LA Food & Wine 2014: Live on Grand (Los Angeles, CA)

Live on Grand
Los Angeles Food & Wine Festival 2014
Grand Avenue between 1st and 2nd Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Dining date: 8/23/14

This past weekend marked the fourth annual LA Food & Wine Festival; this year, it spanned almost 30 individual events over four days. Some of the standbys I’ve attended each year have been the large tasting format events; in my opinion, they’re the best way to access the most chefs and bites with one ticket. This year, I attended the daytime grand tastings as well as this evening event, Live on Grand. What separates this event from the others is a live performance at the end of the night (this year’s performer was Common) and a gorgeous backdrop of downtown LA. Grand Avenue, next to the Walt Disney Concert Hall, is shut down specifically for this event.

Dozens of chefs/restaurants lined the street serving up both savory and sweet bites. Of course, it’s all-you-can-eat/drink for the price of the ticket ($250 GA).

Petty Cash Taqueria hamachi ceviche, tomatillo, avocado

Nobu Malibu shima aji with rhubarb salsa

Mozza/Chi Spacca house cured affettati misti

Jose’s Stone Crab housemade pastrami with manchego cheese, mustard on roasted rye

The Polo Lounge corn tortellini, jidori crackling, chanterelle mushrooms

Mastro’s lamb lollipop, pistachio pesto, harissa, frisee-arugula salad, heirloom tomato

Rose. Rabbit. Lie. caviar tacos with yukon gold potato shell and hamachi

Eagle Rock Public House poke on toasted flatbread with coconut and furikake

Ray’s and Stark Bar lobster agnolotti, smoked corn, mascarpone, dashi, trout roe

Plan Check crab cocktail roll-up

Superba Food & Bread tiramisu in white

Redbird/Vibiana/BLD norwegian salmon, black garlic polenta, greens, yuzu kosho

Tim Hollingsworth bbq burnt ends with sweet potato topping

Bourbon Steak citrus ash cured kanpachi , jalapeno, compressed melon, cucumber

Sotto suckling pig salad, pickled cherries, sweet onions, pistachios

Compartes Chocolatier peanut butter and salted caramel chocolates

Bottega/Coqueta ‘bikini’ brioche a la plancha with cana de cabra, roast eggplant and preserved stonefruit

Lorena Garcia crispy anise arepas topped with queso fresco, black asada and spicy guasacaca sauce

Addison tomato soup

Ditmas cow terrine & poultry epidermis

Sierra Mar at Post Ranch Inn lone mountain wagyu ribeye hibachi grilled with pickled myoga and red shiso

Of course, there were plenty of wines to pair with the food, as well as handcrafted cocktails and brewed options.

There were a lot of great bites at Live on Grand. It’s a close call but my favorite was the caviar tacos from Rose. Rabbit. Lie. The potato taco shell had great crunch to go along with the caviar and hamachi combination that really went perfectly together. I lost count after eating eight of these. A duo of stuffed pasta dishes were also highlights – Ray’s & Stark Bar’s lobster agnolotti had great flavor with a chewy pasta, while the Polo Lounge’s corn tortellini was delicious especially with an addicting jidori crackling topping. Mastro’s served up thick slices of juicy rack of lamb while Neal Fraser’s Norwegian salmon was perfectly cooked served on a bed of black garlic polenta. On the sweet side, Superba Food & Bread’s tiramisu was a highlight while Compartes’ chocolates were a treat. Drinks-wise, Goose Island IPA is always a favorite but I really enjoyed the Heitz offerings including the Martha’s Vineyard cabernet.

Lines were a bit longer this year than I remembered and it did get pretty congested around some of the most popular booths, which speaks to the growing popularity of these events. However, I’m curious what the event planners will do to mitigate this in the future. Overall, this was another fun event and I’ll be interested to see what this event has in store for next year and which chefs join in on the action!

Note: This was a hosted event.