LA Weekly's annual event featuring some of the best restaurants in LA (as featured in the 99 Essentials list) is coming to DTLA in a few weeks, and I'm offering readers a chance to win a pair of tickets right here!
See details on the event below, and enter for a chance to win at the bottom of this post!
What: LA
Weekly's
signature food and wine extravaganza curated by award-winning food
critic Besha Rodell: taste signature bites from select restaurants from
the 99 Essentials list while enjoying wine, cocktails and beer and
checking out artisanal vendors.
When: Saturday, February 20th, from 6pm-10pm (VIP Hour 5pm – 6pm)
Where: California Market Center, 110 E 9th St., Los Angeles, CA 90079
How much:
General Admission: $70 (now until February 19th at 5pm) Door: $75*
VIP (Difference from GA: 1 hour early entry + VIP gift bag): $105 (now until February 19th at 5pm) Door: $110*
*If available.
Anticipated drool factor: 100%,
perfect for those who want to sample before committing to a full dinner
at some of the hottest / best and some of my favorite restaurants in
the city including Providence (which you won't see at very many other food events like this!), Broken Spanish, Cassia, SqirlLA, ink, Le Comptoir, animal, Baroo,
Chengdu Taste, Republique, and Redbird!
*****ENTER TO WIN TWO TICKETS (GA) TO THE EVENT! Just follow instructions in the widget below.*********
(Remember to click on the green button after you complete each item: this is the only way for your entry to be recorded!)
Giveaway runs through February 13th at midnight PST. Good luck!
Note:
winner and guest will need to present a current driver's license or
passport verifying their age (must be 21+ by 12/7) in order to enter the
event. Winner will be randomly selected, and contacted via the email address provided at point of entry, as
soon as the giveaway ends, and must reply to confirm receipt and correct
contact info by February 13th at 11:59pm PST. If the winner does not
reply by this deadline, another entrant will be chosen at random and
tickets will be given to the alternate winner.
LA Weeklyis presenting their second annual Sips & Sweets event, this time at The REEF in Downtown LA.
If you missed last year's inaugural event, my public service announcement to you would be to prep like you were about to run a sugar marathon, while hydrating with endless holiday spirits.
From the moment you enter the historic and appropriate named the Majestic / the Reserve, it's a wonderland of desserts and cocktails as far as meets the eye, from some of the best pastry chefs and mixologists in the city. From adorable cream puff snowmen by Heirloom LA (buttercream stuffed profiteroles, almond financier, meringue & 'ice glaze')...
...to treats with a festive sheen (hazelnut and coffee torte by Patina) and peppermint ice cream pie by Roxana Jullapat of Cook's County, to classics from masters like sticky toffee pudding by Shannon Swindle of Craft LA and tiramisu from Osteria Mozza...
...to Patina's helpers with dramatic pours of liquid nitrogen into peppermint meringue bites (so much fun to eat: breath smoke out your nose and mouth!) and macaron trees...
...to spreads of inventive savory-sweet pastries from Proof Bakery (like Walnut Sweet Potato Mezze Lunas with cinnamon sugar and Zimsternes almond cinnamon cookies) and Sugarbird Sweets and Teas (every flavor scones from pumpkin almond to green tea), it's an AYCE sensory feast that will satiate the most shameless glutton.
Part of the fun last year was exploring the different spaces - my favorite was the Reserve's entrance to the lounge, converted from a former bank vault.
Inside the vault is where a lot of the best craft cocktails are to be found, including concoctions from Raymond 1886 (Southern Sling) and Corazon y Miel, Cana Rum Bar and Pour Vous. The best part of the event is that the mixologists were personally serving up the drinks for you, and you get to meet and chat with them about their creations (as much as the patience of the line behind you will allow).
My favorite sip of the show though, had to be this one by The Corner Door, called French Exchange Student with cognac, earl grey tea, lavendar tincture, orgeat and lemon juice plus a giant orchid on it (because every drink tastes better with a tropical flower on top).
Pours and portions of edibles are all more than generous, so by the time I dragged myself out of the event I was well into a sugar coma. If I would have one suggestion it would be to break it up a bit with a few savories, but then again...the event wouldn't really be Sips and SWEETS.
This year, the event is curated by Roxana Jullapat and LA Weekly's food critic Besha Rodell. I'm excited to check out sweets from Shannon Swindle, the brilliant chef behind the fantastic pastries at Craft LA, Mariah Swan of bld Restaurant and ICDC, Luis Ayala of Broken Spanish, and from those whose restaurants I have not been to yet, like Superba Food + Bread, Hatchet Hall and Ledlow. Some of my favorite ice cream purveyors will also be there including Choctal and McConnell’s.
