The 6th annual festival, presented by FOOD & WINE
and Lexus, features four days of events held at iconic venues in LA (from just outside Disney Concert Hall and The Broad Museum downtown, to the Fairmont Miramar in Santa Monica) and
highlighting some of the finest restaurants from around the country.
If
you're into celebrity chefs, there will be over 100 at the event, from
Hugh Acheson to Jet Tila to Nyesha Arrington; Food Network stars Tyler
Florence, Emeril Lagasse and Robert Irvine are also on the roster, and
there are always opportunities at these events to get up close and
personal. Enjoy cooking & mixology demos, sit down dinners,
grand tastings and even a concert by De La Soul this year.
For highlights the event from last year, see below!
When: Thursday August 25- Sunday August 28, 2016
Where: Various venues in Downtown LA, Beverly Hills (see event site for details)
How much: $115-$175general admission, $175 VIP (see event site for details) [Deal alert: 15% discount for Lexus Preferred Drivers via this link]
One of my favorite events from last year was the Lexus Live on Grand Saturday night. An outdoor event held on Grand Avenue in presence of the breathtaking Disney Concert Hall, even more impressive lit up under the DTLA night sky, and and The Broad Museum (which hadn't at the time opened to the public yet - but drew even more wonderment from the crowd with its mysterious design that to me looked like a giant eye in the center of an almost benign reptilian inspired exterior), it was a night to remember.
At LAFW events, it's always fun to discover samplings from new restaurants you hadn't been to yet. My first stop was at Hot's Kitchen's station, which featured Seared Foie Gras with Pig Ear Crisp and Cara Cara Orange by Chef Sean Chaney.
One of my other favorite bites of the night also came from a restaurant I'd never been to before, this time up in San Francisco - Mourad, a Moroccan fine dining restaurant with a California twist.
Chef Mourad Lahlou himself was there plating up tartlettes with smoked salmon, dill, cucumber and lebni. It was so delicious I went back shamelessly for four. (And on a subsequent trip to SF, based on this unforgettable bite I actually stopped in to dine at Mourad - post on this to come.)
The Strand House's Chef Greg Hozinsky offered an incredible Spicy Rock Shrimp & Chorizo Broth dish.
Then there were the familiar and beloved stations like Hudson Valley Foie Gras, where Chef Michael Ginor served up a decadent Torchon of Hudson Valley Foie Gras with Caramelized White Chocolate.
We chowed down on this one to the sounds of The Roots perform live on the Lexus stage!
As us Food-Obsessed finished our rounds collecting luxe bites and sips, we started to check out the fun stations like Joe's, where chefs were rolling with the spirit of the outdoor street market style set up by pressing cubanos with actual clothes irons!
Hendricks Gin had an awesome steampunk-esque booth with a 'curious' contraption that enabled hand-cranked mixing of a gin cocktail.
At other stations, they also served craft cocktail shots on a wooden plank, so that you had to line up with other friends you'd just made while queuing up for drinks, and down the shots at the same time. Definitely great insta-bonding station!
Be sure to explore every station and duck into all areas of the venue - if we hadn't stopped by the Lexus Lounge last year we would have missed out on the fantastic Summer Peach Tres Leches with Tokaji Gel (Tokaji being my recently discovered favorite, amazingly balanced sweet wine from Hungary known as the "elixir of the tsars").
(And at the Friday night event, it was in the Lexus Lounge that Chef David Lefevre from my favorite restaurants in Manhattan Beach - Fishing With Dynamite, MB Post and Arthur J - was there to shuck oysters to order and hand fed them to guests!!!! Talk about a bucketlist moment! And no I am NOT sharing that photo of my #cryface)
All in all, LAFW is always an unforgettable time from the decadent food, free flowing drinks, face time with amazing chefs, to fantastic entertainment.
Looking forward to the start of this year's festivities tomorrow!
It was only April, but Pebble Beach Food and Wine felt to me like some superluxe summer 'glamp' for food and wine enthusiasts. Between the gorgeous California sunshine, and our soon to be daily festival ritual of hopping on the shuttle that whisks us away from the hotel to the lush (very well manicured) nature at the Pebble Beach Resort - and the meeting and making of new friends along the way (often, eminent sommeliers or members of a celebrity chef's team happy to discuss their passion and share insights on the latest in their world), it was a 'summer' gathering that we never wanted to end.
