France

Geeta Bansal Interviews Jean-Luc Rabanel, the Gypsy King of Cuisine in Provence

Every Monday, Clay Oven Irvine executive chef/owner Geeta Bansal shares an interview that she's done with some of the heavyweights of European cooking. Today, she regales us with a visit with Jean-Luc Rabane. Enjoy!

Park City's Breakouts

The movies to know from Sundance—and the year ahead

Tom Hooper's 'Les Miserables' Does the Can-Can't

Boublil and Schönberg's gleaming icons cannot be dulled, but this movie remains in chains

On the Line: Frederic Castan of Motif Restaurant, Part One

We've met many multicultural chefs while doing On the Line, but Frederic Castan might be my first Frenchman. Distinguished and worldly, he represents the eclectic European cuisine served at Motif. A fan of West Coast wines and excellent cheese, our interview strings together anecdotes from experienc ... More >>

Le Castle Vania

Yost Theater

Joachim Garraud Talks About Coming to Orange County and Dubstep

​Joachim Garraud is one of the most well-known techno personalities in the world; his Iconic Space Invader mask has terrorized every country he has visited--in a good way. (Proof is in his Youtube Channel). All the way from Paris, France, Garraud will be invading Sutra on Friday night with his key ... More >>

Cooking: Chez Panisse--But What's a Panisse?

Dave LiebermanPanisses and some dandelion--yes, dandelion--empanadas I made the other day.​You've all heard of Chez Panisse, Alice Waters' breakout restaurant in Berkeley. You can't have avoided mention of it--and it is, to be fair, an outstanding restaurant. But if you aren't French, specifically ... More >>

Kanye West Jay Z = The Throne: They're a Hip-Hop Supergroup About to Go on Tour

​Now they've done it. Jay-Z and Kanye West have formed a hip-hop supergroup called The Throne. And yes, there will be an album, and yes, there will be a tour called (wait for it) Watch the Throne. It will be available digitally on August 8, exclusively on iTunes. On the same day, tickets will be ... More >>

On the Line: James D'Aquila of the Wild Artichoke, Part Two

Photo by Laila Derakhshanian​We continue our in-person interview with James D'Aquila, tracing his culinary background to the early '80s. He also shares some insight on choosing artichokes as his restaurant's signature ingredient. To read part one, click here. Stay tuned for our final installment, ... More >>

Distinguished UC Irvine Professor Treated Like a Terrorist by French

Ngugi wa Thiong'o and wife, stranded​After attending a Nairobi literary festival, UC Irvine professor and author Ngugi wa Thiong'o and his wife needed to catch a Virgin Atlantic flight to London in route to LAX, but a snow storm in England forced the flight to land in Lyon, France.The airline arra ... More >>

Ross Pangilinan of Leatherby's Café Rouge, Part One

Photo by Mary Bell​ Meet Ross Pangilinan. Born in Tennessee and raised in Orange County, Chef Pangilinan studied at Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena before going off to cut his teeth in fine-dining establishments here and in Michelin-starred restaurants in France. Now he commands the kitchen as th ... More >>

The Producers

Maverick Theater

The Chameleon of the Kitchen: Red Gravy

Flickr user elswifterino​One day, I was in a café in Paris' foodie black hole, place de la Madeleine, and I asked why there were so few Italian restaurants in Paris."Bof, la cuisine italienne ! Enlevez les tomates et y aura que la cuisine française mal faite," the waiter sneered--take away the t ... More >>

Hot Club of San Francisco

Carpenter Performing Arts Center

A Minimalist's Rice Pudding

Jonathan Gill/ / CC BY 2.0A different grain for dessert​When it comes to desert and grains, wheat is by far the king, with flour turning up in nearly every treat you could put together to end a meal with. But rice, too, has its place in the sweetest course, with its natural, unadorned flavor lendi ... More >>

Django 100: A Century of Hot Jazz

Orange County Performing Arts Center

The Fabulous World of Gay Wine

Dave Lieberman​As I was scarfing down empanadas today at El Gaucho #2 in Anaheim, my eyes were drawn to cases and cases of wine below the all-fútbol-all-the-tiempo big-screen TVs. Cases of wine are not exactly out of place in an Argentine market with a fantastic sandwich counter, but somehow this ... More >>

Dessert of the Week: Creme Brulee at 3-Thirty-3

​In theory, a dessert with such simple ingredients--egg yolks, heavy cream, sugar, vanilla--should be easy to make. When it comes to creme brulee, however, it can be difficult to find the dish executed properly--unless you're in France of course. 3-Thirty-3 in Newport Beach, best known for its ... More >>

