If you’re heading down to the Staples Center for an event, there are a number of incredible restaurants that you can choose to eat from beforehand. If you happen to have a preference towards Gluten-free foods, you’re in luck because Los Angeles is proud to have a number of restaurants that specialize in Gluten-free food. The following three restaurants are examples of restaurants who offer a Gluten-free menu, so check them out today!
The Shojin Restaurant Downtown
1. Shojin
333 S. Alameda St. Los Angeles, CA 90013
(213) 617-0305 www.theshojin.com
The Shojin is about 10 minutes from the Staples Center Nokia Theater Get Directions
Shojin is located on the third floor of the Little Tokyo Shopping Center in Downtown Los Angeles. The mall is located on Alameda St. between 3rd and 4th street. The restaurant offers 3 hours of free parking, so enjoy your time at the meal. Shojin’s mission is to “provide the most flavorful and naturally preserved meals using organic and natural foods with NO chemical seasonings and harmful additives.” As you can see, they take pride in providing patrons with the most natural food possible. They specialize in vegan, macrobiotic, Gluten free, organic and natural foods. For one of the best Los Angeles Gluten-free restaurants, Shojin organic and natural sushi is a fine choice.
Lucifers – Damned Good Pizza
2. Lucifers – Damned Good Pizza
1958 Hillhurst Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323)906-8603 www.luciferspizza.com
Lucifers Pizza is about 15 minutes Staples Center Nokia Theater Get Directions
Lucifers’ Damned Good Pizza is one of the few pizza joints around town that offer gluten-free crusts on all of their pies. With extremely reasonable prices for the high quality pizza, Lucifers is a must stop for bread loving Celiacs. They deliver Monday to Thursday from 5pm-10pm and Friday to Sunday from 12pm-10pm. Join the RIP club and receive free pizzas as well as a member swipe card after your buy your first 10 circles. Lucifers has been rated one of the top pizza places in Los Angeles by LAWeekly as well as a number of other publications, so come see what the fuss is about and enjoy some of the best Los Angeles Gluten-free pizza!
The Yard House
3. YARD HOUSE LOS ANGELES
800 West Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213)745-9273 The Yard House
The Yard House is seconds away from the Staples Center Get Directions
The Yard House Los Angeles is one of the prime places to hit before any Staples Center event. They have a “Gluten-sensative” menu that includes a variety of delicious dishes from Grilled Artichoke and Spicy Tuna roll to Seared Ahi Steak and a Cuban Roast Pork Dip. Truly a treat for those of without the ability to process flour, the Yard House Los Angeles is a favorite of locals and tourists alike, and it will set the night of right for diners with any special dietary needs!
Los Angeles Staples Center Gluten-free Restaurants do exist, just check out the great venues above and put your food concerns to rest!
Barry’s Ticket Service
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
(across from the Staples Center inside the Luxe City Center)
Open 7 days a week, 10am – 9pm, for pickups.
(213)749-0057
Barry’s Tickets Downtown office is seconds from the STAPLES Center and Nokia Theater Get Directions
Is Dwight Howard ready to compete for a championship?
The latest news that came from the Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak is that the team is not intended to seek for a trade for big man superstar Dwight Howard. Despite his injuries and his below expectations performance, Howard is still a longshot for the Lakers. He is believed to be the next star to supersede Kobe Bryant, when his career is over and the Lakers are very confident that the 6-11” center will resign with them this summer.
It’s no secret that Howard will have a bunch of teams that are going to give a go to land him, like Houston, Dallas Mavericks and perhaps even the Brooklyn through a trade. Those teams have chased Howard last summer, too, when he decided to take his talents to LA to join Kobe and Nash. Although he has kept his mouth closed and diplomatically avoided any true answer regarding his intentions this off-season, it’s widely believed in Lakers circles that he his remain with the team and they have some strong facts that support their beliefs.
First of all, the team can offer him more money than any other team can. It might sound odd, but the new CBA gives a huge advantage to the Lakers in the aspects of keeping Howard. That’s because they are able to offer him 5-year deal with a maximum salary of about $23.5 million and in the same time a 7.5 yearly increase rate. That means that each other team could totally offer him $30 million less, so a big a plus for LA in this point.
Also, having Kobe Bryant on your roster can only push another start to sign with you and in this case it will be to remain with the team. Despite the difficulties, chemistry and bonding will eventually come for the team and that’s when Dwight will be more willing to stay. Up to now, this season might have been an unsuccessful one for the Lakers, but when things turn around and Howard gets to see that they are capable of chasing a championship, he will be urged to remain to LA. There’s nothing more convincing for an NBA player than a ring, at least for most of them. Howard has clearly shown that he desperately wants to play for a contender and the Lakers are that team. After all it’s one of the reasons he left the Orlando Magic.
