, Brioche, Black Berries
Best of LudoBites: Foie Gras Night was definitely one of my favorite foie gras meals. Every dish was fantastic and I generally consume the same “boring” foie gras dish, but all the dishes for this dinner were creative and made me very happy. Not only was the foie gras the star of all the dishes, but it worked so well with all the other ingredients on the plate. I left the meal hoping to return for the 2nd night with A or Grace, but none of them were free until late.
Check back if you want more delicious foie gras photos. You know I’ll be consuming more until the ban! And possibly after if I manage to smuggle some into California.
Best of LudoBites: Foie Gras Night at Gram & Papa’s // 227 E 9th St. Los Angeles, CA 90015
xox Joanna
LudoBites 8.0 at Lemon Moon Cafe
12200 W Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90064
http://www.ludolefebvre.com/ludobites
Joanna and I are huge fans of LudoBites and Chef Ludo’s food. While LudoBites reservations are notoriously hard to get, this round was super simple. There was no camping out in front of a laptop and frantically clicking on the computer and on the iPhone application for OpenTable. This time it was a lottery system through Urbanspoon, which made it so much easier.
Luckily a friend was able to snag a table for 6 for February 17 to celebrate Joanna’s birthday! The food as usual was amazing, and we’ve posted some of our favorite dishes from the night.
Chicken tandoori crackling
Lobster salad, yuzu, honey
Black truffle French scrambled eggs
Celery root, foie gras, mushroom, ash
Big eye tuna, Tahitian vanilla, somen, 7 flavor vinaigrette
Steamed foie gras in apple cider, apple tapioca, buckwheat
“Newport Pride Natural” hanger steak, red beets, shallots
Lemon meringue, poppy seed crumble, extra virgin olive oil
This was definitely the most expensive LudoBites we have gone to and also the heaviest. We ordered at least one of everything on the menu, and it was all amazing. Unfortunately, the night we went there was no uni creme brulee due to the bad weather.
While LudoBites 8.0 has finished its run, LudoBites Nine-O is scheduled for Hawaii! Urbanspoon is again handling the reservations, and you can win a trip to Hawaii for two with first-class airplane tickets, stay at the Four Seasons and dinner at LudoBites. For more information, click here!
XOX-
Grace
