While in L.A. last weekend visiting my daughter, I ate lunch at a popular casual place in Venice Beach called Lemonade. Before sitting down, diners order from a vast array of salads, sandwiches and hot foods at the front counter—sort of like Selland’s on steroids. It had one thing I’ve never seen anywhere else: a stew bar. There were 10 different stews (which the restaurant calls pot roasts) bubbling away on portable induction cook tops. They ranged from Basque chicken with artichokes and olives to red miso short rib and lamb tagine. My daughter and I sampled at least half of them before making our picks, which came with rice pilaf or salad. It’s a great concept, one that I’d love to see catch on here in Sacramento.