Also looking forward to craft cocktails by Mikki Kristola of The Varnish, Mike Lay of Broken Spanish and B.S. Taqueria, Chris Whelan of Sassafras Saloon, Ryan Wainwright of Terrine, Ben Scott of Alexander’s Steakhouse, Christiaan Rollich of the Lucques Group, Jesus Gomez of 1886 Bar, and sampling from places I have not been to yet like EP + LP and Sonny's Hideaway.
Plus, today only through Saturday at 10pm, general admission tickets are on FLASH SALE for HALF OFF! See deal alert below for details.
Wishing you a sweet and buzzy start to your holiday!
[Deal Alert: Flash Sale 50% off General Admission tix only from 7am today Friday Dec 4th through Saturday Dec 5th 10pm! You can thank #NationalCookieDay. Buy tickets here: http://ticketf.ly/1MLJ5M9]
What: LA
Weekly's
signature food and wine extravaganza curated by award-winning food
critic Besha Rodell: taste signature bites from select restaurants from
the 99 Essentials list while enjoying wine, cocktails and beer and
checking out artisanal vendors.
When: Saturday, February 20th, from 6pm-10pm (VIP Hour 5pm – 6pm)
Where: California Market Center, 110 E 9th St., Los Angeles, CA 90079
How much:
General Admission:
Presale: $60 (November 17th @10am – November 22nd @10pm)
Super Advance: $60 (November 23rd @10am – January 3rd @11:59pm)
Advance: $65 (January 4th @12am – January 31st @ 11:59pm)
Pricing: $70 (February 1st @12am – February 19th at 5pm)
Door: $75*
VIP
Difference from GA: 1 hour early entry + VIP gift bag
Presale: $95 (November 17th @10am – November 22nd @10pm)
Super Advance: $95 (November 23rd @10am – January 3rd @11:59pm)
Advance: $100 (January 4th @12am – January 31st @ 11:59pm)
Pricing:$105 (February 1st @12am – February 19th at 5pm)
Door: $110*
*If available. Buy tickets here: ticketfly.com(use my passcode: THE99BITE to access presale tix: get them before they open it up to the general public!)
Anticipated drool factor: 100%,
perfect for those who want to sample before committing to a full dinner
at some of the hottest / best and some of my favorite restaurants in
the city including Providence (which you won't see at very many other food events like this!), Broken Spanish, Cassia, SqirlLA, ink, Le Comptoir, animal, Baroo,
Chengdu Taste, Republique, and Redbird!
So, as you may have noticed, I definitely eat a lot faster than I write :P
And, the older you get, the further ahead you plan: so, I'm going to see this very belated post as an 'early' heads-up for those who are considering the next Pebble Beach Food & Wine (March 2016!) and want to see what came to pass in 2015.
This was what our Day 3 looked like:
10:00-11:15am, The Inn at Spanish Bay, Pebble Beach Resort: Chef Curtis Stone's cooking demo was one of the festival's events I most looked forward to. Maude's Seasonal Stories with Chef Curtis Stone put the charismatic chef front and center for an awesome kickoff for the day.
As with his monthly changing menus, Chef Curtis is apparently not one to do the expected, even for his cooking demo. Beyond entertaining the packed room with his simple breakfast / sweets demo, he energized us with a very interactive audience participation approach, first with two members dueling for title of Bloody Mary champ.
Then, he asked three pairs of couples to join him on the stage, who were at various phases of relationship milestones: one married for decades, one months into dating, and one pair of complete strangers. Mixing in secret ingredients like mint and curry into chocolate, he asked one person from each couple to be blindfolded, and TASTE and try to identify the mystery chocolate by licking the chocolate painted on the other's lips!!!! (imagine the awkwardness and entertainment value of the couple who had JUST met each other for the first time on stage that day!).
A fantastically fun time, if not the traditional educational / behind the scenes insights forum that we had been expecting.
We did get to taste sweet treats from chef Curtis though, including these caramel chocolate 'kisses'...
...and sample this luscious ricotta filled crepe with strawberries and maple syrup. Simple, but that's where skill comes in, as you can't hide behind any distracting ingredients or food styling.
12:00pm, The Lodge at Inn at Spanish Bay, Pebble Beach Resort: then it was off to the first Lexus Grand Tasting.
This being a luxury destination event, in one of the highest income zip codes in the country, there was of course lots of A-list creations to be had.