There are also secondary reasons that strengthen the team’s belief that Howard will stay and those might be the big market that Los Angeles is, with the star shine of Hollywood and the glamorous lifestyle and also the chance to work and with the Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul Jabbar. These only add up to the already strong motives that Howard has in order to stay for the team. So not seeking a trade for Howard is definitely the best choice for the team right now.
Chris Michaels I live in Los Angeles, CA and work as an Chief Wisdom Officer
at Barry’s Ticket Servicewww.barrystickets.com.
Barry’s Ticket Service
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
(across from the inside the Luxe City Center next to the Staples Center)
Open 7 days a week, 10am – 9pm, for pickups.
(213)749-0057
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Is Dwight Howard ready to compete for a championship?
How serious is Dwight Howard about fighting for a championship? How much does he want it? These might be a tricky question to answer but it might hide some of the team’s problems this season. After a fiasco ejection at Sunday’s game against the Toronto Raptors, many critics started again to talk about Dwight Howard and his commitment to making this team run for another title. In fact many of them stated that the 7-time All-Star might just not be ready yet to compete for a ring at the highest level. He might lack focus. You see, with so much talent in the NBA and so many teams really playing at their best, it takes more than just talent and star power to be a champion. It also takes sacrifices, method and commitment. That’s where Howard might not be 100% focused.
Well, even if his second technical that led to his ejection at the game against the Raptors was underserving, it surely is embarrassing and misleading for the whole team to lose its starting center with just 17 minutes in the game, for any reason. It just breaks the consistency of the team and the momentum of the game. It just doesn’t feel right. Plus Howard really seems like having fun now that he is in LA. All the flashing lights are on him, he lives next to Hollywood and is being watched every home game from Jack Nicholson, Adam Sandler and other movie starts. Of course he has every right to enjoy that and pride himself for his success, but he has to make success come to him. You could say that even Lebron and Wade have stopped being so playful and showoffs after their first year in Miami –when they lost the NBA finals to the Dallas Mavericks- and have become stricter and focused on their goal, another ring. Can Howard do the same?
He surely has the physical abilities and the skills to take the Lakers to another level. But I am sure we would all want him to concentrate on helping us win games and at least get to the playoffs. I don’t know if it will take a catastrophe season for us to understand that we won’t be gifted any playoff spot or any wins just because we are the Lakers. We might not even have so many stars in our roster next season. One thing is for sure. To be successful in the NBA, you need to give your heart and soul to the game. You need to love the game. And Dwight needs to understand this and make it an everyday lesson.
Barry’s Ticket Service
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
(across from the inside the Luxe City Center)
Open 7 days a week, 10am – 9pm, for pickups.
(213)749-0057
You can also visit now on Google+
Kobe will record his 15th straight All Star appearance, all as a starter, while in the meantime he leads the votes overall for the third time in his career. This is well deserved by him despite for the Lakers being just 11th in the West. The 34-year veteran superstar is leading the league in scoring with 30 PPG and also is also shooting a career high 48% from the field this season.
Also at guard Chris Paul will make his appearance as a starter for the 4th time in his career, his sixth time generally as an all-star. Paul has been the leader of his team this season and has managed to change the whole picture of the Clippers together with Blake Griffin and the rest of the crew. He is averaging 17PPG and also almost 10 assists and he has provided some huge games for his team, lifting LA over tough opponents. His presence and his basketball IQ is what makes him so special, as he has the unique ability to make every teammate look better, a skill that only a few players in the entire NBA history possessed. Paul had a tough competition this season with Russel Westbrook for the starting point guard role, but managed to finish ahead from the Thunder’s star at votes.
At center we find Dwight Howard, his seventh straight All-Star appearance and his sixth as a starter. Although his team has not had a rather successful season till now, the monster center is putting huge numbers almost every game in rebounds and field goal percentage. He is averaging almost 18 points per game, 13 rebounds (first in the league) and 2.5 blocks. Even with some ups and downs in his performance, Howard is still considered to be one of the most, not to say the most complete players down the block and his starter role is well deserved.
Blake Griffin will also start for his 2nd time in an All-Star game, his third appearance overall. He is averaging 18 points on a 53% shooting from the field and also 8 rebounds per game. His has provided some huge games this season for the Clippers and also boosted the team’s 17-game winning streak that broke the franchise record. Apart from all the numbers and the stats, Griffin might be one of the strongest and most enjoying players to watch in the entire league, with all the dunks and alley-hoops his putting down.
Barry’s Ticket Service
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
(across from the inside the Luxe City Center)
Open 7 days a week, 10am – 9pm, for pickups.
