MAY 23RD, 2025

FRIDAY’S VIBES

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MEMORIAL DAY

WEEKEND VIBES

MEMORIAL DAY 🇺🇸 PARTY VIBES

• Today’s edition of CuratedLA arrives with timing for both those staying LA local, and those on the move this weekend. Whether you’re boarding a flight, or watching the coast pass by from the passenger seat, consider this your connection to what’s unfolding back home. Inside: a conversation with Yelena Friedman on comedy, performance, and navigating LA with vulnerability and wit. We will be back on Wednesday, but if needed, feel free to reply. Have a wonderful MDW! - Wyatt

ON THIS DAY ⏪️ 

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HOV LANES

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EATS

HEADLINES

OUTDOOR EATS 😎 RANKED BY OPENTABLE

• As summer ramps up, OpenTable has unveiled its annual list of top spots for outdoor dining across the US, naming Los Angeles one of the most alfresco obsessed cities alongside New York, Chicago, and San Francisco. Data pulled from over ten million diner reviews and reservation trends between April 2024 and March of this year helped determine the list, which includes ten LA favorites like Bestia, Bavel, Petit Trois L’Original, and Angelini Osteria, the latter also noted as pet friendly. Nationally, 55 percent of Americans say they prefer dining outdoors when weather allows, and nearly two thirds of dog owners report struggling to find pet welcoming restaurants, a need OpenTable now flags in its new outdoor dining guides.

OPENINGS

LEIMERT PARK 🥪 TOOCHIES KITCHEN

• Toochies Kitchen, a food truck parked along various spots on Degnan Boulevard in Leimert Park, arrives just in time for summer with a bold mission to bring gourmet truffle infused comfort food to the streets. Toochies Kitchen transforms everyday eats with rich truffle flavor, offering dishes like truffle tacos, truffle aioli burgers, and parmesan fries that elevate without losing their approachable charm. With fine dining roots and a community driven spirit, Toochies is serving up indulgent bites for warm weather wanderers craving something special.

  • Instagram

DOWNTOWN LA 🌭 BOMB HOTDOG

• Bomb Hotdog has officially opened its doors at on Spring Street in Downtown LA, serving up style street dogs with a bold twist. The menu leans into the crunchy, sweet and savory with options like the Cali Dog which features beef, chicken or pork with guacamole salsa, the Street Dog comprised of jalapeño, onion, bell pepper with either bacon wrapped beef, chicken, or pork to the Omm Dog featuring an omelette + bacon, ranch, chive, all on a traditional beef hot dog.

  • Website + Menu + Instagram

WESTLAKE VILLAGE 🐔 MIXTAPE

• Grammy winning musician and foodie Ahmir Questlove Thompson just opened Mixtape inside Neighborly, Westlake Village’s rising food hall, offering nostalgic fast food reimagined with no beef, gluten, or seed oils. Think crispy chicken sandwiches, veggie burgers made with shiitake and chickpeas, waffle fries with black eyed pea slaw, and sundaes dubbed Saturdaes with dairy free soft serve and indulgent toppings. Questlove says the concept draws from his post-show late night eats, aiming to deliver the same comfort but with cleaner ingredients.

  • Instagram

BEVERLY HILLS 🍪 LEVAIN BAKERY

• Levain Bakery, the cult favorite born in Manhattan, is adding another Los Angeles outpost on South Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills, taking over a former poke shop. Known for its thick, gooey cookies with a loyal national following, Levain has already made its mark in Larchmont and recently opened in Venice. The brand's signature treats are handmade and described as crispy, chewy, soft, and melty all at once.

  • Website + Menu + Instagram

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EVENTS

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

FIVE FUTURES

GUIDES

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ACTIVITIES

SANTA MONICA 🛹 PIER GETS STREET TAKEOVER

• TODAY: Street League Skateboarding returns to its roots with a free, first-ever Spot Takeover at Santa Monica Pier today, transforming the historic Triple Set into a custom-built course for a full day of pro-level action, including wildcard jams and finals for men and women. Olympic skaters Nyjah Huston, Yuto Horigome, and Braden Hoban will compete alongside a festival atmosphere featuring artist collaborations from Joshua Vides and Warren Lotas, who debut exclusive capsule collections. Limited preferred seating includes merch and meet-and-greets, while global fans can catch it all live on YouTube.

