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Echo Park Holiday Parade theme, grand marshal announced

The Echo Park Community Parade committee announced today the theme, grand marshal, and parade ambassadors.

The theme for Saturday, December 11 is “Echo Park: We are the World.” Parade-goers can view the event all the way from Elysian Park Avenue to Park Avenue (near Alvarado) along Sunset Blvd. from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.

Reverend David K. Farley of the Echo Park United Methodist Church will serve as this year’s Grand Marshal. Parade Ambassadors are Peter L. Lassen (who we just adore!), Walter and Sumiko Elmer, Dr. Fredy Perez, and Sallie W. Neubauer.

The Echo Park Community Parade Kickoff is this Friday, December 3 from 5:00 – 6:30 pm at the EcHho Park Farmers’ Market. Clifford Street School, Gabriella Charter School, along with salsa band On Time Quintet, will provide entertainment, and winners of the Echo Park Community Parade Art Contest will be recognized.

The parade takes place on Saturday, December 11, 2010 starting at 10:00 am, rain or shine!

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“Blood is the New Black” pop up shop

We went to check out the new pop-up shop in Echo Park after reading about it on The Eastsider LA. Blood is the New Black Market is primarily an online store that opened its 175 square foot shop temporarily for the holiday shopping season. Located across the street from the Echo on Sunset Blvd, the store is open until 11:00 pm for those late-night crowds headed to or leaving shows.

The market opened just before Thanksgiving on November 23, and will remain open through December 30. There are some super cute items in the store: printed tees by Blood is the New Black, toiletries, jewelry, clothing, and other small gift items. “After the success we had with our Summer Fling Truck, the mobile pop-up boutique,” says Mitra Khayyam (founder/curator of Blood is the New Black) in a press release, “I figured we should try our luck at a fixed location for the Holidays as another way for our customers to avoid malls and big chain stores.”

The store tries to keep prices affordable, and according to the press release there is no item of %50 (which is a bit confusing as there were some Izzy Wolf kids gear for $100). But for the most part, the small store is worth checking out!

Blood is the New Black is located at 1825 Sunset Blvd. Hours are Thursdays through Sundays from 3:00-11:00 pm.

Keep an eye out for their December 7 holiday cocktail party.

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Echo Park Animal Alliance Fundraiser: Pet photos with Santa!

Bring your precious pets and well-behaved humans down for some fun, shopping and entertainment for the Echo Park Animal Alliance’s annual fundraiser.

Saturday and Sunday, December 4-5
1:00 p to 5:00 pm.
Echo Park Pottery, located at 1850 Echo Park Ave.

Glossy prints in festive cards $10 each or three for $25.00. Dog Cookie stockings, filled with home baked cookies, $10.00. Also, pick up some pottery from Echo Park Pottery!

All proceeds go to the Echo Park Animal Alliance! Click here to download the full flyer.

In the meantime, check out our little friend Frankie who really needs a home!

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Echo Park’s Week in Music

For the week of Monday, November 29 through Sunday, December 5

Monday
Monday Night Residency: The Black Apples with Jail Weddings, My Pet Saddle, Dante vs. Zombies @ Echo

Tuesday
Kitten, A House for Lions @ Echo

Wednesday
Odd Future (Ofwgkta) @ Echo
Dub Club Presents The Abyssinians @ Echoplex

Thursday
Einsturzende Neubauten – An Intimate Multi-Disciplinary Experience @ Echoplex
Everest, He’s My Brother, She’s My Sister @ Echo
Jeremiah and The Red Eyes @ Taix Lounge

Friday
Atlas Sound @ Echo
Club Underground @ Echo
Echo, KCRW and The Do Over present Aloe Blacc and The Grand Scheme @ Echoplex
Fences, Jenny O, Ragged Glory: Songs Of Neil Young @ Bootleg Theater
Liz Pappademas and friends @ Pehrspace

Saturday
Bootie LA Holiday Party @ Echoplex
Funky Sole @ Echo
Foot Foot, Little Teeth, Slumber Beast, Moses Campbell @ Pehrspace
Jamie Holiday, The Vampyre Bunnies @ Pehrspace

Sunday
Marchfouth Marching Band @ Echoplex
Part Time Punks with Devon Williams, The Mantles, Catwalk @ Echo
Mississippi Man, Rumspringa, The Howls, Dahga Bloom @ Bootleg Theater

For more information on weekly musical events like club nights, see our community resource pages.Visit the venue website for more information on the cost and times of shows. This list may not represent all the musical events happening in Echo Park this week – feel free to add more events in the comment section. All events listed are subject to change at any time. New events announced for the week after this posting may not be included.

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New vintage store takes over the Millenium thrift store



Tucked in an old brick building across the street from the AM/PM is newly established vintage store “TИSEN”, a Danish word that essentially translates into “rocker.” The blue neon sign that decorates the front of the store is eye-catching and one I like (it surprisingly doesn’t clash with neighboring old-school signs for Lolita Hair Salon and Han’s Repair next door).

