uWink

I was in Los Angeles over the weekend and had a pre-show snack and cocktail over at the Hollywood and Highland Mall in Hollywood. We ended up in uWink, because it looked interesting. The restaurant was clean, not crowded and with our 45 minute time limit, seemed like a good bet. uWink proved to be a good choice. I ordered the Bacardi Razberri Mojito for my drink. The drink was small, but packed a punch. I could taste the alcohol. Many places put more filler than actual alcohol content. I would recommend a cocktail at uWink. For my snack I ordered the hummus platter. The platter came with an assortment of carrot sticks, broccoli, cucumber slices and pita bread, grilled to perfection. There was even enough pita for dipping and enough left over to spoon out and eat. That never happens. Usually you're left with too many "dippers" and not enough "dip". Not the case at uWink. The service was great - we were immediately greeted and seated, our food and drinks came quickly after they were ordered and our "server" for lack of a better term, came to the table right away and explained how uWink works. That's where it gets a little odd. uWink definitely does not promote socializing. Right in the center of the table is monstrous screen where you place your orders and can then play games. The screen takes up a very large portion of the table, making sharing food items extremely difficult, the order screen and variety of games found on promotes anti-socialism. If the screen were pushed down into the table so you could easily see and communicate (and share!) with the person you're with, it would be great. I will say, the layout did keep the two tables full of children quiet. When we were being seated and I saw hoards of children around us, I expected the typical unpleasant dining experience, parents who won't control their children, running, screaming, food everywhere, you know the disasters I'm talking about. Not the case, in fact, except for the music playing (I recall "My Humps" from the Black Eyed Peas), the place was very quiet because everyone nobody was talking to anyone - they were all focused on their touch screens. As an adult wanting to socialize with my companions, I did not like the touch screen factor. As an adult wanting to dine without unruly children about, I loved it!

"Privileged" hottie Ignacio Serricchio

Milo Ventimiglia

Hit the gym and lost his shirt. As it should be.

Ian Somerhalder

Today's hottie :)

Take Time

I overheard someone talking the other day, she said she had not time to teach her daughter how to cook or to spend time with her during the summer, so it's best to put her into camps all summer long. How sad that is. There was a time when mother's passed on generations of family recipes to their daughters and father's spent time with their sons. Today we live in an age where we can be reached 24/7, where were paid less than ever and expected to work more than ever. Our country has no idea what matters, and though of us who do know, are forced into doing otherwise. More important than that report that really means nothing in the end, that needs done every month or every week anyhow, is the memory that son or daughter is going to have for the rest of his or her life. That memory can just as easily be of what you didn't do with them. I'm one of those few people that think other people are more important than the job. I mean really, experience has taught me no matter how much time you devote to the job, you get laid off without a bat of an eye, someone less deserving gets the promotion. Is giving up your one shot in life really worth it? Sadly, I believe most Americans have taken that route - otherwise, this wouldn't be the scenario today.

Cameron Mathison