The 234 Apartment

Short on amenities but long on lore, some of New Orleans’ most popular bars might be considered dives in other cities. But here, bars with storied pasts, the patina of good times had and the anything-goes vibe of a diverse clientele are regarded as hallowed ground for their regulars. They are found in old buildings that had previous lives as homes or corner stores which imbues them with the sort of authenticity you just don’t find in newer establishments. While such institutions are the stomping grounds of locals, visitors are universally welcome, whether you show up for a late- night music performance or drop in for a drink during the middle of the day. French Quarter Aunt Tiki’s:  Don’t let the name fool you; there are no umbrella drinks here. And don’t even think about ordering one, the bartender might toss you out. What you will find is a worn sofa, a well-stocked jukebox and extra-strong cocktails at hard-to-beat prices. Who needs mai tais?  Chart Room:  When this local landmark ...

An Atlanta man was arrested in the shooting death of a male-to- trans found dead in a car outside a College Park apartment complex earlier this month. Tyrone Anthony Kemp , 26, was arrested Tuesday in connection with the shooting death of Troy Dangerfield, aka Tee Tee, 32. Kemp was taken into custody at a Union City car dealership where he worked cleaning cars , according to Major Lance Patterson of the College Park Police Department . Dangerfield was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds in a car parked outside the South Hampton Estates apartment complex at 4:20 a.m. on August 2. He was transported to Grady Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.   SEE ALSO: Transsexual Man Shot , Killed in College Park   Patterson says the two men met up at the 50 Yard Line sports bar in College Park shortly before Dangerfield was killed. Surveillance footage from the bar shows Kemp and Dangerfield leaving around 3 a.m. “We know that he was with Ms. Dangerfield earlier in the evening...

Dumplings and smiles The LA Times is reporting that Allan Tea, the man responsible for those popular Hello Kitty Cafe pop -ups across Southern California, has partnered up with a onetime Din Tai Fung chef to open a new restaurant down in Irvine. Called Paper Lantern , the project kicks off early next month at Diamond Jamboree Plaza off Alton Parkway. The decision by Tea to partner with Kenny Lim (whose family owns Mama Lu ’s Dumpling House) means that soon Orange County will have a pair of experts working to bring Paper Lantern to life. Lim comes with experience in the xiao long bao and beef roll world , while Tea knows more than a thing or two about crafting a quality dining experience . Paper Lantern opens September 4 at 2730 Alton Parkway in Irvine. Millie’s for dinner LA Weekly takes a look at a new pop-up happening at Millie’s in Silver Lake. The long-running breakfast and lunch space is turning out a new vegetable- focused evening affair called Of Aire, by chefs Dave Marti...

Along Florida's Turnpike in South Miami -Dade, where potato farms and fields of row crops stretched all the way to the visible horizon at the time when Hurricane Andrew struck , it’s virtually all rows of close-packed houses and townhomes today. Now the unavoidable noise walls are going up to forever block vistas once among the most beguiling in South Florida. Along South Dixie Highway , where scraggly lots, small farm fields and vegetable- and fruit-packing houses once mixed it up with used-car lots and budget motels, the landscape is a cornucopia of strip malls, Publix and Wal-Mart stores and fast- food chain restaurants . And everywhere there is traffic, backed up one way in the morning, when three-quarters of all employed adults in South Miami - Dade head north to downtown Miami , Coral Gables or even Doral to work, and the other way when they drive back home in the evening. Lightning struck as thunderstorms swept through the ruins of Homestead in the days after Hurricane...