BREAKING NEWS ANTHONY BOURDAIN & JONATHAN GOLD TO OPEN RESTAURANT TOGETHER IN HEAVEN

In an astounding joint statement that sent the four winds howling from the summit of Mount Olympus through Valhalla and to the very pearled gates of Paradise, Jonathan Gold and Anthony Bourdain announced Friday they would open a restaurant together in Heaven.

"It's in the early planning stages, but the working name is Tony Gold's," Bourdain told mythical Mozza beat reporter Morty Goldstein, Sr. during drinks at Jilly's Saloon. "We both thought Jonathan Bourdain's sounded too fancy."

Gold confirmed the report to the Mozza Tribune and added the place would sit 56,000, just like his cherished Dodger Stadium.  

"The seats will be much nicer than those at the Stadium and the parking lot will be vastly improved with food trucks scattered about," Gold said. "Tony and I have already contacted Enzo Ferrari about handling valet and he actually hired Fangio, Senna and Jim Clark earlier today. It's on.".

As for the food, it will most certainly be worldly. Gold and Bourdain have already talked to a few chefs including, according to sources,  French legends Auguste Escoffier and Fernand Point as well as Juan "Queso" Guzman, the storied East Culiacan-born inventor of the quesadilla. 

Eater Heaven obtained a portion of the interview Goldstein, Sr. did with the two recently arrived North Americans and some of it is published below.  The piece - which will run this Sunday in the Watts Times - is more a conversation between Gold and Bourdain, with Goldstein - wisely - staying mostly quite other than the occasional 'pop' of a shot glass being smashed onto the Jilly's bar top. The audio begins with Jonathan Gold ordering drinks.

Gold – We’ll have the Nebuchadnezzar of 356 B.C. Cheval Blanc.

Bourdain – In shot glasses. Forget those goblets.   

(Sound of wine being opened and poured.)

Bourdain - The 356 B..C. is a great vintage.

Gold - Alexander's birth year.

.They sip.

Bourdain - So, well, how'd you get here, J Gold?

Gold - "Ram."

Bourdain - Really? Sounds uncomfortable.

Gold - Not the animal, Bourdain.   My truck. The Dodge Ram.

Bourdain - Sweet

(A few shot glasses hit the bar top.)

Bourdain - Man, I was shocked and saddened to hear about you.

Gold - As was I you.

Bourdain - But man, the outpouring. The sendoff. Was beautiful, brother. I was watching it on the Big Screen at Perino's.

Gold - Perino's has a big screen?

Bourdain - They brought it in for you.   Last time was Ali-Frazier. The Thrilla in Manila. . Anyway, I was watching, and they had on "live" Ruth and Nancy staying up til dawn’s early light in Umbria talking about you.  Was beautiful.

Gold – I’m a fortunate man to have friends like that.

Bourdain - And Ruth's story. That kicker.  I don't even want to repeat it.

Gold - Don't.

Bourdain - I won't. But, let me ask you something about Nancy and Ruth. They're beautiful. Successful. Kindhearted.  They got it all. But, only one thing makes me wonder about them, especially about Nancy..

Gold - What?

Bourdain -   Nancy's boyfriend. What are they doing with that guy?   Half the time he's going on about the Nickersons, Grape Street, the 60s.

Gold - Ah, Krikorian, he ain't as hard as he lets on. In fact, something rough happen to Laurie and the kids?  Hell, Krikorian, he'd be there in the first wave.

Bourdain - That's comforting.

(The glasses hit the bar top)

Gold – You know, I’m from Rollin’ 60s.  Grew up on 63rd Street.  My ‘hood just about invented the drive-by.

Bourdain – Hmmp. I always associated you more with drive-ins.

They both laugh.  

Bourdain - I got another question for you.  That friend of yours, Margy.  What's up with that slow dance thing of hers?

Gold (laughs) - She was just making the kids and Laurie and me us feel not so down in the room. 

Bourdain - She's not exactly Ginger Rogers.

Gold - Hey, speaking of Ginger, you seen Fred up here?

Bourdain - Last night.  He was dancing and singing “Cheek to Cheek”.  Man, when you hear that opening line up here? Whoa.