Coming from Chef Curtis Stone's cooking demo, of course I had to head to Maude's table: their Liver Parfait with Bay Leaf Pain Perdu - with its luscious dollop of foie mousse, balanced by fluffy foie powder, light crunch of onion crumble, and airy, fragrant block of french toast, was instantly addictive and one of the best of show.
Foie was also present in abundance at other tables, like The Bench at The Lodge at Pebble Beach, where Chef Aaron Burns served up foie gras mousse and red wine sauce parfaits with foie gras brownies.
Meatlovers also got their dose of elevated bites from Pork Chicharrones with pickled fresno chili powder and artichoke dip (also from The Bench)...
...to Trippa Fritto: Beef Heart Tartare "Bolognese" with white balsamic, sundried tomatoes, dijon algrodulce and bottarga from Chef Brad Briske of La Balena in Carmel. This was one of my favorite bites at the event: emphasis on bites...plural...as in, many shameless repeat visits to that table.
Lightness to offset the heartiness is Trotter Torchon by Chef Eric Korsh of North End Grill in New York.
There was also plenty of seafood on hand, of course. I loved the Creole Shrimp Dip with Pickled Shrimp Crackers from Chef Jean-Paul Bourgeois of Blue Smoke New York.
But the award for BEST DRAMA(tic) presentation goes to Chef John Cox of Sierra Mar, Big Sur, with an ENTIRE sturgeon on ice as if some local fisherman had just slung it over from the side of the boat. Its belly sliced open, it was STUFFED with caviar that lucky grand tasting attendees could step and and spoon right from the fish. Know where your food comes from, right? Brilliant.
To also showcase his skills, Chef Cox also presented red abalone blini topped with the Black River Caviar.
AND, the genius marketers behind Sierra Mar also ran a live Instagram contest at the show, where those who tagged pictures of the caviar with the correct hashtag got to win a tin of the Black River Caviar...and I was over the moon to be one of those lucky winners!!!!! (Please the Palate and I had a great time polishing off the caviar back at the hotel after the event.)
For a sweet finish, we had our pick of desserts, but one of the most memorable for me was the Stout Chocolate Trifle by Holsteins Shake and Buns, Las Vegas.
Ghiradelli also brought their A-game with a chocolate + wine tasting station, where they paired a different wine with each of their dark chocolates, in a flight of 3 - it was fun to see how the flavors in the wine brought out different elements in the chocolate and vice versa!
My favorite of the trio was Terra d'Oro Zinfandel Port + Intense Dark midnight reverie 86% cacao for the layers of complex flavor interactions.
3:30-4:45pm, The Inn at Spanish Bay:Pure Pork Awesomeness with Chef Kevin Gillespie was my afternoon event post tasting. Chef Kevin was pure entertainment as he demonstrated how to make Pork Stroganoff with Finger Noodles.
Pebble Beach Food and Wine Pebble Beach, CA
Saturday, April 11, 2015
Pebble Beach Resort
If you missed this year's Pebble Beach Food and Wine: mark your calendar for next year's events March 31-April 3, 2016!
And check out the Los Angeles edition thrown by the same event organizers: LA Food and Wine Festival happening next week August 27-29, 2015!
____________________________________________________________________
*Disclaimer: Tickets to these events were provided courtesy of PBFW.
LA Weekly is presenting a brunch focused event at Santa Anita Park on October 18th, where you can sample food from some of the city's most popular restaurants including Sonny's Hideaway, Superba Food + Bread and BierBeisl, and sip cocktails / beer while cheering on your favorite racehorse at the live track!
****And I'm giving readers the chance to win two general admission tickets to the event! Scroll to bottom for sweepstakes details****
What: AYCE AYCD breakfast and brunch event (replacing Pancake Breakfast)
Where: Santa Anita Park
When: Sunday October 18th, 2015 11am - 2pm
How much: $45 General Admission presale ($55 at door), $65 VIP ($75 at door)
Drool factor: A fun day out at the track while enjoying good food and drink - can't think of a better way to spend a Sunday in October in sunny SoCal. The races will be happening during the event, and your Brunch At the Races ticket includes access to Santa Anita Park for the day
[Deal alert: get a general admission ticket for $29 (35% off) at Gilt City through Monday 10/5! Stack the deal by going through eBates first to get an extra 3% rebate (free to join)]
_____________________________________________________________
Enter for your chance to win two tickets below, by following the directions in the Rafflecopter widget.
