May 28, 2025
Joanne Suavillo and her husband Ray have run The Lumpia Truck for more than five years. Their new restaurant, Spoon and Fork, is a grab-and-go spot on Broadway that serves some of the most flavorful dishes in town.
The Suavillo’s restaurant is new. Yet the food and service act like they’ve been open for years. In a way, they have.
“We’re still figuring out a few things with staffing,” Ray Suavillo tells me. “But we’ve been running the truck for years and could turn over 1,000 plates without batting an eye.”
May 28, 2025
This month’s column comes straight out of ancient times. This is wrath-of-God stuff, fire and brimstone, baby, right from the Old Testament cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
You know I’m messing with you. You don’t read this column to get the hellish diatribes made famous by televangelists.
Those preachers often compare the “homosexual debaucheries” of Sodom and Gomorrah with what they see as the decline of America. They use it as a cautionary tale to ban books, define sexes and influence elections.
May 28, 2025
Vibrant and active professionals getting close to retirement, Jane and Jeffrey Einhorn weren’t obvious candidates for a big new home. Most of their friends are downsizing.
But when Jane saw the 4,560-square-foot home in Sierra Oaks Vista, she knew it was special.
“Everybody thinks I was crazy to move into such a large home at this time in my life,” she says.
But the home is perfect.
Apr 30, 2025
No other local news outlet has covered the unsheltered crisis better than on our pages, a commitment we made in 2019. Sadly, most of the news has been grim if not hopeless.
But in recent months, we’ve seen changes that might turn the tide.
“Americans With No Address” is a new, compelling documentary on the national unsheltered crisis. I watched it on Amazon Prime and urge you to see it.
Produced by Robert Craig Films, the work dives deep into homelessness. The film was created from a three-week bus tour—starting in Sacramento—across 20 cities in 18 states. The filmmakers explore causes behind homelessness. And they find solutions.
Apr 30, 2025
Peruvian cuisine, a triumph of fusion cooking, is having a moment. Chicha Peruvian Kitchen Midtown puts those global flavors center stage.
Chicha opened last summer, taking over from Pronto, a fast casual Italian concept. Chicha’s vibe is young and fresh. The funky hitch of Cumbia songs and the sway of salsa tunes play over the hi-fi. Service is attentive and friendly.
It’s a sit-down restaurant that feels more casual than it actually is. Decorations are cheeky. Murals of jungle cats and haunting female gazes stare out along one wall. Souvenir statues of llamas and bulls, brightly painted and delightful, sit on shelves.
Yet at Chicha, the napkins are linen. Every dish comes elegantly presented.
Peruvian cooking brings together influences from around the world. The indigenous culture has always been deft with the use of seafood, beans, squash and ever-present potatoes.
Apr 30, 2025
Some months back, I visited a new church led by an energetic team. I wanted to learn how our traditional church might find some regenerative energy.
Afterward, I asked what the team liked about their church. I heard several good answers, but one woman intrigued me.
“The first time I walked into this church, I could tell I’d found a wholesome place,” she said.
“Definitely a wholesome-looking bunch,” I said.
“Yes,” she added. “No one with piercings or tattoos.”