There were several sessions happening throughout the day over the 'campgrounds'. Here are highlights from my activities for the day:
10:00am, The Inn at Spanish Bay, Pebble Beach Resort: For our bright and early morning session, I was excited to get to attend a cooking demo Tips for a Beginner from a Star Chef featuring chef Hugh Acheson and Food and Wine magazine editor Dana Cowin.
Chef Acheson - who you know from Top Chef and some amazing restaurants in Atlanta including my fav, Empire State South - is originally from Canada, but after living in southern US for the last 25 years, he's developed a unique perspective on southern food.
A fun presentation to kick off the festival, and we got to taste from the demo: pimento cheese with bacon marmalade over brioche toast!
Chef Acheson's tips for pimento cheese is to use sharp cheese but that is yellow for color: think Vermont old cheddar or Sweet Grass Dairy cheddar from South Georgia, and mix with mayo, mustard, cayenne, pimento and yellow bell peppers.
Another of Chef Acheson's passions is pickling: he loves "hyper acidic food that wakes you up in the beginning, then get more luscious later". At PBFW he demonstrated pickling fennel, stalks and all, and throwing them in a Ball jar with poached and chilled shrimp, to serve over a salad of butter lettuce topped with anchovy and pan crisped artichoke.
12:00pm, The Lodge at Inn at Spanish Bay, Pebble Beach Resort: Thanks to Please the Palate and her friends at Wines of Provence, we were able to get into the lunch session: Spring Break: Cooking Without Rules.
My favorite was probably the one created by Chef David Lefevre of MB Post (LA pride!!): shrimp and pork dumplings, in the most delicate crystal wrap, with ponzu, scallions and chili oil.
As a total wine newbie, it was exciting to see our table setting for the actual lunch. Yep, this is what a wine-driven lunch at PBFW looks like. Glass, anyone?
[PBFW overall was such an education for me, introducing so many amazing wines through the abundance of tastings throughout the event. (I do worry for my monthly budget though, now that I've had a taste for good wine...)]
Pre-meal, the chefs came out and spoke about each of their dishes - but Iron Chef Morimoto, ever the entertainer, and citing that English is challenging for him, stated he would rather sing for us - and proceeded to belt out an awesome tune (check out a little snippet in the video below!):
With that kick off, came the chefs' creations along with the perfect wine pairings: Chef Morimoto: Seared Scallop with Thai curry sauce, sushi rice, roasted banana, bell pepper relish, fiddlehead ferns (Chateau Sainte-Marguerite, "Symphonie" 2014)
Chef Pawlcyn: Guinea Hen foie gras & pistachio terrine, sour cherry chutney, frisee & chervil salad, pickled spring onions (Maison Saint Aix-Rose, AIX 2014)
Chef Roy: Yuzu Japanese Style Cheesecake, coconut crumble, tropical mousse (Maison Gabriel Meffre Rose, 2014)
My favorite of the mains was Chef Mormimoto's, because the combination of ingredients was unexpected - and really fit the rule-defying theme the best, and of course was actually mind-blowingly delicious (who knew bananas could make such a great pairing with scallops???)!
6:30pm, Monterey Beach House:Meatopia: Meat, Drink, Fire, Music was the highly anticipated evening event on the beach, where the late (great, RIP) award-winning writer, food historian and Editor of Esquire, Josh Ozersky, who brought his hit event celebrating carnivorous appetites, and top chefs paired with primal meat + open fire in a waterfront venue, to the West Coast.
The PBFW edition takes place outside of an upscale club, right on the sand.
We arrived to incredible scents of sizzling proteins and fat before we ever spotted the meatlovers' wet dream of whole animals (pig, lamb, goat, to creatures of the sea - you name it, it's there) roasting on open spits.
Chef Jonathan Roberts of Pig Wizard outdid himself with pulled pork from a whole roasted pig marinated with Jack Daniels, PLUS the most addictive 'Porkcorn': taking the idea of caramel popcorn, but replacing the popcorn with pork rinds + stepping up the caramel by making it with bacon demi-glace, bacon bits and Firestone Walker Velvet Merlin!!!! "Whaaat???" would be the correct response. We actually went back several times to beg and please for additional portions of the snack intended to be an accoutrement, but for us ended up being the star.
Beyond our four-legged friends, there was a fantastic selection of seafood, including live Monterey Spot Prawn fresh from the grill, head-on the way it was supposed to be eaten (the better for that treasure trove of umami to be sucked from its head... #foodpornmoment) by Chef Zakary Pelaccio of Fish & Game.
