If Maypop were to do a cookbook, it would be a bibliography...with a generous piling of cilantro.

Negotiations between Gulotta and Bybee (or, Gybee) and local restaurant investors, Gabe Corchiani and Christopher Keene, to take Tana off life-support were well underway by August 26, 2021. Around the same time, Gulotta announced to his staff at Maypop the restaurant was nearing bankruptcy...

It’s disappointing that people like King and Elliot went all Karen Smith and Grethen Wieners on her when knowing about this for some time and not ask her – even in passing, while getting a comp cup of coffee and toast with ricotta and jam – to get her side rather than rally-up with some bitchy IG blogger (who also is aimlessly attempting to connect Sqirl with disgraced food and dining brand Bon Appétit) and a group of former employees that apparently had no problem allegedly poisoning customers with moldy jam until they no longer had to work there.

‘July 4, 2020, will be commemorated this year against the backdrop of America's Third Reconstruction, our latest effort to make Independence Day meaningful as a celebration of a republic no longer in the grips of anti-Black racism and white supremacy…’

Double Stuf Oreos are not only missing the other 'F' in stuff, but they're also missing...well, the stuff. In this brief rant, I fix that problem.

‘We're in denial of the African holocaust. Most times, people don't want to talk about it. One is often restless or termed a racist just for having compassion for the African experience…’

Now that restaurants in LA County are opening again – operating under strict safety initiatives and directives – I couldn’t help but wonder how these Bs can fair in this new era of dining when they weren’t able to operate prior.

This feels more like an exercise to make white people feel less guilty about doing nothing, and two black music executives giving them a pass not to. Once more permitting them to play the Hollywood cliché of white savior.

We went from quarantine to chaos in a blink of an eye. Shelter-in-place for safety from one virus, only to take to the streets in protest for lack of safety from another – both with no cure.

Looks like Bottega Louie’s long delayed launch of its fabled West Hollywood location is now planned for a March 2020 opening; as first reported by Wehoville on December 11th. It was also detailed that the postponement now leaves over 200 recent hires unemployed—according to an unnamed source—with many new/former employees being stiffed paychecks since orientation. However, they all can breathe easily knowing they may re-apply for their positions in a few months; without the promise of employment. Merry Christmas.

Listen, pastry is a privilege. It requires talent and passion. You can’t just hire anyone off the street to do it. It’s not like being a line cook. Anyone can heat up what day prep did that morning!

With its West Hollywood location currently back in construction and a soft-opening aimed for May 2019; according to numerous sources, the ‘masterminds’ behind the ‘famous Bottega Louie macarons’ are planning on making a special confection exclusively for its WeHo site. What is it, you ask? Unicorn, of course. … The tone deafness, however, didn’t stop there. The insensitivity apparently progressed rapidly to homophobia.

According to numerous sources, the commissary, located on 617 West 7th Street, which houses its pastry and bread departments, was void of any supervision for several hours on Sunday morning when its management team, including an Executive Chef, were at a bar watching the World Cup; leaving its staff to fare on their own.

Once the Grande Dame of Grand Street when it opened in 2009—ushering in the 7th street renaissance in DTLA—Bottega Louie now languishes in mediocrity with its stale and uninspired menu of quasi-Italian cuisine, everything to everyone LA staples like burgers and the proverbial avocado toast, and those painfully obvious (and not very good) Ladurée lifted macarons; leaving guests and critics, who once raved about the place during its peak, to reassess—even re-review--what they once liked about Bottega Louie to begin with.

With insurmountable debts owed to distributors and suppliers, and a staff of four (including a dishwasher who doubles on salads), The Church Key, which opened its doors in 2013, is now faced with the challenge of reinventing itself from its push-cart gimmick of “New American” fare like Ruben Empanadas and salute to the 1980s Crab Meat Crepe to something that will hopefully bring in a newer, younger crowd.