Everything Glendale

Filed Under: Automotive Services, Guest Bloggers, Lexus of Glendale

[This is a guest post by Phyllis Harb, a realtor who also publishes the highly ranked LA Real Estate Blog.]

Who doesn't appreciate a luxury car? My first automobile was a used Maverick, and it was hideous! After several years of working as a loan processor, I was finally able to afford both a down payment and a monthly payment for a new car. I had my heart set on the Mazda RX7, but due to affordability I settled on a Honda Accord.

My only complaint with the Honda was the poor service at the Glendale dealership. I needed some part for a repair (it's been so long, I can’t remember what), and the dealership scheduled at least three or four appointments with me. My mom met me at the dealership and then dropped me off at Glendale's Allstate Savings & Loan (which was merged out of existence during the late 80s). After several hours at work, I phoned about the car's progress. Each time I was told the part wasn't in, was never in, and that they would call me when the part arrived and reschedule.

The first time, I felt it was an honest mistake; the second time I asked repeatedly if they were certain that the part was there; I think it was the third or fourth repeat of this fiasco when I complained to both the Better Business Bureau and Honda headquarters. The response from the Glendale dealership was that I was no longer welcome–they were refusing me service.

I later drove a Ford Explorer (what was I thinking?), then two Jeep Cherokees, and finally worked my way to the Lexus. Originally, at the time, the Lexus SUV was less expensive than my jeep. I finally splurged on the sedan.

I love the car, but it has never been about the car; it has been about the maintenance experience. As a matter of fact, I am at the Lexus of Glendale this morning, sipping a complimentary cappuccino, and using one of their two computers at the time of this writing.

What am I here for? A complimentary car wash! No service, just the car wash, and I was in and out in less than 30 minutes.

When I do have my Lexus serviced at the Glendale location, I am courteously and quickly dealt with. They offer complimentary shuttle service and often provide a free loaner car upon request.

Lexus of Glendale
1221 S. Brand Boulevard
Glendale, CA 91204
800.640.4479
www.lexusofglendale.com

Hours:

For Service, Parts:
Monday-Saturday: 7:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m.
Sunday: Closed

For Sales:
Monday-Friday: 8:30 a.m.-9:00 p.m.
Saturday: 8:30 a.m.-8:00 p.m.
Sunday: 9:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m.


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Filed Under: Celebrities, City Politics, News, Paul Krekorian, The Americana

We haven't done a news roundup for a couple of weeks now, so there's a lot to catch up on. Here's some noteworthy items that you may have missed:

• That roar you may have been hearing at night isn't in your dreams. The Glendale Police Department has issued a warning to residents to be on the lookout for a mountain lion that's been roaming the Verdugo Mountains.

• While Westfield is cutting the hours of its shopping centers across the country, The Americana at Brand will defy economic forecasts by keeping its normal hours.

• Our friendly neighborhood Assemblymember Paul Krekorian authored tax-credit legislation that aims to lure production on films and TV shows back to California.

• Time published a cool obituary of Glendale resident and punk rocker, Lux Interior, frontman of the Cramps.


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Filed Under: Florists, Ivy's Flower Station, Shop Reviews, Shopping

Valentine's Day came only two weeks after my first date with Matthew, and, as young college students, we were both unsure about how to handle the holiday—to what extent we should declare our feelings, how to tiptoe around the "L" word. He chose a single, long-stem rose. I still have the flower, dried now, 14 years later.

I don't care if Valentine's Day might be a corporate hoax designed to leech our hard-earned dollars. I love that it is a holiday whose sole purpose is to declare our love: our love for our husbands and wives, our children and friends, our love for each other, even if it's through exchanging simple gifts of beauty.

Ivy's Flower Station offers such lovely creations. Each bouquet is a unique artistic creation, specially designed by Marianne the owner, and she will make a lovely bouquet for even the smallest of budgets.

Marianne possesses a joyful kindness that is reflected in the shop, a converted gas station originally built in the 1930s. Marianne opened in Kenneth Village four years ago and made a concerted effort to retain the original details. Paint peels over red Chinese lanterns; a large wooden counter reminiscent of 1950s soda pop stands invites walkers-by to place orders; and goldfish swim in a square pond over the mechanic's pit, reflecting Marianne's sense of humor.

Besides flowers, the store also offers handmade cards and gifts, and just the charm of the shop makes you want to spoil your loved one with such unique little tokens.

Unfortunately, my husband doesn't play on the Internet as much as most of us do. If any of you reading this knows Matthew, tell him he can go to Ivy's Flower Station for Valentine's Day this year. Who knows? He might be getting a little something from there, too.

Ivy's Flower Station
1435 W. Kenneth Road
Glendale, CA 91201
818.500.7599
www.ivysflowerstation.com

Price Range:
$10.00 and up

Hours:
Monday-Friday: 8:30 a.m.-6:00 p.m.
Saturday: 8:00 a.m. until they run out of inventory
Sunday: Closed

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Filed Under: Divina Cucina, Food, Italian Cuisine, Montrose, Restaurant Reviews

A friend accustomed to fine dining was visiting from London and wanted to take me to a "nice" dinner in my neck of the woods—Montrose. I'd heard good things about Divina Cucina on Verdugo Road, so we decided to give it a try.

We sat on the covered patio by an attractive fountain, as the main restaurant was packed and a little noisy for quiet conversation.

