One Thing to Eat in Atwater Village Before You Die

EVERY SUNDAY at the Atwater Village Farmers Market (3250 Glendale Blvd.) is a chance to try one item from Jonathan Gold's 99 Things to Eat in LA Before You Die. Bigmista's Pig Candy is from Bigmista's Barbeque, of course, a mainstay at our neighborhood's Sunday market. Here's what Gold says in the LA Weekly:

"Pig candy is the vernacular name for a snack made out of smoky, thick-cut bacon baked with lots and lots of brown sugar until it transforms itself into demonically fragrant slabs that bear more than a passing resemblance to pork-belly terrine. You want some of this stuff. Really you do. And if you should happen to be in Atwater on a Sunday morning, you should probably swing by the barbecue concession 'round the back, because Bigmista and Mrs. Mista will set you up with the best."

Yum! Oyster Night Returns to Canele Bistro

FRESH ON THE heels of last Sunday's appearance on ABC's Brothers & Sisters (about 34:30 into the video) neighborhood fave Canele Bistro brings back oyster night. From their email: "Maestro of the Mollusk Luc Chamberland is coming for the second annual Consider the Oyster feast and celebration! We'll be shucking, roasting, po'boying, and who-knows-what-else with those little gems." The deets:

• Monday, Jan. 18, 6:30pm
• Canele Bistro, 3219 Glendale Blvd.
• $70 by reservation; "includes wine and champagne, accompanying delectables and a little something sweet at the end"
• RSVP (323) 666-7133

Chef Yoo's Next Project: Los Feliz Meat, Fish Market

UPDATE FROM Chef Karen Yoo, who back in June was hunting around Atwater Village for a possible location for her future restaurant, about her new plans in neighboring Los Feliz:

"My husband and I are currently building out a small meat and fish market in Los Feliz called McCall's Meat and Fish Company. We are part way through construction on a space on Hillhurst Ave. right next to Mexico City Restaurant [Google map].

"We are planning on selling amazing quality meats and seafood as well as some retail items like our favorite oils, vinegars and salts, etc... We will also offer dry aged steaks, house made sausages, and pre-seasoned and tied roasts on a limited basis.

"We are really excited to be in the neighborhood and have a projected opening date set for mid January."

B is for Bubbles; C is for Canele

THIS WEEK'S Friends Cook series brings a genuine TV star to the Canele kitchen, 3219 Glendale Blvd., in Atwater Village. Andre Royo (also known as Bubbles on HBO's The Wire) cooks a $32, 3-course prix fixe menu for dinner Tuesday, Nov. 17, 5:30pm to 10:00pm:

• First Course: "Eat Your Veggies"
• Second Course: "Sloppy Andre" and Tater Tots
• Third Course: Coffee Ice Cream Sandwich

They Can Talk, But Can They Cook?

STEVE AND MIKE from KFI 640 AM Talk Radio are cooking at Atwater Village's Canele bistro, 3219 Glendale Blvd., for the Friends Cook series, Tuesday Oct. 6, 5:00pm to 10:00pm. Their 3-course, $32 dinner:

• Braised artichoke on a fat toast with shaved pecorino
• Seared halibut with cherry tomatoes, cracked olives, capers and basil
• Apple and raisin crostata with ice cream

Viet Noodle Bar Makes Top 10 in Bon Appetit

ATWATER VILLAGE'S Viet Noodle Bar, 3133 Glendale Blvd., has made the list of top 10 new Asian noodle bars in the US, published in the October 2009 issue of Bon Appetit. From the magazine: "At this Atwater Village noodle bar, pho comes topped with ingredients like organic chicken and cilantro." See all 10.

Every Canele Has Its Thorne

CHEF DAVID THORNE helms the menu tomorrow, Sept. 15, at Canele in Atwater Village. Part of the Friends Cook series, it's a 3-course dinner for $32:

• First: Watermelon and beet salad with feta and preserved meyer lemon
• Second: Seared duck breast with parsnip puree, cabbage and plums
• Third: Roasted figs with creme fraiche and condensed arabic coffee

Read all about the last Friends Cook event on Sept. 8.

