Newsletter: The Los Angeles Times’ Food Bowl is here — and there’s something for everyone

Welcome to Food Bowl. The Los Angeles Times this week announced the program lineup for its sprawling, monthlong food festival.

Food Bowl is built to reflect the diversity of Los Angeles. It is a mash-up of tastes, cultures and experiences stretched over the entire month of May.

There is something to appeal to almost any eater who calls this city home: large-scale happenings, collaborations planned by The Times and dozens of events put together by L.A.’s restaurant community itself. You can explore — and book tickets — to all the happenings at lafoodbowl.com.

It all kicks off on April 30 with Mesamérica L.A.: the first incarnation of famed chef Enrique Olvera’s celebrated symposium to be held outside of Mexico. Olvera and Times Food Editor Peter Meehan have created a program that examines the culinary and cultural interconnectedness of Mexico City and Los Angeles.

Events follow each night throughout May — including the L.A. Times Food Bowl Night Market, a five-night outdoor celebration from May 8-12. This event, which is free to enter, will include dozens of food vendors, one-of-a-kind pop-up experiences, chef collaborations, music, art and more.

Some of the incredible chefs participating in this year’s festival, as well as other Food Bowl highlights, are listed below, and you can find more information at lafoodbowl.com. You can also keep an eye out for a program guide to be distributed with the April 14 edition of the Los Angeles Times.

The festival also continues to give back and will once again raise funds to fight food insecurity and hunger as well as promote waste reduction and sustainability through charity partners and participating events. Los Angeles Times Food Bowl charity partners include L.A. Regional Food Bank, Food Forward and Midnight Mission.

Chefs scheduled to participate:

Local chefs including: Carlos Salgado (Taco Maria), Ori Menashe and Genevieve Gergis (Bavel), Niki Nakayama (n/naka), Adam Perry Lang (APL), Michael Cimarusti (Providence), Nicole Rucker (Fiona), Wes Avila (Guerrilla Tacos), Jordan Kahn (Vespertine), Suzanne Goin (A.O.C.), Charles Olalia (Ma’am Sir), Dave Beran (Dialogue), Sang Yoon (Lukshon), Wolfgang Puck (Spago), Jessica Koslow (Sqirl), Nancy Silverton (Mozzaplex), Ludo Lefebvre (Trois Mec), Tim Hollingsworth (Otium), Jeremy Fox (Rustic Canyon) and Kris Yenbamroong (Night + Market) and many more.

And from elsewhere: Enrique Olvera (Pujol, Mexico), Daniela Soto-Innes (Cosme, New York), Norma Listman and Saqib Keval (Masala y Maiz, Mexico), Gaggan Anand (Gaggan, Thailand), Virgilio Martínez (Central, Peru), Koji Kimura (Sushi Kimura, Japan), Angela Dimayuga (The Standard International, U.S.), Rodolfo Guzmán (Boragó, Chile), Musa Dağdeviren (Çiya, Turkey), Andrew McConnell (Cutler & Co., Australia), Dominique Crenn (Atelier Crenn, California), Yu Bo (Yu’s Family Kitchen, China), JP Anglo (Sarsá, Philippines), Tom Cunanan (Bad Saint, Washington, D.C.), Aaron Franklin (Franklin Barbecue, Texas), Pat Martin (Martin’s Bar-B-Que, Tennessee), Billy Durney (Hometown Bar-B-Que, New York), Sam Jones (Sam Jones BBQ, North Carolina) and Charles Michel (Oxford University Research Laboratory, Britain)

Program highlights:

