BLACKBURN AND SWEETZER

Alfredo’s, that cafe on West 3rd Street just west of Sweetzer, is now Mira’Le with a bright new orange banner and umbrellas to match. Haven’t taste-tested, but, then again, my only Alfredo’s experience was with a latte.

People lined up for the 12:05am and 12:10am showings of The Dark Knight at The Grove…

NOTE: Thought I had found confirmation of this showing, but guess my cursory look at 1am was faulty. This was hearsay, apparently, or perhaps people were buying advance tickets, plus just people in line for other late movies? Not sure.

The husband and I have finally learned to get to Hirozen early, somewhere between 6:00PM-7:00PM, on a non-Thursday, -Friday, or -Saturday night. Even by Wednesday at 7:30PM the place was packed, as was the parking lot. How many of these people do you think live in walking distance?

Natura now has tables and chairs. We’ll see how long it takes to get staff and some Mediterranean food in the joint.

A pricey fruit stand of sorts, Èple—owned by Pinkberry—has opened at the Farmers Market at The Grove. It sells fruit bowls, fruit juices, fancy fruit sandwiches, fruit butter, fruity honey and other fruit-infused or -based items. I got a mango-ginger-honey-lemon (I’m pretty sure that’s the concoction) juice, which was close to $4. Expensive? Yes. But I did like it, made with just some ice and a bit of water and then the actual mango and other ingredients, it was somewhere between the consistency of juice and a smoothie. The person at the counter also gave me a sample of coconut butter on bread, and that was pretty good too. They said you could put it on pancakes etc. I can’t see getting much more than the juices, but I appreciated it wasn’t a whole meal in itself a la Jamba Juice and the rest.

Now peeps won’t have to walk all that way to the Grove to get Johnny Rockets, the burger joint is opening on the west side of the Beverly Connection. On second thought, walk to the one furthest to you; it might make a slight difference on your midsection post onion rings.

My first post on Natura was September, 2007. My most recent post was in April. Three months later, not much to report, but did capture a sliver of a look inside the Mediterranean cafe—just two little tables at the back in terms of furnishing. Who knows what state the kitchen is in, but it looks like all they need to do is fill the place with tables and chairs and hire staff.

Who: Twenty Two Shoes

What: Annual Soles4Soules shoe drive—bring in gently worn shoes for donation and get 50% off a new pair

Where: Thursday, July 3, 6pm-9pm, 8304 West 3rd Street, (323) 782-1929

Who:  Creatures of Comfort

What: Full-out summer sale, featuring up to 70% off merch

Where: Starts Thursday, June 5, ongoing, Mon-Sat 11am-7pm; Sun noon-6pm, 7971 Melrose Avenue, (323) 655-7855

Who: Rodan vs Griffith

What: No taco truck this time round, but this sounds just as delicious—fourth of July weekend kick-off sale and BBQ, including 50% off tons of merch, free BBQ and DJ set by Keith Wilson and Maria Holland

Where: Thursday, July 3, 7pm-10pm, 8207 West 3rd Street, (323) 951-9220