(213)749-0057
You can also visit now on Google+
Much criticism has fallen on the shoulders of Kobe Bryant lately regarding his individual defensive performance. Of course, the whole Lakers team is circled by clouds regarding the general team picture and this season’s record. After lots of statements from other players, coaches and journalists, Kobe may have proven the best way that he is still capable of playing NBA All-Defensive Team-like defense.
You can question many things about Lakers’ defensive system. You can easily say that Howard is not the inside presence the team needs or that Mike D’Antoni is not utilizing the whole roster the best way possible. But to say that Kobe is not playing good D? Well, ask Brandon Jennings or Kyrie Irving about that. During the last games of the Lakers, Kobe was assigned to guard two of the most lethal point guards in the league and of course the best players of each team. How did he do? He held Irving to just 15 points on 7-15 shooting from the field. He is averaging 23.6 points per game on almost 46% shooting. Two days later, Jennings finished with just 12 points on 4-14 shooting while being guarded by Kobe. His numbers this season are 18.3 Points per game and 40% from the field. But it’s not just that.
Defense is way more than individual effort in basketball. Every team needs a good defensive tactics and a well understanding of how the system works in order to play effectively. This requires a firm setup from the coaching staff and a good execution from the players. Of course Coach Mike D’Antoni isn’t known for his superior defensive systems. But you can’t either blame Kobe for the team’s run this season. In fact, Kobe might be the only player who is playing like a true superstar and leader, as he is supposed to do, on both ends of the court. Yes he might have started to age and yes NBA requires all good players to be good athletes in order to compete. However Kobe has certainly not entered the stage of his career when he can’t compete any more at the highest level. This was made clear especially after the statements of both Irving and Jennings, who had the chance to taste a bit of Kobe’s defense the last two games. Both of them pointed out the great defense they faced and also stated that it was a huge factor for the outcome of the game. The Lakers came up winning both of these games.
Barry’s Ticket Service
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
(across from the inside the Luxe City Center)
Open 7 days a week, 10am – 9pm, for pickups.
(213)749-0057
You can also visit now on Google+
It may be a weird question for every Lakers fans, but it’s the reality we all have to face. We may be used to ask whether or not we are going to win the Pacific Division, the Western conference or even the championship. However this season, things have changed. What we’ll have to fight for is to secure the 8th spot in the conference and enter the playoffs. Can we do that? Of course we can. Will we manage to achieve that? Let’s hope so.
After 37 games the Lakers now are 16-21 and rank 11th in the Western Conference. The 8th seed is taken currently by the Portland Trailblazers, who have a 20-17 record. They are 4 games ahead of the Lakers. Houston is 7th with 21-7 and the Nuggets are now 6th with 23-16. So the first target for us at this point is to achieve as many wins as possible in order to secure at least the 8th seed. We might have a tough schedule up ahead, with lots of games against above 0.500 teams, like the Heat, Memphis and the Thunder, but with Howard back on the team after an unspecified injury and with Nash already back, we can be pretty confident that we can win any game. Gasol is also expected to return the next few days and that will allow us to see the full potential of our team finally. We have yet to see how the entire team can play all together since the very beginning of the season. Due to our misfortunes and the constant injuries of our best players, we are in a tough position right now. But in the end I think we will manage to get what we want and believe me, as soon as we enter the playoffs, things will change drastically. We are champions, we have the heart of a champion plus a bunch of superstars in our team and we will not be easy prey for any predator in our Conference.
If we manage to get our entire team back and keep them healthy so we can get some rhythm, I am sure wins will come. Perhaps some tweaks during till the transfer deadline could help in that direction. Chemistry is not built overnight and that has to be made clear to all of us. We can play like a contender and I am sure we will when we have everybody up and rolling once again. Not only can we enter the playoffs, but we can take over many of our playoff opponents.
After a tough first 9 seasons in the NBA, with lots of criticism, lots of hate and love for his face, Lebron James finally redeemed himself last season winning the long-awaited Championship Ring. Can he really do it again this year?
Whether you hate Lebron, love him or simply don’t care about him –that would be curious- you have to admit that he is the best player currently in the NBA. I am not talking about best scorer, best passer or best rebounder or even the most clutch player. I am talking about doing all these together at a superior level, non-human, video-game like. Even if you were a tough NBA defender it’s almost impossible to stop a 6-8” body-frame weighting 250 lbs coming towards you at full speed. Combine it with top-class agility and shooting stroke and you have an ultimate weapon at your arsenal. I mean, what can’t Lebron really do? The most usual answer to this question until last June was that he can’t win a championship. Or some jokes about giving him a dollar and him giving you ¾ back. Well, all that has now changed, at least at some point. It’s always natural for a champion to ease the tension towards himself and that happened also with Lebron. Especially when this summer we all witnessed the Dwight Howard saga that finally ended up with him being traded to the Lakers. In fact the Lakers took a lot of the media attention and the criticism that Miami and Lebron had last year. It seems that together with power always comes responsibility and expectations for the greatest achievements. That’s what the Lakers face this year, they are in the tough position the Heat were last year. They are in a win now mode and not only because of getting 4 former all stars in their starting lineup, but also because everybody knows that in order to compete in the NBA, you need to be fresh (and young enough). The Lakers don’t have the luxury to wait a year or two like Miami did. On the other hand, the Lakers have already won several championships and the fans may not be so championship-hungry.
