Gary Menes

Guerrilla Tacos: Chef Wes Avila's Pop-Up Taco Stand

It's around 5 o'clock on a Wednesday evening outside Handsome Coffee Roasters, the hip coffee shop that has become a hub of culture and activity in the burgeoning Arts District east of downtown. Chef Wes Avila has just finished setting up his stand: Guerrilla Tacos. It's a small pop-up tent adorned ... More >>

German Sausage Pop-Up Knackig Coming to Mignon Wine Bar

Between pop-ups and sausagefests, there's been a lot going on at downtown wine bar Mignon lately. First came the news that Gary Menes would be continuing his Le Comptoir dinner service on Monday and Tuesdays at Mignon through the end of October, a happy sign for fans of the chef's 18 year-old starte ... More >>

Le Comptoir Update: Gary Menes Pops Up Next at Mignon Wine Bar

For those of you who have followed Gary Menes' traveling restaurant Le Comptoir, most recently at Fred Eric's downtown Tiara Cafe, you will want to enter another location into your phone -- and itinerary. Beginning Sept. 10, Le Comptoir will be popping up at the downtown wine bar Mignon. Because Men ... More >>

Le Comptoir Update: Gary Menes' Pop-Up at Tiara Cafe Finally Coming to and End

Le Comptoir, Gary Menes' traveling restaurant, is finally coming to the end of its current incarnation at Fred Eric's downtown Tiara Cafe. Menes says that the last dinner will be August 11. "We were coming up on our 1-year anniversary," Menes said. "Come celebrate our 1-year pop-up. How ridiculous i ... More >>

LA Weekly's Second Annual Pancake Breakfast: An Update

A reminder that you possibly have something to do on Sunday, August 5, from around 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. That is, if your idea of fun is hanging out in a gorgeous deconsecrated church and eating what some of the city's best chefs feel like cooking you for breakfast. LA Weekly's second annual Pancake Bre ... More >>

Gary Menes: The Son Also Braises

One of the fascinating Angelenos featured in L.A. Weekly's People 2012 issue. Check out our entire People 2012 issue here. "Being a cook was out of the question," Gary Menes says of his childhood aspirations. The reason: his father. And why do you suppose Menes' father wanted him to become somethin ... More >>

Rene Redzepi and Lars Williams at UCLA: Seaweed Ice Cream Cricket Sauce

The crowd that gathered last night at UCLA's Moore Hall to hear chefs Rene Redzepi and Lars Williams and Professor Amy Rowat give a lecture on food and science had more fun than is customary at most academic gatherings. Redzepi, the chef and founder of Noma in Copenhagen, and Williams, the head of ... More >>

The Veggie and Fruit Platter at Le Comptoir

You've probably heard some rumblings of the stellar work chef Gary Menes has been putting in after-hours at downtown's Tiara Café -- the former Patina, Palate, and French Laundry alum has quietly been reviving the art of counter-side dining at his pop-up restaurant, which has been running weekend d ... More >>

[Updated] UCLA's Science & Food Series: Or, Why There's A Modernist in Your Soup (or at Your Dinner Table)

Update: The lovely folks at UCLA have just told us that there are still spots available for the June 9 lectures. Maybe go reserve one now. General admission is $20; UCLA students get in free with a valid student ID. This semester is a pretty good time to be a "non-science student" at UCLA: 50 lucky ... More >>

10 Best Romantic Restaurants in L.A.

Valentine's Day is fast approaching, thus it is time to book reservations at your favorite swank restaurant. Assuming you have a date for the evening. If you do not, well, check back later for our Best Dive Bars in L.A. list. Of course your significant other may not be the white tablecloth sort, s ... More >>

11 New Restaurants for New Year's Eve

Anne FishbeinPicca​On New Year's Eve, restaurants celebrate with live bands, festive décor, theme dinners, exceptional ingredients, multi-course meals, tasting menus and endless glasses of bubbly. How to choose the best spot? We've selected 11 restaurants that opened in 2011 to represent a ... More >>

