Meet Jonathan Grahm. Jonathan is the lucky (and worthy) heir to Compartes Chocolate, a Los Angeles institution of fine chocolates for 60 years. Jonathan has been working at Compartes since he was 15 years old, and now as the head chocolatier, he is blending the old style of chocolate making with new flavors and a whole new style.

Compartes is and has always been a favorite of the celebrities, from Sinatra to Bennifer. Every chocolate is handmade, even the dipping is done by hand. And the flavors are unique: from bars that contain real dried fruits, cacao nibs and handmade marshmallow to truffles infused with spices and herbs and sprinked with smoked salts.

Definitely worth a visit: right here in Brentwood, CA.

For more information, or to order these delectable treats online, go to compartes.com

(Apologies for the audio quality, the battery in my lavaliere mic died on site.)

I LOVE these things: Woolly Pockets. So simple, yet so awesome, these wall-hanging planters allow you to grow things just about anywhere. From the Wally One to the Wally Five*, each wall hanging planter has breathable “pockets” that let the soil breathe. That let the roots aerate. That let your plants thrive. But the backs are 100% waterproof (and made from recycled plastic) so you can hang them on anything: your inside walls, fences, outdoor walls, whatever.

But what’s even better: Miguel Nelson and his team have decided to take it upon themselves to use this cool innovation to educate kids about plants and growing food. They started Woolly School Gardens, a program to use Woolly Pockets to get them into schools. What a brilliant idea: think about it, even the most urban school has a WALL available to hang plants. It requires little space, little time to set up (just bolt them to a wall or fasten them to a chain link fence) and offers so much in return: the opportunity to learn where food comes from and the opportunity to become more connected to it.

I think it’s genius: this is exactly the kind of business model anyone should aspire to. Bringing good to the planet, and to the kids, but upping the aesthetic at the same time. Art + environment + kids = winning formula.

If you know a school that wants to participate, or if you want to donate to this program, go to WoollySchoolGarden.org.

If you want some pockets for yourself (and I don’t blame you one bit – I’m going to fill my house with these things once I have some time…they make other sweet soft planters as well), I recommend VelocityArtAndDesign.com (link gives you free shipping on orders over $50…see disclaimer below).

Happy (belated) Earth Day.

* Disclaimer: these are affiliate links to the Velocity Art and Design store (a great store with a really nice proprietor) to maybe get a little back for my efforts @authentacity.com…Woolly Pockets official site is at woollypocket.com.

Nathan McCall and Karen Yoo are not your average butchers. That is to say, they are both Le Cordon Bleu educated chefs. Their resumes read like a culinary cornicopia, like the breadcrumb trail of a Zagat reviewer: Sona (where they met), Campanile, Cafe Pinot, Daniel Boloud’s Daniel (New York), and San Sebastian’s Arzak (saving the European stints).

And now, with McCall’s Meat and Fish Company, they want to give you the opportunity to have the kind of meats and fish they had access to at restaurants in the comfort of your home. Kurobuta (Berkshire) pork, farm fresh eggs and tasty chickens from Kendor Farms up in Van Nuys, Colorado lamb, aged grass-feed and certified angus beef, a special burger blend, pancetta
(curing now) and fresh fish and seafoods brought in daily.

Nathan and Karen are totally approachable and down-to-earth and willing share with ideas for preparing meats (though generally it seems to be salt + pepper + heat and let the meats speak for themselves).

This video shows some of their product and you can hear them discuss where they get their meat from, what makes good and bad meat and sustainable agriculture.

I really do long for the days where one can go to the neighborhood butcher for humanely raised meats, the local baker for delicious bread, and the farmer’s market to get organic and local fruits and vegetables.

I guess that’s today.

Next week: Woolly Pockets.

Welcome to authentacity.com. In these pages, we aim to tell the stories of those out there in the (for now) Los Angeles area who strive towards authenticity. For our premier premier, we bring you Ada and Arlene Tai, Asian twins (from Hong Kong), and the new restaurant they manage, Urban Noodle that opened March first.

The Tais and their partners (along with their chef, Kin Kwok Mu) aim to bring you authentic noodles (and dumplings among a few other things) made in the Chinese style. Their spicy beef noodle soup is particularly good, as is their pork and cucumber noodle dish. All of their noodles are handmade and the dumplings are made fresh daily (to order). It’s all reasonably priced and worth a try.

Have a look and feel free to post any thoughts below. Thanks for joining us for our premier episode and watch for more to come.

Next up: McCall’s Meat and Fish market in Los Feliz.