Photo credit: La Fuji Mama

The owner of Wilshire restaurant, Steve Levine, says executive chef Andrew Kirschner will be leaving the Santa Monica restaurant. "We've enjoyed a great run for the past four years and I wish Andrew the best in his own venture," Levine said in a release.

Kirschner confirmed that he would be leaving Wilshire at the end of March to open his own restaurant, Tar & Roses, in the former Breadbar space on Santa Monica Boulevard in Santa Monica. "The concept is not yet finalized," he said. "I have a lot of ideas in my head, and I'm still trying to nail it down." 

Kirschner, who recently was a contestant on the Food Network's "Next Iron Chef," has been executive chef at Wilshire since 2007. Times restaurant critic S. Irene Virbila gave Wilshire three stars in 2008.   

Levine also said Wilshire general manager Nick Fielding and the current staff will remain at the restaurant. He did not name a new chef. 

-- Betty Hallock 

Photo: Andrew Kirschner. Credit: Food Network

Check out this video of President Obama being asked why it's cheaper to eat Froot Loops than real fruit and what he plans to do about it. Obama's response is a long one, but I'm not sure he really answers it beyond something to the effect of: I've sicced Michelle on that, and market forces will figure it out.

Or did I miss something far more crucial in his answer?

I do like that Obama gives props to Wal-Mart for plans to reduce the sodium and sugar in its prepared foods. Granted, there are many critics who say that doesn't go nearly far enough. But my two cents: at least it's something.

The question came courtesy of Josh Viertel, president of Slow Food USA. Here's what Viertel thought of President Obama's answer. (And thanks to Good Food, which is where I first stumbled over the video.) 

-- Rene Lynch
Twitter / renelynch

--Couldn't make this one up: You've heard of McNuggets. And McMansions. Now, there's McWeddings:

"In the buzzing financial hub known for its fast living, young Hong Kong couples can now grab love on the run at the city's McDonald's outlets, which are offering a burgeoning new sideline: 'McWeddings.' " 

Perks include the "cake" made out of stacked apple pies, at left, as well as souvenir crystal M rings. The Reuters story says this surprise engagement party was held on Valentine's Day at a downtown McDonald's and thrown by a young male model for then-girlfriend now-fiancee. (I wonder whether she saw that one coming.) But before we label this one TREND! the Reuters story also notes that this was the "first formal wedding event since the service was launched in January."

--And the winner is: Your stomach. All eyes are on Hollywood as we prepare to hit the height of the awards season -- The Oscars. The new issue of Bon Appetit offers up 10 ways to eat and drink like a star, L.A.-style.

--Passings: Patty Bogle, who with her husband Chris built Bogle Vineyards from 18 acres of grapes in the Sacramento delta into a regional wine powerhouse, died Friday at her home in Clarksburg, Calif., of complications from leukemia. She was 59.

--Are you eating your burrito the "right" way? What? You didn't know there's a right way and a wrong way to eat a burrito? Then check out this LOL post at SF Weekly on just this subject.

--Just read it: This one is burning up Twitter this morning -- no doubt, due in no small part to its clever headline, so I can't help but pass it along to you, dear reader, from the Small Bites blog: Trix = Twizzlers + Flintstone Multivitamin + Corn Dust. Really.

--Rene Lynch
twitter.com/renelynch

 
No. More. Rain.

That was my first thought after I learned we were facing a storm today. But then I realized that in the grand scheme of things, this Southern California winter could have been a whole lot worse. So I suggest we celebrate this rainy day. Because at least we don't have to wait for a snow plow to move our cars.

Your recipe for the day: A cozy bowl of lentil and barley stew.

RELATED:

--You can stuff your Thin Mints

--Browse hundreds of recipes from the L.A. Times Test Kitchen

--Celebuchef Jamie Oliver brings cooking competition to the streets

- Rene Lynch
twitter.com/renelynch

(Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

You know I love to ogle kitchens. Especially ones with lots of cupboards, counters and drawers. It's soothing. It's relaxing. And it allows me to indulge in a fantasy: that I will somehow, one day, tame all the cluttered counters and disorganized utensil drawers in my own kitchen. (I swear I organize the drawer containing food storage containers at least once a week. And yet it's still always a tangled mess.)

Anyhoo, I can always count on our Home blog to indulge me: This week, it's offering up a tour of this cool and comfortable Beverly Hills-area home and a streamlined, aerodynamic kitchen that actually looks like someone cooks in it.

Ah.

RELATED:

--Kitchen Confidential: More kitchen photos!

--L.A. Times Test Kitchen Tips: Mise en place

--The Modernist comes to town

--Coca-Cola says 'This American Life' did not reveal its secret formula

-- Rene Lynch
Twitter / renelynch

Photo credit: Joshua McHugh

Mise en place. A French cooking term meaning "everything in its place," it's one of the most important foundations of an efficient and functional kitchen. The principle is simple: Be prepared. There are just a few steps to keep in mind:

• Read the recipe: Read the recipe first, in its entirety. Think about the ingredients and tools you'll need to have on hand, and make sure you're comfortable with all of the techniques mentioned in the method.
• Gather, prepare and organize: Once you've read the recipe, gather together your ingredients and tools, measuring out the proper quantities and preparing each ingredient (blanching, slicing, mincing, sifting) so it's ready to be used. Organize your ingredients in the order in which they'll be used, and clean as you go.

While these steps may sound simple, I can't emphasize how helpful they are, especially when you're preparing a recipe for the first time. Nothing can be more stressful for a cook than having to search for an ingredient in the middle of a recipe, or failing to have the proper equipment on hand at the right moment (like a strainer or an ice bath). Be prepared.

