,

Easter bunny + egg hunts at the Echo Park Farmers’ Market

Echo Parkian Peter Lassen and the Easter bunny at the Echo Park Farmers’ Market in 2012

The annual Easter Egg Hunt at the Echo Park Farmers’ Market takes place on Friday, March 29.

The craft table will help the kids prepare bunny ears to wear for the egg hunt, and the Easter Bunny will be on hand to take photos (bring your cameras!).

Toddlers ages five and under will start at 5:00 pm, ages six and over at 6:00 pm.

If you’re not able to make it with the family to the hunt on Friday, check out the Saturday egg hunt with the Echo Park Rec Center.

/122 Comments/by
,

4th Annual Echo Park Art Walk call for participants

The 4th annual Echo Park Art Walk (Public Displays of Art) is taking place on Saturday, April 20, 2013 from noon to 6:00 pm. This year is a little different – the Art Walk is collaborating with the Friends of Elysian Heights for some extra fun:

The mission behind this event is to “connect and celebrate community” and to share the neighborhood culture with locals and visitors alike.  In collaboration with Friends of Elysian Heights Elementary School’s “Art & Music Festival,” this year’s event is made possible by support from local businesses, schools, artists, musicians, neighborhood organizations, community members and residents.

Explore and discover whimsical chalk art, chain link fence galleries, an art piece scavenger hunt, kids activities, driveway theaters, movie screenings, hands on crafting stations, sculptures, musical and dance performances, live art works, special store promotions and other various creative & mind stimulating public displays of ART!

Last year, over 70 venues and artists participated in the event, and it was a lot of fun! Once again this year, the organizers are looking for volunteers and vendors to participate.

Click here to learn about being a participating venue, or if you’re an artist or musician.

Contact Heather if you’re interested in volunteering at heather@artneedsfreedom.com

/3 Comments/by
,

Echo Park’s Little Joy bar reopening Friday

Little Joy, the former dive bar on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Portia in Echo Park, underwent ownership changes and quite a few renovations since its closure last November. Now, it’s reopening a couple of days earlier than reported on Friday, March 29.

Owners Reyna-Donaldson (an Echo Park resident) and Don Andes have restored much of the bar’s original interior flare, according to a press release:

Little Joy has been stripped to its industrial bones and then carefully layered with a touch of Art Deco and a lick of rock’n’roll.  The building’s original brick and broken plaster has been uncovered along with a number of authentic details that highlight the location’s previous lives as a 1920s auto body shop, a mid-century pharmacy and ultimately, a bar beginning in the early ‘60s.

The pool tables remain, but one of the improvements we are personally looking forward to is the introduction of several beers on tap (eight, to be exact), a “rotating menu of local and hard-to-find brews.” Wines and cocktails will also be on the menu – and you can now leave the cash at home to pay with a card.

Gone are the peeling plastic-covered chairs and sticky tables, replaced with fresh bar stools and new booths. We doubt that Corona painting made it through the changes. One thing is for sure – Little Joy is no longer a dive bar, but at least the bathrooms are MUCH improved!

Related articles:

  • Echo Park Bar Owners Aim to Give Dodger Fans Some Extra Joy, FishbowlLA
  • Little Joy Sneak Peak: The bar is nice but look at that ladies room, The Eastsider LA
/756 Comments/by
, , ,

Echo Park Spring Egg Hunt on Saturday

A couple of weeks ago we met the new director of the Echo Park Recreation Center. We are very excited that he is on board, and he seems very eager to reach out to the community about everything going on at the Rec Center.

First up, the FREE Echo Park Spring Egg Hunt. Families will be delighted with this event, taking place on Saturday, March 30 from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm at the play area.

Egg hunt start times/schedule is as follows:

5 years & under: 10:30 am
6 years & 8 years: 11:00 am
9 years & older: 11:30 am

Activities include: Arts n’ Crafts , Face Painting, Music, Egg Hunts, and a visit from The Spring Bunny.