The menu is extensive, and we were struggling to decide from the many tasty sounding offerings when the waiter threw a spanner in the works by coming up with some irresistible-sounding specials.

After much deliberation, I opted for polenta e gamberetti—sauteed shrimp and mixed peppers over grilled polenta with red pepper sauce. And my partner opted for funghi portobello alla griglia—grilled portobello mushroom and red onion, smoked mozzarella, and sweet pepper sauce. Both were beautifully presented and mouth-wateringly good.

For our main course, we both chose handmade pasta—I went for the spinach tortellini and my friend for one of the day's specials, linguine in a light lemon sauce. Even though he's normally a steak man, he was raving about it.

The cuisine could best be described as Italian with an elegant twist, thanks to the charming and equally elegant husband-and-wife owners, Alicia and Horatio Lavanchy, who hail from Argentina by way of Italian parentage.

For a small restaurant, there's a surprisingly extensive wine list with a very nice selection of Italian wines in particular. I counted seven varieties of pinot grigio and 11 chiantis. We opted for a pinot noir, with nine to pick from. There's also a good choice of port, sherry, and dessert wine.

We came out at around $90 for a superb two-course meal, including delicious homemade breads, with wine and coffee.

Divina Cucina is more upscale than your average Italian, but relaxed and friendly as a family run restaurant should be. My friend was so impressed he insisted on picking up the tab—needless to say, he can come back anytime!

It's super busy on Fridays and Saturdays so if you want a quiet romantic dinner, pick a week night. Divina Cucina is also open for lunch. Reservations are recommended for parties, especially on weekends. There is parking at the restaurant but very few spaces on a tricky corner, so best to park in a public lot or on the street and walk.

Divina Cucina
3730 N. Verdugo Road
Montrose, CA 91020
818.248.3077
www.divinacucinarestaurant.com

Entrée Price Range:
$12.95-$20.95
(Plus a selection of daily market price fish)

Hours:
Tuesday-Friday: 11:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m., 5:00 p.m.-10:30 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday: 5:00 p.m.-10:30 p.m.


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Filed Under: Automotive Services, Chevron, Gas Stations, Shop Reviews

When you move to a new town, you tend to seek out your local necessities so you can start feeling at home. In my book, these include the local post office, a nice market, a gym, and a smattering of reliable food options. Before I moved to Glendale, this short list never included a local gas station. Service stations are so ubiquitous that I just gassed up whenever I needed it. Or rather, my husband gassed up, since princesses don't pump gas.

When my family moved to Glendale about five years ago, we settled in pretty quickly. The fact that a lot of the north-south streets are alphabetized and on a grid helped a lot, but we really started to feel at home when we found "our" gas station.

Located just a few blocks from our home, this 24-hour Chevron station (formerly a Mobil) has everything that other gas stations offer, including good snacks, gift shop items, and a car wash, but this one was special. When we walked into the convenience store, we found it clean and well-stocked, with very friendly staff, especially a gentleman named Rimon.

We are still impressed that they are on the cutting edge of gum and breath mints. Sometimes we buy breath fresheners here that we can't find anywhere else, such as Hershey's Ice Breakers "Pacs," mouthfuls of goodness in meltaway packets that dissolve on your tongue. Mmmm.

But what really won us over was the bathroom. As you know, if you're out and about and really desperate, you don't care what condition a gas station bathroom is in, since you'll take anything. But this one is wonderful: clean, spacious, and lovely. It even has a chandelier! If the owner cares enough about his customers to maintain such a nice bathroom, then we'll do our part to patronize his business, even if it sometimes costs a few pennies more.

As much as we can, we fill up here. When that little red gas pump lights up on my dash, I will push my gas-guzzling SUV (don't judge) home, so we can make it to "our" gas station. And, now that my daughter has her own car, she has become a regular, too. She always gets a friendly greeting and she wouldn't think of going elsewhere.

It's the little things in life that make us happy on a day-to-day basis, and this Chevron station turns an unpleasant chore into a pleasant respite.

Chevron
Owner: Feiruz Ennabe-Ayoub
825 N. Central Avenue
Glendale, CA 91203
818.240.6134


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Filed Under: Airports, Celebrities, Glendale News-Press, Motley Crue, News, Tommy Lee

• A near-miss with a police helicopter in Glendale got Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee and his chopper pilot busted.

• The neighborhoods around the Bob Hope Airport may get a whole lot quieter because the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority is seeking to ban cargo carriers, airlines, and private planes between 10:00 p.m. and 6:59 a.m.

• The editor of the Glendale News-Press is packing it up and moving to Boston.


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Filed Under: Celebrities, Education, Miley Cyrus, News, Nicollette Sheridan, Shia LaBeouf, The Americana

• Did you know there's a firearms dealer in Glendale that converts old weapons into props for major motion pictures? Cinema Weaponry just made a deal to take the Santa Barbara SWAT team's old firearms in exchange for new ones.

• If the economic stimulus package that just passed the House of Representatives last week is finalized, the Burbank and Glendale unified school districts will receive a combined boost of $33 million over two years.

• Okay, so the reason why Shia LaBeouf seems to be always be "news" in Glendale is because almost every day he walks to his neighborhood liquor store to pick up an Arizona Iced Tea, like last Monday and last Tuesday. But let's give Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday a Shia LaBeouf break and point out that...

• Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana) was mobbed by screaming fans at The Americana at Brand and...

• Nicollette Sheridan was photographed on the set of Desperate Housewives in Glendale.


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