A Feast Fit For Any Holiday – Ocean Prime

Posted on by Diversions LA

It started with oysters and Piper-Heidsieck in the late afternoon, and concluded with delightful desserts after sunset. Our dining experience at Ocean Prime earlier this month was a feast perfect for the holidays – or any day you feel like celebrating the joy of excellent food, letter-perfect service, and a setting that serves as a mini luxury vacation.

Located in the heart of Beverly Hills, Ocean Prime’s LA-area outpost offers a choice of an elegant indoor dining space and bar area bathed in honey-colored light, or an airy patio warmed by a row of fire pits and subtle overhead heat lamps. We chose the latter, in a quiet booth made more private by greenery behind and on the sides of our seats.

The restaurant’s October seafood month theme featured oysters. Ours were on the half shell,  and paired with the new Essentiel by Cameron Mitchell Champagne from Piper-Heidsieck.

The champagne features a glowing dark golden color, a fine bubble, and taste of pears, blackberry and honey. Piper-Heidsieck has only partnered with a handful of on-premise venues and sommeliers globally due to its unique creative processes, with Ocean Prime being one of those chosen. It is available at 17 of the 18 restaurant’s locations across the the U.S., including Beverly Hills.

While the oysters and champagne were perfect, as twilight rushed in and lit up our view of Wilshire Boulevard, we continued our experience with one of the terrific specials that the restaurant is offering. This was their multi-course early-bird dinner, available from 4-5:30. The choices are beautifully prepared, and we tried a variety of menu items, agreeing that each of our different selections were exceptional.

I began with one of the most nuanced of the copious number of Caesar salads I’ve had over the years. Yes, there was a lovely balance of crisp Romaine lettuce, flavorful brioche croutons, and best of all, a not-overbearing Parmesan garlic dressing.

My companion chose the lobster bisque, made with a rewarding amount of butter-poached lobster. A few spoons of the rich but surprisingly light broth was enough to convince me that the chef had us in good hands.

My main selection: sea scallops, plump, large, and juicy in a lively citrus vinaigrette. They were accompanied by a truly delicious Parmesan risotto studded with English peas that subtly combined a creamy texture with garden-fresh flavor.

My side was the truffle mac & cheese, which offered a variety of cheeses that afforded a compellingly earthy taste combined with the truffles – truly an amazing take on classic comfort food.

My dinner partner chose the eight-ounce filet, which she pronounced perfectly prepared to order with Cabernet jus. It rested on a gouda potato cake and chili-seared spinach.

Her side was the zesty jalapeno au gratin, a meal in itself.

Did we have take-homes? Yes. But that did not mean we forgot about dessert. The crowning finish to our prix fixe was a choice of five layer carrot cake or warm butter cake. I chose the latter, which came with a lovely berry compote and a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

My dining partner picked the carrot cake, a personal favorite, well-topped and girded with an airy take on cream cheese frosting with a bonus of fragrant lemon curd on the side.

Beverages: we began with cocktails as elegant as the location. Mine was the Smoked Old Fashioned, a favorite drink of mine. Like Caesar salads, I’ve tried many over the years,  and this was a stand out. Crafted with Angel’s Envy rye whiskey, House Demerara syrup, angostura & orange bitters, and redolent with charred cherry wood smoke, it was exemplary. My companion chose a favorite of her own, the Hot & Dirty Martini. Olive oil invused Belevedere Vodka was matched with ripe Castelvetrano olives filled with Calabrian chili blue cheese. She pronounced hers letter-perfect, too. We finished with some house-brewed coffees.

There was only one thing that would have made the dining experience even better – making a return visit the next day. We will have to remedy that soon. Major kudos to executive chef Jonathan Milan and general manager Yurii Barajas.

Fine dining afficiandos take note, along with the exception early prix fixe menu, and of course a stellar regular menu, on Sunday evenings, a two-course Surf & Turf special is available, featuring a starter choice of French Onion soup, Caesar or house salad and a main course that combines the restaurant’s 8-ounce filet with a choice of three seafood entrees: Shrimp Scampi, the Oscar Styler with lump blue crab and bearnaise, or a lobster tail.

