Taste of the Nation, June 6
For dineLA.com
April 7: Top Chef Masters Premiere at Street
If you’re a fan of Top Chef, come on down to Street tonight to watch the lady of the house herself, Susan Feniger, compete on the season premiere. $25 gets you lots of big flavored bites and cocktails. Fifty percent of proceeds goes to the Scleroderma Research Foundation. Angeleno Magazine is presenting. Reservations required. 323.203.0500 or www.eatatstreet.com.
April 8: Martini Pairing Dinner at Lola’s
Seems like everyone does wine pairing dinners. (Not that we have a problem with them.) But a martini pairing dinner. Now that’s different. Tonight Lola’s does just that. Each of the four courses is paired with a martini to match. Poached salmon with avocado and marinated shallots in a lemon dressing for example goes with a tomato water martini. Might we suggest a designated driver for this one. And if you can’t find one of those, a cab. $55 a person. 323.654.5652 or www.lolasla.com
April 8: Thai New Year Menu at RockSugar Pan Asian Kitchen
RockSugar Pan Asian Kitchen is getting into the holiday spirit a few days early. Tonight they are offering a special Songkran or Thai new year menu. The four course menu features plenty of choices. Will it be short ribs in green curry or Bangkok seared opah? Or perhaps Thai basil cashew chicken. $38 per person. Feeling flush? Add Champagne pairings for an additional $60. 310.552.9988 or www.rocksugarpanasiankitchen.com.
April 10: Cooking Class at Jar
Spring has sprung. And today’s cooking class at Jar celebrates the season. Spring radish salad, English pea puree and leg of lamb with roasted asparagus are among the dishes you’ll be adding to your repertoire. Lunch, with wine, is included. $125 per person. Reservations required. 323.655.6566 or www.thejar.com.
April 11: Sunday Roast at Ammo
Ammo is starting a new tradition: Sunday roasts, offered from 5 to 9 in the evening. $32 gets diners three courses: a salad, a roast cooked in the restaurant’s wood burning oven and dessert. The menu changes every week. Check the website for details. www.ammocafe.com.
April 12: Family Dinner at Campanile
Monday family dinners at Campanile have become a weekly tradition, a most convivial way to pass the evening with loved ones. Tonight’s menu celebrates the arrival of spring: sweet pea soup with walnut croutons followed by veal paillard with grilled white asparagus. Coffee-caramel crème brulee finishes things off. $45 per person. www.campanilerestaurant.com.
April 15: Half Price Beverages at BLT Steak
If your feeling about tax day is somewhere between resignation and misery, BLT Steak has just the thing to lift your mood: half priced alcohol. The discount applies to wine by the glass and bottle, beer and the yummy cocktails the bartenders mix, like the Sugar Daddy: bourbon, triple sec and lemon juice with a sugar rim. 310.360.1950 or www.bltrestaurants.com.
April 15: No Tax At Townhouse
Townhouse Kitchen & Bar, the sharp new hangout in the Sherman Oaks Galleria, thinks you’ve paid your fair share of taxes for the day. So they’re not charging you any. Sweet. What to do with your ‘winnings’? Invest in one of their yummy cocktails. Or be a sport and tip your server extra nicely. Today only. 818.453.9900.
April 17: Charcuterie Lesson at Le Saint Amour
Le Saint Amour’s Bruno Herve-Commereuc is one among a very small group of Los Angeles chefs who make their own charcuterie. This morning, he will walk a handful of lucky folks through several recipes. The three hour class starts at 10:30. $75 per person. Reservations required. 310.842.8155 or www.lesaintamour.com.
April 22: Benefit Dinner at The Raymond in Pasadena
For those feeling a little sheepish about splurging for a great meal in this rough economy, how about dining for a worthy cause. Tonight is Club 21’s annual bash at the lovely Raymond in Pasadena. Great food and drink under the stars as well as live and silent auctions. It all benefits Club 21’s programs for individuals with Down Syndrome. www.clubtwentyone.org
April 22: Earth Day Dinner at Fuego
And you thought Earth Day was just incense and tofu. Get into the spirit of the holiday gourmet style, at Fuego in Long Beach, with a four course dinner starring sustainable seafood. The event, which includes a screening of the documentary, “End of the Line,” is inspired by the Aquarium of the Pacific’s Seafood for the Future program. $49 per person. 562.481.3910 or www.fuegolongbeach.com.
April 24: Create Your Own Doughnut Class at Grace
Glazed is passé. Sprinkled is juvenile. Okay you jaded donut eater. Let’s see what you can come up with in this morning’s “Create Your Own Doughnut” class at Grace Restaurant with pastry chef Mariah Swan. $75 per person. 323.934.4400.
April 24: Grilled Cheese Invitational
If you’re a fan of ooey, gooey grilled cheese sandwiched between two slices of crisp, buttery bread—and seriously, we question anyone who doesn’t feel this way!—have we got the event for you: The Grilled Cheese Invitational. It all goes down in Downtown Los Angeles this afternoon. To find out more about the event, including how to go mano a mano as a competitor, go to www.grilledcheeseinvitational.com
April 27: Chateau Cos d'Estournel Dinner at Grace RestaurantBraised beef cheeks with kabocha squash ravioli followed by grilled Sonoma lamb with garlic flan, Brussels sprouts and violet mustard. That should be sufficient tease for the foodies. For the winos, lots of fabulous plonk from Chateau Cos d’Estournel and the guy responsible the stuff: Jean-Guillaume Prats. Get it all at this evening’s wine dinner at Grace, co-hosted by Wally’s. $135 per person. www.wallywine.com.