$20,000 19th century Chinese bed

For 15 years, 2118 Berkeley Avenue was occupied by Millenium Thrift Shop, a treasure trove of antique items you had to dig through, or bring in a lamp for an inexpensive repair. We found new owner Jason in the shop gearing up for the store’s opening. Immediately upon entering the store are cute women’s clothes, shoes and, my favorite, sparkly things (jewelry!). There are furniture items, children’s clothes, and some great-looking antique items. In the back of the store, Jason is putting together a vinyl records room to keep the boys occupied while their girlfriends rummage for clothes.

Prices range from the $1.00 record bin to $15 clothes to a $20,000 hand-carved rosewood Chinese bed – probably the coolest thing in the store because it is so out of my reach. Jason’s wife Cindy is the one behind all the clothing finds, and I have to say her selections are great for the neighborhood.

Jason and Cindy are Echo Park residents, and actually own Silver Lake restaurant Local. We look forward to seeing Jason and Cindy around the ‘hood!

TИSEN’s grand opening is the weekend of December 4th – you can also get 25% off if you mention this article!

TИSEN is located at 2118 Berkeley Avenue.

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Photo: Echo Park Lake rainbows

Yesterday was a gorgeous day in Echo Park, so we took advantage of the clear skies and headed to Echo Park Lake. It was so windy (and a little chilly) that the lake’s iconic fountains were blown sideways, giving us a little rainbow along with it.

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Holiday parking in Los Angeles tips

Holiday parking regulations get a little relaxed on days like today (Thanksgiving Day!). While you may have noticed no tickets are being doled out for those street cleaning sides, and the 1-2 hour parking rules relaxed, tomorrow is back to business so park appropriately!

Here’s the low-down from the LA City Department of Transportation, click the image below for the full PDF:

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Large crowds at the Echo for Gobble Gobble Give!

This is the first year we’ve been able to make it down to The Echo to check out Gobble Gobble Give, but it’s the 12th year Echo Park residents and volunteers from all around have kicked in food and clothing for this special event.

The lines were long – cars and pedestrians streamed all the way down past the Sunset bridge over Glendale Blvd. But the wait (about 45 minutes to an hour) was worth it as pedestrians and cars loaded up on pre-prepared Thanksgiving meals and free clothing. It looks like everyone did a great job!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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Shop Local at Echo Park shops this Holiday Weekend

Flickr photo via Odessea

Happy Thanksgiving! Check out these Echo Park sales/events in honor of the holiday shopping season.

Tavin Boutique: 1543 Echo Park
10% off everything, November 25-27 (Friday-Saturday). Click here for the flyer.

Echo Park Time Travel Mart: 1714 West Sunset Boulevard
On Black Friday, get a free copy of Dave Eggers’ The Wild Things with any purchase of $25 or more (the deal also applies if you spend $25 or more at 826la.org on Cyber Monday).

Feeding Birds: 1825 Echo Park Ave.
Sales, snacks and more. November 27-28 from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm. Click here for the flyer.

Echo Park Independent Coop: 1712 W Sunset Blvd,
Holiday Sample Sale: Men’s and women’s clothing and accessories. All EPIC Sale merchandise an additional 30% off. Saturday, November 27 from 12:00 noon – 6:00 pm. Click here for the flyer.

Raven & Lilly/Ballards Artwork Framing: 1568 West Sunset Blvd.
10% discount on all merchandise and framing. Thursday, December 2 from 11:00 am – 11:00 pm. Click here for the flyer.

Gentlemen’s Breakfast: 1101 Mohawk St.
Black Friday Sale: It’ll be 15% off all inventory, including vintage eyeglasses, sunglasses, cuff links, watches, neckties and ascots.

Мишка Echo Park: 1547 Echo Park Ave.
The first 50 customers at Мишка Echo Park will receive a free exclusive Black Friday T-shirt. Friday November 26th, 12:00 midnight – 7:00 pm.

Please let us know in the comments field below if we are missing anything!

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LA Weekly missing out on Echo Park restaurants


A couple of weeks ago, LA Weekly published Jonathan Gold’s annual “99 Essential L.A. Restaurants” – a list of our city’s must-visit restaurants, taco trucks, and even sidewalk eateries. But we noticed a chunk of those little Google map “dots” missing from the map – Echo Park!

An “essential restaurant,” the author writes, “is one that reflects Los Angeles in a startling and unusual way, that uses fresh local ingredients in a fashion that respects the land in which they were grown, that showcases cooking echoing both foreign-trained chefs’ region of origin and the hypercharged mosaic of the L.A. dining scene.” I’m not sure we have many famous chefs to brag about, but we get it. Even if Echo Park remains that little neighborhood where the Short Stop is, we still have some culinary delights I don’t think should be left out.

