The Smithsonian Is Honoring LA’s Legendary Vietnamese Chef Helene An

Good news

Longtime Los Angeles chef Helene An is being honored by the Smithsonian, reports LA Times. An has long popularized a more modern approach to Vietnamese cooking in Southern California and beyond, and next month she’ll earn a coveted Pioneer Award in Culinary Arts for her efforts.

Burger time

New York City burger name brand Black Tap has opened at Downtown Disney. The East Coast transplant went fast casual for this location, but still has all the burgers, beer, and milkshakes anyone could need.

In the kitchen

Historic Filipinotown shop Woon is doing a sandwich pop-up on May 5 starting at 11 a.m. Check out the Instagram post below for menu details.

Secret date

Warriors favorite Klay Thompson spent some time in Los Angeles between games, and even managed to catch date night out at A.O.C., reports TMZ.

Tea time

Take a look at this really weird and cool Alice in Wonderland-style tea pop-up happening in a “secret” Hollywood garden, per LA Magazine. The whole thing leans alcoholic, meaning it’s for adults only (plus it costs $60 a head), with the pop-up running from May 23 through June.

Hawaii time

Here’s Looking at You in Koreatown is doing a great one-night dinner collaboration on May 15 with Sheldon Simeon of Maui’s Tin Roof. The Hawaiian evening runs $85 a head, and looks like it comes with a whole lot of awesome food.

Next up

Ever the innovator, Josh Zad and the Alfred Coffee crew is scaling down with a few new takeaway locations of Alfred around the city in the coming months. The below rendering shows the small window spaces, which will lean heavily on customers ordering ahead from an app to avoid any long lines.