Jackie's South Bay Weekend Guide for October 16, 2014

I’m in the Big Easy this week celebrating my mom’s birthday. We’re having a wonderful time and of course, at every opportunity, I tell the people we meet about our fabulous backyard and all it has to offer. Ya’ll know how well I can chat up the South Bay and I have no doubt some of them will be visiting our neck of the woods very soon. As they say in N’awlins - laissez le bon temps rouler!

Riviera Village hosts Third Thursdays every month. Stroll along the sidewalks of this charming coastal village overflowing with quaint shops, extraordinary restaurants and firms offering every service imaginable. Shops will stay open for business until 8 p.m. A raffle drawing for Village gift bags adds to the fun. Spend a total of $50 at participating businesses (restaurants excluded) to be eligible to enter the drawing. At the time of your first purchase, fill out an information card and present it whenever you make a purchase. In addition, the evening features live entertainment scattered throughout the Village from 6 to 8 p.m. After all the shopping is done, enjoy a cocktail, appetizer or meal at one of the many fine dining establishments. There’s something for every taste and price range including the two latest additions to the Village food scene: Locale 90 (artisan pizza) and Flying Fin (sushi). Riviera village is located in South Redondo Beach in the triangle bordered by Palos Verdes Boulevard, Avenue I and Pacific Coast Highway. For additional information, visit the website at http://www.rivieravillage.org/.

Shade Hotel in Manhattan Beach hosts a monthly Wine Academy tonight, Thursday, October 16. Wine loving friends can gather to socialize, taste and learn from experts about new wines in a relaxed, fun, atmosphere. This popular event is open to the public and runs from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. and offers wine lovers an opportunity to enjoy an intimate, casual, wine-centric social gathering. Well-priced at $25 per person in advance, $35 at the door, the Wine Academy features expert, interactive presentations of exceptional wines, boutique and/or limited production wines, along with tantalizing wine-paired hors d’oeuvres prepared by Executive Chef Chris Garasic. This month they’ll be featuring the wines of Summerland with host Mandi Lewis. For additional information and to make reservations, call 310-546-4995 or visit the website at http://www.southbaybyjackie.com. Shade Hotel is located at 1221 North Valley Drive in Manhattan Beach.

The Redondo Beach Art Group (RBAG) is proud to present the ninth annual Power of Art event beginning Friday, October 17 and running through Sunday, October 19. The exhibit will be held at the Redondo Beach Main Library and admission is free. The event kicks off with an Artists’ Reception on Friday, October 17 from 6 to 10 p.m. Guests will enjoy live music, gift gallery, silent auction, guest artists and food for purchase. Throughout the weekend, attendees will enjoy curator talks, dance performances, live music and art workshops. Hours are as follows:

Friday, October 17: 6 – 10 p.m.
Saturday, October 18: noon – 7 p.m.
Sunday, October 19: noon – 6 p.m.

For additional information and schedule of events, visit the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RBArtGroup or contact Gloria Plascencia at (310) 869-4992. The Redondo Beach Main Library is located at 303 North Pacific Coast Highway in Redondo Beach.

The Manhattan Beach Parks and Recreation Department presents the 27 Annual Family Halloween Carnival on Saturday, October 18. The event takes place at Manhattan Heights Park from noon to 4:30 p.m. and is designed for children ages 2 to 13. A costume contest and parade gets under way at noon with several costume categories and prizes for Most Original, Scariest and Judges Choice. Play carnival games, participate in the push-up challenge, tour the haunted house, decorate cookies and more. The cost for each activity is $.50 – $2. Tickets for all events will be sold at the Information Booth and are $.25 each. Bills over $20 will not be accepted. Tickets are also required for goodies from the Snack Stand. For additional information, visit the website at http://www.ci.manhattan-beach.ca.us/home Manhattan Heights Park is located at 1600 Manhattan Beach Boulevard in Manhattan Beach.

Time flies when you’re having fun….and eating fabulous food! Dominique’s Kitchen is hosting a Second Anniversary Celebration on Tuesday, October 21 from 4 to 9 p.m. Dominique and Liza Theval appreciate the love and support they’ve received since opening for business two short years ago and want to thank their loyal clientele. The evening will feature a three course prix fixe meal for $39.99 per person exclusive of tax and gratuity. The meal includes a glass of champagne, but wait…….it gets better! Guests will enjoy selected free wine throughout the evening! Obviously, you must be over 21 to enjoy this perk. In addition, there will be free drawings for gifts. For additional information and to make reservations, visit the website at http://dominiqueskitchen.com/ or call 424-247-9054. Dominique’s Kitchen is located at 522 South Pacific Coast Highway in Redondo Beach.

The publicity blitz has begun for the fourth annual Dancing with the South Bay Stars event presented by the Torrance Cultural Arts Foundation. The event takes place February 7, 2015. Why the four month lead time? I was invited to participate this year. That’s right - I seem to have misplaced my reasoning and agreed to dance in front of 500 audience members, along with eleven other residents of the South Bay. It’s sure to be a wild competition and we’ll all have a great time, but the best part, it’s all for charity! You can support our efforts by purchasing tickets to the event and/or voting on-line for the charity your dancer represents. Each vote is $1 and you can vote as much as you like, so if you want to donate $100, that’s 100 votes. These votes only make up half the score, so it’s important for each charity to rack up those votes. The other half of the score will be based on the dancers’ performance. Since this is my Weekend Guide, I’m shamelessly asking for your support. I’ll be dancing for the Manhattan Beach CERT Association. They provide a vitally important service for the South Bay community and I’m thrilled to represent them. You can cast your votes NOW at http://www.torrancearts.org/dancing-with-the-south-bay-stars-iv/ and I really hope to see you at the show!

These are just a few of the events taking place this weekend, so be sure to check the calendar links and ‘Things to Do’ page on my website http://www.southbaybyjackie.com for details on these and other events happening throughout the South Bay.

This morning on The South Bay Show – South Bay Spotlight, our guests were Jill Jensen and Julie Cegelski from Walk With Sally. We discussed the various activities taking place around the South Bay for Walk With Sally’s initiative, Breast Friends, which runs during the month of October to promote Breast Cancer Awareness. Don’t worry, if you missed the program, you can listen to it here: http://southbaybyjackie.com/october-16-2014-breast-friends/. Tune in every Thursday at 7 a.m. to keep up with what’s going down in the South Bay!

Tomorrow morning on The South Bay Show – Manhattan Beach 360, we’ll be speaking with several guests including Gretchen Tiernan and Megan Richardson of Sand Spa located in the North End of Manhattan Beach. We’re going to discuss their efforts in the continuing development of the North End business community. You can listen to tomorrow’s show here: http://southbaybyjackie.com/october-17-2014-north-end-mb/. Tune in every Friday at 8 a.m. for all the latest Chamber news and events!

The South Bay by Jackie Weekend Guide is brought to you by British Choice. British Choice is a professional cleaning service operating out of El Segundo and serving the greater South Bay area since 1986. They work around your schedule, are extremely efficient, reasonably priced and they go the extra mile to keep your home sparkling. For a free estimate, contact Jacqueline Fortune at 310-676-9053. British Choice is the right choice for all your cleaning needs!

Have a fabulous South Bay weekend!

Jackie

http://www.southbaybyjackie.com