LONG BEACH 🐷 BBQ FESTIVAL

• TODAY + TOMORROW: The 3rd Annual Long Beach BBQ Festival fires up this Friday and Saturday at Shoreline Aquatic Park with back to back days of ribs, pulled pork, live music, and waterfront vibes. Hosted by Axiom Kitchen and NoahS’s Arc Foundation, the family friendly event runs 12:00pm to 9:00pm each day and features food vendors, games, shopping, and a surprise musical headliner. Proceeds from Axiom Kitchen benefit local charities.

SAN PEDRO ⚓️ L.A. FLEET WEEK 💌 

• TODAY - MONDAY: L.A. Fleet Week brings more than ship tours and air demos this weekend — the U.S. Navy is showcasing its new Strike Group mixed-reality experience adjacent to the Battleship Iowa in San Pedro. Running Friday through Monday from 10:00am to 6:00pm, the interactive exhibit puts visitors inside three hands-on STEM missions, including flight deck teamwork on an aircraft carrier, undersea welding repair, and a career-matching AI simulation that shows you in uniform 💌 

  • 💌 Submitted by Curators from the U.S. Navy via VML.

SANTA ANITA 🇺🇸 MEMORIAL WEEKEND CARNIVAL

• TODAY - MONDAY: Santa Anita Park’s infield becomes a full blown carnival this Memorial Day weekend, offering families thrill rides, inflatable jumpers, and classic snacks from Saturday through Monday. Unlimited ride wristbands run $30 and include admission and parking, while entry alone is $5 for adults and free for kids under seventeen. Expect a ferris wheel, yo yo swings, and pay per game booths, with height restrictions on some rides and extra fees for certain attractions.

LONG BEACH 🍔 THE ART OF FOOD

• STARTS TODAY: Long Beach Museum of Art’s AfterDark returns with a night time celebration for The Art of Food, a new exhibition showcasing over 100 works by post-war and contemporary icons like Warhol, Hockney, Saar, and Lichtenstein. The event runs from 7:00pm to 10:00pm with $20 tickets, blending food themed artwork with oceanfront vibes and DJ sets as the sun sets. On view through August 31st.

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COMMUNITY

RECORD 🛣️ MEMORIAL DAY TRAVELS

• Memorial Day weekend will see 3.6m Southern Californians on the move, up 3.6 percent from 2024 and marking the third straight year of record holiday travel. According to the Auto Club, 2.9m will drive, with INRIX forecasting the worst delays Friday afternoon on northbound I-5 to Bakersfield, where travel time could jump 83 percent. About 382,000 will fly and 260,000 will take trains, buses, or cruises. TSA expects to screen 18m passengers nationally from May 22nd (yesterday) to May 28th, with a reminder to carry a valid ID like a REAL ID. Local travelers are heading mostly to Las Vegas, San Diego, the Central Coast, and nearby national parks. Gas and rental prices are easing slightly, but expect to pay more for domestic flights and hotels compared to last year.

LOS ANGELES 🇺🇸 OBSERVANCES

• MONDAY: This Memorial Day, Los Angeles offers a heartfelt lineup of ceremonies and parades to honor those who gave their lives in service:

METRO ⛴️ WATER TAXI PLAN

• Metro is eyeing a water taxi route between San Pedro and Long Beach ahead of the 2028 Olympics, following a motion led by Supervisor Janice Hahn and approved unanimously by the Board. The proposed route aims to ease traffic, expand public transit options, and offer visitors a scenic way to reach Olympic events. Metro will study infrastructure needs, route feasibility, and cost. Long Beach already runs water shuttles like AquaLink, and Hahn notes the idea has historic roots in a former ferry that once connected San Pedro and Terminal Island. San Pedro is also set to host Croatia House during the Games, adding to the area’s Olympic footprint.

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DEVELOPMENT

SANTA MONICA 🎡 UPDATED EXPANSIONS

• Plans for a Santa Monica apartment project on Pico Boulevard have expanded, now calling for 147 units—nearly fifty percent more than originally proposed. The eight story development by Dylan Investments would replace a commercial structure just west of Santa Monica College, offering a mix of market rate and 24 income restricted units. The project uses density bonuses to exceed zoning limits, and would bring new housing to an area that has recently seen multiple affordable developments, including Community Corp’s Brunson Terrace nearby.