The Echo Park Recreation Center is located at 1632 Bellevue Ave. For more information, call or email 213-250-3578 echopark.rc@lacity.org

/556 Comments/by
,

“Song for Echo Park” screening on Wednesday

Public screening of: Song for Echo Park
Featuring Performances by: Judson, The Digs, nav/attack, Human Mind Automobile
Taix Lounge, 1911 W Sunset Blvd.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013 at 9:30 pm

From the event organizers: 

Directed by Dick Thompson of Wilcox Session, and written/performed by song-poet Judson McKinney, Song for Echo Park is s an epic snapshot into the heart of a mysterious and influential urban district of ECHO PARK. The film follows the verse of a vagrant musician in the fight for his career, docked and stranded in the place where “no one ever cries.” In his quest for individual artistic vision, the narrator paradoxically becomes an “everyman” who unwittingly becomes an invisible fixture of his environment. The spirit of Homer and Woody Guthrie converge with modern film to create art which transcends the mere immortalization of place, but rather reveals itself as a signpost for clues to times and seasons present.

Click here for more information and to RSVP.

 

/274 Comments/by

Learn about Echo Park plants and trees on Saturday

Flickr Photo via Jodi K.

The Echo Park Gathering of Elders and Caregivers is hosting a walk on Saturday with certified landscape architect ad EP resident Michael O’Brien.

The hour-long walk will highlight the flora and trees of Echo Park; handouts will be provided. Dress for the weather, wear comfortable shoes, and bring plenty of water. The event is free and open to the public.

Meet at 9:o0 am on Saturday, March 23 at Glendale Boulevard and Park Avenue.

 

/547 Comments/by
,

Echo Park Lake to re-open mid-May

It’s hard to believe it’s been nearly two years since we walked along the shores of Echo Park Lake, and it won’t be long until we can all enjoy it again. Last Wednesday was the final Echo Park Lake Oversight Committee meeting before the grand opening, where representatives from the Bureau of Engineering and Council District 13 joined community members in providing the final details on the project wrap-up.

The good news? The lake will reopen mid-May! Plans are to have a grand opening open to the public. A few notes on the rest of the items, including festivals, the Lotus blossoms, and more after the jump.

Read more

/1,009 Comments/by
,

Street closures in Echo Park for Sunday’s LA Marathon

The annual LA Marathon is hitting the streets once again this Sunday, March 17, 2013. As usual, there will be many street closures and restricted parking starting that morning – but plan on parking your car the night before unless you’re willing to scramble for parking as early as 4:00 am Sunday.

Starting at Dodger Stadium, the runners will first go down Elysian Park and Sunset Boulevard to Downtown LA before hitting Bellevue and Glendale Boulevard north along Echo Park Lake. Sunset Boulevard through Silver Lake will also be affected, so make sure to check the maps for street closures and timelines.

The marathon runners should hit Bellevue and Douglas in Echo Park around 10:00 am, so by the time some of us Echo Parkians roll out of bed things should be clear.

If you’re not worried about the street closures, be sure to have your earplugs ready. Helicopters (mainly news) hover for hours before and during the start of the marathon, arriving as early as 5:00 am and low enough to disturb  the neighborhood that does, indeed, exist around Dodger Stadium.

Also on the agenda is the LA Big 5K on Saturday, March 16 starting at 8:00 am.

Related links (via The Eastsider LA):

/1,238 Comments/by

The great Echo Park ficus tree debacle of 2013

It might be a little dramatic to be upset over a couple of trees, but if you’ve been around the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Echo Park Avenue, it’s obvious that the street has greatly changed for the worse with the removal of two mature, bushy and green ficus trees.

For those of you who have remained indoors for the last couple of weeks and thus denied yourself the beautiful outdoors of Echo Park, check out the before and after photos below:

Before. Photos courtesy of Rosie Betanzos.

Workers install tiny foot wells for new, much smaller, trees. These guys do not like having their picture taken.

A statement posted on the Echo Elysian Neighborhood Council forum by CD13 Field Deputy Oliver DelGado sums up why the trees were removed:

On Saturday, February 23, the Bureau of Street Services’ (BSS) Urban Forestry Division removed two Indian Laurel Fig trees from the northwest corner of Echo Park Avenue and Sunset Boulevard. This was part of a sidewalk reconstruction project that was deemed necessary because of safety concerns.

Our office was not aware of the tree removal until after it occurred.  The community was not informed, either – the BSS tree removal policy requires a public posting of which trees will be removed and a public hearing only when  three or more trees are removed from a given site.

