Food + Photography

Crustacean Beverly Hills Kushii Oysters

Food.

The marriage of flavor profiles and subsequent full stomachs make it all seem overabundant at times, especially here in the US. Still, no matter where you are, the comfort food provides is undeniable.

I cook at home all the time and I love to experiment with recipes, either of my own creation or from your various NY Times Food Section or Bon Appetit article. (I’m down for Pinterest with modifications too.) As much as I really do love to, I never really eat out too much. I do, but right or wrong, I can be a frugal Virgo sometimes. I digress.

When I’m not eating at home, I’m lucky enough to enjoy one of the most iconic and successful restaurants in California — Crustacean Beverly Hills — on a regular basis.

As I write this, the world is in an unprecedented (yet not unforeseen) time on a multitudinous level… and all because of bat guano… or maybe because of a lab in Wuhan depending on who you ask. Stores are closed, you have to learn to cut your own hair over a Zoom call, and the biodegradability of all the one-time use surgical masks and nitrile gloves we’re running through will be a big question to answer. One of the industries hit the hardest is the bar & restaurant industry. Most in Beverly Hills have either closed entirely or have turned into really, really fancy to-go kitchens.

During this downtime, being the hustler I strive (/am learning) to be has serendipitously and symbiotically brought my creative passion and career to my day job with the luxury restaurant group, House of AN — the umbrella company to, you guessed it, Crustacean Beverly Hills.

Taking photos for the brand has opened up a new avenue for my business through food photography, which is something I never knew I would enjoy as much as I have.

We still have a while yet before these strange and surreal times are over, but now that the “normalcy” has settled in, my own personal wish is that this time has allowed the world collectively to spiritually pause and recover, recollect, refresh, and hopefully, we all come out with more gratitude, appreciation, and kindness on the other side, universe willing.