The Los Angeles food festival landscape demonstrates considerable shakeup from year to year, so every new incarnation offers format changes and surprises. This year, the Los Angeles Times went solo (following a former partnership with Food & Wine magazine) for its Labor Day festival, the Taste, which took to the Studios at Paramount in Hollywood and comprised five food and drink events over three hot days in town.
Rather than hosting a sprawl of events all over the city like last year, this year the Times set up five events at Paramount meant to underscore Southern California's culinary scene. Each offered unlimited tastings from notable local restaurants and chefs, as well as cooking and mixology demonstrations, wine seminars, and panel discussions.
A portion of ticket sales benefited Collins College of Hospitality Management at Cal Poly Pomona and the Los Angeles Times Family Fund’s Summer Camp Campaign.
Here's a look inside the holiday weekend's events.
Flavors of L.A.
At Sunday's Flavors of L.A. event, hosts Jonathan Gold—the Times' buzzy new restaurant critic—and KCRW’s Good Food host Evan Kleiman presented a discussion of the L.A. and Orange County food scene with chef Sang Yoon and OC Weekly editor Gustavo Arellano.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Field to Fork
The Taste opened with Field to Fork, an event hosted by Times food editor Russ Parsons and chef Ray Garcia of Fig.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Field to Fork
Sponsor Icelandic Glacial offered chilled bottles at the event entrance and stocked branded coolers around the back lot—a popular offering on the hot day.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Cocktail Confidential
Hosted by Times food and nightlife writer Jessica Gelt and mixologist Julian Cox of Rivera and Playa, the Cocktail Confidential event focused on L.A.'s craft cocktail scene. Mixology demos came from Southern Wine & Spirits' Tricia Alley and Karlsson's Vodka champion Alex Day.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Cocktail Confidential
Contestants included Drago Centro's Jaymee Mandeville, the Vagrancy Project's Nathan Oliver, Paul Sanguinetti of Ray’s and Stark Bar, Brian Summers from Parish, Marcos Tello from Feed, and Roger Room's Damian Windsor. Sponsor Svedka set up a branded dome at the entry.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Cocktail Confidential
The bartenders were put to the test with an on-the-spot pairing to a dish from Kris Yenbamroong of Night + Market. Tello won with a creation that included watermelon, fennel, and cinnamon.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Cocktail Confidential
Sponsor Cadillac displayed the new 2013 Cadillac ATS luxury sport sedan throughout the event and gave out branded food and wine accessories like a set of custom wine tools.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Cocktail Confidential
The Taste of México Association teamed up with Hoy Los Angeles, Los Angeles Times Media Group's Spanish-language publication, to create a pop-up "Hoy Café" to preview the association's own upcoming event. Mariachis kept the music going all weekend.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Field to Fork
In keeping with the farm-to-table theme, chefs Ray Garcia and David LeFevre (of M.B. Post) did side-by-side cooking demos, creating original dishes on the spot. Cooks County pastry chef Roxana Jullapat and Wilshire executive chef Nyesha Arrington led cooking demos, making use of the season’s produce, and Parsons discussed the state of the farmer's markets with a panel of experts. Afternoon wine seminars offered tips and tasting flights from sommeliers.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Flavors of L.A.
Cooking demos came from the likes of chefs Susan Feniger and Ludo Lefebvre. Mexican cuisine was represented in a panel discussion with Guelaguetza's Bricia Lopez, Jaime Martin del Campo and Ramiro Arvizu from La Casita Mexicana, La Monarca Bakery's Ricardo Cervantes, and Vicente del Rio from Frida Mexican Cuisine. Tomohiro Matsukuma offered "Sake 101," and wine, beer, and spirits purveyors poured beverages that complemented the dishes.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Dinner and Drinks
Dinner and Drinks featured Times deputy food editor Betty Hallock and the Beer Chicks, Christina Perozzi and Hallie Beaune, as hosts. Participating restaurants included Rustic Canyon, Il Covo, and Jitlada, along with local breweries such as Lady Face Ale and Golden Road Brewing.
Photo: Tiffany Rose Photography
Labor Day Picnic Presented by Target
The Labor Day Picnic Presented by Target wrapped up the weekend. Times test kitchen director Noelle Carter and chef Zoe Nathan (of Huckleberry and Milo & Olive) hosted. The event included cooking demos by Nathan, Osteria Mozza's Nancy Silverton, and Judy Han of Mendocino Farms, as well as a Q&A with French Laundry chef Thomas Keller. Times columnist Steve Lopez hosted a cook-off between firehouse chefs, and Carter moderated a roundtable with this year's Battle of the Burgers champs. The picnic welcomed all ages, with tastings and activities just for kids. The event's Target-branded picnic area had an Archer Farms gelato stand, picnic tables, porch swing, and giveaways like Target red cookie cutters.
Photo: Courtesy of L.A. Times
