Gourmet Magazine

Russ Parsons is the new editor of the Los Angeles Times Food section. Parsons, who has worked at The Times since 1991 and served for several years as deputy editor, writes the In the Kitchen and In Season columns. Before joining the Food section, Parsons was food editor at the Los Angeles Times Syndicate. Before that, he edited the food section of the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner. Parsons replaces Laurie Ochoa, who had edited the section since 1993.

When the LA Weekly wrote a lengthy story last September about how little Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa attended to his official duties, it wasn't plowing fresh soil. The mayor's exuberant fundraising and his frenetic campaigning on behalf of presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton had already received plenty of attention, in this paper and elsewhere.

There are a lot of smart people in the food world, but not many smarter than Ruth Reichl. So when she says formal fine dining is going to make a comeback, maybe it's a good idea to pay attention. Reichl was the restaurant critic for the Los Angeles Times in the 1980s and '90s, then restaurant critic for the New York Times, editor of Gourmet magazine and author of a series of best-selling food memoirs. I was talking to her for a story I'm working on when she pointed out that "the people who really spend a lot of money in restaurants now are the 20-30somethings and they really think of restaurants as an important part of their lives.

Today * 11 a.m.: A two-hour seminar, "Using the Internet to Grow Your Business," will offer tips and advice. http://www.quickbooks.com/resources/seminar Saturday * 6 p.m.: Make "Trax" and head over to meet David Smith, creator and designer of the abstract strategy game. http://zone.msn.com/zzzz/auditorium.asp Sunday * 7 p.m.: Chat with poet and author Maya Angelou as she makes her directorial debut with Showtime's "Down in the Delta." http://sho.com/programplus/delta Monday * 4 p.m.

Speaking of upscale digs, Orange County's newest luxury lodging comes with a transmission. Newport Dunes Resort, dubbed the "Ritz of RV Parks," is now renting luxury motor homes to overnight guests at the 110-acre Newport Beach resort. Geared toward the motor-homeless, the new program allows easy riders to experience all the comforts of a first-class hotel on wheels without having to learn to parallel park, according to Newport Dunes spokeswoman Laurie Kajiwara.

In 1950, Norma Laine's aunt bought her a copy of Gourmet magazine. Not long after that, Laine, co-owner of Cha Cha Cha Encino, says, "I remember my parents coming to dinner, and I made a cheesecake [recipe] out of that magazine--the original New York cheesecake. It was a big hit." Inspired by that success, Laine subscribed. By the late 1950s, "I decided I'd like to have all of them [Gourmet magazines] from the very beginning, January 1941."

Cookbook lovers have a wealth of bookstores that cater to their every interest. Wine buffs aren't quite that lucky. It's rare to find a bookstore that stocks a comprehensive selection of wine books for someone seriously interested in wine. That's why Kellgren's Wine Book Catalog is so welcome. A short browse turns up a number of books I'd like to have in my own library. For sheer good writing on wine: "Passions: The Wines and Travels of Thomas Jefferson" by James M.

High-energy Amy Finley gave a fast-paced cooking demonstration Saturday at the Los Angeles Times Travel Show . (She returns at 11 a.m. Sunday (today) for a second demo.) Finley, a classically trained cook and the author of "How to Eat a Small Country," prepared lapin a la moutarde , or rabbit with mustard, a traditional Burgundian dish. She's an advocate for getting people to eat more rabbit but admitted that it's tricky thinking of a "fluffy bunny and what you're having for dinner.

Want to celebrate somewhere deluxe? Head over to Auberge at Barnabey's Hotel in Manhattan Beach, possibly the most romantic dining room in the South Bay. This elegant Victorian restaurant, lit by small red chandeliers, features intimate booths, partially shielded with red velvet drapes. Even when full, the room is so quiet you could hear a quenelle drop. Fortunately, it's not only the decor at Auberge that's special.