Gold – Hey, Anthony, at our restaurant we should have Fred give dance lessons. Like on Friday at happy hour.

Bourdain – I love it. Fred Fridays.

(Shot glasses hit the bar top.)

Bourdain – We’ll probably need a mascot.

Just then, a sweet-looking golden retriever rescue - with rear legs that appear to be made completely of two whole prosciutto di Parma - ambles nearby. Gold stares.

Gold - Zeke? Hey, Zeke! When did you get here?

Zeke -Tuesday. Eh yo, I was at your birthday party Saturday.  Burgers were great! Nabbed me seven.

Bourdain - That’s the dog who stole my cheeseburger the one time I was at a Nancy’s backyard barbecue.

Gold - That claim hardly puts you in an elite unit.  He’ll be working the room

They clink glasses.

Gold - We'll need a sommelier  or two, right TB?

Bourdain - Right, JG.  Hey, how about that kid used to somm at Mozza?  Used to work "The First Supper" up here before he got canned. He knew his grapes.

Gold - Jeremiah Henderson.. Good idea.  

Bourdain -   So it’s Tony Gold’s

Gold - Tony Gold’s it is..

Glasses clink.

Bourdain – And next month when you do the 101 Best Restaurants in Heaven you can rate it #1 and do that disclaimer you do for Nancy and the Mozza Corner.

Glasses clink.

Bourdain – So, Gold, where exactly up here do you think we should locate our restaurant?

Gold – Come on, Bourdain.   They gotta have a Pico Boulevard up here.

- 30

"Heaven, I'm in heaven  

And my heart beats so that I can hardly speak;  

And I seem to find the happiness I seek

When we're out together and dancing cheek to cheek   - Cole Porter

BREAKING UPDATE - The Great One, Joel Robuchon,  will command the kitchen at Tony Gold's. 

on the fabled road to pellicano

Top Ten Reasons Michael Cimarusti Hasn't Won The James Beard Award

By Nancy Silverton and Michael Krikorian

For the eighth year in a row, Michael Cimarusti, one of the great chefs of, not only the West, but the entire United States, failed to come home with a James Beard Award. 

Investigative reporters from the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times looked into why this is so. Here are the top ten reasons Michael Cimarusti has not won a James Beard Award

10. Never properly thanked Mrs. Paul for Providence's most popular dish, fish sticks..

9.  Beard voters automatically assume Michael C has already won.

8.  Close ties to feared organized crime figure Donato "Don" Poto 

7.  Actually believes that bullshit line "It's an honor just to be nominated."

6.  Always gets the most votes, but since voters misspell his last name, they aren't counted.

5  Most people think Providence is in Rhode Island, 

4. Backlash by presenters who fear they can't pronounced his name.

3. Doesn't really want to win, because then he can't be nominated

2. It was learned he hired a renowned watercolorist to paint spots on regular prawns

!. And the number 1 reason.....Michael Cimarusti already has a beard.

"The Hardest Thing I've Ever Done", Daniel Zaragoza, Aka The Fastest Dreamer, Runs The Boston Marathon

Daniel Zaragoza, the famed "Fastest Dreamer", had a game plan for yesterday's Boston Marathon and it was fairly simple; Run 26 miles and 385 yards in Boston one second faster than his stunning debut at the 2017 Los Angeles Marathon which he completed in two hours, 35 minutes and 24 seconds. . 

But, The Gods had plans of their own. Cold, slanting rains and persistent head winds - as well as long Bostonian hills - "slowed" Mozza2Go Go Go's Marathon Man down to 2:48.53, just over 13 minutes off his pace in L.A. when he was the 20th fastest runner overall.. 

"It was the hardest thing I've done in my entire life," Zaragoza said hours after the race. "My game plan was to go at a six minute pace, but that became 6:10. then it became just to finish. Yes, it was tough. Like, really tough."

At mile 23, the Fastest Dreamer came up with a  new goal.  "With three miles to go I just wanted to survive."

He survived and was, after an initial disappointment,  thrilled to have competed in America's premier marathon 

Yuki Kawauchi, 31 of Japan,   2:15.58 of Japan won the race with a time of 2:15.58

Desiree Lindon, 34 of Chula Vista, California, with a time of 2:39.54, became the first American to win women's event in 33 years

Tim Don, the world-record holder in the Ironman triathlon, who broke his neck six months ago, finished in 2:49:42.