April 27: Crab at the Hungry Cat
If you’ve been hankering for some fresh, sweet crab, tonight is your lucky night. It is the first crab night of the 2010 season at The Hungry Cat in Hollywood. There will be fried chicken too (for the non crabby set). And in case that isn’t enticement enough, on Tuesday nights, wine bottles are half price. Visit the website for more details. www.thehungrycat.com.
April 28: Clautiere Vineyards Dinner at Sam’s by the Beach
Paso Robles’ Clautiere Vineyards is the featured winery at tonight’s wine tasting dinner at Sam’s by the Beach. What to expect? Wild duck lasagna with roasted tomato coulis and a 2005 Clautiere Vineyards Grenache among other happy combinations. 310.230.9100.
May 1: Bargain Margaritas at Border Grill
In anticipation of Cinco de Mayo, Border Grill has been highlighting a specialty margarita each week. The promotion continues for just a few more days, through May 4. And while Spanish teachers everywhere might cringe at the secret password (“Cinco de Drinko”), we’ll say just about anything to get a $12 margarita for a mere $5. Just don’t forget to whisper those magic words to your server, who we assure you won’t laugh. Well maybe a little. 310.451.1655. www.bordergrill.com
May 9: Mother’s Day Brunch at The London West Hollywood
Show mom you love her with free flowing Champagne and Bloody Marys along with sushi, iced shrimp, an omelet station, fresh croissants… The list goes on at the extravagant brunch taking place today at the London West Hollywood’s al fresco Hampton Court. $85 per person. 310.358.7788. www.thelondonwesthollywood.com
May 9: Mother’s Day Brunch at Fleming’s
Treat mom to a three course brunch at Fleming’s—there are multiple locations in Los Angeles—and Fleming’s will gift mom a $25 dining card for a future evening out. (Maybe mom will even show you a little love in return and make you her dinner date.) $29.95 per person. www.flemingssteakhouse.com.
May 15: The Vendy Awards
The folks behind the Vendy Awards, which have been honoring the best New York street vendors the past five years, are taking on Los Angeles. Expect lots of good eating. Black tie attire most definitely not required. It all goes down late afternoon in MacArthur Park. www.streetvendor.org/vendys/la/
May 24: The Palm Dinner Deal
It’s the last week to take advantage of The Palm’s $39.95 dinner deal. Choose a salad or lobster bisque followed by a New York Strip au poivre, pan roasted wild Alaskan halibut filet, or get this: a filet mignon with jumbo lump crab meat, hollandaise sauce, grilled asparagus and three cheese potatoes. Who’s counting calories anyway? Bikini season is still a few weeks off. Get it now through the end of the month at the West Hollywood or Downtown location. www.thepalm.com.
May 31: City of Angels Wine Fest
The City of Angels Wine Fest brings together over 30 California wineries at a very cool venue: the Music Center Plaza Downtown. Daytime drinking in the sunshine. Yippee. Patina Restaurant Group eateries Café Pinot, Zucca Ristorante and others will keep attendees well fed. Proceeds go to the Rotary Club of Los Angeles and their good work. $65 per person. www.cityofangelswinefest.com
June 5-6: LA Wine Fest
This year’s LA Wine Fest returns to Raleigh Studios and the drinking will be better than ever. Wineries from Uruguay to Israel will be representing, along with a slew of local producers including Rosenthal, Cielo Estate and Milan Vineyards. Tickets start at $65 a person, less if you go in with a friend and buy a two pack. And there’s a good cause too. Make that two of ‘em: the Hollywood Wilshire YMCA and the Children’s Tumor Foundation. Like a little education with your tipple? Seminars on subjects such as sake and wine and cheese pairing are offered. Separate ticket required. www.lawinefest.com.
June 6: Taste of the NationWhen you buy a ticket to Share Our Strength’s annual event, Taste of the Nation, not only will you get to sample savories and sweets from over 40 local restaurants, you’ll be helping to fight childhood hunger. And fortunately calories don’t count when you’re eating for a good cause. So go ahead. Have seconds. The event kicks off at 1 p.m. at Media Park in Culver City. $100 per person. www.strength.org.
June 13: 30th Annual Club Culinaire Picnic Des Chefs
If your idea of a picnic is deviled eggs and potato salad, it’s time to raise the bar. Club Culinaire’s annual picnic des chefs, now in its thirtieth year, puts some of the city’s best chefs behind the stoves. French is not required. But there will be lots of it spoken today. The daytime, family friendly event takes place at Elysian Park near Dodger Stadium. www.clubculinaire.us
June 27: Opening of The Fruit of LACMA and The Gardens of LACMA
Let’s just put it this way: if you like art and you like food (fruit in particular), you will dig The Fruit of LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) exhibition opening today to the public. Fallen Fruit, the collective that has mapped public fruit trees in several Los Angeles neighborhoods, curated the show. Artist created gardens to peruse too. www.lacma.org.
July 9: East L.A. Meets Napa
If you’ve always wondered how a carnitas taco might pair with a great Napa Merlot, the annual East L.A. Meets Napa event, a fundraiser for Altamed Health Services, is not to be missed. Dozens of Los Angeles’ best and most authentic Latino food purveyors, along with dozens of Latino owned or operated Napa wineries, will be on hand at Union Station for this lively fiesta. 323.725.8751 or www.eastlameetsnapa.com.
July 17: Extravaganza for the Senses
The Saban Free Clinic’s Extravaganza for the Senses, this year taking place at Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood, is one of the year’s best parties. Dozens of restaurants and wineries participate. Come hungry. www.thesabanfreeclinic.org
