AUTRY AFTER HOURS: CELEBRATE

Tomorrow night, June 19th, marks the last in a series of after hour events at the Gene Autry Museum from 6:30 to 9pm. Maybe you’ve heard about it on KCRW. My daughter and I did, and now she would like to attend. Mama has book club, so I may be sending those kiddos with the sitter. It’s summertime, what the heck. Say hello if you see them, but don’t buy them a cocktail. Subsuelo closes out the 2019 Autry After Hours series with a special blend of global sounds, DJ scratch, and a live flamenco performance. Bring your friends and explore the museum in a creative evening you won't want to miss! Tacos, cocktails, wine, and beer available for purchase.

Wednesday, June 19, 2019, 6:30 p.m.–9:00 p.m.

The Autry in Griffith Park

Admission: $5 Nonmember / Free for Autry Members RSVP/Reservations: Reservations Recommended

A DOG'S LIFE

Normally, I’m overwhelmed by technology and don’t have time for apps. I like good old fashioned books and referrals for services from friends. Every now and then, I come across something that really changes my life in a good way, something I’m happy to pass along to others in my life. If you are searching for a pet sitter near you and your friends’ sitters are all booked up, check out Rover.com. This website has been instrumental in helping me find my latest and greatest sitter. Now when I travel, my favorite fur child has a holiday of her own. I’m delightedly updated with photos and videos on a daily basis and am completely confident that she is safe and happy.

TARTINE MANUFACTORY

The latest to hit the industrial side of downtown in The Row is The Manufactory, consisting of famed NoCal establishment Tartine…in the form of sit-down restaurant Tartine Bianco, walk-up ready made food counter The Market, Ice Cream & Coffee Window and elevated dining at Alameda Supper Club. Last Sunday, the place was hopping and the restaurant was packed. Cool, open, airy, upscale casual is how I’d describe it. Not wanting a formal lunch and craving eating al fresco in the wide open sunny spaces afforded by no automobiles burdening The Row, we opted for the Market. A more than ample sampling of slab sandwiches, soup and a variety of desserts in hand, we found a comfortable spot outside. One goes to Tartine for the bread, and the sandwich was indeed outstanding. I regret to say that I was disappointed by the desserts. We wandered around the stylish shops a bit afterwards before claiming our validated parked car in the garage. Free parking downtown…now that is a treat!

MUGSHOT COFFEE ROASTERS

Wait, another coffeeshop in the hood, really? Isn’t Silver Lake already a cliche of cafe/juice bar/yoga studio/repeat? I swear this one is different. And while I might mock, I am an active participant and happy imbiber of coffee, juice and yoga. My friend Julia and I happened to be driving down Glendale Boulevard one rainy weekend when we spotted a crowd outside the newly opened Mugshot. Never one to shy away from a party (with or without invitation extended), we decided to crash this one. I’m happy to report we were warmly accepted by the crowd of mainly friends and co-workers of the owners of this very neighborhood feeling establishment. Not overrun by hipsters (at least not yet), this cafe felt old school…Silver Lake/Echo Park circa 1995…on a strip of Glendale Blvd. that can actually use a new coffeeshop. The beans are roasted onsite, and my cortado was dy-no-mite!

RED CAR RIVER PARK

Look what history you can find when walking across the bridge from Atwater Village back home to Silver Lake. On an unusually blustery LA weekend, my two besties, my dog and I grabbed lunch and Dune, followed by dessert at Proof. How can you not get dessert from Proof when it is directly across the street, people? Plus, we were meeting another friend for “coffee.” On the way home, while crossing the LA River, I spotted this mural for the first time EVER! One of the old bridge’s pylons is painted with this amazing mural depicting a bygone era of streetcars that once crossed over the LA River before it became the paved channel of today. Feeling nostalgic? Take a stroll across the somewhat dangerous Glendale-Hyperion Bridge, check out the mural and walk further down to Sunnynook River Park. Catch it while you can before this area changes yet again.