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I have never been to the original Fraiche in Culver City, though I had heard good things. So when Marshal and Will of FoodDigger invited me and other foodies to a “mini” tasting event at the new Santa Monica location, which recently replaced Riva, a small-plates concept that shared owners, it sounded like a great way to compare the old Riva to the new Fraiche.

I’ve been to Riva once, but it was right before the announcement was made to convert the space into Fraiche, so I didn’t blog about it. I enjoyed my meal there, though I did feel it was a bit overpriced, which may have contributed to the restaurant’s demise. No matter; the new Fraiche under Chef de Cuisine Sydney Hunter (who was also with Riva) is elegant yet accessible, a great combination.

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Casa del Mar, a 1920s Santa Monica hotel with beautiful unobstructed views of the beach, recently introduced a $29 Sunday brunch, with your choice of an appetizer, entree and all-you-can-eat dessert buffet. Sounds great, right? I thought so, too, so I invited a bunch of my friends to try it out yesterday. Boy, were we disappointed.

It wasn’t so much the food, which was fine for the most part, though some of it had its problems, too. It was the extremely slow service that really got us. Since I made the reservation for the meal, my experience with the hotel started before anyone else’s, and it didn’t start off well.

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I started using Code.ai‘s Lash Extend Serum and Brow Boosting Shaper a little more than a month ago, so when I was invited to attend the brand’s official launch party at Fred Segal Santa Monica, of course I jumped at the chance to go. Food, drink, beauty products and fashion? Yes, please!

While I didn’t take a “before” photo of my lashes and brows (those pictures creep me out, though I’m not sure why), I can say I have definitely noticed a difference, especially with my lashes, which are longer and fuller. Now, I started out with a respectable set of lashes, but now they’re even longer, making it even easier to not have to wear mascara — just curl and go, that’s my motto. As for my brows, I just starting noticing new growth, and the Brow Boosting Shaper has made the existing hairs longer. Tara of When Tara Met Blog, who represents the company and who I served on the Blogger Prom committee with, has been using the brow booster with very noticeable results, so I have hope that this bald patch I’ve been trying to grow in forever will be bald no more.

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Where can you get a glass of cold beer, a bowl of crawfish and play nostalgic games all in once place? Try West 4th/Jane in Santa Monica. The newish bar opened in June just across the street from Border Grill in the old 3 on Fourth space. It’s an understated place, which is kind of refreshing for Santa Monica, but that doesn’t mean it’s totally no frills. The beer list is vast and includes everything from Schlitz to Allagash, and the food menu is just as varied, from tater tots to mussels.

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Pomegranate cosmo (foreground), Berry belini

Like any smart hotel, Le Merigot’s Le Troquet bar in Santa Monica is now offering a happy hour deal, but it’s slightly different: it’s a late-night happy hour, from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Food on the bar menu is 30 percent off, and well drinks are 50 percent off.

I had never been to Le Merigot, so when the hotel invited me in to experience the new happy hour deal, I accepted the offer. The hotel is on Ocean Avenue near the Viceroy and Loews hotels, so I figured it would be a nice property and possibly a place I’d go to when I’m in the area.

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Copa d'Oro's Vincenzo Marianella (back, left) at the bar

If you’ve been following the L.A. cocktail scene, you know that the art and science of mixology is in full effect. One of the best places to experience the fruits of this resurgence is Copa d’Oro in Santa Monica. The man behind the bar, Vincenzo Marianella, formerly of Providence, takes great care in his creations. I mean it. I’ve watched him measure, eye and taste cocktails numerous times before sending them out, just to make sure your drink has the right balance before giving it to you. This means it takes longer to get your drink, but it’s well worth it. Rome wasn’t built in a day, folks (that may be overstating it a bit, but you get the picture).

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Feeling frazzled already, and it’s only Tuesday? If you’re looking to take a load off after work or just like to enjoy a drink on a weeknight (because who doesn’t, really?), there are specials aside from a normal happy hour that you can partake in.

If you’re in downtown Los Angeles, you can head over to The Association for its Twitter Tuesdays special, which I recently told you about. And if you’re clear on the other side of town, try out Viceroy Santa Monica’s Taste of Tuesday, which I’ve also mentioned before.

But there’s more!

The Westside Pavilion mall in West Los Angeles has a $20 Tuesdays event every week. For $20, you can get a Landmark Theater movie ticket, a  glass of wine and an appetizer. And there are $20 deals at select retailers throughout the mall. But hurry; the deals are done at the end of August.

There’s also an evening-into-night happy hour at Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica. Tapas Tuesdays in the lobby lounge features live music, and $7 tapas and wines from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. And with a view of the ocean, how can you go wrong?

Know of more Tuesday goings-on? Let us know if the comments.

Update: Just saw another Tuesday deal, this time from Daily Grill. Say “Twitter” to your server after 4:00 p.m. on Twitter Tuesdays and receive 20 percent off your dinner check.

Cezanne restaurant at Le Merigot

Saturday, Aug. 15, would have been Julia Child’s 97th birthday. To celebrate (and capitalize on the popularity of the new film “Julie & Julia,” no doubt) the Le Merigot JW Marriott hotel in Santa Monica is having a special dinner featuring dishes from Child’s famous book, “Mastering the Art of French Cooking.”

For $40 per person, Cézanne restaurant at Le Merigot will give you a three-course meals featuring an appetizer of coquilles St. Jacques à la Parisienne (scallops and mushrooms in wine sauce), a main course of piece de bouef braisée (beef braised in red wine parsley potatoes, leeks, glazed turnips and carrots), and a dessert of tarte tatin with crème fraiche. (Drinks are extra.)

This dinner is served from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. To make reservations, call (310) 395-9700. And if you can’t make it on Saturday, you can always check out the hotel’s late-night happy hour during the week.

Stefan Richter, last season’s Top Chef runner up, held a couple of sneak preview open houses over the weekend to show off his new restaurant, the redesigned L.A. Farm — now dubbed Stefan’s at L.A. Farm (no relation to The Farm of Beverly Hills). The restaurant officially opens this Thursday, Aug. 6.

The space, which is housed in an office complex off an industrial stretch of Olympic Boulevard in Santa Monica, is sizable with a clean, classy look to it. I’m not familiar with the old L.A. Farm space — in fact, I never even knew it existed as it’s really easy to pass up on the street — so I can’t compare. But with a long bar, main dining room, outdoor patio area with fire pits and private dining room, there’s definitely a lot to work with.

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Still looking for something to do (or someplace to eat) this July 4 weekend? I’ll be in the Sacramento area for my best friend’s wedding (woo hoo! maid of honor time!), but here are some options for those of you sticking around in L.A.:

• Rush Street: Visit Chicago via Culver City this Independence Day weekend and partake in food and drink specials. Friday has $5 Jack Daniel’s drinks (from 10:00 p.m. to close); Saturday has specials on all domestic beers and hot dogs, lamb lollipops and spicy glazed ribs (all day!); and Sunday has $6 mojitos (from 9:00 p.m. to close).

• Le Merigot Hotel: In the courtyard of this JW Marriott in Santa Monica you’ll find upscale BBQ food, i.e., organic fingerling potato salad, kobe beef hot dogs, sweet white corn on the cob with ancho chili lime butter, etc., on July 4 from 11:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Cost is $35 for adults, $17.50 for kids 12 and under.

• The Resort at Pelican Hill: For a fancy way to celebrate our country’s birth, hit up Pelican Hill in Newport Beach. For $250 (yeah, I know) you can get a round of golf, either breakfast or lunch, and a $25 gift certificate for the resort’s golf shop. Fancy, indeed.