The Los Angeles Times  lineup for the annual Labor Day week-end  The Taste 2019 Celebrates Southern California’s Culinary Diversity

The fantasy, hilly party area at Paramount Studios sets the scene for LA TIMES The Taste

The Los Angeles Times  lineup for the annual Labor Day week-end  The Taste, again celebrates Southern California’s diverse culinary scene.  Hosted by The Times’ acclaimed Food staff, the famous backlot will transform into the ultimate block party for three individual evening events, August 30 through September 1. Admission includes unlimited tastings from the area’s best restaurants, a variety of wine, beer and seasonal cocktails, plus access to cooking demonstrations and talks by renowned chefs.

The full roster at the 2018 LA TIMES TASTE at Paramount Studios

Friday, Aug. 30, 7:30 to 10:30 p.m.
L.A. Times Food Columnist Lucas Kwan Peterson cook up a special on-stage presentation of one of his favorite projects for the Food section. Paola Da Re and Giorgia Sinatra (Pasta Sisters) lead an Italian cooking demonstration with Chiara Soldati (La Scolca) leading a wine discussion, presented by Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits. The Times’ Wine Club will launch with a demo by expert Mark Oldman.Ira Norof (Southern Glazer’s), Erin Landsberg (American Wine & Spirits) and Troy Chappel (Southern Glazer’s) present a Wine tour through France.

Large, visible boards list  all the stage presentations

Restaurants include: 40 Love, Baldoria Bar + Kitchen, Bibigo Kitchen, Burritos La Palma, Casa Vega, Donut Friend, Fat Dragon, Izakaya Osen, LBK Pizzeria, Love & Salt, Ma’am Sir, Mainland Poke, MANEATINGPLANT, Park’s BBQ, Pop’s Bagels, Prawn Coastal, Rao’s Hollywood, Salazar, SLAB, Supercool Creamery and Wurstküche.

Second generation CASA VEGA owner-proprietor Cristy Vega

Saturday, Aug. 31, 7:30 to 10:30 p.m.
Delicious food and plenty of spice will be the order of the night with Kim Prince (Hotville Chicken) as she showcases her famous Nashville hot chicken with L.A. Times Senior Food Writer Jenn Harris. Chefs Pawan, Nakul and Arjun Mahendro (Badmaash) will demonstrate their mix of contemporary and nostalgic approaches in creating delicious Indian fare, hosted by Times Cooking Editor Genevieve Ko. Get a rice wine 101 with a sake demo by Courtney Kaplan (Ototo). The Bar Stage will feature Ira Norof and Wes Hagen (J. Wilkes Wines) talking wine, enlightenment and contentment.

LA Times Senior Food Writer Jenn Harris with culinary LA legend chief Cecilia de Castro of ACE Academy School

Chef Ricardo Zarate on the culinary Stage in 2018

Restaurants include: Baltaire, Bull & Butterfly, Castaway, Coni’Seafood, Employees Only, Faith & Flower, Granville, Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken, Little Sister, Madre, Mister O’s, Nic’s on Beverly, Ocean Prime, Pedalers Fork, Pikoh, Sosta, The Bellwether, Viviane and a special collaboration between Freedman’s and Genghis Cohen.

Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken prepared on site!

Gus’s Fried Chicken, piece #2!

White meat lovers get an entire piece from Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken prepared on-site

Sunday, Sept. 1, 7:30 to 10:30 p.m.
Teresa Montaño (Otoño) will demonstrate how to cook one of her favorite Spanish-inspired dishes with L.A. Times Food Writer Amy Scattergood. Learn how to make the perfect Tijuana-style taco with Jorge Alvarez-Tostado and Victor Delgado (Tacos 1986). Chris Bianco (Tartine Bianco) will show home cooks how to make a relaxed Italian meal with Times Deputy Food Editor Andrea Chang. Tobin Shea (Redbird) will shake up a seasonal mocktail, and the Bar Stage will feature a discussion about women in wine with Ira Norof, Chiara Soldati and Lora Tagliarina (Coastal Pacific Wine & Spirits).

Chef Tim Hollingsworth with Chef Cecila de Castro on stage in 2018

Restaurants include: Aqui es Texcoco, Bone Kettle, Cal Mare, Chao Krung, Eve, HomeState, Jitlada, Kobee Factory, Lalibela Ethiopian, Le Comptoir, LN2, Mora Italiano, Rappahannock Oyster Bar, Same Same, The Bazaar by José Andrés and Triple Beam Pizza.

Los Angeles Times’ The Taste is produced in association with Best Events. The Event benefits The Collins College of Hospitality Management and L.A. Regional Food Bank. Tickets range from $115 to $190; a discount will be available exclusively to Times subscribers. For the second year in a row, The Taste will travel to Costa Mesa for three events over two days in October (Friday, Oct. 18 and Saturday, Oct. 19), with the programming lineup to be announced in September. Details and tickets please see: latimes.com/TheTaste. Connect on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @TheTasteLA (#TasteLA).