Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea to open Pasadena location

Doug Zell, chief executive of Chicago-based Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea, says the company plans to open a new branch of its growing coffeehouse chain in Pasadena in mid-summer. This will be the Los Angeles area’s third Intelligentsia. The other two are in Silver Lake and Venice.

Zell promised another unique coffeehouse design by Mass Architecture & Design. Mass designed the Venice Intelligentsia, which is distinguished by its custom espresso-making stations (with hydraulics).

“It will be as distinctive as Venice but in an entirely different direction,” Zell says. “Similar DNA but the look and feel is very, very different in a way that hasn’t been done in the U.S. yet for a coffeehouse.”

Zell said it could be open as early as June but wouldn’t go into details about the design or reveal the exact location.

“I think that the market [in Pasadena] is underserved,” he says. “There are a lot of people there that love great coffee.”

L.A. Market, Mixing Room open

The JW Marriott opened this week at L.A. Live downtown. Inside the hotel (which is attached to a Ritz-Carlton, set to open in March) is the restaurant L.A. Market, helmed by consulting chef Kerry Simon, and the main bar, the Mixing Room.

L.A. Market’s Simon, in town from Las Vegas, says “there are classic dishes, focusing on ingredients. Plus a rock ‘n’ roll kind of thing . . . something for everybody.” On the menu: lobster bucatini primavera and Simon’s meatloaf.

Drinks at the Mixing Room were developed by Francesco Lafranconi, director of mixology for distributor Southern Wine & Spirits, who also was in from Las Vegas.

Cocktails might be described as of the “bar chef” variety, made with fresh fruit and juices. The Cuban Society, for example, features rum, Galliano and raspberries, and the Fizz mixes gin with pineapple and ginger.

L.A. Live, 900 W. Olympic Blvd. (at Figueroa), Los Angeles, (213) 765-8600, www.lalivemarriott.com.

Learn to cook from two pros

Cookbook authors Martha Rose Shulman and Clifford A. Wright are offering three series of classes at their Venice Cooking School.

The new roster for February through May includes Savory Mediterranean Pies; Mastering Salads and Salad Dressings; Meatless Main Dishes for Everyone; Unforgettable Pasta Classics for Beginners; and Quick Family Dinners in a Wok.

Classes cost $70 to $80 and include tastings of the recipes with wine. There are two time slots for each: Wednesdays, 6:15 to 8:45 p.m.; Sundays, 2 to 5 p.m.

St. Joseph Center, 204 Hampton Drive, Venice, (323) 932-1632; www .venicecookingschool.com.

Also:

Bar210 and nightclub Plush take over the former Trader Vic’s space in the Beverly Hilton, opening this weekend. Small plates are by former “Top Chef” contestant Marcel Vigneron.

9876 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, (310) 887-6060, www.bartwooneoh.com.

-- Betty Hallock and Jessica Gelt