Foodies – come feast around and find out more about the terrific menus at Ocean Prime.

  • Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis

 

 

 

High Octane, High Altitude: Adventure Parks in Sky Forest and Big Bear, California

Posted on by Diversions LA

When you’re looking for some thrills, family fun, and high powered amusement, look higher – ascend from Interstate 10 up Highway 18 to Skyforest and then Big Bear Lake.

That’s right, it’s not all about skiing, snowboarding, and summer boating – it’s about wildly unique zip lines and coasters, adventures on outdoor climbing walls, archery, go karts and pedal cars.

If you’re wondering where to find these thrills, read on.

SkyPark at Santa’s Village

Located in Skyforest,  SkyPark at Santa’s Village takes an iconic attraction (the original Santa’s Village) and makes it new again – and packed with thrills.

Perhaps the most thrilling is the Adventure Zipline. Soaring 30 feet above the floor of the forest, and bringing riders excitingly – but safely – close to tree tops, riders are harnessed in to fly over the park, landing via another locked-in zipline to ground level again.  Our rider loved it, and felt what he described as “total delight” while skimming over the wooded landscape.

It’s a much tamer but equally charming ride through the forest at ground level on the Northwoods Express, a modernized version of a ride that kids and adults both loved at the original Santa’s Village. Electric powered and manned by the friendliest conductor around, the train takes guests on a leisurely ride through the meadowlands.

But back to those thrills: I’d never experienced archery before a visit to Princess Evergreen ‘s Archery Range. After a quick but smart lesson from one of the park’s Adventure Team members, guests retreat with a bow and set of arrows to individual outdoor booths to take aim at targets. While I wasn’t very good at reaching a bulls eye, it was a lot of fun tor try.  In close proximity to the archery range was the NorthWoods Sharpshooter Gallery, where again after a brief but knowledeable lesson, I took aim at a target or two and proved to msyelf I was better with my safety glasses and a BB than with a bow and arrow.  Both adventures are available for kids age 9 and above on their own, or ages 3-8 if accompanied by an adult at the shooting gallery, age 5 and up at the archery range.

Kids 12 and up are welcome to test out their throwing skills at King Celwyn’s Ax Challenge, where a small, light ax can be aimed at a target. While I mostly whacked into the wall below it, I was impressed with the safe caged throwing areas and my own ability to wield the ax.

All three of these attractions are a part of the Royal Games area located at the top of the park, near the zip line.

Any guest able to pedal and don the provided safety helmet is welcome to embark upon Arrow’s Adventure in a pedal car that zips on a lightly hilly route through an ice cave and over a wooden bridge. The leg pumping action boosted my adrenaline, as did a climb in the Magic Tree Bouldering Room.

It was time to take a delightfully serene break in the Chapel of the Little Shepherd, a charming, restored location originally built in 1955. With stained glass windows and quiet benches for contemplation, the diminuitive spot is also avilable for weddings.

SkyPark’s location is well known for it’s bike park and beautifully wooded trails which take riders on mountain bikes (available to rent, or bring your own) beneath pines on well-marked trails. Young riders can enjoy pump tracks; the trails are carefully groomed every day.

And while older kids and adults alike took the trails, little kids were also literally diggin’ the child-size Moutain Movers dirt excavators as well as frolicking over the Discovery Playscape playground.

When we visited, a Renaissance Fair was taking place at the park, with costumed vendors and a variety of arts, crafts, and clothing. The park frequently offers these kinds of “bonus” experiences, such as summer concerts, or the opportunity to experience fly fishing on the property.

Coming soon to Santa’s neck of the woods: the updated return of a classic aerial ride, the Bumble Bee.  Unlike the old motorized attraction, SkyPark has repurposed the monorail track to transport a bicycle pedal car allowing guests to travel a suspended 1,000-foot curving course from above.

And, if you visit as the SoCal winter season approaches, you’ll find more classics in Santa’s Village, whose candy-cane and gingerbread house structures offer food and beverages as well as a Santa’s Exploratorium workshop for kids all year ’round. Come the holidays, guests will experience live North Pole entertainment, and of course, a visit with Santa.  Holiday lights also sparkle twice nightly in Santa’s Village from mid-November through January 7th.

