Saving the oceans

Malibu has long led the environmental charge for Southern California, and now they’re pushing even further with last night’s approved ban on the distribution of plastic straws, stirrers, and utensils by any restaurant within its borders. As the LA Times reports, some 65 restaurants will have until June 1 to figure out how to comply.

This is not the first time Malibu has been out in front of a trash issue. The city was previously well ahead of Los Angeles in banning plastic bags, and the city council’s willingness to push through last night’s legislation marks an early strike in a growing fight over the restaurant and bar industry’s use of so much disposable plastic.

Shake Shack glows in DTLA

Fans of East Coast burger chain Shake Shack have been waiting patiently for the Downtown location to arrive, and now it seems an opening could be a week (or less) away says local blog DTLAer.

Pizza play in HiPa

Triple Beam Pizza in Highland Park is opening for lunch as of today, kicking off hours from noon to midnight. Add in Kitchen Mouse and Mason’s Dumplings across the street, and suddenly that more northern block of Figueroa is a lunch time dominator.

Candytopia in Santa Monica

Downtown’s experiential Candytopia is moving to Santa Monica, opening on March 2 at Santa Monica Place for four months. Tickets are on sale now.

New names in the LBC

Long Beach’s The Federal has a new chef: Tia Baker. The former recipe and development training chef for The Cheesecake Factory is now turning out fusion-leaning throwback classics like kung pao calamari, burgers, and citrus-roasted chicken.

Vegetables for all

The annual All-Star Chef Classic is back in Los Angeles early next month, and one of the better events looks to be the Vegetable Masters Dinner with chefs Michael Voltaggio, Josef Centeno, Richard Blais, Wylie Dufresne, and Amanda Cohen of NYC’s Dirt Candy. It goes down at the restaurant stadium on March 7, and tickets start at $175.

Food Fare is here

This year’s Planned Parenthood Food Fare kicks off on March 1 at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, with food from a number of local restaurant favorites. Chris Phelps of Salt’s Cure is also being honored as chef of the year; tickets are available now.

Bread to go

Atwater Village’s popular Journeymen is now selling to-go loaves of bread after 3 p.m. daily. The housemade boules run $9.50 apiece.