Celebrity-friendly restaurant Orso Los Angeles becomes the latest restaurant to close. Orso opened in 1989 and its location near Robertson Blvd. and the tree-shrouded smoking-friendly patio have made it a popular film industry haunt. But the NY Times reports that the Italian trattoria serving fare priced at around $25 per entree will close by November 21. Orso restaurants in New York and London will remain open. The NY Times article says that Orso Los Angeles began to falter when the Creative Artists Agency and International Creative Management moved into Century City office towers and when the nearby New Line Cinema once a huge client, began deep job cuts. There's no shortage of other restaurants in the area but its always sad to see a restaurant that has survived 20 years in the fickle world of Los Angeles restaurants close down.

This holiday season two unique luxury brands Catherine Malandrino and Cointreau, both brought to the States via France, have teamed up to deliver the ultimate gift bottle. Malandrino chose the symbol of the Statue of Liberty, arguably the best thing the French ever gave us, to mark the limited edition Cointreau bottle.

The Cointreau bottle has remained remarkably unchanged for nearly 160 years, making this one of the hottest collector's bottles of the season. Malandrino's romantic bottle remains true to the silhouette, but is dressed in stars and lace, calling to mind the signature detailed cuts and handicraft trims of her ready-to-wear collection.

Cointreau is a must to give our favorite cocktails that slight edge of "Je ne sais quoi" sweet and bitter oranges, making for the most perfect margaritas or cosmopolitans. Bring this luxury gift to your hostess this holiday season to spice up any cocktail hour.


Cointreau Cosmopolitan Recipe
2.5oz Vodka
1.5oz Cointreau
1oz Cranberry Juice
0.5oz lime juice
Shake and strain into a martini glass. Garnish with twist of orange to bring out the flavor of Cointreau.

The ramp up has begin for the long-anticipated opening of Chef Thomas Keller's first Los Angeles restaurant, Bouchon in Beverly Hills. Chef Keller now has a total of seven Michelin stars to his credit (three for The French Laundry in Yountville, California, three for Per Se in New York City and one for Bouchon in Yountville). Bouchon in Beverly Hills will feature classic bistro favorites and seasonal offerings as well as a raw bar featuring a wide array of oysters on the half-shell from both the west and east coasts. Bouchon in Beverly Hills will open on November 18, 2009 in the Beverly Hills Gardens building located at 235 North Cañon Drive and is already accepting reservations.

Bar Bouchon, a French wine bar with an extensive wines-by-the-glass selection and small plate offerings will open in mid December 2009 and will be located on the first floor of the restaurant. The restaurant's small plates menu will feature a variety of both classic and seasonal potted foods, salads, charcuterie, cheeses, tartines, sandwiches, caviar and desserts. Vin de Carafe, a Bouchon wine program that brings recognition to local vintners will feature unique selections to showcase wine producers in Southern California. Each exclusive selection is blended specially for the restaurant one barrel at a time to showcase the distinct personality and flavors of the featured winemaker.

There has been a proliferation of bottled waters on store shelves and in restaurants. There are differences, whether you can taste them or not, and the industry is tightly regulated by both the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) and the IBWA (International Bottled Water Association).

The FDA determined standards of identity to help classify the different types of bottled water. A basic summary of the classifications follow:

• Spring water which comes from a natural underground source and from which the water flows to the surface of the earth.
• Purified water where the water has been produced by a process that is defined by the United States. These processes can include but are not limited to distilling and reverse osmosis.
• Mineral water which is described by having naturally occurring dissolved solids (minerals and trace elements) at the minimum rate of 250 parts per million. This means the minerals or other solids can not be added later.
• Sparkling water is allowed to have carbon dioxide added or other treatment to retain the same level of carbonation it had at the original source.
• Artesian water which is water taken from a specific height above an aquifer.
• Well water which is self explanatory, just like our backyards it is water that comes from a hole drilled or bored in the ground.

Soda water, seltzer and tonic water are classified as soft drinks and are regulated differently.

If you think that the different brands of bottled water taste differently it is not your imagination run amok. While many of us are influenced by the design of the bottle itself, if you listen to your taste buds carefully, you might learn to discern which of the bottled waters you prefer and why.

According to industry experts, the mineral content, both amount and types as well as PH, and the level of carbonation effect the taste of a given brand of bottled water. High TDS (total dissolved solids) in mineral water as well as the amount of specific minerals such as salt, may also effect ones perception of the taste. Obviously the size of the bubbles in carbonated water influences the way it feels in your mouth, just as it does in champagne.

Speaking of champagne, a fun idea is to conduct your own bottled water tasting. Look for waters from different regions, aquifers, rain water, mineral waters and even tap water for comparison. The best part is that there is no right or wrong just what you prefer!