Daniel Zaragoza's life was featured in this article published a week ago in the Times of London, the Beirut Daily News, the Stalingrad Sentinel and right here in Krikorian Writes. Here it is.

http://www.krikorianwrites.com/blog/2018/4/12/the-fastest-dreamer-daniel-zaragoza-mozza2go-go-gos-marathon-man-is-off-to-boston

"The Fastest Dreamer" Daniel Zaragoza, Mozza2Go Go Go's Marathon Man, Is Off To Boston

Last year, while eating at the counter at Mozza2Go, I struck up a conversation with a new employee named Daniel Zaragoza. He told me a little about himself and, when I asked more, he said he was a Dreamer, having come to California  from Mexico at age two or three and then, almost casually, like it was no big deal, added he had recently run his first marathon, the L.A. one, finishing as the 20th fastest racer in the event and fifth fastest American.

I nodded and said said something like "Good for you", all the while thinking to myself, "Yeah, sure you're right. And I play centerfield for the New York Yankees."

Later that night, at home, I, for the hell of it, looked up the results of the 2017 Los Angeles Marathon. Damn, that dreamer wasn't just dreaming. Listed at 20th overall and the fifth American. with a time of 2:35.24.  was Daniel Zaragoza,  aka Mozza2Go Go Go's Marathon Man. The Fastest Dreamer. 

For the stat folks out there, Daniel was only 52 seconds off the time of the woman's professional champion, Hellen Jerkurgat of, big surprise, Kenya and less than. 12 minutes off the fastest American professional marathoner,  John Pickhaver. 

Daniel Zaragoza, 24,  was born in Veracruz, Mexico on October 4, 1993, but he has no memory of there. 

"My earliest memories are of Lincoln Heights, Los Angeles," he said, adding he attended Griffin Avenue Elementary, Florence Nightingale Middle and Abraham Lincoln High School.   At Lincoln High, he ran cross country and track & field in his junior and senior years. Daniel won his league's champion for cross country and made it to the finals for the citywide event.  "As a kid, I didn't understand what it was to be undocumented," he said. 

It wasn't until he was a senior ii high school that he fully understood the ramifications.

"Everyone was talking about universities, but i didn't really have a option," Daniel said. That troubled  him. "I am the only dreamer in my family. All of my cousins and siblings are citizens and so are most of my friends. It's hard sometimes not to be able to talk to someone about it.".

 So he escaped. With a pair of worn out running shoes..

"When I ran, i felt equal. It didn't matter where you came from, how much money you have. It was about who wanted it the most and who would train the hardest."

After high school, Daniel went to East LA College. He received a $500 scholarship which covered his first semester. He couldn't work because he didn't have a social security card, but his parents saved up and paid for the another semester. 

Daniel credits the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, (DACA) for allowing him to continue his education.

"Thanks to the Dream act, i was able to transfer to Cal State LA. where I ran for the team there with a partial athletic scholarship," said Daniel, who graduated in May, 2017.

Daniel runs and trains with BlacklistLA, the "Run Organization" founded in 2013 that you may have seen at a late night red light near you.  You know, those 200 or 300 crazy folks running through the streets at midnight? All them seemingly smiling and loving this city. They make you want to park your car and join them, even if your not in running shape.  

"BlacklistLA has been an terrifically positive influence for my running," Daniel said as he prepared to leave Mozza2Go and get on a plane Thursday night bound for Boston. "They have supported me and without them I wouldn't be going to Boston" 

Daniel credits BlacklistLA founder Erik Valiente for being a mentor to him. 

"Erik is someone I talk to about my goals and he does his best to guide me."

Now, the soft spoken dreamer - who I didn't believe at first - is all about motivating others.

"My goal is to make my own company.that inspires others to become whoever they want to be. I want to be able to go around the nation and talk to people and give them motivation, specially dreamers. Being a dreamer is very difficult. I used to hide away from it all the while others where out there fighting for my rights. Now that I'm older, i feel more secure about who I am and not afraid to stand up for dreamers, but in my own way."