Sipping Pretty: Wine Tastings at the Wine Crush

Wine tastings, much like wine, are experiences that rely a lot on personal preferences. Just as an individual may be a self-avowed fan of reds or hates Chardonnay or only goes for obscure and nearly unpronounceable native Italian grapes, there are a broad range of wine tasting expe ... More >>

Recipe of the Week: Crème Brûlée in Apples

Dave Lieberman​Quick, what's better than crème brûlée?How about crème brûlée in an edible bowl?The Catalans, those famously free-thinking denizens of northeastern Spain, Andorra and the adjacent part of France, claim to have pioneered crème brûlée. In a burst of national pride, they call ... More >>

UPDATED: Paellaphiles Take Note: Lucca's Going All Spanish This Sunday

​The cuisine of France may be dominating the culinary news this week, thanks to Julie & Julia, but those of us who love its neighboring country might want to make a beeline for Lucca in Irvine. On Sunday, August 9, the Italian restaurant/deli will be dishing up a four-course Spanish dinner (se ... More >>

Anaheim White House Pays Delicious Homage to Julia Child

Brasserie Pascal isn't the only restaurant with a Julie & Julia culinary tie-in. The Anaheim White House is another contender, running a month-long promo featuring dishes from MtAoFC (if you have to ask what that is, you haven't read the book or seen the film). Available until the end of the mon ... More >>

Oyster Species Guide, Plus a Couple of Tips

[Special Screenings] Local Showings of 'Strangers,' 'Sid and Nancy,' More

Pinot Provence Offers Affordable Appetizers Ahora

To be honest, I can't remember the last time I visited Pinot Provence, the venerable French restaurant run by the Patina Group. I've been to its home base, the Westin Hotel, quite a few times (the bar and banquet area, not the rooms since college), but never bother with Pinot because the prices are ... More >>

Last Night: First Annual Ambrosia Wine Fest

[Cannes Report] 'Che' Wins Cannes! Or At Least the Only Cannes Award That Really Matters: Ours

Trendzilla

Clip your goddamn toenails, people!

Now Playing: STEEP

The publicists for STEEP seemed rather anxious for me to write about it, though I'm not entirely sure why – it's not my kind of film at all. I offer that as a caveat, in anticipation of those who will tell me that I just don't get it, because in some ways, I don't. I find it amusing that once upon ... More >>

Every Rose Has Its Thorn

Marion Cotillard gives a star turn, but can’t save this Edith Piaf biopic

Where be the Bird Man?

Palm d'Hoberman

Our one-man jury bestows honors on the best of Cannes 2007

New Reviews

The Abandoned; Days of Glory (Indigenes); Reno 911!: Miami; Starter for Ten

Arnold Speaks

Nixon may have inspired him to become a Republican, but Arnold Schwarzenegger completely lacks The Pride of Yorba Linda's flair when it comes to taped conversations. Consider, for example, this lecture on history captured by the Oval Office taping system. Nixon explains why the Soviet Union is sup ... More >>

Numbers, Numbers (and a semi-Nun)

First for some numbers that aren't as big as you might think, or others might want you to think. If California were a separate country, it would have the world's sixth-largest economy, one hears time and time again. The governor even repeated the We're Number 6 bleat in his State of the State spee ... More >>

Taking the Long View

Children of Men and the value of an unedited shot

The Woman with a Limp

When her Aunt Virginia died in 1982, Lorna Catling had no idea that forty years earlier the Gestapo had declared her aunt "the most dangerous of all Allied spies" in France, and issued orders to "find and destroy her."  Virginia Hall seldom spoke about what she had done during World War II, and ... More >>

You Better Not Pout

Local blogger El Serracho (or The Serrach) finds himself in the Netherlands at the moment, where he reports that it's Christmas season. El is a Global Internet Manager of Production (or GIMP), a job that has sent him to the Netherlands at least 15 times. Those wacky Dutch are so high they give out g ... More >>

ReadyforWar.com!

In which you send us e-mails you didnt write about a war you really like

Schedule of Events

Theater of Battle

Stages Henry V

Deadly Plants

Searched and Seized

Message on a Dollar

Cold/Tender at Cypress College

Must You Get Medieval on Us?

Patient: Black Knight

Pedal to the Griddle

OCs Hottest Cakes

The Dark (Chocolate) Side

Living in the USA

Booker on Bosnia, Washburn on Kmart

Nothing Shocking

French Connection is all about the pretty