The name alone made Restaurant Buzz curious enough to try out this cheeky new pizza joint. As Purgatory Pizza’s saying goes, “Between heaven and hell there’s one heck of a pizza.”

Well, between the Industrial District and Boyle Heights is where you’ll find this relative newcomer, which shares the kitchen with Cakewalk Bakery and has taken over that shop’s dine-in storefront (the bakery now does catering only).

Purgatory opened in March, then closed almost right away for a lengthy revamp that brought in new management. Delivery started up again last month and has been making the rounds in a few of the residential buildings and watering holes Downtown – patrons at Bar 107 are known to order up a few pies.

The chef hails from Nicky D’s wood-fired pizza in Silver Lake, though here the simple menu sticks to half a dozen specialty pizzas and make-your-own versions with 17 toppings. There are no pasta dishes or calzones in sight, and …

Annual Street Festival Features Food, Performances and Free Tours

by Anna Scott

Be warned: This Sunday, you might see Martians on Grand Avenue.

That’s not a reason to run for the hills. The Martians, along with singers, dancers, food purveyors and more, are part of the fourth annual Grand Avenue Festival.

From 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Sept. 30, Grand Avenue between Temple and Fifth streets will offer performances, workshops, tours, art, food and the Martians, or, rather, a display about the surface of Mars, which will be inside the Natural History Museum’s simulated research lab. The festival is expected to draw at least 25,000 people.

“If it’s a good day,” said Leticia Rhi Buckley, director of marketing and communications for the Los Angeles Music Center, one of the festival’s main sponsors, “it may even be more.”

Launched in 2004, the Grand Avenue Festival grew out of the Creation Festival, a smaller event held the year before to celebrate …

Envision a 40-foot runway, model-like servers and a “French diner” serving fois gras and duck confit. Oh yeah, and did we mention it’ll be open 24 hours?

The people who brought you the stylish Royale restaurant on the western edge of Downtown Los Angeles are underway on another venture. The aptly named Mode will open in three weeks at 916 S. Olive St., a sort of crossroads for the bustling Fashion District, the resident-rich South Park and the merchants in the Jewelry District.

“We are translating what we think a French bistro and diner is,” restaurateur Tony Jones told Restaurant Buzz. “I think there is some risk to being open 24 hours, but I go out enough to know that there is a market for it. It’s centrally located to common spots like Seven Grand and the Golden Gopher. The Downtown person is a very independent person that would wake up at 3 a.m. and come in to eat.”

Jones …