Posts Tagged ‘Lisa Zeff’

I’ve Got a Brand New Pair of Roller Skates

Saturday, September 17th, 2011


I heard from Ruth, my erstwhile boyfriend’s mother (and my surrogate mother and neighbor), that she was expecting a young guest. Rumor had it the girl was my age. I got the feeling Ruth wanted me available, though she never framed it that way. But she knew how friendly I was and probably assumed I’d show the “British” girl around.

I was an out-of-work actress with no life whatsoever. The day she arrived, I threw on my new 70’s roller-boogie-disco skates and headed down to introduce myself. “Hi,” I said in my overly friendly, Welcome-to California, not-really laid-back at all kind of way. Hard to ignore my neon blue and yellow roller skates in place of proper shoes, the different colored bobby socks, clashing with all the other colors adorning me, namely the electric-blue-shimmer-spandex pants. Think Olivia Newton-John in Xanadu. Lisa, the girl from London, must have thought central casting had put out a call for a quintessential Hollywood actress type. Welcome to L.A. Let me show you around!!!!

And I did. We missed nothing. Went with my dad to Nate n’ Al’s for deli and wonderful old Jews coming onto her. Day trips to Malibu beach. She looked like me, or rather had very similar taste. We bonded over many like-minded things. Lisa had fantastic style, gorgeous with her naturally dark, curly, perfectly ringleted hair. I’ve paid fortunes for perms that failed to make me look like Lisa. The most beautiful blue eyes. A Jacqueline Bisset type. Lisa wore sleeveless shirts sporting some serious-looking, mysterious scars at her shoulder down to her elbow. And I was so impressed with how she rocked those scars, never covering them and comfortably exposing them. Made them sexy, like maybe I wanted some groovy scars like that. The story was she got them in a gnarly car accident. Pins, rods and all.

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Comforting Food in Icy New York

Sunday, January 30th, 2011

aroz con pato for one or two

When I landed in New York city about a week ago, it was late, it was cold and I was hungry. A few years ago someone told me to try Gabriels, an Italian restaurant right near where I stay. I am such a creature of habit and keep going back to the same places that I never found the right moment to try it. So, on this night I did and had a very good bowl of pasta with crabmeat in a sauce with tons of tomato’s. Also, it was extra garlicky which suits me fine. It was the bread that night that blew me away. If you read my blog, you will know what a freak I am about my bread, especially when in New York. L.A. doesn’t have great bread, at least not for me. We have heard for years it’s the water in New York. Whatever it is, I long for it when I’m home in L.A. and this particular night I was so immensely sated that on another night I went back pretty much specifically with the bread in mind. What I really loved about the restaurant was the feel of the place, it’s very old school. It reminds me of Chasens in a way or Matteo’s, a restaurant I went to every Sunday night of my life with my dad. At Matteo’s on Sunday nights, what tourists loved were the celebrity sightings. And so, if you like celebrity sightings, that night at Gabriels, David Duchovny had been eating there and walked by my table when he left. Never knew he was so tall, didn’t realize he was so good looking.
Gabriels Bar and Restaurant located just off Columbus Circle 11 West 60’th

I had a few lunches with girlfriends. My favorite being Prune for lunch. I have talked about Prune here before and I will say it in one word. Brilliant!! What I hated was that for me there were too many interesting choices. I ended up with their signature cheeseburger served on a very thin English muffin. The cheese is white cheddar and honestly, I’m writing this in L.A. and wishing I were back there eating that for lunch right now.
Prune 54 East 1st street

Creature of habit that I am, I enjoyed another wonderful meal, this time introducing my step-daughter to Fairway Market Café. To me, the place feels like a close friend who survived a dreaded disease like cancer or something. It was heavily rumored to be closing and now that rumor seems to have disappeared, I’m grateful to say. Had my usual, the branzino and their genius onion rings.
Fairway Market café and steakhouse 2127 Broadway at 74’th street (more…)