Our office contacted BSS’ Urban Forestry Division when we became aware of the removal. At our urging, BSS is planting new trees in the immediate vicinity, and the sidewalk repairs and new bus shelter are being completed in the next several days.

The key points here are:

  1. The sidewalk was damaged and dangerous – you can’t really get around that.
  2. BUT the BSS did not notify the community that the trees would be removed due to some self-constituted rule that the community didn’t need to know because there were only two – not more than three – trees removed. We agree with one commenter on the forum, calling it a “terrible excuse.”
  3. Echo Park is an involved community full of movers and shakers who seek real solutions, not cookie-cutter policies that neglect the best interests of the community. The BSS simply can’t get away with something like this without anyone noticing.
  4. There are new trees being planted that, from what we’ve been told, are not in-line with what knowledgeable community members deem appropriate.
  5. SHADE for bus-goers is a simple concept, one that can be provided by green TREES!

Concerned that other trees would be removed without notice, someone wrapped signs around trees on the other side of Walgreens along Logan Street.

So the trees are gone… it’s a done deal. But what’s next?

On tonight’s agenda, the Greater Echo Park Elysian Neighborhood Council’s Planning and Land Use Committee will address the issue at 7:00 pm at Logan Elementary. The Echo Park Improvement Association is also keeping track, and in the coming weeks the Positive Energy Group/Crime Prevention will be holding a meeting specifically to address the issues of communication between city departments.

We’ll post more info when it becomes available!

/770 Comments/by

The Eastsider LA hosting a live reading of website comments

Put this not-to-miss event on your calendar for this weekend – The Eastsider LA is hosting a 30-minute live reading of comments from last year that users posted on its website. If you’re a fan of the site like we are, you know some of the comments are often outlandish, mostly hilarious, and always incredibly entertaining. The event description is spot on: “It’s like ‘Our Town’ if Our Town had more arguments about hipsters and gentrification.”

The performance-style reading, which will also serve as a fundraiser, is directed by Rory Coleman Mitchell. Cast includes Noel Arthur (Bad Lieutentant: Port of Call New Orleans) Brian Beacock, Alison Cardoso (PLUR, Cartel), Jennifer DeFilippo, Jeff Galfer (The River, Buried Treasure), Kimberly Irion (Inappropriate Comedy) Joshua St. Thomas, and more.

See you on Saturday, March 9 at 2:00 pm in the Lounge at Taix in Echo Park, 1911 W Sunset Boulevard.

/275 Comments/by
,

Tierra Mia Coffee taking over Echo Lake Coffee

It’s only been a few months since the new owners of Echo Lake Coffee Co took over the former Downbeat Cafe on Alvarado near Sunset Boulevard in Echo Park, but we are told today Echo Lake Coffee is becoming Tierra Mia Coffee.

Owner Ulysses Romero hopes to be opening the Tierra Mia Coffee location soon, which will be its third location in the past year. Romero writes in an email:

Tierra Mia Coffee provides a very high quality latin-inspired coffee offering that is reflected in our menu and store environment. We sell choice micro-lot coffees from some of the best farms in Latin America and roast our out coffee with a fanatical quest to produce the best taste. Our in-store beverage offering includes our brewed coffees as well as several signature drinks such as our mocha mexicano, horchatta latte, cubano con leche, horchata frappe and our rice and beans frappe. In addition to our coffee roastery, Tierra Mia Coffee also operates a bakery and we bake our pastries daily for all of our stores.

Fresh roasted coffee and pastries? Sounds pretty good! Here’s to hoping this one will stick (and will they bring back Wednesday night jazz?).

Tierra Mia Coffee is located at 1202 N. Alvarado St. Planned hours are 6:30 am – 10:00 pm, 7 days a week.

/263 Comments/by

Screening of Homeboy film on February 21

Celebrate, Educate, Stop Hate presents: HOMEBOY

HOMEBOY takes an unprecedented look at the lives of gay Latino men in the Los Angeles area who are former gang members.
Through candid one-on-one interviews, the men vividly describe the realization and acceptance of their sexual orientation and desire, and their experience in a culture defined by masculinity, heterosexuality and violence. Mature content.