Village Bakery & Cafe Opens in Old LA Bread Space

NOW OPEN: The Village Bakery and Cafe opened its doors this week in the former L.A. Bread space, 3119 Los Feliz Blvd. Helmed by the founding co-owner/pastry chef at Eagle Rock's Auntie Em's Kitchen, this new breakfast and lunch spot in Atwater Village promises to be a richer, nicer cousin of the building's former occupant. I stopped by yesterday for the decadent Thanksgiving on a Bun: turkey, stuffing, cranberries, gravy on the side. Huge. With a salad. For $8.95.

The Village Bakery will still bake and serve the same breads as LA Bread, but pastries and cafe items are now made daily from scratch. Signs and paint went up this week. The Village Bakery is open Tuesdays through Saturdays, 8:00am to 4:00pm, and Sundays, 8:00am to 3:00pm.

'The Duo Dishes' Duo Dishes Tonight's Canele Menu

SURE IT'S last minute, but that's how friends are sometimes. Canele bistro continues its Friends Cook dinner series tonight, Sept. 8, 5:30pm to 10:00pm. Chrystal and Amir, the duo behind The Duo Dishes food blog, have a 3-course menu for $30 per person:

• Sweet Apple and Bacon Puffs with Pomegranate Glaze
• Tarragon Chicken and Grape Pot Pie
• Almond and Coconut Cream Fruit Cake

No reservations taken. Canele is 3219 Glendale Blvd., Atwater Village.

Korean BBQ Truck Sorta Gets Near Atwater Village

TONIGHT JUST a couple of neighborhoods over in Eagle Rock arriveth the Kogi Korean BBQ truck, 6:00pm to 9:00pm, 4372 Eagle Rock Blvd.

Top Chef Winner Cooking at Canele This Tuesday

NOT TO MISS: Top Chef season 2 winner Ilan Hall takes over the kitchen Tuesday July 21, 5:30pm to 10:00pm, at Canele, 3219 Glendale Blvd., in Atwater Village. Hall's 3-course prix fixe (price TBD) Scottish-influenced menu is predicted to include: roasted mushrooms with walnut-marrow vinaigrette chicken Haggis with braised corn and pureed potatoes shortbread lime bar with Bustello condensed milk

Honey, You Had Me at Maker's Mark Reduction

NEXT TUESDAY, June 30, neighborhood bistro Canele, 3219 Glendale Blvd., will be buzzing with a 3-course prix fixe "Friends Cook in LA" dinner featuring Amy Seidenwurm of the Backwards Beekeepers. It's a honey of a $30 menu: Mixed green salad with roasted beets, gorgonzola, honey-roasted walnuts with a honey-champagne vinaigrette. Honey-glazed pork tenderloin with Maker's Mark reduction, corn cakes, buttered carrots Goat cheese and nectarine tart with raw honey drizzle, honey ice cream Don't get stung! Canele doesn't take reservations; so bee early.

What Members of Castledoor Ordered at Viet Noodle Bar

MEMBERS OF ONE of my favorite Los Angeles rock bands, Castledoor, stopped by Viet Noodle Bar (3133 Glendale Blvd.) in Atwater Village recently. Here's what they had: Nate - lead vocals: Fish noodles, Vietnamese iced coffee Gabe - guitars, keys: Soup, Vietnamese iced coffee Joel - drums: Soup, Vietnamese iced coffee Brando - bass: No idea Liska- keys, vocals: Tofu sandwich, side of yellow rice, Vietnamese iced coffee Coury - vocals, synth: Fish noodles, Vietnamese iced coffee Turns out Gabe and Joel were hungry later, but as Coury so diplomatically points out, "Well, all you ate for dinner was broth! I told you to get more!"

