An evening spent at the Four Seasons Hotel in Westlake certainly provided many reasons for visiting Ireland.  Presented to trade and media by Tourism Ireland it offered a new look at the Heritage, Culture and Cuisine of the Island Nation.  It also served to launch a new global communications campaign with the title "Fill Your Heart With Ireland".
Alison Metcalfe, Tourism Ireland's Executive Vice President for the U.S. and Canada, explained that the new campaign offers a fresh approach to set Ireland apart from other European destinations.  It features lesser known locations and attractions and highlights outdoor activities.
 At the Four Seasons there was the opportunity to meet with representatives from hotels and visitor attractions which highlight the unique nature of a trip to Ireland emphasizing the range of high quality accommodations, things to do, value for money and ease of access with Aer Lingus offering non stop service from both Los Angeles and San Francisco to Dublin.  Some emphasis has also been placed on featuring experiences during the shoulder and off season months.
The event got off to a quick start with some entertainment from a most talented Irish dancer and three musicians skilled in local music and played with traditional Irish instruments. 
Then local representatives came aboard to talk about the Wild Atlantic Way: the Causeway Coastal Route and cities of Cork and Waterford.  Also about upcoming events like Galway 2020,  a new culinary festival, "Taste The Island", as well as a look at Ireland's Ancient East and Dublin. 
Videos accompanied some of these discussions and the ones of the Causeway Coastal Route were most impressive as it hugs the cliffs towering above the North Atlantic ocean.  Photos of classic hotels like Portmarnock Hotel and Golf Links and Clontarf Castle Hotel proved most enticing.
The evening concluded with a buffet dinner featuring classic Irish dishes and beverages.
'Tis was a fine evening to be sure'.

When a restaurant continues to please its customers for 35 years you know they are doing everything right.  So it is in West Hollywood at the Mandarette Cafe. 
This Chinese Bistro, Restaurant and Bar  is owned and operated by Ken Yang who continues to offer traditional Chinese Cuisine  but with ongoing modern dishes  like the present addition of new Fall entrees.  This menu always has ways to entice both regular customers and visitors to the busy Beverly Center area.
Items like Strawberry Shrimp are original and become classic favorites.  Originally from Taipei the family includes the Father, Wu Yang, who as head chef, has been responsible a  menu that  continues to expand while still offering classics like War Won Ton Soup, and his son, Ken Yang, General Manager.
On our visit we opened with this Soup which was almost a meal in itself with choice of chicken or pork wontons as well as chicken, BBQ pork, shrimp, Shitake mushroom and an assortment of vegetables.  And of course we had to try the crispy Strawberry Shrimp.  Almost everything on the menu can be ordered in either a small or large portion which makes trying new dishes easier and more inviting.
One of the new entrees is Three Cup Chicken, Beef or Squid, this a traditional Taiwanese dish slow cooked in a special sauce.  Two other newcomers are from Sichuan cuisine, one a poached fish fillet combined with bean sprouts and a spicy sauce and another spicy one, Aromatic Fiery Shrimp.
After our hearty Soup and shrimp the most we could try was the crispy vegetable Spring Rolls which came with a unique sweeten lemon sauce.  However we did manage to add a cup of green tea ice cream from the dessert list.
Here there is a beer and wine bar with happy hours to go with the lunch and dinner menus.
Mandarette Cafe is located at 8386 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, Ca 90048, Tel. 323 655-6115, web www.mandarettecafe.com.  Mandarette Cafe is open seven days a week for lunch and dinner.   Hours are Mon. - Thur. 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; Fri. 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.; Sat. 12 p.m. - 11:30 p.m.; Sun. 12 p.m. - 10 p.m.

Vittles readers will note that in recent issues there have been stories about quiet, serene places, where it is possible, for at least a short period of time, one can escape from the seemingly frenzied pace and traffic of Southern California.  Now we have found a true jewel and this so close to where we reside in the San Fernando Valley.
It is The Japanese Garden, and after a wondrous afternoon we spent there  recently we kept asking ourselves "why did it take us so long to visit it".  For here we left the our present mad world of hustle for unbelievable peace and natural beauty.  This oasis is named "SuihoEn, The Japanese Tea  Garden of Water and Fragrance".
There are expansive gardens, with waterfalls, lakes and streams which we shared with abundant ducks and geese.   The stone lanterns, Tea House, Shoin Building  and Heavenly Floating Bridge told us that we were indeed in the kind of garden that Japanese Feudal lords made popular in the 18th and 19th centuries. 
Here everything has meaning and a story to be told.  The Japanese lanterns on display throughout the Garden are made up of five parts or elements.  They are from bottom up Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Spirit.   Each lantern has its own name like Kasuga, Daikoki or Yukimi Doro.
Upon arrival at The Japanese Garden one enters the Entry Gate of 'mystic profundity'.  Next there is the Dry Garden with its large grass covered mound which represents Tortoise Island, associated  with  longevity, while large upright stones symbolize the 'island of immortals and everlasting happiness'.
Our tour stopped for awhile  as we watched four small geese move by under the careful eyes of  both mother and father with our camera recording the scene.  There is much to photograph here and we took many photos on  what was a perfect Fall afternoon.  It was a weekday and we had the Garden, all six and one half acres of it,  almost completely to ourselves.  As you move along there are benches placed in places with scenic views of the lush gardens and active wildlife.
The Japanese Garden is located at 6100 Woodley Ave. Van Nuys, Calif. 91406, Telephone 818 756-8166, Web wwww.thejapanesegarden.com.  Hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. with last admission at 3:15 p.m.  There is a small entrance fee and ample free off street parking.

