Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It's Saturday, Feb. 10. Here's what you need to know to start your weekend:
How to celebrate Super Bowl Sunday
Diehard football fans are eagerly waiting to watch the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs face off in Las Vegas during the Super Bowl LVIII tomorrow.
Taylor Swift enthusiasts are planning to watch the game for a totally different reason: the romance between Swift and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
After all, Swift and Kelce's love story is one we've been waiting for. At least that's according to my colleague Amy Kaufman.
Another reason to swoon at the big game? Usher is set to bring his own romantic charm to the halftime show.
Now that you're hyped up, here are some ways to celebrate the big game, no matter why you're watching.
Try some non-Taylor Swift recipes for game day
Swift and Kelce may be dominating the discourse, but that doesn't have to be the case in your house. If you're not into recipes themed around their romance — yes, there have been "Karma" quesadillas and "Bad Blood" waffle fries — stick to the classics.
My colleagues on the Food team pulled together some of their favorite recipes, such as extra limey guacamole that tastes like a margarita, oven-baked nachos and buffalo-style chicken wings. None of those recipes takes more than an hour to make and all can easily feed a crowd.
Head to a sports bar for food and drink specials
Food is often an afterthought at many sports bars, but it doesn't have to be for Super Bowl LVIII. Several Los Angeles-area sports bars are offering limited menu items and discounts for the big game. Spacious BiergartenLA in Koreatown blends German and Korean flavors for dishes like gravy-doused German fried rice. At Brooklyn Avenue Pizza Co. in Boyle Heights, you can order the sports bar's staples such as hot wings dusted with Hot Cheetos and an elote old-fashioned with guajillo honey and roasted corn.
Track if our sports analyst's predictions come true
The 49ers haven't won a Super Bowl in 19 years. The Chiefs are playing in their fourth Super Bowl in five years. Only one will take home the Lombardi Trophy. Our NFL writer Sam Farmer breaks down the matchup. Check his predictions throughout the game (and make some of your own).
The week's biggest stories
A storm of historic proportions unleashed record rainfall over parts of Los Angeles, endangering the city's homeless population, sending mud and boulders down hillsides and knocking out power to more than 1 million people statewide. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
California storm
Rebecca Grossman trial
Politics
Grammys 2024
More big stories
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Column One
Column One is The Times' home for narrative and longform journalism. Here's a great piece from this week:
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
A new Kobe Bryant statue is a reminder of the star's everlasting influence on the Lakers. A little more than four years after a helicopter crash killed Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven others on board, it's still impossible to separate the on-court achievements that earned Bryant the honor of a statue from the circumstances that make it impossible for him to be there to celebrate them.
More great reads
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For your weekend
(Fangyu Ma / For The Times)
Going out
Staying in
L.A. Affairs
Get wrapped up in tantalizing stories about dating, relationships and marriage.
(Kate Dehler / For The Times)
I ran into three of my exes. Was the universe trying to tell me something? In a city of about 4 million people, it is possible for you to run into the three ex-loves of your life: at a random house party, at a concert you weren't supposed to be at or at a restaurant you switched to last-minute.
Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.
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