Balsamic Fig Reduction: one of my favorite meal enhancers... I remember many years ago when I bought a Balsamic Vinegar with Fig infused and I paid top dollar for it.After I tasted it, I decided that was the last time and I will make my own. Needless to say you do not need to pay top dollar and can make your own.Every year I would take some fresh figs and then do my own reduction and infusing it with the fresh figs.This year there were hardly any fresh figs on the market, so I bought some dried figs. So, with that said here is my recipe for the Balsamic Fig Reduction:1. Quarter the figs about a handful plus2. Add two bottles of Balsamic Vinegar from Modena3. Boil it for about 20 minutes or so4. Then reduce the heat and continue for another 15 minutes. Basically, convert and reduce the t... 05/05/2024

I know it has been four years since the mask mandates came into effect. I have been wearing the mask 80% of the time... Going to the grocery stores I find it is a must as most people are back to their evil ways of sneezing, coughing without covering their mouth.Rude people try to get in your face like before. Hence, I continue to wear the mask. When it comes going to the office, well you know once every six months to a year I do not wear it, and most people are kind and do give our space.I do get it cover your nose and cover your mouth. So who do you help out? Probably the person who least expects it, when you sneeze or cough you are probably protecting them... I am hoping on it might help me as well. On a side note the top photo in the post was on the wall of the Vet Hospital we just v... 05/03/2024

Well, I am a huge lobster fan, especially if it is from Maine, now with that said I was looking at photos and a few popped up from a year or so ago.My question is what is more fun reminiscing about great food I had, or I made? Or about going on listing appointments in historic Laurel Canyon?Well to me it is a hard decision, since generally speaking the listings will generate my food tastes:) Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the Beverly Hills area who will help you achieve your Real Estate goals, please reach out to me directly! If you are looking for a pet friendly Beverly Hills Realtor who can handle and sell the most difficult properties that no one else could, please r... 05/02/2024

Another Vacant lot Sold! Interestingly I sold this lot a few years ago, the buyer wanted to have seller financing and sadly the buyer ended up defaulting. On a side note, I did not represent the buyer.Now with that said this time it was an all-cash transaction again not my buyer.Directions : Head North on San Fernando Rd to Future St to Kemper St to Cliff DrRemarks : Huge Price reduction, this is the best priced view lot in Mount Washington area. One of the largest lots in the area and it has a gentle up slope, truly a rare find in the area. Great for a developer or for an owner user who wants to build a view home in the coveted Mount Washington area of Los Angeles. All the utilities are in the street all you have to do is connect to them. Seller financing is available, reach out to the... 04/30/2024

A historic landmark, a restaurant that has been in the same location for since 1959 is forced to move. I have been watching the new building and watching how the negotiations were going. Clearly, they had no sympathy for a Westchester Landmark.On Monday May 6th the Dianah's Family Restaurant will relocate to 4130 S Sepulveda Blvd in Culver City. The name will be changed to Dinah's Kitchen as well.If you have seen the Big Lebowski and the Little Miss Sunshine movies than you know about Dianah's Restaurant.This is a quote from the family:After 65 years in our original location, our relocation is driven by ongoing urban development in Los Angeles, which now includes new apartment buildings on the lot next to ours. These expanding developments have impacted the space that we and our neighbo... 04/29/2024

Knowing how to plan a renovation project will keep you on budget and successful. 04/29/2024

Speechless Sundays: what was the biggest lemon you ever had.... well with that said what was the strangest shaped lemon you ever had?We have been living in our home for a little over ten years now and we are always grateful and appreciative of our lemon tree.I needed some lemons yesterday, so I went in the back yard and picked these two. I thought you would get a kick out of it. The photo above is for perspective of what our standard lemons are compared to the larger one.Now I expect our friend George Souto  to have a fun comment with this post:))  Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the Beverly Hills area who will help you achieve your Real Estate goals, please reach out to... 04/28/2024