It is hard to imagine that any U.S. city offers a more diverse number of ethnic cuisines than Los Angeles.  Often whole streets or neighborhoods have been settled by one ethnic group and now offers a number of restaurants presenting that particular cuisine.   Glendale is one example where the cuisines of Lebanon and Turkey have been present for generations.
Now a group of restaurants has entered the scene with the concept of making the cuisine of the Eastern Mediterranean as popular as pizza and hot dogs.  It is called Bok Bok with its original restaurants located in Las Vegas.  Family owned and operated it quickly expanded to five locations in that city and then expanded in 2018 to Los Angeles where there are now three locations.  Looking at the menu we instantly noted that they had retained the names of some of the traditional classic dishes of Lebanon and other countries boarding the eastern Mediterranean.  
So here with an entree like Shawerma Plate, flame broiled marinated beef it comes with rice pilaf, piaz, fattoush and tahini.  Often the choices include hummus, mutabbal, batata salad or quinoa eech.  Here the pickles are traditional pickled turnips and sides have names like Falafel or Boreg or Sarma, the classic grape leaves stuffed with rice, onion and spices.
Next we noticed was the very modest prices.  The highest priced entree is Beef Kabob or Chicken Kabob plates at $12.  With an exhibition kitchen everything is prepared fresh and on order and includes online and delivery.  Diners can feast on flame broiled shawerma, free range rotisserie chicken, made to order falafel, salads, soup and sides like we mentioned above. 
Our dining experience at Bok Bok took place at Bok Bok Chicken located in Culver City.  Other Los Angeles locations are in downtown Los Angeles and Eagle Rock and more to follow.  In Culver City the location offers free off street parking, patio dining as well as a contemporary decor and ambiance for leisurely eating.
Like everything the desserts are also classic of the region with Baklava, layers of filo pastry and walnuts soaked in rosewater syrup, or Ashta, shredded filo dough with pistachios and sweet cream or Gatnaboor, rice pudding with cinnamon and rosewater.
Bok Bok in Culver City is located at 4114 Sepulveda Blvd, Ste E, for lunch and dinner from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Telephone 424 29-8294.  Other Los Angeles locations are downtown Los Angeles at 108 West 2nd Street, Telephone 213 278-0651 and in Eagle Rock at 2146 Colorado Blvd. Telephone 323 474-6779.
On line at BokBokChicken.com.

The story of how the San Fernando Valley has evolved over a half century is well told at the Valley Relics Museum.
 What was once one man's hobby has become a legacy for a large part of Los Angeles. 
The man is Tommy Gelinas and the object of his interest preserving an earlier San Fernando Valley.  Being a resident of the Valley all his life, Gelinas has been able to watch the vast changes that have taken place in the Valley during the last half century.
So he decided to save some of the things that displayed the Valley in earlier decades.  He collected as he could whether restaurant signs, menus, automobiles, and most of all memorabilia  of people who played a role in the Valley's continuing development.  He looked for buildings, abandoned after enjoying a distinctive Valley role, to salvage what he could whether signs or artifacts.
 For over 20 years Tommy Gelinas has been determined to save as much of the memorabilia of these Valley earlier beginnings as possible.  His problem became space, storage space for all that he was acquiring.
The answer was Valley Relics Museum.  First he acquired a building in the west Valley, divided it into rooms, each with a separate theme, and opened the Museum.  The response was immediate. But the success of Valley Relics was such that it soon out grew its west valley location and made the move to its present location in 2018.
Now the museum is located in two hangers adjacent to the Van Nuys airport.
Nudie's was famous, not only in the Valley, but almost world wide for its elaborate lines of western clothing.  One exhibit is devoted to some of Nudie's clothing, and photos of almost every western star, all who were customers.  There is also a collection of photos of  Valley-Hollywood cowboy actors and western musical groups.
For many years I had an office in North Hollywood only about a quarter mile from Nudie's.  Mr. Nudie owned two Cadillacs, each  prominently decorated with western gear.  In front of each car mounted sets of long horns, on the sides mounted Winchester rifles and horseshoes.  And he was a familiar figure as he drove through the neighborhood.  Both these automobiles are now in the Relics museum.
Exhibits in another room include a collection of match book covers, many from familiar restaurants, again some subjects of reviews written by this Writer for publication.  The two halls include signs from well known restaurants and eateries as well as automobiles and artifacts.
For us, as longtime Valley residents, the visit was a trip down memory lane.
Valley Relics Museum is located at 7900 Balboa Blvd., Hanger-Charlie 3 & 4, Entrance from Stagg Street, Lake Balboa, Ca. 91406.  The Museum is open Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday from 11 a.m to 4 p.m. 
There is an admission charge.  Telephone 818 616-4083, Web www.valleyrelics.org.