The Langham Huntington, Pasadena

Afternoon Tea at the Langham

Back in June 1865, Americans were reeling from the end of the Civil War, Charles Dickens was recovering from a near-fatal train accident at Staplehurst, and in London, the Langham opened its doors. The Langham was Europe's first grand hotel to serve afternoon tea, a tradition, it says, that began in 1840 when Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford, hit the 4 p.m. wall and served tea and snacks "to ward off hunger pangs in the long hours between lunch and dinner." Amen.

As it happens, this year is the 60th year of Queen Elizabeth II's reign, or the Diamond Jubilee. To mark both its founding and the Diamond Jubilee, the Langham Huntington in Pasadena will celebrate on June 10 with its Jubilee Anniversary Tea: 80 people will be chosen, via lottery, to attend an afternoon tea served at 1865 prices. That would be a mere shilling and sixpence, or 15 cents in 2012 U.S. dollars, which is considerably less than the Langham's present-day prices of $39 to $59 per person for the privilege.

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Drew Tewksbury

Previous year's competitor

Tomorrow marks the 10th annual Grilled Cheese Invitational, held this year at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. Undoubtedly there are a few devotees out there who can attest to sandwich superiority, having frequented the event over the last decade. Competitor registration is closed and it's too late to be a judge, but for those of us stumbling upon the occasion for the first time, here's a look at what's between the bread.

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R.E.~/Flickr

Cappuccino at Intelligentsia

Over the weekend, Katie Carguilo took the champion title at the annual USBC event -- that would be the United States Barista Championship and not the United States Bowling Congress (though that, too, apparently had everyone on pins and needles this weekend). Hosted by the Specialty Coffee Association of America, the U.S. Barista Championship was part of a four-day coffee extravaganza in Portland, Ore., that was one part competition and one part Comic-Con for coffee geeks. More than 50 baristas came ready to compete; each had 15 minutes to pull espressos, pour cappuccinos and create signature drinks before a panel of judges, all while explaining the coffees and otherwise being professional and attentive. You know, like every barista on every weekday morning.

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A. Scattergood

Strawberries at the farmers market

Do you have a good idea for a terrific strawberry dish that doesn't involve turning on the oven? We're gonna assume the answer's yes. Lucky you, because the 2012 California Strawberry "Berry Blast Off" recipe contest is now up and running. The competition is open to anyone who has a strawberry recipe that doesn't involve baking.

The recipe must be original, serve six people and be able to be prepared and presented in one hour. And, of course, strawberries should be the key ingredient. The sky's the limit on how creative you want to be. We're talking sweet or savory; breakfast, lunch or dinner; snacks, appetizers, desserts, dips, sauces, jams; you name it. You can employ any kitchen tool you want, such as a blender, grill, fryer or stove-top. But step away from the oven; don't even think about using that.

You have until noon on Monday, April 30, to send in your recipe. The best part is, even if your recipe doesn't win, you still get a prize. That's right, everyone who enters the contest will receive one freebie ticket to get into the California Strawberry Festival, taking place May 19 and 20 in Oxnard.

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T. Nguyen

Taco sampler at Guisados

LA Taco's Taco Madness 2012, an annual NCAA-style tournament to determine who reigns taco supreme in Los Angeles, concluded last night, and madness it was. The exciting finale between Mariscos Jalisco and Guisados was so close that it required multiple recounts and caused a temporary bit of confusion. That's right, just like Bush v. Gore.

The entire showdown, actually, was quite a thriller. Hundreds of devoted fans of Mariscos Jalisco's fried shrimp tacos and Guisados's braised and stewed meat-filled creations logged their choice on LA Taco's website throughout the day. There were so many people voting, in fact, that the two often were separated by less than a dozen votes and swapped the lead position multiple times. When the polls closed at 7 p.m., all votes -- more than 1,400 of them -- were counted. Incredibly, the final score was 743-743. A dead heat.

