Latest news with #Vie
Perth Now
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Doja Cat teases '70's and '80s-inspired album with 'modern twists'
Doja Cat's new album 'Vie' will "fully encapsulate" the '70s and '80s - with some "modern twists". The 'Say So' hitmaker is expected to release the follow-up to 2023's 'Scarlet' sometime this year and she has shared snippets of what fans can expect. Speaking on Los Angeles' 102.7 KIIS FM radio station recently, she said: 'I'm really punching my foot through the wall into that situation. I want to really fully encapsulate that time and still give it some modern twists here and there.' In November, the 'Paint The Town Red' hitmaker took to X to share the names of 13 songs from the album. She highlighted five of the songs - 'Cards', 'Acts Of Service', 'Make It Up', 'Did I Lie' and 'Crack' - as her "favourite". Doja later noted: "Songs are in no particular order. Starred my favorites. (sic)' However, she later deleted the post. In September, the 29-year-old rapper and singer declared that she doesn't want to write hits just to "protect her pockets". Doja admitted she has done songs in the past just to be popular, and said she wanted to experiment with the eclectic mix of genres that she loves, including jazz, neo soul, indie and rock music. In an interview conducted by singer Jack Harlow for Present Space, Doja said: "I really love jazz music, and I love neo soul, and different kinds of rock music and indie and experimental music. That stuff tends to get pushed to the side by the general populace, and I didn't see it in the past for me, so I did the thing that I knew would stick. Now, I feel like I can take those elements that I have from the music that sticks and put it into this soup of different genres that I really love and enjoy and respect, and make something new with it. That's what I've always loved to do, is swirl a lot of different sounds together, but really in the future, I want to start going in a different direction sonically that isn't supposed to just protect my pockets necessarily, and isn't just supposed to woo the younger fans or the people who only want to hear sexual themes or self-medication or stuff like that. There's so much to life and it's been a pattern of writing about those things for me, but now I want to stretch the canvas." The star stepped away from her conventional pop style on 'Scarlet', focusing on hip-hop and R'n'B.
The South African
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The South African
Doja Cat dazzles at iHeartRadio's Wango Tango
Doja Cat dazzled fans and fashion critics alike at iHeartRadio's Wango Tango on Saturday night, turning heads in an aqua sequinned mini dress. The 29-year-old rapper made a striking entrance at the star-studded event held on the sunny Huntington Beach, California. The aqua mini dress hugged her waist, featuring dramatic cut-outs and a plunging neckline. Adorned with sparkling sequins,the dress was perfectly paired with fishnet tights and silver buckled stilettos that added height and glamour. Her blonde locks cascaded in relaxed waves over her shoulders. This complemented the edgy look that also revealed her impressive arm tattoos. Doja Cat accessorised with a chunky diamond choker and sparkly earrings, adding a touch of luxe to her ensemble, according to Daily Mail. Her makeup was full-glam, highlighting her radiant features as she posed confidently for photographers. 