And those worn out shoes? They been replaced by some $300 Nike Zoom Vaporfly 4%ers.

It's supposed to rain Monday on the Marathon in Boston, but that won't slow this dreamer down.   

Coobook's Nut Nutter With Straus Barista Milk Could Be Banned From World Cookie Cup Pairs Competition

Ever since the invention of cookies in the 7th Century by the Persians, their pairing with milk has been a delight treasured around the world by billions from childhood to the golden years, an almost mystical combination that brings comfort to body and soul, that soothes a troubled day like one's favorite blanket on a cold, rainy night  

But, now,  a cookie/milk combination - the exquisite food shoppe Cookbook's "Nut Nutter Butter" peanut butter cookie with Straus Family Creamery's Barista Milk - is adding another element to its resume;  controversy   The peanut butter cookie - based on a fabled Nancy Silverton recipe - and milk team is so delicious, so extraordinary, so close-your-eyes-and-savor good that a concerted effort is underway to ban the combo from competing in the upcoming World Cookie Cup competition in Damascus.

"The combo of the Not Nutter and the Barista milk is simply, well, this may sound foolish on my part, but it's too good," said Ruth Graves Wakefield  III, granddaughter of the American chef who invented the chocolate chip cookie in 1938 at the Toll House Inn  in Whitman, Massachusetts with Sue Brides.  "They would demolish the competition and that's not good for the event.  Part of the allure, no, most of the allure of the World Cookie Cup is that, though there are favorites, there is never been a shoe-in  There's not a Secretariat in the '73 Belmont   Not Nutter and Barista, (known in the inner circles as NNAB) would win. It's that simple.  The Cup needs drama, needs suspense. Not a juggernaut."   

Last week In a closed testing conducted by McLaren Racing in Woking, outside of London, the Nut Nutter/Barista team scored an unofficial 675, a score long thought to be unattainable  The highest score ever attained at a World Cookie Cup was back in 1961 when a chocolate chocolate chip cookie made by James Beard teamed with bottled Broguiere's milk to score a 612.  At the time it was thought to be an unbreakable mark, the cookie equivalent of DiMaggio's 56 game hitting streak. Not anymore..  

Wednesday afternoon, a spokesperson for Marta Teegan, the owner Cookbook, which as location on Echo Park Avenue and one on Figueroa in Highland Park, said she would file a formal :"letter of intent to compete" with the United Nations in a matter of hours. The UN Security Council is expected to debate and vote on the case Friday.. 

http://www.cookbookla.com/

Cookies came to America through the Dutch in New Amsterdam in the late 1620s. The Dutch word "koekje" was Anglicized to "cookie" or cooky. 

"They Don't And They Won't!" Ariana Flores Named Mozza International Employee Of The Month

For several minutes, Mozza's James Beard Award winning pastry chef Dahlia Narvaez calmly explained the problems she was having with the serving staff at Passo, the highly praised London eatery Nancy Silverton and her crew had commandeered for the week before Easter.

In firm and controlled voice, Narvaez told the man in charge of the event. John Michael Sookias, that servers were not properly picking up desserts. They picked up plates at an angle, they would often leave one dessert behind, they would not help out unless it was one of their assigned tables.  

Sookias assured her they would do better.

Ariana Flores, Mozza's pastry chef in Singapore, had been listening patiently in the wings, but could no longer be silent. She stormed up to Sookias, pointed a finger in his face and just about yelled like a Marine Corps drill sergeant, "They don't and they won't!"

A day later, they did and they would.

For that, and for dozens of other things - most notably saving the pizza dough - Ariana Flores has been name Mozza's first International Employee of the Month (IEM) for her exemplary performance in London.

Flores, who flew in from Singapore on her on own dime, charmed the staff, did her job, and - outside the restaurant - was a delightful companion, happy to be a tourist, eager to go along and just as willing to lead. On the sardined underground known as "The Tube, in the pouring rain and bitter cold, in the maze of Harrod's, in the hectic first days of service at Passo, she never complained.  Even on a dysfunctional "Hop On, Hop Off" red double-decker bus that she, Narvaez and a reporter were the only passengers on  - and wasted 96 pounds - she was a pleasure. 