Summing up: SkyPark at Santa’s Village is terrific, experiential update of an historic location (yes, they kept the candy cane at the entrance.) The adventures are oriented toward nature and physical action that just about everyone in the family can enjoy in a natural setting.  According to owners Bill and Michelle Johnson, their reimagining of the park – which originally opened in 1955 -includes both the holiday seasonal magic and these spring-summer-early fall adventures from ziplining to mountain biking to an Outdoor Education and Enviornmental Education program.  Hours and dates vary by season, with day passes, three-day passes, and three levels of year-round passes available starting at $149. Day passes are $69 (ages 13+) and $59 (children ages 4-12/seniors.)

Alpine Slide at Magic Mountain

Alpine Slide Park, located at Big Bear’s Magic Mountain Recreation Area, is another classic, having celebrated its 40th year this July. Over the course of the park’s 40 years of mountain fun, multiple attractions were added according to Alpine Slide rep Lisa Orabuena, including a water slide in the summer and snow tubing in the winter,  the latter offering a “magic carpet”-like function that takes riders to the top of the tubing hill with no hiking.

The park provides Southern California’s only “authentic bobsled” experience in the eponymous Alpine Slide. A scenic chairlift ride begins the adventure, taking riders to the top for a view of Big Bear Lake, where they’re seated in their own, individually controlled sleds. The two quarter-mile long cement tracks feature both high banked turns and straightaways.  Because riders can control their own speed – with their own individual control handle braking – the fun is suitable for all ages. A five-ride pass is $40; individual rides are $9.

The park also offers its own zip line experience – a unique rocketing adventure called the Soaring Eagle. The ride is a two person, seated zip – which by no means makes it tame (the ride is for those 42″ or taller and is $12 per experience). Riders are mechanically pulled very rapidly backwards up some 100 vertical feet and 500 feet in length to reach the launch tower, from which they are then catapulted forward to reach the base platform at a windy 28 miles per hour.  Our rider loved the “total surprise” of the backwards thrust and the pulsing push forward again.
For those of us more attuned to ground level fun, the Go-Karts offer a delightfully long spin, a zooming mini-race car attraction featuring 5.5-horsepower Honda-motored racers.  The vroom-vroom excitement can be packaged along with my favorite adventure of all – mini-golf.

The 18 hole course includes several risky water traps, an appropriate (for the location) bear statue hazard, and many amusingly challenging curves and turns.  Admission for both is $22, but guests can also enjoy both attractions singly.

But the biggest and most unusual attraction of all is the Mineshaft Coaster.  Like the Alpine Slide, the experience is rider- controlled as to speed on the descent, but it is still a fast and furiously fun ride at any pace. The newest park attraction propels you past mountain greenery heading up the incline, and then you’re off on a descent that includes hairpin turns, tunnels and even a 360-degree corkscrew on your way down. The mountain coaster is the first and only one of its kind in the Golden State. So exciting is the ride – which can reach 30 m.p.h. as a top speed – that guests’ cars are equipped with video cameras to film riders’ reactions to the hurtling fun, providing a memory available for purchase after the screams and laughs reach the boarding station again.  Adults can ride for $20, and kids, with some height restrictions, for $10.

Alpine Slide at Magic Mountain also offers a snack bar with best sellers like ice cream, chicken fingers, and cheeseburgers. There are also a bevy of arcade games indoors for guests to decompress on after the thrills and winter chills or summer splashes of the great outdoors.

Summing up: There’s nothing quite like Alpine Slide at Magic Mountain. With two rider-controlled thrill rides, a sunny mountain setting, and the pure adrenaline rush of what must be the fastest moving zipline in the U.S., this amusement venue offers plenty of family fun that can be enjoyed for an entire day, or one ride at a time, any time.

