David Weiss: August 2011 Archives

Okay, I confess: Sleep does not come easy to a weekend warrior of long-standing. My hip aches from a mowing-over administered by some mulleted brute in a basketball game a few years ago, and the bedroom is perpetually either too hot or too cold -- so like Goldilocks I have become rather particular when it comes to beddy-bye. Everything has to be just right.....

Goodbye, bleary-eyes, hello eight-hour man! Thanks to what's being called a new "performance bed sheet" from a couple of athletic women turned entrepreneurs, I am as snoozy as Rip van Winkle. SHEEX, as the new product is called, is designed to feel lighter and softer on the skin, and to optimize your body temperature whether it's cold or hot in the room.

Made of the same moisture-wicking material that Nike and Under Armour use for athletic clothing, sleeping on SHEEX bedding is like sleeping on butter-soft Spandex. It breathes like no other sheet I have experienced, meaning it stays cool in the dead of a summer night -- good news for a thrift-minded miser like myself, laying awake calculating how much I am spending running the A/C 24/7.

Now I am no physicist, but the operating principle seems rather straightforward: the company's proprietary "Sleep-Fit" technology transfers body heat twice as effectively as does cotton, allowing the human body to cool down faster and enjoy a deeper sleep. Truth be told, After one night with SHEEX, I was a convert: I slept soundly, and awakened without the muscle pain that has plagued me ever since that fateful day on the hardwood. That was far more than I expected.

SHEEX not only feels great on the old epidermis, it looks great on the mattress, conforming without ripples and wrinkles. After washing -- given the fabric's miracle properties -- the fabric feels almost completely dry, in accord with the company's claim that they dry three times faster than cotton. Even the pillowcases stay cool, obviating my OCD-need to flip the pillow every fifteen minutes on a hot night. That's worth the price of admission alone.

The better news is that SHEEX bedsheets are now available at Bed Bath & Beyond, and at a most reasonable price, given its satiny feel and therapeutic properties. And the company is also offering a travel line, including blankets, pillows and their ultra-cool, wrap-around Sleep-Sax, which will encase you like a silk sleeping bag and offer a measure of comfort when you check into a hotel, wondering if the germs or the bedbugs will get to you first. Here's hoping it takes a few strokes off my golf game too. Maybe cotton sheets have been preventing me from going low all these years. Will keep y'all posted on that.....

My own humble town of Tarzana isn't generally known as a shake-your-booty destination, but all that's about to change come August 13th, when R&B stalwarts Kool & the Gang invade the greeny precincts of Braemar Country Club for a charity concert benefitting the Vijay Amritraj Foundation. That Saturday night at 7:30, the recipe will be a fairly simple one: eat drink and boogie to the beat at the newly renovated club at the top of Reseda Blvd. With views that take in all of the San Fernando Valley and a crack kitchen staff, body and soul should come away greatly satisfied.

Details are available at Braemar's website -- tickets are tax-deductible and funds raised will be steered toward disabled children and oppressed women in India. Doing the right thing has never been less painful, so put on some dancing duds and come have a glance at the new look of Braemar -- you might just come away a member.....

Readers of this humble almanac know I am possessor of a classic American palate: make mine a juicy steak and a potato in any form and you can save the sea urchins and foam-laden dishes for the Vanderbilt party. I have sampled many a fine steakhouse over the years, but keep returning to my reliable Woodland Hills haunt, Fleming's, time and time again. Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, said R.W. Emerson, but it's also the hallmark of a fine dining establishment. I expect a high level of cuisine and service at Fleming's and they never disappoint.

My latest visit was to sample a couple of the seasonal specials, in this case a fabulous low-calorie cocktail called the Sexy Sailor (it wasn't easy for me to order same -- I said it was for my wife) and the Sunday Prime Rib dinner special which ends on August 28th. For a mere $30 bucks, you get one of the establishment's signature salads (I like the Fleming's itself), a generous cut of their handcut prime rib with any of three sauces, a side dish and dessert. I'd also humbly suggest you try one of their fine collection of wines-by-the-glass -- known as the Fleming's 100 -- and go out in style.

For the record, our genial server was not only unduly respectful given my dubious reputation (!), but was extremely well-versed in all of the restaurant's copious vintages, and able to suggest the proper match for each of our entrées (p.s., the wife's double-thick New Zealand lamb chops were succulent and cooked to perfection). Even the side dishes were done as ordered -- the grilled asparagus maintaining a nice al dente texture and drizzled in a fruity olive oil.

And while we're at it, I would be loath not to mention Fleming's Prime Burger again, served at the bar 'til 7 PM at the obscenely low fare of six dollars! If you are a burger fanatic, and watching your wallet in these lean times, you owe it to yourself to try this high-end sandwich and any of the other "5 For $6 'Til 7" specials offered daily. If you can't abide ordering a Sexy Sailor to go with it, try their latest "skinny cocktail" called the Russian Prom Queen. Nostrovia!