For the record, that "they don't and they won't!" line above wasn't a complaint. It was more like an order issued from the United Kingdom's legendary Field Marshall Bernard Montgomery to his Desert Rats in the 1942 2nd Battle of El Alamein in North Africa. Fight better! And they did The team at Passo rallied and performed brilliantly from that moment on.

When informed of the award, Ariana was speechless for several seconds. Then; "I would like to thank my parents Jose and Eloisa, and God. Also my agent and all the people that made this happen."       

The photo below was described by Nancy Silverton as "looking like you two are on your Honeymoon."

London Stunned By Murder Spree, 11 Homicides In 13 Days

It was a quiet night at the mini market in the Kentish Town neighborhood of Northwest London last Tuesday when suddenly the clerk heard a loud clang against the metal shutters on the side of the building. He went outside to investigate and saw a ghastly sight; a teenager slumped against the shutters, moaning in agony, hands tight against his stomach, blood dripping from his wet, shiny fingers.

By chance, a doctor was strolling by just then, a little after 8 p.m.. She dropped to her knees and quickly assessed the gravity of the boy's wounds. The English version of 911 was called. Other people appeared, some of them screamed. Residents of the 6-story apartment complex across the street heard the commotion and looked out their windows

The kid writhed as the doctor called out for towels to hold against the grave injury. Within seconds, the corner of Bartholomew Road and Islip Street was raining towels.  "I threw down four," a neighbor lady said.

The police arrived. They frantically urged on an ambulance as they took over from the doctor, pumping his chest. "They were pumping, pumping, pumping", said a man who works nearby. But, it was too late. The kid was gone. 

A lady arrived. The dead kid was partially covered now with those fallen towels, but what she could see of his jacket looked frighteningly familiar. She told the police to let her through. It could be my son. But, they didn't let her close. 

She called her son's phone. Three, four seconds later, from the dead kid's jacket, a cell phone rang.

About 90 minutes later, as the heartbroken mother of 17-year old Abdikarim Hassan was failing to be consoled by loved ones, there was another stabbing death. This time Sadiq Adan Mohamed was killed, on Malden Road near Queen's Crescent Market. 

The two killings brought to 11 the number of homicides in London in just a 13-day period, most of them stabbings.  There were about 105 homicides reported in London for all of 2017.

The latest two victims, were David Potter, 50, who was fatally stabbed in his flat in Tooting, south London, and Abraham Badru, 26, shot dead as he exited a car in Dalston, east London.  The two killings made for a two-inch brief on page eight in The Times.   

When I arrived in London on Friday, March 23, the thought I would be out on the streets reporting on a murder didn't remotely enter my mind. Since I had never been to London  - other than 17-hour layover -  I had planned the usual tourist stuff; Museums, a lot of walking, riding "the Tube", Harrod's, and hanging out at the restaurant Nancy Silverton had commandeered for a week near our hotel in a neighborhood called Shoreditch.

But, as I read the locals papers and viewed their websites, I was surprised, even alarmed by the frequent reports of stabbing deaths. The first one that grabbed me was of Benjamin Pieknyi, a 21-year old from Romania who came to the aid of a friend being attacked and was stabbed to death. A 22-year-old from the Ukraine was arrested for that. I wanted to get to his family, to the guy he came to aid, but they lived in Milton Keynes, a 90 minute drive from London.  

Then, the next day, when I heard about these two murders above, I almost felt an obligation, so I hit the streets.

The next day, an 18-year-old male, Isaiah Popoola, was charged with both killings. He will be tried at London's Old Bailey court.  

As for the victims, the few people I talked to all spoke very kindly of them.  Neither were gang members, they worshiped their families, were lightning quick to help others, were constantly smiling and loved to play football. They were both from the capital city of Somalia, brought to London at a young age to be safe from the dangers of Mogadishu.

abdikarim hassan, 17, 

SAdiq Adan Mohammad

benjamin Pieknyi

Silverton Orders Chi Spacca "Shake Up" After Famed Restaurant Fails To Make Top 300 List, AGM Greer Ousted, DeNicola Demoted

Just one day after Rex Tillerson was fired as Secretary of State in a major White House administration shake up, the restaurant world was shocked to learn that Chi Spacca, the third eatery on the beloved Los Angeles corner of Nancy Silverton, was getting a shake up of it own. 

