Best Activities To Do This Week In L.A. - July 25
It's hard to believe that summer is almost half over. But, don't fret as there are still tons of fun summer activities for you to enjoy. Treat yourself to a hoppy Monday with a special beer dinner in Redondo Beach, followed Tuesday by a sunset rooftop painting session lead by artist Gage John Lazare. Hump Day is the perfect day to venture out to a new food truck brought to you by some of the best restaurant minds in the biz, and Thursday brings you out to an enchanted forest for one of Shakespeare's most beloved plays. Back-to-back downtown Music Center events will have you moving and grooving Friday night and Saturday day, while a day celebrating all things Little Tokyo will cap off a week filled with food and fun.
Modern Times Beer Dinner
Hudson House
514 N Pacific Coast Hwy.
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
(310) 798-9183
www.hudsonhousebar.com
Here's a reason to actually look forward to Monday. Hudson House in Redondo Beach will be partnering with San Diego's Modern Times Brewery to host a Beer Dinner tonight at 7pm. Part of the restaurant's recurring "Flights and Bites" beer dinner series, the evening will include a selection of Modern Times beers perfectly paired with family-style-served small bites like seared venison loin and crispy Arctic char. Curated beers will range from a passion fruit guava Gose, to a coffee stout, to a grape saison. Grab your $55 ticket before they run out.
Rooftop Painting Session
The London West Hollywood at Beverly Hills
1020 N. San Vicente Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90069
(866) 282-4560
www.thelondonwesthollywood.com
You may have heard about paint nights taking place around the city, but tonight's Sunset Painting Series takes it to the next level. Not only will you be guided through the steps to create a Gage John Lazare work of art, but the artist himself will be leading the class. Known for his colorful, pop-art style portraits of public figures and celebrities, Lazare will help you create your own masterpiece to take home. Painting materials and a glass of Rose will be provided to each guest, as well as the option to order additional cocktails or food from the Boxwood on the Roof menu. Tickets are $50, with a portion of the proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity. Tonight is the first in a series of three sessions taking place over the next three months atop The London's extraordinary rooftop.
Visit New Food Truck: Pico House
Check Twitter or Facebook for Location
www.picohouse.com
From the culinary brains that brought you Bestia, Ray's and Stark Bar, Blue Hill, and more, comes a new food truck that goes beyond greasy burgers and grilled cheese. Pico House Food Truck serves up healthy grain bowls in four flavor-packed options: the Robertson Short Rib, Crenshaw Meatball, Grandma's Pork, and Union Lamb. Every bowl gives your taste buds a multicultural flavor journey, while remaining nice and healthy. Vegetarians will love the veggie versions of the Robertson Short Rib and Union Lamb, as well as their Mixed Grain Salad with seasonal vegetables. Don't worry if you've got a sweet tooth, there will also be desserts available from new pastry company Heavy Cream, as well as Ugly Fruit soda, made from overripe farmers market fruit. Pico House is out for business Tuesday - Sunday, 11:00am - 3:00pm, and as with all food trucks, they're always on the move, so be sure to check their social media pages to see where they're at.
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Will Geer's Theatricum Botanicum
1419 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd.
Topanga, CA 90290
(310) 455-3723
www.theatricum.com
Is there any better place to watch a theater performance about an enchanted forest than in an actual forest? One of Shakespeare's most popular plays, and one of the company's signature productions, A Midsummer Night's Dream returns to the outdoor stage at Theatricum Botanicum. Providing an outdoor setting like few places in L.A. can, the theater will once again be transformed into an enchanted forest inhabited by fairies and humans with intertwining stories. Romance, comical misunderstandings, unrequited love, and a little magic are all part of this story that resolves through a midsummer night's revelries, amidst the enduring power of nature. Tonight's performance includes a pre-show Mediterranean buffet in the theater's adjacent gardens, complete with costumed fairies.
DJ Nights DTLA
The Music Center Plaza
135 N. Grand Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
www.musiccenter.org
As the sun sets the fun heats up in Downtown L.A.'s Music Center Plaza, as DJ Nights DTLA returns for its 12th year in a row. Tonight, Grammy-winning, multi-instrumentalist Alberto Lopez transforms the Music Center into an eclectic world party, spinning beats and grooves to get you moving under the stars. Food and drinks will be available for purchase, and tables and chairs will be provided (so leave your lawn furniture and picnic blankets at home). The event is open to all ages, and runs from 8pm - 11pm. DJ Nights alternate with Dance Nights (where top L.A. dance instructors offer beginner lessons on an open air dance floor alongside live music) every Friday through September.
Celebrate National Chicken Wing Day!
Tart
Farmer's Daughter Hotel
115 South Fairfax Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 556-2608
www.tartrestaurant.com
On National Chicken Wing Day, L.A. offers a ton of options for great places to eat wings. One of those spots TART, which is located in the Farmer's Daughter Hotel, will offer up their a "Wing Warrior" challenge. The five piece "Wing Warrior" challenge includes wings drenched in delicious hot sauces ranging from 9000 to 600,000 on the Scoville scale. The wing special is available for $8 and includes 72 and Sunny (Most Wanted Habanero Sauce, 9,000 Scoville), Spicy Chick (Dave's Insanity Sauce, 142,000 Scoville), Seriously Hot TART (Mad Dog 357 Ghost Pepper Sauce, 150,000 Scoville), Atomic Bootie Burner (Da' Bomb Ground zero Sauce, 321,000 Scoville) and Nuclear War-zone (Mad Dog 357 Hot Sauce 600,000 Scoville). Guests who finish all five wings in five minutes without consuming any beverages will receive their wing special free of charge, and will receive 50 percent off one TART entrée. The special menu debuted on July 4th weekend and is ongoing as part of their happy hour menu, and during regular hours as an off-menu option.
National Dance Day
Grand Park
200 N. Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90012
www.musiccenter.org
The Music Center is the place to be this weekend, as National Dance Day is back once again for a day of reveling in all things dance. Get ready to bust a move at this year's celebration with a routine set to Meghan Trainor's "Dance Like Yo Daddy," with choreography found on the Music Center's website. Whether you've got aspirations of going pro, or just like to shake it in your living room, all skill levels are welcome to participate in this free dance extravaganza. Cast members and choreographers from "So You Think You Can Dance," as well as executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, will join in on the day's activities. After the National Dance Day routine is performed, some of Los Angeles' best dance troupes will take the stage, ending with a dance party in the Grand Park fountain splash pad. Welcomes and warm ups start at 10am, and the event runs until 2pm.
Delicious Little Tokyo
Little Tokyo
Downtown Los Angeles
www.golittletokyo.com
This weekend, Go Little Tokyo presents three days of authentic food and drink experiences from the streets of Little Tokyo in Downtown L.A. The celebration began Friday, but today is your day to visit the Japanese American National Museum for a cultural and culinary walking tour that covers the historic sights of the neighborhood, stopping at local specialty stores for samples of Japanese treats. You'll also have the chance to see a screening of award winning film There is a New World Somewhere with a filmmaker Q&A, visit L.A.'s premiere ukulele cafe, U-Space, for a free beginner's workshop, and contribute to a collective, temporary public art mural with a free interactive paint workshop. The area's neighborhood highball bar, Wolf & Crane, will host a mixology lesson and tasting event, and don't miss the Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple's annual Obon Festival with games, cultural performances, tea ceremony, and more.
