About Kiki

Email: eliseisrad@gmail.com

Biography:

I was born and raised in the beautiful city of Los Angeles. A constant flow of visiting relatives turned my dad into a tour guide. Because of that, I spent a lot of time at Disneyland, Olvera Street, Griffith Park and even the San Antonio Winery.

My family is comprised of serious foodies. My mom was raised on a farm in Northern Alberta, so we were spoiled by homemade bread and jams. One brother is a gourmand who used to be a wine merchant, another is a San Francisco foodie, the third loves wine collecting and barbequing large hunks of meat. My fourth brother is the king of Santa Maria-style BBQ and homemade salsa. Personally, I cook a lot of Jewish food, soul food, Italian food and one-pot dishes like soups, stews and chilis. I also started baking at my mother’s knee, although I still can’t decorate cakes or make a perfect pie dough.

I started talking food on the Roadfood website, sharing travel stories with online friends. We began publishing “Trip Reports” and didn’t even realize what we were doing was blogging. I started Here, Eat This! many years ago as an outlet for my thoughts and travel photos. Soon I was blogging with LAist, where I spent a fantastic 2 1/2 years learning a lot from some great mentors.

In 2011, I started a group blog centered around Los Angeles entertainment called The LA Beat. I mostly write about food and music, and about 30 other contributors cover movies, plays, books, and more food and music.

I’m always searching out little holes-in-the-wall, especially great taco trucks and soul food joints. My tastes run from hot dogs to foie gras. Some favorite haunts in Los Angeles include Animal, Trois Mec, Rajin Cajun, Republique, and Agnes. My travels have taken me across Canada, Mexico, Jamaica, and Europe. My favorite cities in the US other than LA are Seattle and New Orleans.

I still covet a Hot Dog on a Stick Uniform.

3 Responses to About Kiki

  1. Hello Kiki,

    I’m working on a post for my blog, “The Other Side of the Peso–Mexican Success Stories” about ASUPMATOMA in Cabo San Lucas. I found some photos you took and would like permission to use a couple. Specifically, I like the first photo inside the protected area and the photo of Rene Pinal. Of course, I’ll credit you and hyperlink to your website. The post will publish on Feb. 17.

    Photos found at: http://www.flickr.com/groups/921659@N22/

    Sincerely, Leslie Patino

    • kiki says:

      Hi I haven’t checked in lately. If it’s not too late, help yourself. I also made and ASUPMATOMA group on Flickr.

  2. Harri Pitts says:

    Kiki I think you are fab and rad. I wish I was as adventurous as you. I think you should do a pop-up restaurant featuring some of the weird food you’ve tasted with punk rock blasting loudly.
    Love you!

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