Bergen, Norway
Foto: Embla Karidotter
Razika is the most honest indie-ska-punk band in Norway at this time. Their first album, Program 91, was released 2nd of may 2011 and their single Vondt i Hjertet is currently B-listed on NRK P3.
Our favorite place on earth is Bergen. All of us are born and raised her, this is the city we have a relationship with. We are all city-kids from the centre and “need” what a city can offer: shops, cafés, parks, cultural offers etc. And in addition to that, Bergen hare 7 amazing mountains and a harbor. Can it possibly get any better.
Yes, it’s one of the cities in Norway with most rain, but when the sun is out the city just explode! Everybody is outside and there’s a good atmosphere everywhere. Also, Bergensere (people from Bergen) is without doubt the coolest people in Norway. As Agnar Mykle once said, Oslo is the dog, Bergen is the cat. We support each other in Bergen patriotism. Just like the amazing musical environment: there’s no competition because everybody does their own thing and therefore everybody support and help each other. If it wasn’t for Bergen, the coolest city in the world, there wouldn’t be any Razika!
Tribal Cafe, LA, USA
Sonny Kay is a Los Angeles resident. He used to play in several legendary Hardcore bands in the 90s and ran the excellent GSL label. He now concentrates on being an artist and designer and being am art director for the Rodriguez Lopez Productions and Sargent House labels. You can read more about Sonny here
In my opinion, one of the best kept food secrets in Los Angeles is Tribal Café in Echo Park (but within a hair of MacArthur Park). In a city teeming with overpriced cafés serving “Earth-conscious” fare - with a hefty dose of unconvincing greenwashing - Tribal Café is the real deal. It’s rough around the edges and it makes no apologies. The vibe is similar to places like the Che Café in San Diego, the legendary punk venue/vegetarian eatery (and in fact, Tribal itself hosts beginning bands and songwriters most nights of the week). The decor could have been created by a high-school art class, and in fact, the interior walls double as an art gallery for what seems like kids of that age. The café really seems to function on “island time” - don’t bother going if you’re in a rush or only have 20 minutes to spare; things at the Tribal Café tend to move at their own pace. However, you get the distinct feeling that the staff really care about you and the food they’re preparing - something virtually unheard of in this fast-paced city.
Anyway, the food… The menu is ENORMOUS. I never have an easy time deciding (although the veggie burrito with soy chicken is near and dear to my heart). The focus is on “Californian cuisine”: Mexican (burritos, tostadas, etc.), salads, sandwiches and wraps, soups, and an overwhelmingly lengthy list of fresh juice concoctions. The café caters to both vegetarians (tofu, soy meats, tempeh) and carnivores alike, sells chilled Kombucha and sugary pastries, and (inexplicably) a vast selection of the same old junk potato chips and snacks you’d find in any gas station… not sure why, but I’d guess it has to do with the kids attending shows in the evenings.
Regardless, the servings are as large as the menu, stuffed full of fresh vegetables of all kinds, delicious homemade sauces, sprinkled with pumpkin seeds and sliced almonds. It’s like nothing else in L.A., and the icing on the cake is the price - nothing on the menu is over seven or eight dollars! You heard me. It’s literally half the price of a comparable meal in trendier/higher-rent parts of town. I don’t know how they can keep it so cheap, not to mention that they open at 9 a.m. (and have been promising to start opening at 6 a.m.!). As if all of this wasn’t enough, parking in the neighborhood is free - very rare in L.A. - and they even have a case full of complimentary used books that gets re-stocked every couple of weeks! Truly one of a kind. My only complaint is their website, which is like something from the dark ages and more comedy than functionality. Don’t let it dissuade you.
Tribal Café
1651 West Temple Street
Los Angeles, CA 90026-5026
(213) 483-4458
http://www.tribalcafe.com/
Map
Kerbey Lane Cafes, Austin, Texas, USA
P-C (aka David Per- Christian) Rae runs The British Music Embassy at SXSW in Austin TX, manage Diskjokke, Jonquil & Chad Valley and takes care of international bookings for the Slottsfjellfestival.
P-C has a fondness for Austin and has already written 4 posts about different places of this city. Here comes the 4th post:
Lastly, a reminder America is all about breakfast. A decent cooked breakfast, and all day availability of said crucial meal is something that appears to be lost on the rest of the world. You just try buying breakfast in Oslo, outside of that all to brief 9-11am window… P-C World used to be all about the whitetrashtastic IHOP 2000 calorie breakfast. A fantastic way to start any day that was more than likely to involve a cocktail before lunch, and very little time to actually procure some sort of proper mid-day sustenance. Though as one grows older, it is of course natural to develop (slightly) more refined tastes and as time, evolution and gravity take hold, Kerbey Lane seems like a natural follow on. Like IHOP it is of course open 24 hours a day and like IHOP, it is all about the breakfast menu. Though they don’t serve a chicken fried steak, they do serve a fantastic line of pancakes, wholewheat, gingerbread and best of all blueberry. Cheap cheap cheap, locally owned and much of the fare locally sourced, Kerbey Lane is an Austin institution and much like its inferior rival, Magnolia Café, one worth a detour to patronize.
Find the way (This is just one of many Kerbey Lane Cafes in Austin)
