April’s Chef of the Month, Chef Jenn Louis was born in Pomona, California. According to the City of Pomona, it was named in honor of the Roman goddess of fruit. Pomona was situated along a trade route used by Native Americans in the early 1800’s. It was known as an “urban garden”, and quickly became an economic leader in citrus. In the 1870’s, the introduction of the railroad spurred agriculture in the region. Vineyards, olive groves and citrus orchards flourished in the 1880’s, helping Pomona to maintain its economic lead in the valley.
Today, Pomona is the fifth-largest city in Los Angeles County, and has a population of over 163,000.
.
.
Location: Pomona is about 27 miles east of Los Angeles, 25 miles north of Santa Ana and 37 miles west of San Bernardino.
Climate: Mediterranean with sunshine year-round.
Celebs and Athletes Born in Pomona:
Jessica Alba – actress and owner of Honest.com
Tom Waits – singer-songwriter, composer and actor
Nate Dogg – rapper and G-funk singer
Donnie Hill – professional baseball player
“Sugar” Shane Mosley – boxer
Bob Seagren – pole vaulter
Trip Advisor’s Top 10 Most Recommended Restaurants in the Area:
Tom’s Famous Family Restaurant
California Cuisine:
Sandwiches, Burgers and Fast Food – Southern California’s reliance on cars for transportation throughout California’s vast cities and valleys has widely contributed to the popularity of the drive-thru restaurant.
Latin Flavors – Mexican and Spanish cuisine is very influential in Southern California, due to its colonial Spanish roots and Mexican territorial history.
Seafood and Noodles – As one of the U.S. states nearest to Asia and Oceania, California tends to adopt foods from those national styles. The American sushi craze, along with Asian Fusion restaurants began in California. Ever wonder why the California Roll is the basic roll at any sushi establishment?
California -Style Pizza – Focusing on non-traditional pizza ingredients, such as fresh produce and barbecued meats, this style of pizza was first popularized by Wolfgang Puck in his Spago restaurants. Later on, restaurants such as California Pizza Kitchen brought this style to the rest of the nation.
Barbecue – Barbecue has been a part of California cuisine since the 1840’s, when the locals watched the Mexican cooks make beef in pit barbecues.
Other Facts about Pomona:
- In the 1988 film “Die Hard“, John McClane (Bruce Willis) tells his wife, that he will be staying with his former captain, who has moved to “Ramona”. She laughs at him, saying it’s pronounced “Pomona”.
- In 2005, the Lindsey Lohan film, Herbie: Fully Loaded filmed a car race on Pomona’s White Avenue.
- The 1979 Steven Spielberg film 1941 is partly set in Pomona.
For more information about our Chef of the Month, like us on Facebook and come back regularly for updates!
Chef Vibes 
Leave a Reply