On Wednesday, Silverton ordered assistant general manager Greer "Shucker" Rosenzweig to "get out and say out" and then, in what is being called the culinary equal of Tillerson's firing, demoted chef Ryan DeNicola to Mozza2Go cashier and sous Joseph Tagorda  to "Garnish Cook",, a position usually held by interns.

Monday, a Washington Post investigation revealed that Chi Spaaca had been ranked the 313th best restaurant in Los Angeles. When told the news, both DeNicola and Tagorda seemed overwhelmed with joy. DeNicola even went so far as to publicly  "thank the Academy". The two, along with three line cooks, posed for a photo to celebrate. 

But, Nancy Silverton was found no cause for celebration. Outrage was more her mood The only person to win the James Beard Award for Outstanding Chef in America and Outstanding Pastry Chef in America ordered an immediate internal investigation and, in the words of a close friend, "was not playing."

"Nancy may seem all mellow and sweet to the public, " said the friend who spoke on the condition of anonymity, "But, when the fast balls come, she can swing as hard as Roberto Clemente."   

Spacca is best known for large cuts of meats grilled before patrons as well as a lineup of vegetarian dishes that would please a extremist vegan.  The Trip Advisor rating was largely puzzling to those who know good restaurants.  Even Joel Robuchon, the most honored chef in the world, was baffled.

"Chi Spacca is my fourth  favorite restaurant in all of America  after Pizzeria Mozza, Osteria Mozza and Atelier Crenn, " said Robuchon, who restaurants have 32 Michelin stars.  ( Not a typo.)  "If there were 312 restaurants better than Spacca in Los Angeles, I would have to be cooking at 309 of them."

As for the sacking of assistant general manager Greer "Shucker" Rosenzweig, Mozza spokesperson Kate Elizabeth Green said she had left voluntarily to purse a career as an oyster shucker in New England. However, insiders said Shucker was "let go for undisclosed reasons."

To further make the connection with Tillerson, who learned of his fate via Twitter, DeNicola was informed of his demotion by a reporter from the Post. Uncharacteristically, the normal pleasant DeNicola unloaded on the reporter.  Security footage obtained by the Los Angeles Times shows an angry DeNicola screaming at the reporter to "Get the hell out of here. Go eat at the Pizzeria. At least they're ranked 41."

Mozza's Chi Spacca Named 313th Best Restaurant In Los Angeles By Trip Advisor, Thrilled Chef Ryan DeNicola Plans Celebration Dinner

When a humble, one-time cooking school adjacent to Nancy Silverton's fabled Osteria and Pizzeria Mozza corner re-invented itself as a restaurant in  ? years ago, few gave it much chance of entering that rarefied club of L.A.'s finest dining establishments.

But, Monday, long time supporters of Spacca, as it is affectionately known, were tooting their trombones when it was revealed that "The Little Meat Palace That Could" had been named the 313th best restaurant in all of  Los Angeles city and county. 

"I don't even know what to say." said Spacca's stunned executive chef Ryan DeNicola upon hearing the news "I'm speechless. I would like to thank the Academy, though."

Dahlia Narvaez, the James Beard Award winning pastry chef who provides Chi Spacca with desserts was "thrilled" with the 313 rating. "This doesn't suck," Narvaez said. 

However, Sous chef Joseph Tagorda, aka "The Hurtful Chef", typically, wasn't happy with the ranking.  "Geez," he spewed sarcastically, "What was number 1? The Pantry, Otium or Trejos Tacos?"

The only sad news about Chi Spacca being rated 313 is, unfortunately, it's not accurate, despite what Trip Advisor's budding Michelin inspectors say. Just think if Los Angeles was such a good eating town that there really were 312 restaurants better than Chi Spacca.  Hell, there's not even 312 restaurants on Planet Earth better than Spacca.

EDITOR'S NOTE- At press time, rumors were afloat that Chi Spacca had actually moved up to 311.

Chi Spacca chefs and cooks celebrate the 313.