California
Summer Barbecue Festival Season Has Arrived in Southern California
Summer is just around the corner, as is the season to place marinated meats over a fiery grill. Thankfully, two Southern California festivals are taking place to celebrate Los Angeles and Riverside County’s diverse barbecue scenes, starting with the Long Beach Barbecue Festival on May 25 and the Brew n’ Que Festival from May 31 through June 1 in Riverside County.
Axiom Kitchen will set up at the tail end of Shoreline Aquatic Park from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. to host its second annual event showcasing 25 pitmasters including Big Brian’s Meats, the 38-year-old operator Robert Earl’s BBQ, and the Mexican-Cuban specialist El Guero y La Flaca. In addition to 40 retail vendors, the festival will also feature whiskey tastings, a beer garden, a full bar, and an amateur chili cook-off contest. VIP tickets are still available.
Out in Norco, the Brew n’ Que Festival kicks off with panel chats from the CEO of the Kansas City Barbecue Society, Slap Yo Daddy sauce creator Harry Soo, and Black Smoke author Adrian Miller on day one. On June 1, attendees can try barbecue from local operators, North Carolina’s Bourbon & Blues Barbecue, and Good Googly Goo BBQ from Maryland. They’ve even secured live entertainment. Tickets to the festival range from $20 to $125.
Carmel Coffee craze is an understatement
Time Out LA waited in Carmel Coffee’s hour-plus line to try Silver Lake’s, or, rather, all of Los Angeles’s buzziest cafe, which opened in May. Those brave enough to stand in line were rewarded with drinks like milk teas, matcha lattes, and its popular multi-grain misugaru.
Another group of SoCal Starbucks workers join the union
Starbucks employees in Santa Clarita voted to join the worker union on May 17. The store at Newhall and Carl Court is the 35th California Starbucks location to join Starbucks Workers United. Over the last three years, Starbucks workers have organized extensively throughout the country amid allegations of anti-union actions from the coffee giant. In Southern California, the chain shuttered six Los Angeles stores in 2022, citing issues related to worker safety. The National Labor Relations Board subsequently filed a complaint against Starbucks, taking action to order the company to reopen multiple LA stores in 2023.
Grand Central Market in 1963
This time capsule of Grand Central Market from Forgotten Madness LA’s Instagram account is a healthy dose of nostalgia for Los Angeles residents and beyond.
New hours and offerings at Xuntos
Santa Monica’s Xuntos is open on Mondays and just launched a happy hour with Pintxos by chef Sandra Cordero. It also has a new bar program where gin and tonics, brandies, and Spanish natural wines are available, including Galician after-dinner drinks called chupitos.
Pescatarians, Burgers 99 wants you
DJ collective All Summa partnered with Badmaash’s Burgers 99 to create their first fish burger called the Ricks. It’s $13 with a wild-caught salmon patty, avocado spread, capers, cheddar, lettuce, and tomatoes on a toasted bun.
California
California Upsets No. 14 Louisville Cardinals in Overtime Thriller
California traveled to Louisville, Ky., in search of a statement win against the No. 14 Louisville Cardinals (7-2, 4-2 ACC), and the Golden Bears (6-4, 3-3 ACC) pulled out all the stops Saturday evening to earn the upset, 29-26, in overtime.
On the first play of the game, California quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele threw a lateral to his slot receiver, Jacob de Jesus, who then connected with Trond Grizzell on a deep 27-yard pass. While the Golden Bears would not score on the drive, their fast and aggressive play early on silenced much of the 51,381 in attendance.
California out-gained Louisville in total yards and offensive plays throughout the entire game. The Golden Bears never once trailed the nationally ranked Cardinals by more than one score, despite entering the game as three-score underdogs, according to many sportsbooks’ odds.
Sagapolutele earned the game-winning touchdown in overtime with a nail-biting throw on fourth down. California’s first-year signal-caller found his favorite target of the evening, de Jesus, who brought in the three-yard reception to close out the game.
De Jesus had a game-high 157 receiving yards and hauled in 16 of 23 passes in which he was targeted. His 16 receptions tie Geoff McArthur’s school record for receptions by a receiver in a single game.
In his post-game press conference, Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm praised de Jesus, calling him California’s “best player.”
“… Even at the end, to allow their best player to be one-on-one for an easy throw in the corner… you know, we need to coach better; we need to play better,” Coach Brohm said.
Sagapolutele completed 30 out of 47 passes attempted and racked up 323 passing yards—both career highs. In addition to the game-decider, the quarterback threw his first touchdown of the game in the first quarter, a 20-yard bomb to tight end Landon Morris.
The last time California beat a nationally ranked, top-25 team was on Dec. 5, 2020, when the Golden Bears upset the No. 20 Oregon Ducks, 21-17, for their first win in the 2020 college football season.
With the win, California is now eligible for a post-season bowl bid.
California
Mom of missing California girl arrested on unrelated charges of daughter’s disappearance
CALIFORNIA (AZFamily) — The mother of a missing California girl has been arrested on charges unrelated to her daughter’s disappearance, but the child still has yet to be found.
FBI Los Angeles announced that 40-year-old Ashlee Buzzard was taken into custody on Friday. However, the whereabouts of her daughter, 9-year-old Melodee Buzzard, remain unknown.
Melodee and Ashlee reportedly went on a road trip as far as Nebraska in a rental white Chevrolet Malibu last month, detectives say. Federal authorities say Melodee and her mother may have passed through Interstate 15 in Littlefield, Arizona while on the drive.
Detectives say Ashlee was arrested for a recent incident where she allegedly prevented a victim from leaving against their will. Authorities say this crime is not connected to the ongoing search for Melodee.
“Although this arrest occurred during the course of the missing person investigation, it is not directly related to Melodee’s disappearance. Sheriff’s detectives remain fully focused on locating Melodee and confirming her safety,” FBI Los Angeles said in a statement.
Ashlee was booked for a felony charge of false imprisonment. She is being held at a jail in Santa Maria, California, with bail set at $100,000.
Melodee was photographed at a rental car agency on Oct. 7, wearing a wig and a hoodie.
The young girl has brown eyes and brown, curly hair that may be straightened or covered with a dark wig. She is between four and four-and-a-half feet tall, weighing between 60 and 100 pounds.
Anyone with information about Melodee is asked to contact detectives at (805) 681-4150 or submit an anonymous tip at (805) 681-4171.
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California
Home Ronald and Nancy Reagan commissioned as California Governor’s Mansion hits the market
A Carmichael home that was originally designed to be California’s official Governor’s Mansion is now up for sale.
The mid-century modern home, located at 2300 California Avenue, was built in 1975 after being commissioned by Ronald and Nancy Reagan to replace the aging governor’s mansion at 16th and H streets in Sacramento.
By the time construction was finished, Reagan had already left office. His successor, Jerry Brown, declined to move in – famously dismissing the Carmichael residence as the “Taj Mahal.”
No California governor ever called the mansion home, with the property being sold to a private citizen in 1983.
A time capsule installed at the property recognizes the home’s history. The capsule is scheduled to be opened on July 4, 2076.
Now, as of Oct. 16, the Carmichael home has hit the market with a list price of $7.5 million. The property spans 4.3 acres that overlook the American River, with the home featuring a total of 8 bedrooms, 8 bathrooms, and 2 half bathrooms.
“You can really feel the history here,” said realtor Hattie Coleman in a statement.
The Carmichael home last sold in 2004 for $4.1 million.
The East Sacramento home Reagan lived in for much of his time as California governor was designated as a historic landmark in 2024.
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