Taste of the Nation: This Sunday in West Hollywood

This Sunday from 1 - 4 pm the annual Taste of the Nation fundraiser moves to The Lot in West Hollywood to raise money for Share our Strength, the charity devoted to ending childhood hunger. 100% of all money raised will go to local Los Angeles food banks, which have seen increased demand during the long recession.

More than 40 restaurants will be participating, including newcomers such as Cliff's Edge, NIGHT + MARKET and Cooks County as well as classics such as Campanile and Joe's. Libations are given even more prominence this year, with many local bars, mixologists and craft brewers participating. The Spare Room at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel will be featuring Plymouth Gin cocktails, Harvard & Stone will be featuring Miracle Mile Bitters and St. George Spirits and for the folks in the VIP tent, Steve Livigni, Pablo Moix and the whole Pour Vous team will be making a bevy of French influenced cocktails. There will be a Craft Beer Tent, which this year is focusing on collaborations between breweries and beer bars. Pairings include the Bruery and Beer Belly as well as Brewery Ommegang and The Golden State.

Tickets for the event are $25 for children 12-18 years old and $110 for adults. VIP tickets are $160. You can purchase tickets here - just click on the large "purchase tickets" link on the Taste of the Nation blog. Organizers have said that few tickets remain and they expect to see out, so I recommend you purchase your admission tickets quickly so you don't miss out on supporting a great cause and getting to try so many great restaurants and bars. Prepaid parking is $25.

Waylynn Lucas of Fonuts at a prior Taste of the Nation

Taste of the Nation: 1041 N. Formosa, West Hollywood | June 10th, 1 - 4 pm | Website

Now Open: Fōnuts from Waylynn Lucas

Fōnuts are here!  That seemed to be the prevailing sentiment this week as fans of pastry chef Waylynn Lucas flocked to her new doughnut emporium and bought everything in sight leaving the shelves bare.  The concept from Lucas and her partner Nancy Truman is doughnuts that are baked not fried.  Lucas, who established a reputation as one of the premier pastry chefs in Los Angeles as the head pastry chef at the 4 starred The Bazaar by Jose Andres, the whole SLS hotel and 4 star Patina Restaurant, is finally her own boss.

Lucas (above) and Truman not only bake their doughnuts fresh daily but offer a variety of flavors that are gluten-free.  Lucas mentioned that Truman can't eat gluten and so they sought to offer baked goods that were just as good as ones containing gluten.  The flavors are not your ordinary corner doughnut shop but rather both sweet and savory and use natural ingredients.  Sweet options such as Chocolate Hazelnut, Lemon, Strawberry, and Rum, are joined by savory selections such as Rosemary Olive Oil, Maple Bacon and Chorizo Cheddar.  The doughnuts are priced between $2.75 and $3.75, which is not your corner doughnut shop pricing either.

I sampled the rum, strawberry and chocolate hazelnut (all above) varieties.  The important thing to note is that although they are in the shape of doughnuts, they are more like cakes, as Zach Brooks of MidtownLunch recently noted.  The rum was my favorite as it reminded me of the Baba Au Rhum I once tasted at Alain Ducasse in New York, except not quite as boozy.  The fōnuts are light, significantly lighter than typical "cake doughnuts".  The strawberry practically oozed strawberry flavor.

If you are craving doughnuts, than I do not think that a fōnut will scratch that itch, as it is a faux doughnut, anymore than eggplant "caviar" will satisfy your urge for sturgeon roe.  However, I think fōnuts should be judged as their own category of pastry, and as such have a solid niche in the pastry firmament of Los Angeles.  The fōnuts are selling like hot cakes (pun intended) and the shop will be closed Monday & Tuesday to rebuild inventory and prepare for the onslaught of week 2.  The shop also sells LaMill coffee, which is a significant added bonus.

Fōnuts: 8104 W. 3rd Street @ Crescent Heights, Mid City.  Phone: (323) 592-3075.  Website: www.fonuts.com

Taste of the Nation 2010 Recap

Last Sunday over 1,500 food fans, chefs and vintners got together to raise money for Share Our Strength, an organization dedicated to fighting childhood hunger in America, at the annual Taste of the Nation event in Culver City.

Over 40 local restaurants participated by providing sample size portions of their food. Attendees could try as many of the foods as they wanted, and fortunately the lines were manageable for almost all vendors, with the exception of the Gelato Bar, whose icy offerings were much in demand on a hot day.

Chef Michael Voltaggio of The Dining Room at the Langham in Pasadena did a cooking demonstration on the main stage and also got inked a new tattoo in honor of the charity event.

Mozza, Bottega Louie, Patina, Bar 210, Hatfields, The Bazaar, Sprinkles, and Loteria Grill were just some of the restaurants represented.

My favorite tastes of the day included the short ribs with potato puree from Hatfield's, the hamachi from Patina, the torchon of foie gras and the salad of heirloom tomato, watermelon and feta, both from Bottega Louie. Both of the Bottega Louie offerings were excellent and the watermelon and tomato salad was perfect and refreshing on warm summer day. I can't wait to get to the restaurant to try the full menu.

The FIG station was serving hot dogs, in order to promote their newly launched FIG Hot Dog Cart, which is available poolside at the Fairmont Hotel on weekends. It seemed silly to offer a full sized hot dog (they were quite large) at an event at which people were grazing from dozens of booths. I was also disappointed when after it turned out that both toppings on offer included pork (which I don't eat), they weren't willing to let me try one without the toppings (which I could see them adding literally in front of me.) "We are pork friendly," the smug member of the kitchen staff said. His attitude made me question whether I should bother returning back to FIG again.

Below are selected photos from the event:

Executive Chef Tony Esnault & Pastry Chef Waylynn Lucas of Patina.

Marcel Vigneron of Bar 210 with his pomegranate spheres.

Karen Hatfield of Hatfield's plating.

Sam Marvin of Bottega Louie.

The wonderful torchon of foie gras with apple gastrique and marcona almond brittle from Bottega Louie.

The albacore sashimi with onion sauce in a cocktail glass from K-Zo.

The delicious vanilla panna cotta from Mozza.