On Sunday, August 26, the Los Angeles Epicurean Festival will mark its first appearance at St. Vibiana in Downtown. The expanded expo will gather (don’t say artisan, selves, don’t say artisan) various producers of fine products including specialty cheeses, meats, coffee, spices, cooking oils, products, tools, eating advocacy groups, and more than 500 wines in a showcase of the twee, gourmet, and handmade. Think barrel-aged balsamics, ghost pepper salt, organic sake, Santa Monica Seafood, C.H.E.F.S., vodka from California potatoes, game meats, custom rotisseries, and cashew nut butter, and you’re more or less skimming the surface.
In addition to cocktail crafting and cooking demos, live and DJ’d music, and oenologist-lead tastings, judges including Michel Richard, Josie LeBalch, and Bradley Ogden will be on a panel to suss out winners in a cooking challenge that finds teams made of one sous-chef, sommelier, pastry chef, and mixologist competing on a collaborated meal. See the full list of participating vendors here and if interested, tickets for each of the three-hour sessions are priced at $100 each right here.
