ON THE TOWN:

While the folks at Morton’s restaurant are committed to catering to the discerning taste buds of their carnivorous clientele who are not in the least bit fazed by a three-figure tab, the eatery is also committed to making sure that food is being served to those who will most likely never cross their threshold.

The West Olive Avenue steakhouse last week staged a cocktail reception to assist in beefing up the coffers of its charity partner, Feeding America and the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank.

Guests were welcomed by Kevin Flannery, who has managed the Burbank steakhouse at the Pinnacle for the past year; Regan Moen, who serves as the restaurant’s sales and marketing manager; and hostess Brittany Jacobson.

Those attending were then invited to peruse a silent auction that included a gourmet dinner at Morton’s with accompanying wines personally selected by Flannery and a DVD signed by actress Courtney Cox and her husband, David Arquette, who is the chairman of the Entertainment Council for Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization.

The guest of honor was Morton’s Vice Chairman Klaus Fritsch, who along with Arnie Morton founded the legendary steakhouse in 1978. The co-author of “Morton’s Steak Bible” and the recently released “Morton’s The Cookbook,” Fritsch mingled with guests sharing stories and signing copies of his latest book that includes more than 100 recipes and a few tasty tidbits on some of the luminaries that have dined at Morton’s over the past three decades including Frank Sinatra, Queen Latifah, Michael Jordan, Liza Minnelli and Teri Hatcher.

Born into a restaurateur’s family in Germany, Fritsch studied and apprenticed at the prestigious Restaurant Kaiser Keller in Frankfurt, Germany. He then went on to work at several resorts and restaurants in Switzerland before moving to Chicago in 1967 where he worked as the food and beverage director for Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Clubs. While working for Playboy, Fritsch met Arnie Morton, the son of a Chicago restaurateur who was serving as Hefner’s right-hand man in the establishment of the Playboy Clubs.

In the 1970s, Fritsch and Morton left Playboy to go into business for themselves. The duo worked together to establish the upscale steakhouse empire until Morton became ill and died in 2005. Today, overseeing the business growth and menu development of the 78 worldwide Morton’s restaurants, Fritsch maintains the trademark consistency of the beefy eateries that have “steaked” their claim as the largest company-owned and -operated fine-dining restaurant in the world.

Among those in attendance at last week’s reception was Flori Schutzer, who serves as the development director of the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, who told the assemblage that for every dollar they receive they are able to provide four meals for those who are hungry throughout Los Angeles County.

“Your presence here this evening will help us continue our mission of reaching over 700,000 people annually through nearly 550 charitable agencies,” Schutzer said.

Others who enjoyed the reception included Shannon Fong, Bryan Yue, Cristina Spratt, Barb Green, Jeff Sekido, Jason Forst, Elizabeth Trujillo, Valerie Bota, Mary Daley, Lauren Wygle, Maryam Zarkesh, Karen Young, Susan Pasasrow, Kara Connor, Charisse Older, Julia Rabago, Ken Michaelman, Wendy Wheaton, Paul Cantillon, Danit Zivan, Dennis and Kendra Johnson, and Ellie and Gina Cano.

?DAVID LAURELL can be contacted at dlaurell@aol.com or (818) 563-1007.