Help Find Space for L'Ami Restaurant in Atwater Village

CHEF KAREN YOO, formerly of Campanile and Sona, and soon to be of L'Ami Restaurant, emails a pickle. "My husband and I have been on the hunt for a restaurant space in these areas for the last 6 months, we moved to this side of town recently and we really love it. Since you seem so connected to the area, I figured I would email and see if you might have any inside scoops on available restaurant spaces that we haven't heard of. If you know of anything and feel like sharing please email me, any information would be appreciated." First thought: There may be at least 5 retail spaces suddenly opening up along Glendale Blvd., now that LA City Council has denied applications for our neighborhood marijuana dispensaries. Would growlights be at all helpful with your Market Vegetable Salad? Other suggestions, dear readers? Comment, email, I'll pass them along.

What a Pair of Vegan Sisters Ate in Atwater Village

TWO SISTERS regularly tour vegan restaurants in Los Angeles, and in this video they try Atwater Village's own Hugo's Tacos, 3300 Glendale Blvd. For their "cheapest meal of the day," Whitney and Mary found Hugo's $6 vegan-cheese burrito "fresh and healthy," and the $2 chocolate-caramel swirl Frozato soft-serve "better than Scoops."

Prix-Fixe Springtime at Canele in Atwater Village

NEIGHBORHOOD RESTAURANT Canele (3219 Glendale Blvd.) marks spring's arrival by adding 3 fixed-price meals to its usual menu of deliciousness: Tuesday: Caesar Salad, Ziti with Tuna & Tomato Sauce, Prunes with Mascarpone Wednesday: Butter Lettuce with Green Goddess Dressing, Meatloaf with Mashers & Carrots, Ice Cream Sundae Thursday: Fennel & Citrus Salad, Porcini Risotto with Mascarpone, Cantucci & Vin Santo Get all 3 courses for $22 plus beverage, tax, tip. We memorized Canele's regular menu, so we're looking forward to sampling the new springtime fare.

How to Feed 600 Tables on St. Patrick's Day

THE OLDEST RESTAURANT in Los Angeles (operated by the same family in the same location) is Tam O' Shanter Inn, 2980 Los Feliz Blvd. in Atwater Village. My Fox LA's Gigi Graciette investigates the Scottish restaurant's Irish dinner prep for St. Patrick's Day. The Toad in the Hole is a must.

Who Doesn't Love a (Really) Good Brownie?

THIS WEEKEND we stopped by the month-old Atwater Village takeout counter of Sweets for the Soul, 3169 Glendale Blvd. Among bakeries in Los Angeles, this one is quite focused. One primary product, brownies. And one primary flavor, chocolate. That's it. Chocolate brownies. But what they do, they do right. We took home 2 Obama brownies (white chocolate and dark chocolate) and 2 Cocoa Bliss brownies (Valrhona cocoa and Valrhona chocolate). Total damage: $16. Yes, that's $4 per brownie. But the heart-shaped goodies have lasted all week and become a chocoholic nightcap to dream about all day. The store might start experimenting with additional products and a new flavor or 2 this spring. Till then, they won't mess with perfection. Food GPS and Reservation for Three also have reviews of Sweets for the Soul.

Sepan Chicken Has Menu, Officially Opens Monday

BUT THAT DOESN'T mean that the Chowhounders who already tried it have much good to report: "Reasonable at $6.99, I opened the Styrofoam container to find a shriveled thimble size whole bird, too lanky even to be a Cornish game hen... Now of course, Monday, the grand opening, may portend a totally different and vastly improved bird, but it's up for one of you guys to find out."

Confirmed! Tommy's Burgers Out, Sepan Chicken In

THANKS TO A crappy drive-by cell-phone photo and some investigative work by Eater LA, we can confirm that the former Tommy's Char-Broiled Burgers, 3324 Glendale Blvd., is now something called Sepan Chicken. Someone should go try it and tell us about it. And see if you can find out if it has anything to do with Sepan Banquet Hall up the street.