Masa: Chicago deep dip pizza with a vegan option, paired with one or two (definitely two) of Masa’s own Honey Blonde Ale. I am personally obsessed with the Chicken Caesar Salad and love the service there. They also use fresh, local ingredients.

Allston Yacht Club: Fried feta and fried calamari, along with a spicy jalapeno-infused margarita. Great atmosphere, great happy hour, great service!

The Park Restaurant: Love the brunch, but the dinner specials come into my email inbox and it’s all over. They have really stepped up their game in the kitchen since opening a couple of years ago. Last weekend’s special included a toasted Bartlett pear, candied walnuts, gorgonzola custard, frisee and spinach salad, along with a pan-roasted seabass entree (with lemon and dill-cured seabass relish). Yum!

Elf Cafe: It’s a simple as this: The best vegetarian fare around!

But I guess it’s okay Jonathan – we are Twitter buddies and you included plenty of Eastside delights for us to throw you a bone – like Bigmista’s Barbecue at the Atwater Village Farmers’ Market location, which is also a favorite for Echo Parkians during our Friday Farmers’ Market. And we dig the shout-out to Highland Park’s Good Girl Dinette. But since the publication gave us so many wonderful titles for the publication’s “Best of LA 2010” list, we thought we’d at least get one restaurant in there!

Click here for the Google map of Jonathan’s 99 essential restaurants, and click here for the full LA Weekly article.

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Getting chilly outside… it’s heater time

Flickr photo via mattdans

It’s getting pretty chilly outside lately (about 45 degrees this morning in Echo Park!), and a lot of us are turning on our heaters for the first time this winter. Be careful – heating fires are the second leading cause of all residential building fires, behind cooking fires.

This weekend in Echo Park, our friend Jesús Sanchez of The Eastsider LA had an unfortunate and personal experience when his duplex, which he rents out, was damaged when a fire broke out near a floor furnace. “I have covered numerous fires as the publisher and author of The Eastsider but never one involving my own property,” writes Jesús. Thankfully, nobody was hurt, but the duplex was damaged.

Firefighters also told him that it was also the second furnace fire of that night in Echo Park. And now that Thanksgiving is approaching, make sure you check the batteries in your smoke alarms and double check those directions for that deep-fried turkey.

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Gigi’s Cafe: The best bang for your bakery buck

I recently finally made my way to the border of Echo Park/Historic Filipinotown to check out Gigi’s Cafe and Bakery, a Cuban bakery down on Temple Street just west of Alvarado. I can sum this place up in just two words: delicious and cheap.

I recommend pretty much everything here; they have pastries, sandwiches, baguettes, pupusas, tamales, coffee and breakfast. You’ll usually find a group of older Cuban men socializing outside on the sidewalk or inside at a big table. Everyone is friendly and the crowd diverse – suffice to say there’s something for everyone (even us vegetarians)!

I would suggest trying, first off, the plantains with beans and crema – it’s a lot of food for one person but feel free to share with friends. Pastelitos de guayaba y queso for a mere 75 cents are melt-in-your-mouth flaky goodness, and by far my favorite. I’ve heard they have great Cuban sandwiches as well!

They are quick in the kitchen if you order breakfast, but expect to wait a little while in line while they take orders (totally worth the wait). We’ve heard that from 8-9:00 pm on Fridays and Saturdays, tacos, baked goods, and coffee is half off.

Gigi’s Bakery and Cafe is located at 2200 W Temple St.

Next stop: La Caridad Restaurant just across the street!

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Order your Delilah Bakery pies soon!

It might not be too late – Delilah Bakery is taking orders for Thanksgiving pies, which is coming up soon on Thursday, November 25. Order delicious fillings like Pumpkin Bourbon Pie, Cherry Cobbler (a classic), or a Apple Brown Betty. You can also grab a tub of whipped cream for $5!

These gals know what they are doing – they took home third place last September at KCRW’s 2nd Annual Good Food Pie Contest in Beverly Hills for their Peanut Butter Pie with Chocolate Cookie Crust.

Click here to download the Thanksgiving menu.

Click here to download the Order Form.

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EPAA Pet of the Week: Frankie

Frankie is a miracle dog! He was found after an animal attacked him in Echo Park. He had to endure a tough surgery stitching him back together again. Then he was taken to the shelter and, sadly, no one claimed him. He is now a big kisser and cuddler (and a great fly catcher), while at the same time, he loves to play and be chased. He loves the dog park and the dog beach. He’s great with other dogs, and doesn’t seem interested in cats at all.

  • He’s about 2-3 years old and weighs about 15 lbs (maybe Chihuahua/Jindo or Shiba Inu mix).
  • He has been neutered, vaccinated and microchipped.
  • An adoption contract, home check and adoption fee is required.
  • If interested please email info@echoparkanimalalliance.com.

Click here to download Frankie’s flyer. Learn more about the Echo Park Animal Alliance (EPAA).

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