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A. Scattergood

Purple savoy cabbage at Flora Bella Farm

If you love nothing more than to stand in the kitchen thinking up ways to make those humble heads of cabbage really sing, then this is your opportunity to take center stage. As part of the Mayor's Day of Service -- aka Good Food Day, March 31 -- there will be a gathering of cabbage fanatics in the form of a cooking contest. From Kim Chee to Coleslaw, an inspired idea for a food contest, is sponsored by See-LA, the nonprofit that runs the Hollywood Farmers Market and the Los Angeles Food Policy Council. The distinct aromas will be found at Metabolic Studio, the contest venue.

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Coffee at Intelligentsia

While some of us were reaching for copious amounts of coffee yesterday to cope with the loss of the hour, the city of Santa Cruz had its fill of caffeine. Over the weekend, more than 40 baristas from California, Hawaii, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Colorado converged on the beachside town to put their coffee skills to the test at the South West Regional Barista Competition and Brewers Cup. At the end of the Daylight Savings Day, the crema de la crema of competitors included quite a few Los Angeles-area baristas: Charles Babinski from Intelligentisa placed second in the competition, bested only by Verve Coffee Roasters' Jared Truby. Percy Ramirez, from Intelligentsia's Pasadena shop, placed fifth.

Separately, L.A. baristas dominated the Brewers Cup, which focuses on manual brewing methods. Intelligentsia's John Martin was the best in the field, taking first place, followed by Cafecito Organico's Alexandra LittleJohn. Amber Johnson from Fix Coffee and Mike Mierzejewski from Single Origin Coffee placed fourth and fifth, respectively.

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djjewelz/Flickr

Nguyen Tran, Chef Laurent Quenioux and Chef Thi Tran outside Starry Kitchen

Is it a good idea to have a cannabis-infused dinner with a guy who often shows up at food festivals as a banana? If your answer is absolutely, then Nguyen Tran of Starry Kitchen -- who also has arrived in full lederhosen garb or, more recently, a tauntaun -- has quite a prospect for you: On April 1, chef Laurent Quenioux and Starry Kitchen's chef Thi Tran will team up to host a Weed+Chinese Herb Dinner, a seven- to eight-course extravaganza of some of the senses featuring your favorite medicinal plants. There is room for just 30 diners, though, so the team has come up with the most democratic means of choosing the lucky 30: a personality quiz.

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flickr/ tiffntales

Roast Chicken With Vegetables

If you happen to hold the refrigerator secrets to the very best chicken recipe, Foster Farms has announced its third annual Fresh Chicken Cooking Contest with a grand prize of $10,000, plus a one-year supply of Foster Farms chicken. Yes, more chicken is exactly what you will crave after months of experimenting with every chicken cacciatore, enchilada and casserole combination you can dream up. Well, at least you'll still have plenty of pork-buying potential with that $10,000.

To clarify, this contest is not to be confused with the former National Chicken Cooking Contest, which ended its 60-year, 48-competition run in 2009, citing economic challenges.

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Julia Turner

The Great Granola Off

Since Monday, after you read our conversation with Andy Bowers, executive producer of Slate's Culture Gabfest podcast, you've probably been wondering, "Who won the Granola Off competition?"

The answer is not Gabfest host Stephen Metcalf.

How do we know this? First of all we listened to the podcast "The Great Granola Showdown" edition (which starts off with June Thomas' not quite convincing argument for the merits of Downton Abbey season two and culminates with a double blind tasting filled with thoughtful chewing, lively debate and occasional slurping noises).

But we also know that Mr. Metcalf did not emerge victorious because we tracked him down last night. At the time he was in Manhattan, having just discovered that his train had been delayed for an hour. Which meant more time to walk us through his defeat in just the way we like it: Unfiltered, gloves off and only half-kidding. (We especially enjoyed the part where he disparages the other entries by comparing them to the sort of collection of dried leaves and flower petals, wood shavings, cinnamon and lavender that you'd find freshening the air in someone's bathroom.) But was the competition rigged? "The results could have appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine," Metcalf insisted. "In that sense it was untainted, although I don't abide by the results."

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