Figaro, Figaro, FigaroAmerican Idol Season Eight

"One time, in Drama class..."

"...in my bright red dress, I twirled on stage and almost ate it while singing 'I Feel Pretty'."

And just like that, I can recall all the details of my horrendous rendition of West Side Story. The heat of my embarrassment comes back in a flash, and I'm awkwardly 14 again.

So whenever I watch a performance on stage or even my current obsession with American Idol, my body tenses up in the fear of something reminiscent of my younger days - tripping over my shoes, falling down a flight of stairs, the heart-stopping realization that I've forgotten my lines, or worst of all, hitting all the wrong notes at all the wrong places.

What I love, though, is the effortless singing from the likes of Celine, Whitney, Mariah, and the two Davids - David Cook and David Archuleta in this Season Seven of Idol. I'm eagerly awaiting tonight's results show!

These days, you'll rarely catch me singing out loud, unless coerced by the karaoke gods and some libations. But you will definitely find me having lunch at a cute little Parisian inspired cafe on Vermont called Figaro.

MM introduced me to their daily specials of hot pressed paninis. I've ordered the chicken with sun-dried tomatoes on a couple of occasions, and absolutely love this sandwich with a side green salad.

On sunnier weekdays, it's nice to leisurely lunch at one of their small sidewalk tables for two and take in the afternoons. You'll often hear French being spoken at nearby tables or from the lady behind the counter inside.

But beware of the Vermont Avenue traffic during rush hours, parking on side streets if you don't have spare change for the meters, and my singing "Figaro, Figaro, Figaro" for Idol Season Eight.

Figaro Cafe
street: 1802 N Vermont Avenue | Los Angeles, CA | 90027
t: 1 323 662 1587
web: www.figarobistrot.com