Dank Donuts

In need of sustenance before or after the thrills? We discovered Dank Donuts, where delicious, airy vegan and/or gluten-free donuts are on hand for breakfast along with the more traditional variety of sweet doughy treats. There are maple bars, giant cinnamon buns, and cronuts, too. However, it’s not just the thrills and mountain air that makes these treats taste possibly superior to every other donut you’ve ever tasted – it is literally the altitude, according to owners. At close to 7000-feet high, Big Bear’s thinner air makes Dank’s donuts fluffier. They’re also hand cut, and come in a dazzling variety from sprinkles to glazed to chocolate to filled. There’s even a selection of doggie donuts for your best four-legged friend.

But it’s not all about the donuts and pastries. Breakfast and lunch sandwiches are served all day, and they are hearty, ample, and packed with both flavor and fresh ingredients. We sampled two different choices from the lunch menu: the Herbivore, my choice, was a juicy mix of hummus and avocado spread along with the vibrant punch of sundried tomatoes, marinated artichokes, cucumber, lettuces and microgreens on wheatberry bread. My partner enjoyed the spicy Wild Turkey, which offered chipotle dressing along with the tender turkey, capicola, and spicy Jack cheese on a Hoagie roll with mayo and salad fixings.

Dank Donuts offers shaded tables, a pink and aqua color scheme, and fast to-go service. It’s a great first stop before heading out to the thrills of Alpine Slide at Magic Mountain and the wild adventures of SkyPark at Santa’s Village.

We stayed at the delightful Sessions Retreat and Hotel, a completely revamped and reimagined resort located in Big Bear Lake, with fire pits, cool shared spaces, and funky but elegant design in a variety of rooms.

Think of the decor and charm as a reasonably priced luxury retreat combined with the aesthetic of the Meow Wolf art amusement collective. Don’t stay anywhere else.

  • Genie Davis, photos by Genie Davis

 

 

Pioneertown Motel Ain’t Like It Used to Be — Your New Desert Destination

Posted on by Diversions LA

Long ago and far away, I stayed in a quaint little motel with shabby antiques and a kind of creepy kitchenette. It had benefits: good star gazing and walking distance from Pappy and Harriet’s, where I’d gone to see one concert or another.

That used to be the Pioneertown Motel. But, times, and motel rooms, have changed. Now showing off a sleek but mellow modern desert chic vibe, the stars are still there for the watching – along with the perfect viewing spot, a bright stone outdoor fireplace to keep you warm, and you’re still walking distance to music and the desert version nightlife.

Today’s Pioneertown Motel is welcoming, warm, and western in style – the motel office is a dusty looking little miner’s shack, the rooms feature touches like cowhide on the floor and wagon wheel lamps on the ceiling. The rooms are spacious, artistically simple, and include touches of western art and artifacts along with location-themed art and plants. Furniture maker Dan Anderson has created comfortable, versatile, aesthetically fitting furnishings – think wood and leather.

A big game room, called the Canteen, has outdoor and indoor tables, and houses a fridge for cold beverages, as well as offering a nice stash of games and books and magazines.

The Red Dog Saloon, from the same affable and stylish owners as the motel, is a short stroll away, and offers tacos and brews and whiskeys in a comfortably clubby room just steps from that outdoor fireplace, should you be able to tear yourself away.  it’s open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner – try the mushroom taco and the Rajas Quesadilla with smoky pasilla peppers.  And, the aforementioned Pappy and Harriet’s still serves up BBQ and music just a few steps further on.

When we stayed at the motel we had a unique experience which made us love it even more: PG&E was doing line repair work, and power was out for a few hours. It was just us, the firelight, the stars, and the sound of the desert wind. While you probably won’t have that experience, the desert’s drama and magic is still right outside the door. The Pioneer Mountains Reserve is a great spot for hiking or horseback riding, and of course you’re also a short drive from Joshua Tree National Park.

So giddyup partner, and head on out to Pioneertown, where the motel is now blissfully luxe – but not pretentious, no siree; the view as pristine as ever; the stars just as bright.

  • Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis

 

 

Catalina Dreamin’

Posted on by Diversions LA

If you’re longing for an island getaway, without the flight to Hawaii, Catalina Island is a great choice. With spring weather finally showing up for SoCal, taking a smooth and quick Catalina Express boat from Long Beach, San Pedro, or Newport Beach will land you in Avalon Harbor in just over an hour (a bit longer from the OC).

We stayed in the Hotel Atwater, which has been beautifully refurbished, from the elegant, art deco lobby – replete with a harp, to the tasteful, plush rooms, blissfully quiet rooms, too. Done in understated creams and pastels, the rooms exude a hushed but unpretentious elegance. Adjoining the lobby, guests can easily pass into a covered shopping area that includes a coffee bar that makes a nice stop for a morning bagel and of course, a cup of your favorite a.m. beverage.

For lunch or dinner, try the perfect bluewater view at, naturally the Bluewater Grill. Fresh fish, views for miles, an airy, maritime-themed dining room, and a capacious patio, plus terrific cocktails make this a must-stop. And of course, their renowned fresh baked sourdough bread. The buttery sauteed sand dabs with capers were perfect in a light, refreshin lemon buere blanc. Served with decadently rich scalloped potatoes and flavorful well-prepared spinach, it was a classic dish that tasted freshly caught. The same freshness was more than evident in the Black & Blue Ahi, served two ways: blackened and seared rare with a slightly spicy, delicious wakame seaweed salad, wasabi cream, coconut ginger rice, and broccolini. For dessert, a smooth, fluffy key lime pie. My cocktail was a well-seasoned meal in itself. The Fisherman’s Mary was made with Blue Ice Vodka, housemade Bloody Mary mix, and served with bamboo skewered shrimp, pimento stuffed olive, lime and a tasty pickled green bean. My partner went for the Serrano Margarita, made the way he likes it – hot. The drink featured Cuervo Tradicional Silver Tequila, De Kuyper Triple Sec, freshlime juice, a splash of fresh orange, organic agave nectar, and his favorite – hand-crushed fresh serrano chili with a requested extra application.

Along with strolling the streets and browsing the shops of Avalon,  must-do sfor any visitor to the island include a stop to see the latest exhibitions at the Catalina Museum for Art and History – see our earlier article on the Tiki Tales exhibition, running through September, and the recent, but now-closed, perfectly curated CROSSING WATERS: CONTEMPORARY TONGVA ARTISTS CARRYING PIMUGNA, both discussed in two earlier articles in this publication.

And, whatever you do, you can’t miss the Behind the Scenes tour at the Casino. Yes, there’s a considerably shorter tour that gives you just a glimpse of this beautiful building, but the 90 minute Behind the Scenes is the way to go, to explore the private screening room, sit down and watch the lights dim in the stunning theater, learn about murals, dressing rooms, the ballroom, and take in the views from the balcony.

Our guide was well-versed in the history of this palatial structure, which opened May 29, 2029, and served as a major achievement for the island’s then-estate holder, William Wrigley Jr. His vision to create a welcoming “playground for all” on the island included the casino theater and ballroom. The theater was among the first to screen a “talking picture.” The ballroom hosted all night dances that brought revelers on steamships to the island to swirl along to Big Band sounds, while partaking of non-alcoholic beverages in the undersea-themed lounges.

Another recommended dining experience is the Naughty Fox, a relative newcomer to Catalina’s cuisine. Here we enjoyed a lovely version of a classic Mai Tai – Vic’s features Don Q silver, Mysters dark rum, pineapple juice, orange juice, and orgeat syrup. My partner’s margarita with tajin rim was refreshing and bright. Our meal: a rich, dreamy  platter of elevated macaroni and cheese; and a trio of fresh-from-the-sea shrimp tacos, simple, and simply delightful. The meal is served with a street and bay view either at a hip bar with chartreuse seats or outdoors on a triangular patio.

And of course for tiki drinks, decor, and yummy sea-centric bar bites, the place to go is Luau Larry’s, a bit farther down Crescent Street, and open late, mentioned in last week’s look at Catalina Island.

So — what are you waiting for? Go ahead, enjoy an island getaway – without the hassles of TSA and a long flight.

  • Genie Davis; photos by Genie Davis and Jack Burke