'I'm here for me, not just for everybody else's enjoyment,' she recently said about her evolving artistic identity. Doja then took to the stage to perform a string of her biggest hits. She captivated the crowd with her animated and powerful delivery. Earlier this year, Doja Cat made waves again with her provocative music video for Lose My Mind . In the video, she paid homage to Miley Cyrus's iconic Wrecking Ball video. Doja Cat stripped down and rode atop an engine, drenched in black oil-a daring visual that sparked conversation worldwide. The track, a collaboration with Don Toliver and produced by Ryan Tedder and Hans Zimmer. It will feature on the upcoming F1 movie soundtrack starring Brad Pitt and Damson Idris, set to release on 27 June. Fans can also look forward to Doja Cat's forthcoming album, Vie , which includes tracks like Turn the Lights On and Jealous Type . The album promises a fresh chapter after her 2023 release Scarlet , which she described as 'quite an angry project' reflecting her journey of self-defence and self-love. Doja Cat's fearless style and musical innovation continue to set her apart on the global stage. Her appearance at Wango Tango not only reaffirmed her status as a fashion icon but also as a dynamic performer who commands attention wherever she goes. With her dazzling Wango Tango look and electrifying performance, Doja Cat has once again proven why she's one of the most exciting artists of our time. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Star
07-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Tze Yong's gritty display in early exit a positive sign
Major test: Ng Tze Yong recently returned to action after a lengthy layoff due to a serious back injury. PETALING JAYA: There was no shame and certainly no reason for tears for national men's singles shuttler Ng Tze Yong despite his early exit from the Taiwan Open. The 24-year-old's first-round defeat to home player Wang Po-wei came as little surprise, given it was only his second tournament of the year. While Po-wei has been competing consistently since early January and even won the Phuket International Series in April, Tze Yong only recently returned to action after a lengthy layoff due to a serious back injury, making this a major test of his match fitness. Still, there were encouraging signs from Tze Yong, who put up a gritty fight before going down 21-18, 18-21, 17-21 in an 87-minute battle. Malaysia had something to cheer about in the men's singles though, as rising star Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin progressed to the second round after overcoming compatriot Tan Jia Jie. Aidil, however, had to dig deep for the win, eventually prevailing 21-13, 11-21, 21-8. He now faces a much tougher task today when he takes on top seed and four-time champion Chou Tien-chen of Taiwan in the second round. In the mixed doubles, sixth seeds Toh Ee Wei-Loo Bing Kun had no trouble seeing off Vietnam's Pham Van Hai and Than Van Anh 21-14, 21-10. They will next face South Korea's Ki Dong-ju and Jeong Na-eun in the second round. Meanwhile, in the men's doubles, Low Hang Yee-Ng Eng Cheong fell at the first hurdle after losing to Taiwanese pair Su Ching-heng and Wu Guan-xun 21-23, 21-14, 19-21 in a 63-minute duel. There was more disappointment in the women's doubles as Cheng Su Hui-Tan Zhing Yi were outclassed by Tokyo Olympic gold medallist Apriyani Rahayu and her new partner Febi Setianingrum, going down 16-21, 13-21 in just 49 minutes. Fortunately, teammates Carmen Ting-Ong Xin Yee managed to stay in the fight after edging Taiwan's Chung Chia-en-Huang Tzu-ling 21-19, 21-19. The Malaysian pair will now take on eighth seeds Meilysa Puspitasari and Rachel Rose of Indonesia in the next round. RESULTS Malaysians only Men's singles: Wang Po-wei (Tpe) bt Ng Tze Yong 18-21, 21-18, 21-17; Aidil Sholeh Ali Sadikin bt Tan Jia Jie 21-13, 11-21, 21-8. Men's doubles: Su Ching-heng-Wu Guan-xun (Tpe) bt Low Hang Yee-Ng Eng Cheong 23-21, 14-21, 21-19; Takumi Nomura-Yuichi Shimogami bt Goh Boon Zhe-Loo Bing Kun 25-23, 21-12. Women's doubles: Apriyani Rahayu-Febi Setianingrum (Ina) bt Cheng Su Hui-Tan Zhing Yi 21-16, 21-13; Carmen Ting-Ong Xin Yee bt Chung Chia-en-Huang Tzu-ling (Tpe) 21-19, 21-19. Mixed doubles: Toh Ee Wei-Loo Bing Kun bt Pham Van Hai-Than Van Anh (Vie) 21-14, 21-10.