SPQR's Chef Matthew Accarrino brought the most creative dish of the night, which was definitely one of our favorites: Spit Roasted Passmore Ranch Sturgeon with salsa verde and *cracklin made with the fish skin!!! and topped with caviar!!!*
A close up shot because it was amazing, and we died from happiness after eating (three plates of, shamelessly) it.
As night fell, the strung lights, fire pits and free flowing cocktails, beer and wine around the beach created a lively, fun ambience that felt a bit like the best neighborhood block party for adults. And, like all the other events at PBFW, part of the fun was meeting people in line or around the fire pit!
To see my previous recap of Opening Night reception, click here. Day 3 here. And look out for my recap of Day 4 soon!
Pebble Beach Food and Wine Pebble Beach, CA
Friday, April 10, 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 LA edition thrown by the same event organizers: Los Angeles Food & Wine Festival happening next week August 27-29, 2015.
____________________________________________________________________
*Disclaimer: Tickets to these events were provided courtesy of PBFW.
If you looked up the definition of "destination food fest," it would probably simply read: Pebble Beach Food & Wine.
Held at the ultra exclusive Pebble Beach Resort within the raw-power-of-nature-flush-against-manicured-lush-luxury landscape of 18-mile drive, the event beckons food and wine enthusiasts from all over the country, and the majority of those who make the trek bunkers down for the four day marathon.
We were excited to arrive in time for a gorgeous sunset over the lawn / cliffs, and for the Opening Reception!
First things first: wine is the best form of welcome after travelling, and we made a beeline for the roses being showcased. With all the choices of wine being featured, one of my favorites as a wine noob was actually Miraval (yes, that winery, owned by Brangelina): ripe with gorgeous color, and unexpectedly lovely (celebrity produced can be sophisticated yet accessible too :)).
With booths set up over three giant rooms of the resort hotel, it was our foodie / wino playground to explore.
For more on wine, check out Please the Palate's blog, but as for food...Roy's set a high bar in terms of tastings from the start: their Monterey Bay Abalone Raviolo, with abalone mousse and lomi lomi watermelon was divine. The raviolo skin had a nice char and was crisp yet yieldy at the same time - reminding me of gyoza skin.
Chef Anita Lo travelled from NYC to personally serve up, at the Annisa station, beautiful Razor Clam Ceviche, pistachio, heart of palm and spring garlic.
The Plumed Horse wins for one of the best plating station displays, with what looks like handcarved wood bowls of puffed tendon, chanterelles and preserved black truffles to serve as toppings for their Italian Barley Risotto.
Hudson Valley made me an offer I can never resist: foie gras terrine. Yes, please.
Next stall over, was a creative dessert mixing savory, tart and sweet: Roasted Strawberries, with ricotta mousse and candied celery from The Absinthe Group. I may have had 2 or 6 of these.
Puur Chocolate had a very popular station, with a half dozen chocolate truffles for sampling, plus some dramatic confectionary wizardry happening on the side, with liquid nitrogen clouds streaming where a chef was creating frozen chocolate pebbles infused with tea. The texture was a bit like astronaut ice cream - fun!
All in all, a fantastic, delicious, fun first night teasing of what's to come at what I liked to call Luxe Summer Camp for Foodies.
Check out my recaps of Day 2, Day 3 and Day 4 soon!
Some of the many reasons why I love LA: the diversity, and there's always something fun to do in the city, no matter what you're into. Since two of my favorite things are food and culture, Food-Culture festivals are the greatest pairing ever for me, and there are many fantastic ones each year from Brazil to Japanese American to Thai to Greek and many more.
Coming up soon, is Taste of Italy.
Here's the 411:
What:One day only food focused cultural event presented by the Italian American Museum, featuring 50+ restaurants, wineries, live entertainment and special guests.
When: October 12, 2013 5pm-10pm
Where: 424 N Main Street, Little Italy, Downtown LA CA 90012 (Arcadia x N. Main St.: info on parking here)
How much: $55 General Admission presale Adult; $25 Child; $125 VIP
[Deal alert: Get $5 off with promo code: ITALORG5]
Anticipated drool-factor?: 100% - there's something for everyone from food for foodies from places like Drago Centro, DiStefano Cheese (yes they are the suppliers of that amazing burrata at Stella Barra!!), Cafe Firenze, and Bulgarini Gelato, to cooking demo and book signing by Top Chef Fabio Viviani and non-food celebrities like Richard Grieco. Also, you'd be supporting efforts to educate and promote diversity and culture in LA as the proceeds benefit the Italian American Museum of LA (contributions are tax deductible "as permitted")! A friend of mine who loves and travels to Italy almost yearly highly recommends this event, so I can't wait to check it out!