Note: Sweepstakes starts September 26th at midnight and ends October 5th at midnight PST (so, night of October 4th). Winner will be notified via email (so please provide your *correct* email address) by October 5th 11:00pm PST, and is required to respond to claim prize by October 7th at 9pm PST. *Disclaimer: two general admission tickets are provided courtesy of LA Weekly for prizing. In addition, two general admission tickets were supplied for One More Bite Blog to attend the event to experience it.
Ever since I first sipped his truly mind-blowing, one-of-a-kind creations at a demo at Artisanal LA, and through his days at Library Bar, I've been a huge fan of Matt Biancaniello's cocktails - which he approaches more like a chef would his food, than a mixologist would his drinks: crafting with a ridiculous amount of boundless creativity and skill to perfect flavors, textures and presentation.
You know you've spotted a bar Matt's working at when the counter is so laden with herbs, flowers veggies and fruits that you can hardly see any counter surface. There are ingredients (whether foraged or from the farmers market) you may have never seen or heard of; infusions upon infusions, combinations of flavors you would have never thought would go together. Like Pimm's Cup with lovage, thai basil, chamomile and ginger juice. Or his latest sea urchin drink with strawberries and majoram with tequila.
And ever since he left the Library Bar, if you see him post a schedule, don't think - just drive, as fast as you can.
I almost don't want to share sometimes because the bar, the last two weeks, has already been packed with enthusiasts - and I'll be sad to make it harder on myself to access his work. But, he's just too good not to share. Rooting for him to get his own permanent space soon!!!
What: Matt Biancaniello is doing pop-ups Wednesdays this summer at a bar/restaurant in North Hollywood!!! Check out his latest creative concoctions from Lobster Ice Cream Cynar Affogatos to Padron Pepper Novo Fogo Cachaca with Plums & Parsley. He uses ingredients from farmers markets so the drinks actually taste like they are good for you ;)
When: Wednesdays through August, 6pm-11pm
Where: The Fat Dog, 11050 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood, CA 91601 (back bar beyond patio)
How much: No admission charge - just pay for what you order! Drinks range between $14-$18 each? Very well worth it - you won't be able to get these kinds of cocktails elsewhere.
Anticipated drool factor: 200%!!! Don't miss your chance to experience Matt's one of a kind cocktails. Until he gets his own place (fingers crossed for him that it happens soon?), this is the best way to track Matt and his amazing drinks down!
He'll also be at a one-day only pop-up at Sweet Rose Creamery (mid-city location) on July 19th, 4-7pm, to offer in collaboration with Chef Shiho, a kombu and white balsamic Negroni ice cream!
The holidays are almost here, and LA Weekly is throwing a party early for fans of food, drink and gourmet goods (keep reading for details, and a chance to win tickets to the event)!
What: LA Weekly's holiday event Sips and Sweets presented by Keurig
When: December 7th, 2pm-5pm
Where: The Majestic Downtown + The Reserve 650 South Spring St., Los Angeles, CA90014
How much: $35 General Admission advance price: includes entry into the event, unlimited sweets samples, 8
sips from master mixologists (cocktails, beer and/or wine) and
access to holiday vendor village. (Ticket price goes up to $40 on November 24th. Door price is $45 (if available)
Anticipated drool-factor: 100% at a totally affordable price, you get to experience bites from the stellar lineup including some of my favorite restaurants in the city from Republique, Craft LA, Pizzeria Mozza to Huckleberry, mixologists including Michael Lay and Pablo Moix, and gourmet artisans including Middlebar (love their bourbon poached cherries, snatch these up if you see them, they're great over ice cream)! Also looking forward to checking out offerings from the newly opened Gjusta and from places I haven't gotten around to trying yet like Cook's County! All in a historic Beaux Arts building with lots of character - built in the 1920s, used to be Bank of America's HQ, now housing a nightclub with a bank vault as its entrance.
And the even better news? You could win a pair of tickets to the event, courtesy of LA Weekly!
Enter for your chance to win: follow instructions in the Rafflecopter widget below. (Remember to click on the green button after you complete each item: this is the only way for your entry to be recorded!)
Giveaway runs through November 28 at midnight PST. Good luck!
Note: winner and guest will need to present a current driver's license or passport verifying their age (must be 21+ by 12/7) in order to enter the event. Winner will be randomly selected, and contacted via email as soon as the giveaway ends, and must reply to confirm receipt and correct contact info by November 30th at 11am PST. If the winner does not reply by this deadline, another entrant will be chosen at random and tickets will be given to the alternate winner.