Chicago Tribune
17-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Restaurant review: Petite Vie by chef Paul Virant brings buttery French market priced potatoes near Chicago
Petite Vie, the newest restaurant by award-winning chef Paul Virant, who's made Western Springs a culinary destination for 21 years, dares to offer market priced potatoes on a simple yet inventive menu that explores France by way of the Midwest. Virant, also the chef and owner of Gaijin okonomiyaki shop in the West Loop and Vistro Prime steakhouse in suburban Hinsdale, describes his latest establishment as a brasserie. 'It's a gathering place that's got good energy, and food that's well prepared,' he said. 'Not super complicated, a lot of which is based on traditional French food.' Petite Vie opened last May around the corner from his former flagship, Vie, which closed after 19 years due to a landlord dispute in 2023. The brasserie is not quite a descendant of its namesake, but a return to the chef's French professional roots. Petite Vie is more casual with classic references. Its predecessor Vie was a contemporary American restaurant that won a Michelin star when the guide actually traveled as originally intended. 'The bestselling dish at dinner is for sure the steak frites,' Virant said when I asked about Petite Vie. 'But depending on the plat du jour, those sell really well.' Boeuf bourguignon, the current plat du jour, or dish of the day, is more le plat du mois, or dish of the month, with good reason. The tender beef stew, braised traditionally in red wine with carrots, takes a detour from Burgundy when it's served over a silky celeriac puree, and under a tangle of grated celeriac dressed in a bright remoulade. It's a Midwestern declaration on the dish, but I do wish there was far more of that defining and delicious red wine sauce. 'I gotta give Vinny credit for that,' Virant said about head chef Vinny Gerace, previously chef de cuisine at The Publican. 'I was more like, let's just do it right, and send it out with some sourdough.' They source the sourdough bread from Publican Quality Bread, but pastry chef Angelyne Canicosa bakes everything else in-house. 'But he had this whole idea with celery root,' added Virant about Gerace, and the remoulade with a little bit of horseradish, which is not traditional at all, but clearly a great flavor with beef. That skilled culinary curiosity is why I would order the plat du jour at Petite Vie every single time, whatever it is. 'The plat du jour, and stuff like that, is what I really enjoy,' Virant said. 'Because that's kind of my thing.' That's definitely my thing too. Some other wonderful stuff can be found in the blackboard specials, including a small, but significant side: a steak butter. It's currently au poivre, a compound butter with brandy, shallots, reduced beef stock and lots of black pepper. And then there are those market priced potatoes! They're on the board as pommes de terre inspirée d'Escoffier, or potatoes inspired by Escoffier, as in Auguste Escoffier, who codified French cuisine in his cookbook 'Le Guide Culinaire,' published in 1903. At Petite Vie, the current market priced potato dish is aligot, the legendary mash with an epic cheese pull. 'So that's a lot of fun,' Virant said about the potato series. 'I tell my crew, 'You all know the book. Now take a look at the potato chapter, what do you want to do?'' It's another modest Midwestern affirmation, since market-priced items are usually steaks or seafood, not our most common root vegetable. At Petite Vie their aligot is about a third Gruyère cheese, suspended in soft clouds of russet potato, which needed a touch more salt, always a challenge when seasoning potatoes. But why are they market priced? Because what some might consider the lowliest root vegetable has historically been taken to culinary heights. Rather than simply reprinting the menu every time, Virant took each dish as an educational moment. 'We did the tartiflette,' he added about the iconic baked potato casserole, which they made with Alsatian wine, bacon and creme fraiche. 'That was a higher-cost item than the aligot, so I knew the prices would change.' The pithivier aux légumes de saison, a puff pastry pie with vegetables of the season, also changes. And the current variation is breathtaking. Luxurious ribbons of marinated butternut squash, crisp fried parsnips and green pea shoots curl over buttery golden pastry, filled with velvety squash puree, bejeweled with toasted pumpkin seeds and white wine-braised shallots. It's so stunning, and complex yet comforting. 'We wanted to have a vegetable entree that could again work with the seasons,' Virant said. 'And we've had a handful of variations, ratatouille, and the first one was spring peas with cauliflower and French curry.' Theirs is not the traditional pithivier, which is like a pot pie that can be savory or sweet. 'But it is sort of,' added the chef. 