Back to Lebron and Miami, though, could they really make it to the finals again and win their second in a row? Only the Lakers have achieved to win two or more in a row the past decade. But the question might be which team can beat Miami in 7 games? As they’ve proved last year, they can do well even with tall teams managing well their weakness at frontcourt. They found the way to make the most out of their roster. What they wisely did last year for example against the Thunder at the finals, was that they switched Shane Battier at the four. That changed the game, because it forced Serge Ibaka, the monster blocker, run all the court around to chase Battier and defend him shooting the three. So that left the inside space clear Lebron and Wade. This year, they’ve added also Ray Allen, who needs no comments about his three pointers and Rashard Lewis, plus they’ve kept all the valuable members at their team. And with Lebron having another super season this far, they look like they are eligible to repeat. Let’s wait and see how things go for Miami and all the other true Championship contenders.
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Barry’s Ticket Service
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
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Barry’s Ticket Service is located downtown Los Angeles in the beautiful Luxe Center Hotel.
Barry’s Ticket Service
Tickets to all Los Angeles events including Lakers Tickets, Clippers Tickets, Kings Tickets, Dodgers Tickets and all LA Concerts, Sports and Theater Tickets.
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
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(across from the Staples Center inside the Luxe City Center)
Hours:Mon-Sun 10am- 9:00pm
Barry’s Tickets is the offical partner of the Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Kings and LA Galaxy. We sell tickets to all Concert, Sports and Theater events in Los Angeles and Nationwide.
Barry’s Tickets Downtown Los Angeles office is located seconds from the STAPLES Center and Nokia Theater.
Which team can claim itself for being the best in Los Angeles? Is it perhaps the legendary Lakers of Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard or is their era coming to an end and they have already been dethroned from the young and energetic Clippers?
I think that whoever had a doubt this season about the above questions, got his answers for good after yesterday’s Clips domination on the floor. You don’t need to be a stats specialist to understand that the power and dynamics of the Clips is way beyond our city rivals. It’s been too long since we could celebrate a win against the Lakers. They were always a championship team with some great players always on their roster and of course Coach Phil Jackson doing his magic orchestrating the way of play. But from this season on things are about to change. We have made some huge steps forward and we are in a position right now that we can claim our team being the best in the city.
Of course they got Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard and also Steve Nash, not to mention their role players. However the Clipps still got the advantage here. I mean look at their aging roster. How many years do they have left? Can Kobe continue his acrobatics after he turns 35? And how about Nash, will he still be playing at 39? I don’t think they can even reach us and I also don’t think that they will be in a better position in the near future. Not when we have two monsters in the team, Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Paul made Kobe look old and slow once again, as he stated some days ago. In the meantime, Griffin put on a show last night scoring 24 points against a team with arguably the best front quart in the league. Not only did he smash the key and made some huge plays against Gasol and Howard, but if you watched the whole game, you could clearly see the difference between the energy level and the effort from our players against the Lakers.
A close look at the stats, can unveil a great difference between the two teams. We average 101.5 PPG while holding our opponents to 93.2. The Lakers are near to us scoring points, 102.8, but take a look at their defense; they allow 100.5 PPG. That’s a big difference maker for a team’s winning record. Plus, the Lakers rely too much on Kobe and Howard. Kobe scores almost 30% of the points his entire team does every game. He, together with Howard, combine to reach almost 50%. In contrary, we are a well balanced team, so even if one of our stars is having an off-game, we have many other guys who can step up and lead the team towards victories. Just look at Jamal Crawford’s stats. He’s averaging almost the same points as Paul does and also Matt Barnes. He came as a mediocre role player and has provided some huge minutes for us up to now.
It’s the second time the Clips got past the Lakers this season; first one came on November 2nd, while Mike Brown was still coaching them. Despite almost 2 months have passed since and we really can’t wait to meet them again, because after all it’s not only about winning the Lakers but also winning the Battle for LA.
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Barry’s Ticket Service
1020 S. Figueroa, Los Angeles, CA 90015
(across from the Staples Center inside the Luxe City Center)
Open 7 days a week, 10am – 9pm, for pickups.
(213)749-0057