I guess everyone has to eat, even in a recession. When the light appears at the end of the tunnel, though, appetites get bigger ... and more discriminating. In London, upscale eateries are seeing the investment banking crowd come back, and the wine is once again flowing. The cities top chefs are still worried about what will happen after Christmas, but for now, they're happy to see their creations gobbled up by the city's financial sector.

Marcus Wareing has had what he calls "a fabulous year." The waiting list keeps getting longer, and he says, "There's a good vibe." Tristan Welch's Launceston Place is seeing more wine flow, and demand is picking up. Pearl's Jun Tanaka remains cautious, "We'll really know in the first quarter 2010 if business has returned ... I don't know if it's a trend or a hiccup."

Across the city, there's a mix of optimism and trepidation. Le Gavroche, Wahaca and Le Café Anglais, for example, offer some variation of "Business is good" or "Business is booming, and Gordon Ramsay tells Bloomberg News, "There's an increasing air of confidence, which has been particularly apparent since the beginning of September." Michelle McGuire of The Palm said the restaurant had its busiest week three weeks ago since its opening in May, "with record takings." Sam Hart, of Fino, Barrafino and Quo Vadis, on the other hand, calls the improvement "fragile."

Nonetheless, this is a far cry from the angst that characterized the fine dining world a year ago. When people start to eat well, you know that things are turning for the better.

Dinner and a movie takes a new twist at the a/k/a a bistro in St. Helena, California. The movie "Where the Wild Things Are" will be screened at the local Cameo Cinema and the bistro has created a dedicated WIld Things menu. The movie inspired menu includes freshly pulled made to order warm mozzarella with pickled wild mushrooms, roasted pearl onions, smoked paprika vinaigrette; a second course of penne with wild boar ragout and warm wild huckleberry clafoutis with lemon verbena sorbet in a wild rice tuile for dessert. This menu costs $35 and will continue every Tuesday until the end of 2009.

The restaurant also offers the Tasty Tuesdays series. Winemakers or winery principals circulate through the dining room chatting with guests, who can sample a flight of three or more of the winemaker's wines for $9 alongside any items from the menu. "The idea is to meet and get to know wine people you may not have met yet," explains owner Robert Simon, "and taste their wares at the same time and spend only a fraction of the published price for that opportunity." In October and November the wineries include Bourassa, Bravante, Turnbull, Broman, Cakebread, Luna and Swanson. The Tasty Tuesday series runs from 6:30 until 8:00 p.m. every Tuesday evening.

The restaurant also offers customers specialties on specific nights: Wednesday is handmade pasta night; Thursday is 'slow food;' Friday is fish and Saturday is coq au vin, although the menu offers a wide range of small and large plates across a modern reading of California bistro cuisine. The restaurant offers unlimited free corkage Sunday – Thursday. The complete menu can be found at www.akabistro.com.

From toast in the morning to sandwiches at lunch and freshly baked French and Italian loaves served at dinner, bread is a foundation of almost every meal these days. Storage is important if you don't plan to eat the bread immediately after it's baked, but not all breads can be stored the same way if you want to maintain optimal flavor and freshness.

Different breads have different shelf-lives, but as a general rule the more moisture a bread has in it the longer it will keep.

• 1-2 days French and Italian loaves
• 2-3 days White, Wheat, and Sourdough
• 3-5 days Rye breads

Bread Storage Basics:

• Breads with a hard, crispy crust should be stored in paper.
• Breads with a softer crust and more moisture should be kept in a plastic bag or other airtight container.
• All bread should be kept in a cool, dry place.
• Bread should never be kept in the refrigerator (actually makes it go stale faster)
• Bread should be allowed to sit in the open until completely cool or mold growth will be accelerated
• Bread can be frozen and will keep for several months. Just wrap tightly in plastic and freeze.

The word fondue comes from the French verb fondre, which means "to melt," and the practice actually originated in Switzerland as a way for both peasants and nobility alike to use up hardened cheese and/or stale bread. Nowadays there are fondue recipes for every course of a meal, from cheese to meat to chocolate, and hosting a fondue party has become a popular and easy way to have a classy social gathering. Fondue can be served as an appetizer, dessert, or even a full 3-course meal.

Cheese Fondue Traditionally cheese fondue is made with a blend of 2 or more cheeses, wine, and perhaps some spices or other seasonings. Offer an assortment of bread, vegetables, and fruit (granny smith apples pair surprisingly well with cheese) cut into bite-sized pieces for a first course, and maybe a light salad or broth-based soup if desired.

Communal Cooking is the center of the main course, along with seasonings and dipping sauces. Cubes of beef, chicken, shrimp, and seafood can be individually seasoned by your guests and cooked at the table (in a fondue mixture of butter, cooking oil, and seasonings) to suit their personal preferences. A variety of dipping sauces can provide even more flavor options, as well as plenty of fresh vegetables and bread for balance.

