Best Of LA - Week of January 11

If eating well is on your mind, you've got two great options this week. Head to Santa Monica for the 4th annual Eat Well Week, promoting healthy eating by featuring this year's star ingredient: the artichoke. Also delicious, but on the other side of the health spectrum, Pasadena is celebrating their annual Cheeseburger Week, recognizing the city as the birthplace for the cheese topped burger. A little hump day wine tasting is on deck, as is a one-night-only pop-up event at the La Brea Tar Pits. The Museum of Modern Art's Department of Film has culled through the year's major film releases to present ten films they think will be making waves this award season, and will be screening them at the Hammer Museum. The week ends with a celebration of the arts, as a Fringe Festival smash hit opens at the Odyssey Theater, and a free community day of dance is offered by Los Angeles Ballet.

4th Annual Eat Well Week
Various Locations Around Santa Monica
www.santamonica.com

Celebrating its 4th year of encouraging Angelenos to "eat well," Santa Monica Travel & Tourism presents "The Year of the Artichoke" for this year's Eat Well Week. The week was created to promote healthy eating after the holidays, and the immune supporting, antioxidant rich, vitamin-filled artichoke is the health-benefitting star this year. Restaurants around the city will feature a selections of artichoke-inspired dishes, ranging from tuna and grilled artichoke sushi, to artichoke ceviche, to raw vegan sweet potato puffs. Some of Santa Monica's best will be participating, so be sure to check out the list here. The week kicks off today and runs through the 17th.

The Contenders 2015
Hammer Museum
10899 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90024
(310) 443-7000
hammer.ucla.edu

Each year the Museum of Modern Art's Department of Film combs through the year's major studio releases and top film festivals around the world to curate a selection of the most influential, innovative films they believe will stand the test of time. MoMa believes each of the ten films featured has the potential for awards glory, cult classic status, and lasting historical significance. Tonight's film is Carol, starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara as two women in the 1950s who develop a fast bond that becomes a love full of complicated consequences. A Q&A with director Todd Haynes will follow the film. Screenings take place on the big screen at the Hammer Museum for $15 ($10 if you're a member), and will run through the 20th.

Wine Tasting at Wally's Beverly Hills
Wally's Beverly Hills
447 N. Canon Dr.
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
(310) 475-3540
www.wallysbeverlyhills.com

Wednesdays were made for wine tasting, or at least this week they were. Wally's Beverly Hills is hosting an exclusive tasting of rising star Bordeaux wine Château Clarisse. Two vintages of the wine will be poured, as well as the limited edition 2011 Cuvée Vielles Vignes and two vintages from world-renowned consulting winemaker Stéphane Derenoncourt's Cotes de Castillon property Domaine de l'A. If that's all French to you, don't worry, the winemaker will be on hand to share stories and information on all the wine being served. Tickets are $20 and space is limited, so don't wait to grab your tickets here.

Celebrate Pasadena Cheeseburger Week
Various Locations Around Pasadena
www.pasadenarestaurantweek.com

Over 90 years ago the first cheeseburger flipped onto the scene when teenage cook Lionel Sternberger put cheese to meat and served it up at the Rite Spot in Pasadena. This week the city that put the cheeseburger on the map celebrates this milestone with Cheeseburger Week. Restaurants around Pasadena from traditional lunch counters to white tablecloth eateries will be putting their best burger forward for you to enjoy, and vote on in the third annual Cheeseburger Challenge. Those looking to really dive into the celebration can take part in a Cheeseburger Crawl, and follow the suggested itinerary with friends.

It's the Pits!
La Brea Tar Pits Museum
5801 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 857-6300
www.tarpits.org

Tonight various artists, musicians, and filmmakers head to the La Brea Tar Pits for a pop-up event featuring unique presentations throughout the Museum space. Part performance art, part science-skewed creative salon, the night is sure to be full of surprises. Dancers will take over the atrium area, experimental animation will be featured in the theater, and music will fill the grounds as patrons sip cocktails and munch on food from hand picked food trucks. A limited number of guests will be admitted to this one night only event on a first-come, first-served basis at the door, so arrive early to get in.

Opening Night: "My Sister"
Odyssey Theatre
2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd.
Los Angeles CA 90025
(310) 477-2055
www.OdysseyTheatre.com

It's opening night for Hollywood Fringe Festival smash hit, "My Sister." Twin sisters Magda and Matilde are identical in every way except one, Matilde has cerebral palsy. A local cabaret comedienne and a satirical writer, the pair travel from the country to the wild cabaret life of 1930s Berlin, but find they do not fit the Nazi ideal of physical purity in pre World War II Germany. Both charm and humor are presented in this ultimately chilling tale.The show has been expanded to receive a full production at the Odyssey Theatre, and will run through March 6. Tickets for tonight's performance are $45, and include a special opening night reception.

A Chance to Dance Community Day
Los Angeles Ballet Center
11755 Exposition Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90064
(310) 477-7411
www.losangelesballet.org

Get your dancing shoes and yoga mats ready because a day of free classes is being offered at the Los Angeles Ballet Center as part of their monthly Chance to Dance Community Day series. LAB holds this event one Sunday each month during their season, and this month's theme is A Chance to Dance Fitness Fair "New Year, New You." The day kicks off with Pilates class Core Resolution at 10am. Other classes during the day range from Creative Movement, to Youth and Pro Ballet, to Hip Hop. The day ends with an interactive seminar entitled "Behind the Ballet" lead by the ballet's physical therapist. Classes are taught by LAB dancers, and are intended to promote the knowledge of dance, a healthy lifestyle, confidence, and a connection with the people of Los Angeles. The event is free and open to the public.