The Lodge at Torry Pines Reintroduces Itself

 

The Lodge at Torry Pines

Photos By: John Durant

The Lodge at Torrey Pines, one of the historic landmarks of San Diego is truly a work of art. William Evans of the Evans Hotel chain refurbished the property practically to its original state. The purpose of this article is to take you on a journey to their restaurant, A.R. Valentine.

Photos By: John Durant

Early California craftsmen designed the restaurant, which was named after the turn-of the century artist A.R. Valentine. Overlooking the Torrey Pines golf course, a championship course, one captures the ocean breeze and is given a chance to go back into time. Steve Pelzer, the Vice President of Marketing for Evans Hotels says it is just a matter of time before the property receives a five-star rating. Currently it has a four-star rating with five-star amenities. But enough of the superlative factors, let's take a culinary journey. Michael Shigemoto, the General Manager and Jeff Jackson, the Executive Chef has provided dining guest with a large selection of California wines and market driven California cuisine.Without being indecisive, my guest William Mincey also a hotel

Manager started our journey by ordering Tuna Corpecci which is raw-ahi tuna, in a horse radish cream base with capers.

I ordered watercress soup, which is scallops served in a soup dish; then pouring a creamy base mixed with spices over the scallops. Here are two delicious appetizers. Our main entrée included Veal baby braised chunks with spices amd red lettuce. The hook and line, which is salmon served with some wonderful ingredients, including black truffle and spices is sumptuous. A.R. Valentine is a world class restaurant, which combines elegance in a comfortable setting, with old world charm. It is without hesitation one of the top restaurants in the U.S. which explains there excellent service and there quality of cuisine. For this reason, I would highly recommend a two-hour culinary journey. In closing I would be remiss if I didn't mention the desert menu, which is prepared on premises. My I suggest Boca Negra, a flowerless Mexican chocolate, and a lemon tart with raspberries. A.R. valentine is opened for breakfast lunch and dinner. For reservations call The Lodge at Torrey Pines at: 858.453.4420.

Photos By: John Durant

John Stuart Remarries Wife Alex last December

He's quick, witty and always comes off the wall with something unique to talk about. He's the man behind Legends in Concert, and is the creator and producer of Legends. He's Mr. John Stuart. Johnny, as his friends call him, had the vision of

creating the greatest tribute to celebrity legends over twenty years ago, which is a now a proven success. Sitting in his office surrounded by antiques, an Oakwooden desk, and such, I spoke to "Johnny" about entertainment. "Entertainment goes in a cycle” He said. “First there were headliners, and then came the production shows. Now, we're seeing raw talent, such as Danny Gans as a new star on the strip. In my show, we capitalize on nostalgia.

The heart rendering entertainment, a show like Legends in Concert, brings that into place," said Stuart. Stuart feels there will be interactive productions shows, with shows like Ripley's Believe it or Not Live, and Country Tonight, the world's largest country variety show, based in Branson Missouri. Both of these shows are owned by On-Stage Entertainment, Stuart's company. "So, is that complete answer," I asked Johnny. "No," he replied, "For years folks have enjoyed a time tunnel of memories. We will never forget those memories of the stars we grew up with. But the special effects and the fantasy type productions have their place in Las Vegas. But when you get to see live creation tributes of Elvis Presley, Liberace, and the Temptations, along with Nat King Cole, Tom Jones, and John Lennon, these shows will never take a back seat. Stuart certainly has validity with his statement. His Legends in Concert is celebrating over 18 years at the Imperial Palace, and his Country Tonight show in Branson was voted into the Country's Hall of Fame.

Other projects that have come to fruition are, Legends of Comedy with tributes to Roseanne Barr, Robin Williams, both of which are playing Valley Forge, and Legends of Diva's which is being created as we write. With all the success, Stuart has yet to stop and take a break. On Stage Entertainment, the company he heads up as CEO just bought out the rights for the live production of the Blues Brothers. According to Stuart, he made an agreement with Victor Pisano and his wife Judy Belushi to bring about the show in the manner that would best highlight the late Belushi. There is also a Legends in Concert in Hawaii at the Aloha Showroom and two theaters in Orlando, Florida scheduled to open in a year and a half. The Osmond Brothers are also headlining in Branson, Missouri as well as Roy Clark and Doug Gabriel in the Legends Concert Theater. "I just don't know how this man does it all." said one concert promoter, who chooses to remain anonymous.

Stuart, who has the Legends Ranch in the southern part of Las Vegas, has just created the Legends Ranch Estates, a group of 30 customized homes for families that want to have horses and stables on their property. According to Johnny, there will be a mile and a half of riding trails for the estate development. In conclusion, John Stuart’s outlook upon life is relatively simple. "Everything on Earth was created by GOD. Most importantly he created man and woman to be the greatest entertainers for all mankind." Stuart, who is also active in the Mormon Church, is a teacher of the Gospel doctrine, teaching with the King James Version of the Bible and the Latter Day Saints doctrine to the adults. His wife Alex is the Camp Director for young women. It's no wonder that a man such as John Stuart was the only current show producer in the list of 300 persons nominated for the selection as the People That Had The Most Impact on Las Vegas' first 100 years. Congratulations to a guy that grew up in a family of nine brothers and sisters that made a difference.

For the first time in the history of Las Vegas, there's going to be a Las Vegas Comedy Festival, which will make its debut in the Wayne Newton Theater at the Stardust September the 4 – 8th. Steve Caito and Mark Allen, the creators of the festival, said this will give anyone who has ever dreamed of being a comedian a chance to develop their talents as well as professionals. The contest starts with Laugh Across America, in a ten-city tour where the top comedians will be selected from each city and invited to come to Las Vegas and compete.  

During the 5 day festival there will be workshops offered which will include industry insiders, comedic actors, inprovisationalists and today’s biggest stars. Wayne Newton, Pete Barbutti, along with Norm Crosby, Steve Lawrence and magician, Steve Wyrick where at the press conference and have endorsed the festival. The big hit at the press conference was Adam Dayro, an eight-year-old comic that Wayne Newton congratulated personally. Newton who is known as Mr. Las Vegas, when asked what a comic meant to him said, "The guy who asked me to be here at 11 o’clock in the morning."

Square Ring Promotions and Roy Jones in association with HBO and the Stratosphere put on a fairly interesting fight card last week. The card billed as Knocked down, Dragged out, featured heavyweight Michael Grant, (32-2-25KO's) the former IBF heavyweight champ knocking out Anthony Willis, (19-11-1-13KO's) in 2:55 of the second round. Grant is trained by Teddy Atlas and is great shape. The co-featured event had Michael Bennett (9-2-8Ko's) knock out Chris Hairston (4-5-0KO's) in 35 seconds of the third round. Out of the six bouts the first lady's Cruiserweight fight took place. Kathy Reeves (12-2-4KO's) beat out Marsha Valley (10-6-4KO's). Valley had a point taken away in the 5th round for holding; a very interesting bout especially at the Cruiserweight level. If you have a story for television, we'll be taping on Flag Day, June 14th at KYRK-35.

Call my office if you'd like to appear on the show, at 702-893-1718. Until then Keep your vision positive and focused on your goals.

Until next week we invite you to log onto our site www.celebrityscene.com or email me at peter@celebrityscene.com.