If you have any kitchen tips or questions you'd like me to explore, leave a comment below or shoot me an e-mail at noelle.carter@latimes.com.

-- Noelle Carter
twitter / noellecarter

Photo: The glass and rubber cups pictured above are handy for holding spices and prepared ingredients until they're ready to go in a recipe, and can be found at many major markets and cooking supply stores. Photo credit: Noelle Carter.

 
Relax, everyone. The radio program "This American Life" came close with its attempts to reveal Coca-Cola's top-secret formula. But the formula is still very much safe, and still very much top-secret.

So says Atlanta-based Coca-Cola. The soft-drink giant has been bombarded with queries, e-mails and phone calls from around the globe ever since this weekend's edition of "This American Life" that suggested that the top-secret Coca-Cola formula was not-so-secret at all and added that "...we think we may have located the recipe."

Nathan Myhrvold, the food geek's food geek, seems like a naturally high-energy guy to begin with. But the news that his new cookbook “Modernist Cuisine” had cracked the Amazon Hot 100 Tuesday had him practically going into orbit. And why not? Who would have expected a six-volume, $625 cookbook to be so popular?

Even more amazing -- those are all on pre-order. There are currently only nine copies of the book available in the United States, Myhrvold says. The rest are being shipped from the printers in China ("on a very slow boat," he jokes).

To say the book is encyclopedic is something of an understatement. The first volume leaps from the history of cooking to microbiology, food safety, diet, fundamentals of heat and energy and then food and water, encompassing dozens of other topics along the way.

But maybe the thorniest topic is just what to call this type of cooking in the first place.

What do high school students, Jamie Oliver, celebrity chefs and Green Giant have in common? On Saturday, all came together to launch a cooking competition on the 3rd Street Promenade to inspire the youth to get cooking.

With more than 32 students from eight high schools, the event had all the makings of an "Iron Chef" episode, including a surprise secret ingredient (avocados), a short time limit of 30 minutes, and celebrity chefs judges Jonathan Waxman ("Top Chef") and Michael Symon ("Iron Chef") assessing the dishes. 

Jamie's squad West Adams High School ended up winning first place, awarded $1,000 scholarships and a trip to visit the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park. 

Oliver admitted that "nothing in L.A. has gone according to plan," but he has adapted to his reality show being barred from L.A. public schools with a strategy of creative spontaneity. "The campaign is like a big bowl of spaghetti, with many strands to it. Right now I'm just going with it, and so far, so good."

-- Max Diamond

Photo credit: Max Diamond

'
"This American Life" -- the popular public radio program -- says it's uncovered Coca Cola's secret recipe.

If true, it would appear to blow the lid off one of the most closely guarded secrets in U.S. corporate history. After all, legend has it that the recipe is tucked away in a bank vault, and that no more than two executives ever know the full recipe at any given time, as a safeguard to keep rivals from stealing it. According to the radio program, some of the ingredients that give Coca-Cola its unique taste include coriander and cinnamon. Click below to read the full recipe.

But here's where this story gets weirder, and why we'll need to keep tabs on it: "This American Life" is supposedly quoting the recipe from a 1979 article that ran inside the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which is the hometown paper to the Atlanta-based Coca Cola Co. We called and e-mailed Coca Cola for official word. We will keep you posted on what they say. And you can be sure there will be more to say: The flood of interest has apparently overloaded the radio program's website.

Best headline we've seen so far comes courtesy of those wags over at the Daily Mail: "Is this the real thing?"

I, personally, will reserve judgment. But if "This American Life" gets credit for revealing the secret recipe to Coca-Cola after it ran in the Atlanta newspaper 30 years ago, I would like credit for "discovering" the Grand Canyon on the trip I took to Arizona.

-- Rene Lynch
Twitter / renelynch

Photo: Joshua Lott / Reuters

 
--I cook, therefore I am ... a feminist? I had no idea women were missing from the kitchen. But Ecosalon says they're back. "For decades we’ve watched the professional culinary industry continue to be dominated by males, but we’re taking back the plate, at home, on the barbecue, with our friends and in foodie-inspired businesses."

--Go Jamie, Go: Celebuchef Jamie Oliver continues to be a thorn in the side of the Los Angeles School District. He oh-so-helpfully nudged Monday's protest rally by parents who want sugar-filled flavored milks to be removed from schools. (You can decide for yourself whether you think Oliver is right or wrong in this ever-escalating gambit to gain access to the schools with TV cameras in tow. We just appreciate that a spotlight is being cast on what our school children eat.)

--Blogspotting: Do you find yourself with an excess of Girl Scout Thin Mints? (I know. I never have any left over either, because I inhale them all, immediately, in one sitting.) But let's just say for argument's sake that you did have some leftovers. One of our favorite local food blogs, Picky Palate, written by Jenny Flake of Orange County, has a fab way to turn them into a posh dessert: Girl Scout Thin Mint Toaster Strudels, above.

--We fall for it every time: Ad Age explains why we all lose our minds and reach for our wallets when we see the magic words, "for a limited time only," and how food marketeers are turning to the trick with new urgency. Need more proof? Exhibit A: The McRib.

--How many more times do we need to study this? A new government study suggests that eating a diet rich in fiber -- especially the kind of fiber found in whole grains -- reduces the risk of dying at an early age from a range of causes.

--Rene Lynch
twitter.com/renelynch

Photo: Picky Palate