'I think being in the Midwest, you can do pot pie with so many different things, and it's great.' That includes their next interpretation of the pithivier already in the works, with black truffles, chestnuts and charred cabbage. The quiche de saison has not changed yet, available only at brunch, served on weekends since last June, and Fridays since January. When I asked about the brunch bestsellers, Virant said people love the savory buckwheat crepe and the classic American breakfast, as well as a duck confit poutine. But the quiche is a big one — literally. A colossal, quivering wedge somehow holds so much spinach, Gruyère cheese and mushrooms cooked in a garlic confit oil. That quiche is worth whatever the price of eggs will be. A pâté maison, a platter really, with hearty slabs of perfect house-made country pâté, studded with pistachios and drizzled with a bracing black currant gastrique, comes with a generous quenelle of chicken rillettes, grilled sourdough bread and coveted house pickles. Virant wrote the book on pickles, ' The Preservation Kitchen: The Craft of Making and Cooking With Pickles, Preserves, and Aigre-doux,' with award-winning author Kate Leahy. The vegetables of the season, also market priced, are radiant curry roasted sunchokes with an almond aillade, the nutty garlic condiment that you will want to eat by the spoonful. A nougat glacé dessert, which Virant said is inspired by a recipe from the Le Bec-Fin French restaurant in Philadelphia, is exquisitely reimagined by pastry chef Canicosa. It presents a frozen honey parfait topped with candied cherry and orange, embedded with crushed hazelnuts and pistachios, and finished with an ethereal honeycomb tuile. Bar manager Patrick Swanson suggested a Pomme de Vie spritz when I visited at brunch, a beautifully balanced cocktail mixed with a pommeau de Normandie, an apple aperitif. At dinner, when I asked for a low or no-alcohol drink, he recommended his Tigre en Papier, probably the best spirit-free cocktail I've ever had, so lovely and layered, made with aromatic herbal nonalcoholic Lucano amaro liqueur. Back at brunch, the crêpes Suzette were so light and infused with orange and brandy, but I do wish they had been flambeed tableside. The viennoiserie (kouign-amann, pain au chocolat and almond croissant) seemed so promising with flaky puffs, but had lost their elemental crispness. At dinner, the chocolate soufflé, finished with a tableside pour of creme anglaise, was a touch too soft and runny. Demi baguettes are baked in-house and served all day two ways, both with salted butter, and either cute cornichons and Dijon mustard, or house-made jam. They were priced at a surprising $9 each. I will emphatically reiterate that good food costs money, and great bread and butter cannot be free. But the crumb was dense and close. The dough recipe was originally a boule from Vie, Virant said, which was served sliced. It's ambitious to bake any bread in-house at a restaurant, no matter the fiction of 'The Bear.' Even Michelin three-starred restaurants in Paris have dedicated bread bakers. And the demi baguettes at Petite Vie are popular with regulars. But the house style was unusual for the two I had, and missing an elusive crackling crusty chewiness that's a fundamental foundation of French food. Canicosa makes an impeccable financier, however, and it's only available as a free side with coffee. The tiny cake-like cookie tells a love story between beurre noisette and blondies. It rivals Éric Kayser's famous financier, and took me back to his first and only Maison Kayser in the fifth arrondissement. The petits fours at Petite Vie, a seasonal selection of three French pastries offer Canicosa's artful study in butter, with three pairs of teeny crumbly sable cookies, airy madeleine cakes and caramelized canelé pastries. They're served on some of the prettiest plateware with delicate floral toile, chosen by designer Jody Tate, said Virant, and his wife, Jennifer Virant, a physician. 'They are the dream team on the interior,' he added. The chef bought the building directly across from the charming village Metra station, near the historic town water tower. 'It was a breakfast lunch joint,' he said. A bar in front, near windows that fully open when weather permits, leads to a chef's counter. Banquette tables are lit with tall taper candles in the main dining room, and the quieter back room where an antique table from Provence has found a new home on handsome tile floors. The Virants' personal collections hang on exposed brick walls throughout for an organic immersive feel. And they're open seven days a week, increasingly a rarity even in the city. The restaurant has superb service and such a sense of place, a neighborhood French restaurant by way of Western Springs. Petite Vie Brasserie 909 Burlington Ave., Western Springs 708-260-7017 Open: Open daily, dinner from 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday to 9:30 p.m., Sunday to 8 p.m.; brunch Friday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Prices: $15 (aligot), $23 (pithivier), $38 (beef bourguignon), $16 (nougat), $18 (quiche), $14 (Tigre en Papier non-alcoholic drink), $6 (drip coffee with financier cookie) Noise: OK (65 to 70 dB) Tribune rating: Excellent, 3 of 4 stars Ratings key: Four stars, outstanding; three stars, excellent; two stars, very good; one star, good; no stars, unsatisfactory. Meals are paid for by the Tribune.