04/27/2024

Wisdom from Julia Child, thought I would share here..."Remember, " No one's more important than people" In other words, friendship is the most important thing, not career or housework, or one's fatigue-and it needs to be tended and nurtured." " I began to notice cats everywhere, lurking in alleys or sunning themselves on walls or peering down at you from windows. They were such interesting, independent-minded creatures. I began to equate them with Paris."" You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces-just good food from fresh ingredients."Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the Beverly Hills area who will help you achieve your Real Estate goals, please reach out ... 04/26/2024

 Pending: 1553 Cliff Dr Los Angeles CA 90065 another vacant lot changes status. Now let's just move on to a smooth closing. In all fairness I enjoyed working with this agent. She communicated with me at different times of the day, via text or email or a phone call. I wish all the other buyer's agents I have dealt with were like her.Directions : Head North on San Fernando Rd to Future St to Kemper St to Cliff DrRemarks: Huge Price reduction, this is the best priced view lot in Mount Washington area. One of the largest lots in the area and it has a gentle up slope, truly a rare find in the area. Great for a developer or for an owner user who wants to build a view home in the coveted Mount Washington area of Los Angeles. All the utilities are in the street all you have to do is connect to ... 04/25/2024

This recipe was inspired by a cookbook I received from our friend Dick Greenberg  many years ago. Sadly, he left the platform many years ago as well... He sent me this cookbook, once he discovered that I was a gourmet cook but did not have this book.So let me share the ingredients (the key is having all this to make it work):1. black truffle oil2. black truffle mushroom3. morrell mushrooms (in my case dried ones)4. Fresh Trumpet Mushrooms5. two garlic cloves6. quarter of an onion (I always use sweet onions)7. little butter with seasonings, parsley, tarragon, thyme and oregano8. Chicken Stock preferably a good one9. 1/2 cup of half and half or heavy cream (today I used half and half)10. any kind of pasta, I used some colorful ones just to make it more interesting.Needless to say, Diane t... 04/25/2024

2401 San Marco Dr. Los Angeles CA 90068: Accepting Backup Offers...Directions : Head East on Franklin Ave to Cahuenga BLVD (N) first right (E)on to Dix St and first left (n) on Holly Dr. to the end turn (L) to San Marco, land is just past 2407 San Marco Dr.Remarks: Best priced vacant land in the Beach Wood Canyon area. Truly a fantastic opportunity to build your dream home in the highly desirable Hollywood Dell section of the Hollywood Hills East. This lot is equally desirable for a developer to build for spec. The house next to this lot on a more difficult upslope with smaller frontage was built recently. This up sloped lot has about 58 ft of frontage with panoramic canyon views. Just imagine being surrounded by nature and multimillion dollar homes and still be minutes from the city an... 04/22/2024

As most of you who read my posts, we have been supporting the Los Angeles Festival of Books for the past 24 plus years. We missed the first two and then we became loyal supporters year after year. Yesterday we went and you can read my post of what I thought. Now with that said we did not go this year the second day, like we always did two days in a row. Ironically, I had an easy day with real estate today.Well, not to dwell on it here are a few Fotos that I did not post yesterday.No matter what I wish you a wonderful week ahead and if you have time enjoy reading books. Please buy and read books. Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the Beverly Hills area who will help you ach... 04/21/2024

This post was inspired by Debe Maxwell, CRS  request for my recipe of a Clam Chowder. My take is a combination of Uber Chef Jasper White's corn chowder and I add clams from Wild Fork to improve it and I also add some carrots. Hence it becomes my recipe:)Debe Maxwell, CRS  keep in mind I do not use bacon or anything with bacon so that is a difference of my chowder.Also, I stopped adding corn starch to thicken the soup, instead I crush some potatoes to thickn it.  Bon Appetite!  Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the Beverly Hills area who will help you achieve your Real Estate goals, please reach out to me directly! If you are looking for a pet friendly Beverly Hills Realtor... 04/21/2024