• Mesamérica L.A.: The festival’s opening night event on April 30 is the first incarnation of chef Enrique Olvera’s celebrated symposium to be held outside of Mexico. Olvera and L.A. Times Food Editor Peter Meehan have put together a program to explore the culinary and cultural interconnectedness of Mexico City and Los Angeles.
• Following Mesamérica L.A., the opening night festivities continue with DFiesta at Grand Central Market and La Cita Bar featuring chef collaborations, roving mariachi bands and other Mexico City-inspired merriment.
• L.A. Times Food Bowl Night Market: Over five nights from May 8-12, The Times will host a bustling outdoor celebration of L.A.’s diverse dining scene. Night Market will be free to enter, featuring dozens of food vendors, pop-up experiences, chef collaborations, musical performances and DJs, art installations and these special ticketed events: Opening Night Collaboration Lab (May 8) featuring collaborations from L.A.’s top restaurants and international guests including Bavel, Kismet X Ciya, Shibumi X Spago, Scratch Bar and Kitchen X Ari Taymor, Fiona X Cicatriz, Chengdu Taste, The Bazaar X Otono, and Otium X chef Esdras Ochoa; Taco Tribute (May 9) featuring Sonoratown, Tacos 1986, Chichén Itzá, Broken Spanish, Teddy’s Red Tacos and Guerrilla Tacos; Fried Chicken Party (May 10) featuring Chef Kang’s Food Rehab for Super Foodies, Lucky Bird, the Crack Shack, Night + Market, Hotville Chicken and Phat Birds; L.A.’s Best Burgers (May 11) featuring HiHo Cheeseburger, Banh Oui, Everson Royce Bar, Hank’s, Bowery, Love Hour and Belcampo Meat Co.; Dumplings, Noodles & Rice (May 11) featuring Iki Ramen, Lukshon, Porridge & Puffs, Baroo, Hui Tou Xiang, Chongqing Special Noodles, Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant and Little Sister; All-Star BBQ (May 12) with Adam Perry Lang and the L.A. Times Food team and featuring pitmasters Aaron Franklin, Pat Martin, Billy Durney and Sam Jones and local restaurants Bludso’s, East LA Barbecue, Horn Barbecue, Kra Z Kai’s and Slab / Trudy’s Underground BBQ.
• Effervescence: Join us May 3-5 for America’s most comprehensive epicurean event centered on Champagne and sparkling wines. From legendary tête de cuvée Champagnes and California’s finest fizz to bubbles produced around the world, Effervescence brings them all to you in one epic Los Angeles weekend.
• Vespertine Symbios: A collaborative tasting menu on May 5 will feature dishes by chefs Jordan Kahn (Vespertine), Dominique Crenn (Atelier Crenn), Virgilio Martínez (Central) and Niki Nakayama (n/naka).
• The Future of Food in Extreme Environments: A panel discussion on May 7 where scientists and chefs will explore how to grow food in space and how to establish a food culture in a new environment.
• Filipino Garage Party: Angela Dimayuga, the creative director of food and culture at Standard International, will bring together chefs including Russell Victorioso (Café Birdie), Chad Valencia (Lasa), Tom Cunanan (Bad Saint) and JP Anglo (Sarsa) to create a perfect plate of Filipino food on May 18.
• A Tutta Pizza: Enjoy all-you-can-eat slices and styles from New York to Chicago, and Roman to Neapolitan on May 19. There will also be panels and Q&As, cooking demos and culinary workshops.
• L.A. Chef Conference: This all-day event on May 20 will feature speakers, panelists and cooking demos from the restaurant industry, for the restaurant industry.
• Outstanding in the Field: A series of long-table feasts in spectacular locations including the L.A. River and Weiser Family Farms.
• Pasta Masters: On May 23, Los Angeles chefs and pasta makers from Italy will showcase imported, authentic Italian ingredients during hands-on culinary demonstrations.
• Gush Party at Mmhmmm: A late-night Gush Party for femme-identifying individuals, people of color and the queer community. Originated in New York, this edition of Gush Party will celebrate intersectionality and the culinary community in Los Angeles on May 31.

Our 101 Restaurants We Love list for 2018 is out. The list incorporates restaurants and trucks from across Los Angeles and Orange County, in alphabetical order (no rankings this time). Plus there’s a bonus list of 10 classic restaurants.

Check us out on Instagram at @latimesfood.

And don’t forget the thousands of recipes in our California Cookbook recipe database.

Feedback? We’d love to hear from you. Email us at food@latimes.com.