Eighth Annual Los Angeles Food & Wine Unites Chefs

The eighth  annual Los Angeles Food & Wine Festival was held August 22 – 26th and featured chefs, winemakers and sommeliers throughout the city including food festivals along Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles and at Santa Monica's Barker Hanger.

The event, presented by founding partners Food & Wine and Lexus, was expanded to include five days of events. In addition, The Venetian resort hosted a welcoming dinner at Inko Nito in downtown Los Angeles.

Award winning chefs, chef talent personalities and James Beard Award winners were in attendance including Curtis Stone, Tiffani Thiessen, Aarón Sánchez, Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger. The four nights and five days of events included tastings, lunches, seminars, book signings, and cooking demonstrations.

We caught up with a few chefs to see what they were serving:

TV host and judge Chef Michelle Bernstein served up Lechon asado tacos, grapefruit mojo de ajo, chicharron, avocado mousse, shrimp filled squash blossom tacos, panela, jicama, cucumbers and hot sauce, seared octopus taco, spicy romesco, charred scallions, smoked almonds, beef cheek in mole, pickled onions, pomegranates, Mexican street corn, green crema, cancha and banana tres leches.  She shared that she is now working with Mayfield Creamery ice cream products making new desserts including lemon berry ice cream pie and vanilla ice cream in phyllo with honey and pomegranates.

The Too Hot Tamales chefs Mary Sue Millikin and Susan Feniger created a Peruvian poke tostada, Chef John Cox from The Bear and Star in Los Olivos made a Tex-Mex taco with smoked Wagyu brisket and Chef Thomas Ortega from Playa Amor made a New Mexico Hatch Spaghetti and Hatch Chili with a garlic cream and chive sauce.

Some of the pinnacle events included the premiere of a brand new Kick-Off Dinner Series at both Lasa and Big Boi restaurant on Wednesday, August 22; Ultimate Bites of LA, the first downtown marquee event, hosted by Antonia Lofaso and Alvin Cailan; the return of the Power Lunch Series featuring cross-country collaborations at DAMA, Rose Café, Rossoblu and Viviane; the new Heat on the Street downtown event hosted by chefs Robert Irvine, Susan Feniger, Mary Sue Milliken and Aáron Sánchez; the Grand Tasting with chefs Hugh Acheson, Michelle Bernstein and John Tesar at Santa Monica's Barker Hangar; Saturday LIVE on Grand with chef Curtis Stone and Tiffani Thiessen in downtown LA and the final Grand  Tasting on Sunday, August 26 with chefs Curtis Stone, Michelle Bernstein and Alex Seidet.