View the trailer here:

Thursday, February 21, 2013
Reception – 6:00pm
Screening – 7:00pm
Q&A with Director Dino Dinco and cast members – 8:00pm
Special Guests: Dino Dinco, Luis Rodriguez and Hector Silva

Cathedral Center of Saint Paul
840 Echo Park Avenue, LA CA 90026

This is a FREE/GRATIS community event.
Parking is FREE at the Center and around the lake.

This is a submission from Celebrate, Educate, Stop Hate. For more information, contact Teresa Sitz at teresa.sitz@gmail.com or (213) 375-8836

/551 Comments/by
,

Allumette opens today in Echo Park

Allumette

Not too long ago owners Charles Kelly and Bill Didonna closed Echo Park Avenue restaurant Allston Yacht Club, and tonight is much-anticipated debut of the duo’s new restaurant, Allumette.

French for “matchstick,” Allumette is certainly going to “light up” the Echo Park dining scene with a destination for foodies and even budding foodies (like myself). Even after the months of renovations, any AYC fan would recognize the space. But new lighting dark wood, and partitions separating the dining areas give it a new more “serious” vibe to accompany the epicurial menu, composed of small tasting plates with a seasonal focus.

Led by chef Miles Thompson (formerly of the pop-up Vagrancy Project at AYC, among others), the food is both adventurous and accessible. The Fried Oyster comes decorated with Kimchi ranch dressing and a deliciously crunchy Asian Pear mignonette that bursts of flavor with each bite. The Bitter Lettuce dish is simple and un-fussy, the smoked soy cream a unique dressing and a tasty starter. The Grilled Octopus with a sour apple syrup drizzled on top is so not the rubbery stuff of failed Octopus dishes of my past experience at other restaurants. And the Boneless Whole Sea Bream with bouillabaisse sauce – a $40 dish but a meal for two – is any seafood lovers dream.

If the fancy food isn’t enough, there’s a fancy (also accessible) drink menu to boot. Designed by bartender extraordinaire Serena Herrick from Harvard & Stone, the cocktail list is eccentric (but not in a bad way!). If you like bitters, try the Last Ango with Angostura Bitters, rum, Orgeat, pineapple gomme, and lime – it is heavenly. For a hot day, Red Letter Day is light and refreshing with rum, vermouth, Orgeat, lemon, soda water and Yuzu bitters. To warm up your insides, try the Smoking Gun with Mexcal, Cynar and Calisaya, and a brandy-soaked cherry at the bottom. Another favorite is the You Live Only Twice, which has both Sake and Gin, tangerine, peppercorns, and lime.

And for dessert, the Cheesecake Mousse will thrill any palette, but there’s also Red Velvet Cake and Citrus Curd.

In terms of what to expect, vegetarians and the un-adventurous beware – if you’re not willing to break any rules (or in my case, secretly looking up some definitions on my smart phone under the table), this might not be the place for you. There are only 15 dishes, and limited seating at only 30 guests per evening, and substitutions are “politely declined.” If you’re expecting to be wined and dined, you won’t be disappointed.

Time will tell if Echo Park is ready for a such an epicurean dining adventure, and we hope Allumette is here to stay. As Zagat put it so nicely earlier today, “If Jonathan Gold thinks the local hipsters are taking to Cortez in droves, that restaurant has met its match.”

Allumette is located at 1320 Echo Park Ave. Call (213) 935-8787 for reservations (recommended). Open at 6:00 pm, Tuesday through Sunday.

More photos after the jump!

Fried Oyster

Read more

/428 Comments/by
,

Echo Park wine bar, CitySip, put up for sale

CitySip, Echo Park

Photo provided by CitySip

It’s always a bummer morning when learning that one of our favorite locally-owned spots, CitySip, is being put up for sale.

Owner Nicole Daddio first opened the wine-centric bar on Sunset Boulevard in 2008, and at the end of September completed renovations and a branding “revamp.” The fresh food menu, new taps for craft beers, and a more accessible and laid-back wine experience made the restaurant feel practically brand new.

We don’t have official word on whether or not the restaurant will continue to operate or shut its doors while attracting new owners, or how much the business is going for. Check back later for updates!

UPDATE:

Owner Nicole Daddio confirmed the closure will take place on January 31, with occasional popup events in February and March. She will be making the official announcement this week.

 

/199 Comments/by