Feelin' lucky? You can give your shot at winning tickets to the event in their Sing for the Taste contest - just create a song with original lyrics about Taste of Italy or SoCal Italian American history, and shoot a short video of yourself singing it for a chance to win. Grand prize features 4 tickets to the event and $250 in Uber credits plus a basket of goodies.
With Food & Wine and Lexus as presenting sponsors, Los Angeles Food and Wine has become that iconic, magnetic food event known attracting luminaries from the culinary world from around the country, to a four day spectacle for the senses taking place all over the city.
Positioned as 'cuisine meets culture' - going to LAFW for foodies is sort of what I would imagine SXSW is like for music fans - but with chefs as the rock stars, and no stage to separate you.
I was counting down the days to the event, having received a media pass to a few events including the Lexus Grand Tasting which would be attended by THE Grant Achatz, visiting from Chicago!
So of course the first order of business when I arrived to the Sunday tasting was to make a beeline for the Lexus Lounge, where Chef Achatz was stationed for the event! LOVED that he was very low key and graciously available to anyone who wanted to come up and chat or (dork out and) ask to take pictures with him. I was like a 12 year old girl accidentally let backstage at her first concert. Alinea and Next have been on my bucket list to experience...hoping I will be able to break away on an upcoming work trip to Chicago. Especially since chef shared that the theme for Next at that time will be Bocuse D'Or!!!
Though like many others, I had been hoping to sample a bite of Chef Achatz' food, it was totally understandable that quality control and the experiential approach would not work very well in the AYCE, roving masses setup of a food festival. The Alinea/Next team served up a cocktail made with a chunk of pineapple that had been grilled - to add smokiness to the drink, while also bringing out the sweetness of the fruit - and frozen to cool the drink down without diluting it.
Having accomplished my biggest mission for the event, I was then free to move on to maximize on the AYCE AYCD aspects of the event. Delta, as with previously years, handed out free lanyards that have a plastic wine glass gripper at the end - so that you can dangle your beverage from your neck, leaving your hands free to scavenge / double fist awesome bites of food on offer at tables spread throughout the event space. Too awesome for words. Here's a recap of some of the bites I had: Cliff's Edge: crispy pork, watermelon, toasted rice, barrel-aged fish sauce, lime & herbs. Beautiful colors on the plate.
One of the things I love about LAFW grand tastings is the chance to try food from visiting chefs. One visiting one was Hearty Restaurant from Chicago - they put together a gorgeous display of perfect, in-season peaches!
The sample portions were generous and delicious: grilled peach with herb-encrusted goat cheese, marcona almonds salad.
Another visiting chef, Michael Ginor from Hudson Valley Foie Gras & Lola (New York) brought a flavor rich, perfectly toasted duck rillettes and peach chutney grilled sandwich with fried lotus root chips. I was hoping some foie gras would 'accidentally' be included in the sandwich, but no such luck...nonetheless, a delicious offering!
Circa (Manhattan Beach) brought halibut ceviche with tiradito sauce, avocado and jicama.
Cafe Pinot served up poached albacore, forbidden rice with yuzu kosho and black garlic. Really loved the combination!
I'd read a bit about Pedaler's Fork in Calabasas, a hybrid bike shop / restaurant / cafe - and was curious to try their food. They brought a beautifully plated tower made of compressed yellow watermelon, heirloom tomato, burrata and speck. Verdict: tasty.
Pedaler's Fork also offered a dessert of flourless chocolate crunch bars. Also delicious. Which highlights a cool aspect of the LAFW grand tasting events: you get to discover new restaurants to note as 'need to try' - and based on the bites at LAFW I would want to taste more the next time I'm in the area (which, I'm not sure what reason I would have to be in the neighborhood - but should the occasion arise, Pedaler's Fork is now on my To Try list)
Sierra Mar at Post Ranch wins my vote for most inventive & on theme display - hawaiian shave ice in gourmet flavors like strawberry chamomile were served in cones buried in brown sugar 'sand' along with dried starfish and decorative plants.
I really loved the Anise Hyssop flavor! (Was devastated to hear afterwards that they had, at the Saturday tasting, live jellyfish - which I totally missed!)
From Mar'sel (at Terranea Resort): olive oil poached albacore crostini with crushed olives, pickled onion, preserved lemon & avocado.