Diane and I have been going to the Festival of Books for the past 24+ years. If memory serves me correctly, we only missed the first two... Now with that said this year we did not get a new coffee mug. Usually, we get one every year commemorating our visit to the Festival of Books. This year was a total disappointment.The marketing was too vague and too discouraging. In the old days if you wanted to see an author you did not have to pay to enter. This year the message was mistakenly focused on, that you cannot get to see a panel or an author unless you pay for a ticket. Really??? False messaging. Sadly, many bought into this message including us.I told Diane it was just poor English and not clear messaging... we disagreed... on a side note I was right.So, with that said, let me tell you... 04/20/2024

Friday Funday: I thought how about a fun dinner.... I always cruise the Internet, and I saw someone post a recipe for baked cabbage. Loved the idea and it so happened I had cabbage in the fridge as well as I always have olive oil.Now I thought this would go well with bake Argentinian Red Shrimp.Then I figured how about some great Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Bisquists to accompany the dinner Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the Beverly Hills area who will help you achieve your Real Estate goals, please reach out to me directly! If you are looking for a pet friendly Beverly Hills Realtor who can handle and sell the most difficult properties that no one else could, please reach ... 04/19/2024

Wordless Wednesdays: Citrus Tree pruning in the back yard... Diane decided to prune the trees. Needless to say, she has been coordinating with our Gardner to do this. Hence, I was stuck dealing with them.They showed up in the afternoon while I was in the middle of keeping one deal together and negotiating two other deal.Next thing I know is they are putting cut branches into the "trash" barrel after they filled the "Green Barrel."  after they left, I was trying to salvage many of the oranges. Clearly you know for future Orange Juice.... Needless to say, managed to save some but what you see here was probably 50% the rest were lost!    Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the ... 04/17/2024

Lemon, Avocado, Bucatini & Shrimp pasta dinner... this dinner was inspired, because Diane wanted a break from " Red Sauce so with that said I reached into my cookbooks and found this recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks: "Pasta Modern." Those of you who read my posts know I would end up modifying the recipe to make it my own.Well, I did the short recipe, lemon, lemon zest, shrimp, avocado and lemon juice.My additions, fresh parsley, clam juice, little bit of heavy cream and a lot more wine:). I also added little bit of heavy cream and substituted red onions with sweet onions as well as added some baby spinach,  Wishing you a safe and healthy life and I look forward to your comments. If you are looking for a knowledgeable, focused and goal-oriented Realtor in the Beverly Hills area who... 04/16/2024

1553 Cliff Dr Los Angeles CA 90065: Accepting Backup Offers...Directions : Head North on San Fernando Rd to Future St to Kemper St to Cliff DrRemarks : Huge Price reduction, this is the best priced view lot in Mount Washington area. One of the largest lots in the area and it has a gentle up slope, truly a rare find in the area. Great for a developer or for an owner user who wants to build a view home in the coveted Mount Washington area of Los Angeles. All the utilities are in the street all you have to do is connect to them. Seller financing is available, reach out to the listing agent for details as well as a Plat Map.Agent Remarks : Please email listing agent for a plat map homes@endrebarath.com as well as seller financing detailsShowing Remarks : email listing agent for a plat map a... 04/16/2024

Los Angeles, CA 90046 - Hollywood Hills-Sunset StripMon Apr 15 2024This week the median list price for Los Angeles, CA 90046 - West Hollywood is $3,197,000 with the market action index hovering around 31. This is about the same as last month's market action index of 31. Inventory has increased to 80. Market SegmentsEach segment below represents approximately 25% of the market ordered by price. Median Price Sq. Ft. Lot Size Beds Bath Age New Absorbed DOM $6,895,000 4,774 0.25 - 0.5 acre 5 5.5 29 2 1 94 $3,985,000 3,781 6,500 - 8,000 sqft 4 5 25 2 3 112 $2,695,000 2,742 8,000 - 10,000 sqft 4 3 68 2 5 49 $1,860,000 1,630 4,500 - 6,500 sqft 3 2 76 4 2 42 In the last few weeks, the market has achieved a relative stasis point in terms of sales to inventory. However, inventory is sufficiently ... 04/15/2024