Chocolate Fondue As a final course anything goes when dipping into chocolate (the sky's the limit!) but one of the most popular choices is fresh strawberries or bananas. Other dipping choices for dessert include squares of cheesecake, brownies, angel food cake, and even marshmallows. Graham crackers and cookies make a nice option as well, along with possibly offering caramel or marshmallow-based dips.

Etiquette
Fondue is a communal experience and although traditionally all guests would eat from and then dip their forks repeatedly into the same pot, today's society dictates a different approach (unless of course you're all family and don't mind). Instead try having guests dip into the pot with the fondue fork and then use a separate fork to slide the bread, meat, or fruit onto a plate before eating it.

Finally, offer a variety of recipes, plenty of items to dip, and don't be afraid to experiment! Part of what makes fondue an interesting experience is the opportunity to blend, mix, and experiment with different flavors and flavor combinations.

Do we need a better augury of a renewed global economy than this? TMZ is reporting that our favorite spendthrift Roman Abramovich is at it again. He spent around $52,000 on lunch in New York City at Italian food restaurant Nello's. Abramovich and his party of nine others dined on truffle carpaccio, rigatoni Siciliana, truffle taglioni, filet mignon and more but what really boosted the tab was the wine. The bill which TMZ has obtained shows bottles of Cristal Rosé, Chateau Petrus and Domaine Romanee-Conti La Tache as well as some Johnnie Walker Blue. Apparently, Abramovich and his crew aren't sweets lovers, there's just one lone tiramisu on the list.

TMZ reports that the check had an automatic gratuity of 20 percent, over $7,000 but Roman and crew threw in another $5,000, bringing the tip to 26 percent. Classy move, oligarchs.

There are literally hundreds of different kinds of cheese in the world, all with different characteristics, flavors, and origins. Many different factors determine how a cheese turns out but some of the most influential are what kind of milk is used (cow, sheep, or goat), how it's prepared, and how long the cheese is aged. As a general rule, the longer a cheese is aged the more aromatic and flavor-intense it is. Here's a guide to just a few of the world's most popular cheeses and what makes them unique.

Cheddar One of most widely used cheeses here in the States, cheddar cheese is made from cow's milk and was first 'born' in England in a little village called Cheddar. It comes in mild, medium, and sharp varieties and can be off-white to dark orange in color.

Blue Cheese is a white cheese with unique blue/black spots and veins in it that are the result of mold. Made from a combination of sheep, goat, and cow's milk, blue cheese has a both a strong smell and a very strong flavor -- for many it's an acquired taste.

Swiss Originating in Switzerland, Swiss cheese is unique for its 'eyes' which are the holes left by bubbles that form during the aging process. The larger the 'eyes' the more intense the flavor.

Feta originated in Greece and is made with a combination of sheep and goat's milk. It's a white, soft or semi-firm cheese that is aged for several months and has a mild to strong tangy flavor.

Asiago cheese hails from the Asiago High Plateau in Italy (at least originally) and has a full, nutty-flavor. It comes in two main varieties, Fresh Asiago made from whole milk and Asiago d' Allevo made from part-skim milk and aged much longer.

Brie is a soft, light white to yellow cheese with a thick, somewhat tasteless, edible rind. It originated in France and is traditionally made with raw milk, meaning true Brie is not available in the United States due to pasturization laws. Many pasteurized varieties are available, however, and are usually enjoyed sliced with fruit or bread.

Limburger Perhaps most famous for its "stinkiness," Limburger cheese originated in Belgium (before becoming popular in Germany) and gets its trademark odor from bacteria living in the rind. The cheese itself, made from cow's milk, has a mild tangy flavor and is often enjoyed with beer.

Have another cheese you'd like to know more about? This website has an easy-to-navigate alphabetical guide.

Truffles are prized for their distinct flavor and scarcity, and have long been associated with fine dining and upper class society. There are as many as 70 varieties of truffles known around the world, each with their own unique set of characteristics and qualties.

Italian White Piedmont Truffle Found almost exclusively in the mountains and foothills of northern Italy and Yugoslavia, Italian white truffles are some of the most prized of all the truffle varieties and also usually the most expensive. They grow alongside Poplar, Beech, Hazelnut, and Oak trees and are light beige in color when fresh with a distinct peppery quality.

French Black Perigord Truffle Originating in the oak forests of the Perigord region of central and southwestern France, black truffles can now be found growing in Spain, Australia, and even the United States. Also on the list of the most valued truffles, they have a black or dark blue exterior when fresh and a pungent, earthy scent.

