👻 🤙 HALLOWEENMAXXING VIBES

Little Luck has opened in the former Bootsy Bellows space on the Sunset Strip, bringing h.wood Group’s first modern Japanese izakaya to West Hollywood. Los Angeles native chef Erik Idos, whose résumé includes Per Se and Nobu, leads a shareable menu of dry-aged Japanese fish, quail karaage, garlic lobster noodles, short rib ssam, robata, and elevated rolls. The lantern-lit room pairs a wall of roughly 4,000 records with Friday and Saturday DJs, plus two private karaoke rooms. Little Luck is open Monday through Saturday from 5:00pm to 12:00am, with the kitchen serving until 10:30pm.

Marée has opened above Lielle in Pico-Robertson, giving chef Marcus Jernmark’s Michelin-starred destination a more casual California-Parisian sibling. The menu spans escargot beignets, mussels gratin, housemade pastas, bouillabaisse, and a hamburger au poivre limited to roughly 25 to 30 nightly, while international wines start around $12 a glass. The airy, candlelit room features a semi-open kitchen and green onyx bar, with the bar and kitchen counter reserved for walk-ins. Marée is located on the second floor with dining room reservations and walk-ins available.

Burattino Brick Oven Pizza has opened at Washington Boulevard and Hill Avenue in Pasadena, bringing its California-style thin crust to East Washington Village. The menu includes the XL 120 Pepperoni pie, Black Garlic and White Garlic sauces, Wild Boar Pepperoni, the Cheese Lava Pie, and the Mercedes, a three-way combination of Quattro Gusti, Meatlovers, and Romana. Baked gourmet sandwiches, calzones, wings, salads, and local beer pairings round out the lineup. The pizzeria has validated parking and online ordering available through Burattino’s website.

L.A. Comic Con officially kicks off this weekend, running from Friday through Sunday at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Celebrating fifteen years of fandom, this year's action-packed lineup features over 800 exhibitors, 250 panels, star-studded celebrity appearances, and vibrant cosplay showcases. Visitors can also explore dedicated anime halls, join live gaming tournaments, and enjoy family-friendly indoor trick-or-treating tailored for the Halloween weekend.

The first of 125 scheduled speed camera systems began operating across Los Angeles yesterday, launching a five-year pilot program aimed at curbing speeding and improving traffic safety. To ease drivers into the transition, the Los Angeles Department of Transportation will issue warnings rather than tickets for the first 60 days to motorists caught traveling at least 11 mph over the posted limit. After each location's individual grace period expires, speeding drivers will face fines ranging from $50 up to $500. LADOT expects all 125 systems to be fully operational by the end of the year, spanning high-risk corridors throughout the city including major Eastside streets.

Riverwalk at Studio City is a go: the L.A. City Council upheld its approval, clearing the way for 814 apartments and about 76,000 square feet of shops at 12555 Ventura Boulevard. The project comes from Genton Property Group, RC Development and Torino Companies, with 46 of the apartments set aside as very low-income affordable housing. It will also open access to the Los Angeles River, add $675,000 in community benefits for river access and new trees, and keep the site’s classic 1950s bowling alley sign.

SPF:architects has unveiled a new design for 5600 Hollywood Boulevard: a seven-story modular development with 168 apartments, 20 of them reserved as affordable housing. Built from prefabricated parts, the project could cut construction costs by nearly 50 percent and shave about six months off the schedule. Renderings show two dark gray buildings with bright yellow accents, recessed balconies and planted rooftops.

Los Angeles fintech ScribeUp has raised a $13 million Series A, led by Curql with participation from Mucker Capital and Service Ventures, to take the headache out of recurring bills. Its AI-powered platform works inside the apps of more than 60 banks, credit unions and fintechs, so users can cancel forgotten subscriptions, update payment methods and manage bills without leaving their banking app.

Instagram is officially going long. It’s testing Features, which lets creators upload horizontal videos like podcasts, vlogs and interviews up to 90 minutes long, right on the Explore page and main feed. Select creators can also post Linked Reels that send viewers straight to the full-length video, and Instagram’s TV app now puts Features front and center on Samsung, Fire TV and Google TV, with Apple TV coming soon. Instagram head Adam Mosseri revealed the update on The Colin & Samir Show, and Series, second screen controls and possibly background playback are on the way.

Jay-Z will headline the Super Bowl LXI halftime show on Feb. 14 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, the NFL, Apple Music and Roc Nation announced Monday night. It’s a full-circle moment for the 25-time Grammy winner: his Roc Nation has helped produce the halftime show since 2019, and he just wrapped his Reasonable Doubt 30th anniversary run at the same stadium. Roc Nation will executive produce the show, with Hamish Hamilton directing, and the game will air on ESPN and ABC and stream on Disney+.

The Rams and Chargers meet this Sunday, Nov. 1, at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, with kickoff at 1:05 p.m. PT on FOX. The Rams (3-4) come in hot after a 35-21 win in Las Vegas, where Matthew Stafford threw three touchdowns and Kyren Williams and Blake Corum combined for 192 rushing yards. The Chargers are fresh off their bye, and Justin Herbert and company have had two weeks to prepare as they chase their first win of the season.

No. 9 UCLA football beat Michigan State 28-10 at the Rose Bowl in Saturday’s Homecoming game, improving to 7-0 for the first time since 2005. Senior quarterback Ty Dieffenbach threw a 63-yard touchdown to Brian Rowe Jr., Anthony Woods ran for 112 yards in a 245-yard rushing day, and the defense held the Spartans to just 47 rushing yards with four sacks. Next up for the Bruins is a Halloween matchup against Nevada.