MID-WILSHIRE 🚀 HOUSING + RETAIL

• Jacmar Cos. is redeveloping the site on West Olympic Boulevard near the Fairfax Asterisk into a six story complex with 120 apartments and 5,100 square feet of retail, replacing older commercial buildings with housing aimed at transit accessibility. The project uses TOC incentives to exceed zoning limits, reserving twelve units for extremely low income households. Designed by MVE + Partners, the building will include rooftop and podium level amenities and a 132 car underground garage, joining a wave of construction in the area that includes a surgical hospital on San Vicente. Jacmar is also pursuing an Art Deco inspired tower in Downtown Santa Monica.

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BUSINESS

BEVERLY HILLS 👟 NIKE DEAL

• Starting this July, Beverly Hills Unified School District will partner exclusively with Nike and BSN SPORTS to outfit all schools with high performance gear, from athletics to performing arts. The five year agreement provides Nike uniforms, footwear, and spiritwear for students, staff, and families, aiming to unify the district under one brand. Spearheaded by board member Russell Stuart, the deal includes visual branding upgrades, a guest speaker event, and a custom online store for BHUSD Nike merchandise.

VENICE 🎞️ PROMISE BACKED BY GOOGLE

• Venice based AI studio Promise just landed funding from Google's AI Futures Fund and Peter Chernin's North Road Company to bring its MUSE production platform to life. The investment will fuel development of AI driven storytelling tools in collaboration with DeepMind and support production of Promise's first feature length film later this year.

VAN NUYS 🎥 AVENUE SIX STUDIOS

• Veteran producer Steven Paul’s SP Media Group has acquired Avenue Six Studios in Van Nuys, adding four sound stages and a New York-style backlot to its portfolio as it ramps up Hollywood-based film production. The revamped facility will support everything from major features and TV shows to music videos and podcasts, with future plans including LED virtual production and post facilities. Avenue Six, long valued for its turnkey setup and permit-free certification, now joins SP Media’s expanding entertainment empire alongside Atlas Comics, Echo Bridge, and JLTV.

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ENTERTAINMENT

CHIEF OF WAR 📺️ TRAILER DROP

• Apple TV+ has dropped the first teaser for Chief of War, a sweeping historical drama starring and co-created by Jason Momoa, premiering August 1st. Set in late 18th century Hawai‘i, the nine episode series follows warrior Ka‘iana’s fight to unify the islands before Western colonization, told entirely from an indigenous perspective. Featuring a predominantly Polynesian cast and music by Hans Zimmer, the show is Momoa’s most personal project yet and marks his return to Apple TV+ following the success of See.

BOX OFFICE 🍿 MEMORIAL DAY SHOWDOWN

• Disney’s Lilo & Stitch is set to dominate Memorial Day weekend with a projected $185m to $230m four-day debut, positioning the live action remake to break holiday records and eclipse the $314m all time Memorial Day high from 2013. With a mix of nostalgia and kid appeal, Stitch outpaces Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, which is tracking at $70m to $85m despite Tom Cruise’s campaign blitz. Meanwhile, Final Destination: Bloodlines is holding strong with a $25m to $30m forecast for its second weekend, even as it concedes screens to bigger titles. If forecasts hold, this could be the highest grossing Memorial Day weekend ever.

GOOGLE 👾 INTERNET STUNNED

• Google’s newly unveiled AI platform Flow has stunned the internet with its ability to generate eerily realistic 8 second videos from simple text prompts, complete with characters, settings, and dialogue that remain consistent across scenes. Powered by the latest Veo 3 model and integrated with user uploaded assets, Flow is being called the first usable AI video tool by creators—though the outputs still require heavy editing. As hype meets fear online, director Darren Aronofsky is embracing the tech through a new studio collaboration with DeepMind, with the first Flow powered short set to debut at Tribeca in June.

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GOODIES

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HAVE A GREAT WKND, LA!

🇺🇸 HAVE A WONDERFUL + SAFE
MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND, LA FAM! 🇺🇸 

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