Holstein's Shakes and Buns (Las Vegas) sent out "Cuban" street tacos with roasted pork shoulder, smoked ham, swiss cheese, mustard aioli and pickle.
AND a brilliant Red Velvet Shake made with red velvet vodka, cream cheese mousse, red velvet cake and mini whoppee pie that was perfect in the stifling late August heat.
Littlefork unexpectedly brought meat versus seafood, perhaps to show range? Maple glazed pork belly, Johnny Cake polenta. As a big fan of polenta, I think I'd go back to Littlefork for more of this one.
Littlefork also served 'corn off the cob' with Montreal Steak butter and parmesan.
But if I had to pick a 'best in show' - it would be Picca / Mo-chica's Wagyu Beef Tartare Crostini with Truffle Shavings, Truffle Pearls, Parmesan Sauce. Visually, texturally and flavor-wise: perfect.
Now I know based on my recap it seems like there was just a lot of food, but there were actually dozens of wine vendors pouring as much as you can handle as well. I'm just not much of a wine drinker - but I do love my sparkling wine / champagne and made sure to stop by for Perrier Jouet.
Cocktails are definitely more my speed, especially creative ones. Steve Livigni and Pablo Moix were at the Old Lightning table personally mixing up amazing cocktails for us.
Between the entertainment of bar masters shaking things up live, and the lovely looking drinks at the table, Old Lightning drew quite a crowd. So it was hard to catch what exactly was in the drink - but I thought I heard four kinds of rum, orgeat and coconut - topped by a tropic-thoughts-inducing orchid. In two words: liquid vacation. Magic.
Can't wait to see what LAFW puts on the table(s) next year!
[Until then, to see more photos from Los Angeles Food and Wine events, visit my Facebook page]
Lexus Grand Tasting 2013
Saturday August 24 & Sunday August 25, 2013 12pm-3pm General Admission, 11am VIP early entry and cooking demo at 10:30am
Stages 1 & 2, LA Center Studios, Downtown LA
General Admission: $150 VIP $195
It's the latter half of summer, which signals the start of a specific season for food and drink enthusiasts in the city: Food Festival Season!
(So excited!)
Today marks the kickoff of the first of the highest profile festivals; check out the 411 and how to score ticket deals for each below!
Have a blast and maybe I'll run into you at one of these events :)
What: Four day, "epicurean extravaganza" that draws some of the top chefs and stars to events from cooking demos, tastings, book signings, seminars to live entertainment and more, all over the city. Now in its third year!
When: August 22-25, 2013
Where: Santa Monica, Beverly Hills and Downtown LA (see website for details)
How much: $50 and up for individual events; $150 for Lexus Grand Tastings GA / $195 for VIP (see website for details)
[Deal alert: Lexus owners get 15% off tickets to the event - see Lexus offer page for details]
Anticipated drool-factor?: 100% with the Food & Wine connection, an All-star lineup of chefs/ stars from and visiting LA will be in abundance, from the Thomas Keller, to Grant Achatz to Scott Conant to Charles Phan & David Myers. Food Network fans can also get their fill of Giada de Laurentis and Curtis Stone in multiple events.
The Lexus Grand Tastings especially are always fun, AYCE and drink extravaganzas, and there are specialty themed events to appeal to your interests whether it's food, wine or cocktails.
What: Three day series of events celebrating food and drink, in that quintessential Hollywood backlot venue at Paramount.
When: August 30-September 1, 2013 (Labor Day weekend!)
Where: Paramount Pictures Studios 5555 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038
How much: $65 for most events if you purchase by August 29 ($85 and up thereafter - see website for details). Opening night event $125.
[Deal alert:
LA Times members save 20% off tickets via this link here.
Everyone else: buy a ticket at $55 from LivingSocial for any single event on Saturday or Sunday (save $10 off early bird price! deal ends 8/23) OR get your tickets by 8/29 to get the early bird rate of $65 for most events ]
Anticipated drool-factor?: 100% great staycation option for Labor Day weekend, and very affordable as food fests go. It's fun to be on the backlot of an iconic working Hollywood studio, and you know Pulitzer prize winning food critic "The J Gold" will have the best curated collection of Flavors of LA in one evening (Sat 8/31 7:30-11:30pm), and you'll have a mind-blowing experience as always with cocktail chef Matt Biancaniello in the event he is co-hosting, Cocktail Confidential (Sun 9/1 7:30-11:30pm)! My recaps of events from past years here, here and here.
