Los Angeles chefs and restaurateurs are gearing up for two weeks of mouthwatering meals and incredible deals during the first-ever Fall dineLA Restaurant Week, which begins on Sunday, October 4 and takes place through Friday, October 16.
To celebrate the launch of Fall dineLA 2009, Wolfgang Puck Bar & Grill hosted a kick-off press conference at L.A. Live last Friday. The event gathered a Who’s Who of the city’s acclaimed chefs, restaurateurs and VIPs, who joined speakers Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Mark Liberman (president and CEO of LA INC.), Tom Mullen (VP of Market Development / Los Angeles, American Express), Wolfgang Puck (executive chef/founder of Wolfgang Puck Worldwide), Josie Le Balch (executive chef/owner of Josie Restaurant), and Jimmy Shaw (chef/owner Loteria Grill).
The First Bite | Photo: Lena Watanabe
It was a great event with plenty of schmoozing, shop talk, and photo ops. Among the attendees were Neal Fraser (Grace), José Andrés (the Bazaar), Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken (Border Grill), and many more. Soon after the traditional “First Bite” and a group photo with the mayor and all the chefs in attendance, the wine started flowing and seemingly endless trays of Mr. Puck’s tasty apps were passed around. Highlights included the mini crab cakes, the corn soup and various desserts.
Photo: dineLA
I chatted with Rivera chef John Sedlar, who told me Julian Cox was at that very moment working feverishly on Rivera’s fall cocktail menu, scheduled to make its debut soon. I was also glad to have a chance to thank Jimmy Shaw for my friend’s wonderful birthday dinner our group enjoyed a few nights earlier at Loteria.
There are some excellent cocktail programs among the 260 participating restaurants, including Akasha, the Bazaar, Campanile, Craft, Drago Centro, Essex Public House, Fig, the Foundry, Ortega 120, the Penthouse, RH, and Rivera, to name just a few. Play your reservations right and you can enjoy some top notch libations with the money you’ll save, thanks to dineLA!
dineLA Restaurant Week
October 4-9 through October 11-16, 2009
Visit the Restaurant Week website for a full list of participating restaurants, dineLA prix fixe menus, and to make reservations.
For up to date info, follow dineLA on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.