Black truffles at Patina, Karneval at Wirsthaus, a Julia Child talk

Patina’s black truffle dinners are back: Downtown L.A.’s Patina will be offering three-, five- and seven-course tasting menus during the restaurant’s annual black truffle dinner series today through Friday. This year’s menu will feature butternut squash velouté with black truffle brioche, a filet of John Dory with black truffle venoise, salsify and bitter greens; Scottish wood pigeon and black truffle roulé; veal served with wild mushrooms; and for dessert, vanilla pain perdu with roasted pear and black truffle crème anglaise. The three-, five- and seven-course truffle tasting menus are priced at $85, $125 and $175 per person, respectively. Optional wine pairings will also be available. Call for reservations. 141 S. Grand Ave., L.A., (213) 972-3331, www.patinarestaurant.com.

Wirtshaus’ German Karneval: Wirtshaus will host its second annual Karneval, paying homage to the traditional German celebration with street parades and costume balls -- like our Mardi Gras. The restaurant and biergarten will feature live German music, food and drink specials, and costumes throughout Karneval on Friday and Saturday. 345 N. La Brea Ave., L.A., (323) 931-9291, www.wirtshausla.com.

Journeys with Julia: On Saturday, Noël Riley Fitch, the only biographer permitted by Julia Child to write her biography, “Appetite for Life: The Biography of Julia Child,” and culinary historian Bert Sonnenfeld will lead a discussion on Julia Child. The Culinary Historians of Southern California present “Journeys with Julia,” which will highlight both Fitch and Sonnenfeld’s engagements with Julia Child over meals and travels. The free event will be held at the Mark Taper Auditorium at the Downtown Central Library at 10:30 a.m. 630 W. 5th St., L.A., (323) 663-5407, www.chscsite.org.

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