My Favorite Weekend: Joel McHale

Joel McHale has hit TV shows on NBC ( “Community” on Thursdays) and E! Entertainment (“The Soup”) and movie deals reportedly in development (“The Big Year” with Owen Wilson, Jack Black and Steve Martin and “What’s Your Number?” with Anna Faris), but he knew he had really arrived when he was asked to throw out the first pitch at Dodger Stadium last month.

“That was fantastic, but I was just worried about getting it over the plate,” said the Hollywood Hills resident with a laugh. “And I’m proud to say that I did not horribly embarrass my family.”

Now wife Sarah and sons Eddie, 5, and Isaac, 2, can hold up their heads when they’re around town with Big J.

KIDS STUFF

Our boys really love trains, so we spend a lot of time at Travel Town in Griffith Park; that place is amazing. And we go to the Train Shack in Burbank, which is the Mt. Olympus for toy train lovers. It’s really for men, adults; there are engines there that are three grand.

We also take my son Eddie to Costco, because he loves riding around and pointing at something and saying, “I want that animal cookie!” And I’ll say, “Eddie, that’s 10 pounds of animal cookies.” But he helps out a lot.

The kids also like the farmers market in Larchmont. There’s usually a pet adoption thing going, and that’s the greatest way to get people to bring home an animal: “Won’t you help me?” Our kids try to run home with cats and dogs and birds, but we’re still waiting. We’re going to get a dog very soon. There’s a shop called the Little Seed in Larchmont that has a lot of good stuff for the kids to play with, and while I’m there with them, my wife will go off to a store she likes nearby called Noni.

For a meal, we’ll go to the Alcove on Hillhurst, and on the same street is Lucifer’s Pizza. The rosemary lamb pizza there is amazing. The kids don’t mind the lamb, but they prefer pepperoni.

ADULTS ONLY

In the evenings, we’ll get a babysitter and my wife and I will go to Girasole on Larchmont, which I think has the best Italian food in Los Angeles. It’s a Bolognan restaurant run by actual Bolognans. They have the best spinach gnocchi you’ve ever had. It’s not dressy but not casual, bring your own booze, just a great neighborhood place with terrific food.

Another great place is Cut — the best meat, the best wine list, and unlike Girasole, it’s a bit of a scene there, but you don’t mind because the food is just tremendous. I like a good red, bleeding steak with a huge California Cabernet, or maybe a Washington Cabernet, because I’m from Seattle.

And being from Seattle, I know my coffee. I used to work at an espresso stand, and like a true Seattle person, I now have an espresso machine in my home, so I have full control. But if I’m going out, I’m split between LAmill and Intelligentsia in Silver Lake. I love those places; they give Seattle a run for its money.

JUST A NIGHTCAP

For a late-evening bar, I like the Varnish downtown, which is like a secret little bar in the back of a place [Cole’s] that sells sandwiches. It’s like being in an old speakeasy, and they whip up very creative cocktails. And not the crap like Appletinis or something. But what I like to order is the 18-year-old single-malt Scotch, the Macallan. Just fantastic.

mark.sachs@latimes.com