Oregon Truffles Available in white, brown, and black varieties (each with their own unique characteristics) they are found in the Pacific Northwest and are usually associated with stands of Douglas Fir trees. The Oregon Brown Truffle especially has a strong garlic odor.

Burgundy/Summer Truffle Originally from France, Italy, and Spain but now also found in Sweden and New Zealand, Summer Truffles are most abundant in the mid-summer months and have a light scent with a black or burgundy exterior and a much lighter interior.

Chinese Truffles are native to Southern China, have a fairly mild aroma, and are usually less expensive than other varieties.

Desert Truffles are also sometimes called 'lightning truffles' because of their fast growth habit after a rain. Found in Africa and the Middle East, they grow just under the sand after a thunderstorm alongside the roots of rock roses.

Eric Ripert, the chef/owner of the New York restaurant Le Bernardin, along with his wine director Aldo Sohm, has introduced the Avec Eric Perfect Pairings wine club.

Ripert is the host of a new show for PBS, Avec Eric, in which he explores his own vision of why we cook and where he finds his inspiration. Sohm, who oversees Le Bernardin's wine collection of over 15,000 bottles, recently received the 2009 James Beard Award for "Outstanding Wine Service" and was named "Best Sommelier in the World" in 2008 by the Worldwide Sommelier Association. Sohm is the first representative from America to win this title. Le Bernardin holds three stars from the Michelin Guide ,and has maintained its four-star rating from The New York Times for over 20 years.

In an interesting twist, the wines were picked with specific recipes from the chef in mind. Each month, Ripert and Sohm choose two bottles of wine for their members with the intention of pairing them with recipes inspired by his new series. The members will receive the recipes, as well as the wines, in addition to detailed tasting notes written by Sohm. Members also gain access to monthly online videos of the duo explaining each pairing. The wines are a mixed selection of reds, whites and sparkling chosen to complement the proposed dishes.

Ripert feels strongly that great food does not need to be complicated or intimidating for the home chef. Each show starts out with a trip to a vineyard, farm or four-star kitchen but finishes with the chef in his home kitchen demonstrating recipes for the home cook and enjoying the perfect glass of wine to accompany his meal. A Votre Sante!

Foie gras (pronounced ˈfwä-ˈgrä, French for "fat liver") is a food product made of the liver of a duck or goose that has been specially fattened, typically through gavage (force-feeding) corn. It is a delicacy in French cuisine. Foie gras' flavor is described as rich, buttery, and delicate, unlike that of a regular duck or goose liver. Foie gras is sold whole, or is prepared into mousse, parfait, or pâté, and often is served as an accompaniment to another food item, such as steak.

France is the largest producer and consumer of foie gras, though it is produced and consumed worldwide, particularly in other European nations, the United States, and China. Gavage-based foie gras production is controversial and considered by some to be cruel. A number of countries and other jurisdictions have laws against force feeding or the sale of foie gras.

The Martha Stewart branding train is rolling on with a new food line just in time for Thanksgiving. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc.has partnered with The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. to introduce a new Martha Stewart-branded food line that includes poultry from Plainville Farms, baking mixes from Arrowhead Mills and dried pastas from DeBoles. The Martha Stewart-branded products will launch with a line of fresh and frozen vegetarian-fed and antibiotic-free turkeys from Hain Pure Protein's Plainville Farms in time for Thanksgiving 2009. In a press release Stewart said, " I'm delighted to be offering consumers antibiotic-free, vegetarian-fed turkeys that are moist, tender, and absolutely delicious." The Martha Stewart website already has a place where you can order the bird online for $69.99 for a 12-pound bird. You can also download Martha's Turkey 101 guide should you need additional help. Add in some Martha table linens and Martha Stewart-branded wine and it's a very Martha Thanksgiving.

About a year-and-a-half ago I highlighted a great PBS show, Moment of Luxury With Bill Stubbs. The show is back for Season 2, and episodes began airing on October 1. (I regret not getting this information out there sooner...catch up with Season 1 online; if we're lucky, Season 2 episodes will appear soon!)

Stubbs, recognized by Architectural Digest on its list of top 100 designers, makes the experience of "luxury" -- excellence, comfort, and high quality -- accessible to Americans on any budget by offering tips on how to bring good, yet affordable, living into their homes and lives through home design, food, culture, and art.

"Our message that luxury does not have to be a fabulous home or an expensive piece of jewelry ... it can be a lush garden, an embroidered pillow, or a simple cup of tea ... has resonated with viewers," says Stubbs. "We are delighted to be back for a second season to continue our search for those places, people, and things that inspire me the most and to offer our viewers the tools to apply these secrets for affordable luxurious living."

This season, Stubbs finds luxury close to home in the United States and Canada. Filmed in high definition, the series brings Stubbs' design philosophy to life in 13 half-hour episodes. Take a look at some highlights of the series after the jump.