They make a superior tea latte to that other company with the mermaid logo, and you can get a pretty solid sugar high from their ice blended beverages, and now New Yorkers get to enjoy Los Angeles import Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. The news sent a ripple of cheery shockwaves through the city, like your beloved half and half rippling through your morning cup of joe. more ›

For many of us, it's hard to pick where to go for a meal out. So how about when you pick a place, and can't find it? Even in this era of search engine ingenuity, a plainly-named restaurant may have to rely more on word of mouth than the virtual vortex of online information. This is the impetus behind a fun piece on Squid Ink today called "Top 5 Least-Google-Friendly L.A. Restaurants." As in, you name it, we can't find it. more ›

To many, the marriage of bacon and hot dogs is one of the most glorious matings of pork (or beef) products known to food-kind. In celebration of the heavenly, artery-clogging match, every so often a Yelper organizes an event dedicated to the consumption of the bacon-wrapped hot dog, and there is one such event coming up on Saturday May 22. more ›

As news of a study points to California's comparative lack in disciplining doctors--the state ranked 41--the LA Times reminds us of a new law coming into effect on June 27th. A step below restaurant rankings, Doctors will have to provide notice of or post this: "Notice to consumers, medical doctors are licensed and regulated by the Medical Board of California, (800) 633-2322, www.mbc.ca.gov." Once on the Board's website, you can find yourself to their directory of California's 125,000 physicians where felony and misdemeanor convictions, malpractice judgements and more can be found. The California Medical Association has criticized the law, saying it's a way to boost complaints. 6,437 complaints were filed last year, notes the Times. more ›

Naturally, it takes an Oregonian to set the record straight in the media about what really goes on at West Hollywood's Voyeur club, the spot where the RNC's Young Eagles after-hours hang-time netted the GOP a whole mess of scandal this week. more ›

Some businesses are so excited to receive customer feedback that they put up signs asking patrons to leave a rating on the popular website Yelp. Sometimes questioned for their dubious methods, Yelpers these days can have a profound impact on a business' success or failure. more ›

What's happening over at Yelp? The powerhouse of a community-driven review website made a big local announcement today, but one many users are not happy with. Yelp said they are "parting ways" with their most recent community manager, Dawson S. That comes after the exit of Stephy S. (LAist interview) and a slew of others. "Gosh. It seems hard to imagine how Yelp will maintain any sort of credibility in the community when the local leadership changes more frequently than I change my oil," noted one user. The onslaught and Yelp hating continues on the Yelp's talk thread. Previously: 5-Star Yelp reviews go up before restaurant opens. more ›

Former Top Chef contender Fabio Viviani has left his Moorpark restaurant and moved quickly into a new spot, Firenze Osteria. The eatery has taken over the North Hollywood space formerly occupied by Barsac Brasserie, and underwent a quick turnaround to transform the restaurant. Now in a "soft-open" phase, Firenze Osteria is set to officially open this Saturday, with a public (with RSVP) cocktail reception, and the phone line is up and accepting reservations starting at 7:45 p.m. more ›

Apparently one Restaurant Week just isn't enough for Los Angeles: popular (and controversial) review site Yelp.com has announced their own "1st Annual Yelp Restaurant Week" starting this Saturday, May 30th. The kickoff event is being in conjunction with LACMA's Muse Artwalk. Participating restaurants include Tasca, Little Next Door, Luna Park, Messob Ethiopian, and Amalfi Ristorante, among others, all of whom will be offering a three-course prix-fixe for $15-30. Mention Yelp when making a reservation, and check out their website for more info. more ›

There are so many better places to eat at the Farmers Market. Well, one or two. The Gumbo Pot is not one of them.To each his own, right? Fans or foes of The Gumbo Pot, pitch in to our comments stew and tell us what you think. Should we run to...or from...The Gumbo Pot? more ›

Last Friday night at Bordello, Elite Yelpers gathered for drinks and music to wish Stephy S, Community Manager of Yelp.com for Los Angeles (she's like Tom of MySpace, but goddess style), a farewell adieu as she takes on a larger responsibility for the website up at its San Francisco HQ (sister site SFist should feel so lucky). Since May 2006, Stephy has been leading the way for Yelp.com, bringing in the energy for a site that had nothing to a site that now has everything. Today, we spoke to Stephy about food, drink, some other stuff, and... food. After all, when it's your job included writing over 1500 food reviews (1575 to be exact as of this publishing), you're going to have great foodie suggestions. more ›

Even though we smiled in the pictures in our rented tuxes and frilly dresses, most of us had a shitty time at prom. Some of those haunting memories and major disappointments may have followed us into adulthood, and for some, ruined our lives forever. more ›

There's a movement afoot: social networkers are committing MySpace-icide and are finding loquacity at Yelp.com. They are yelping, rather reviewing, restaurants, spas and even freeway interchanges. The San Francisco-based company has gone as far as giving certain members a coveted elite status. And that's where we crossed paths. A couple weeks ago, we went to a Los Angeles Yelp.com elite party in Hollywood at Tiny's K.O. to steal/recruit writers for LAist meet and greet... more ›