Jonathan Gold Reviews Le Comptoir

Chef Gary Menes' latest appears, for a bit, at downtown's Tiara

Your Counter Intelligence Preview: In Which Mr. Gold Considers Le Comptoir

Anne FishbeinSunnyside-up egg with young greens, herbs and flowers at Le Comptoir​In which Jonathan Gold visits Gary Menes' temporary food installation, Le Comptoir, or "the counter," a restaurant within a restaurant at the actual counter of downtown's Tiara Cafe. It's a brief incarnation of a ... More >>

Le Comptoir: 99 Essential Restaurants 2011

Gary Menes to Pop-up at Tiara Cafe: A Counter Experiment

Gary Menes (Marché, Palate Food Wine, Patina) has been working on opening his own place in downtown L.A. since he decamped from Palihouse after a short run. It should not come as a surprise that he's not quite ready to open. It should also not come as a surprise that he's been cooking anyway. The ... More >>

Food News Roundup: Lots of Pie, 200 Year-old Desserts Teaching Kanye West to Cook

-- Gordon Ramsay teaches Kanye West how to cook. [The Mirror] -- How to make a 200 year-old dessert. [Zester Daily] -- How to open your own pop-up restaurant. [Forbes via food52] -- Pie-a-day #45, or white peach-brown sugar tart. [Good Food] -- Ricardo Zarate and Gary Menes cook a dinner ben ... More >>

Gary Menes François Renaud Pop-up at Olive & Thyme

Anne FishbeinGary Menes and crew at Marché​ Chef Gary Menes (Marché, Palate Food Wine, Patina), who left Palihouse at the end of 2010 to open his own restaurant with business partner François Renaud (Cafe Stella, Palate), is still working on the details of the new restaurant. But in the m ... More >>

Staff Meals: 10 L.A. Chefs/Restaurateurs Recall the Best and Worst

Picasa user KeithChefs eating​"I never had a bad staff meal," said former Palihouse chef Gary Menes. "I'm very grateful for all the chefs I've worked for. They don't have to do it. It's not mandated by law that they have to feed us, or the waiters. That's their generosity, and I humbly accept ... More >>

Short Attention Span Dinner Theater: Your Week in Food, 12/27-12/30

In which we highlight the past week in food, either at home or abroad. "When Donna Simpson dreams, she dreams big. The 650-pound New Jersey mom aims to be the fattest woman in the world. And to be the best, you have to make sacrifices." New Jersey Woman Eats 30,000-Calorie Christmas Meal. "Mu ... More >>

Gary Menes Departing Palihouse, Sets Sights on New Restaurant

Anne FishbeinGary Menes and crew at old Marché kitchen​Chef Gary Menes, who took over the kitchens at Palihouse back in May, is stepping down at the end of the week. He is planning to open a new restaurant with business partner François Renaud. Previously, Menes has cooked at Patina, The Fre ... More >>

Gary Menes Takes Over the Stoves at Palihouse

Anne FishbeinGary Menes and crew at Marche​ Chefs play musical kitchen stools with professional speed, but the shift at Palihouse was a more complete game than most. Just weeks after Brendan Collins and pretty much his whole staff decamped from Palihouse to Waterloo & City, Gary Menes took his ... More >>

The Importance of Butter: Some Chefs Make Their Own

Amy Scattergood​ Some might argue that the integrity of a restaurant can be measured by the quality of its bread and butter. At the best restaurants, bread and butter isn't just a hunger staver--it should present an enticing prelude to a meal, an important first impression. At Marché, Anisett ... More >>

Marching Orders: Marché Restaurant is Closing

Chef Gary Menes at MarchéAnne Fishbein​ Marché is closing. Owner Andre Guerrero said by phone this afternoon that he's closing his Sherman Oaks restaurant, which opened just last September. Their last day will be May 8th. "We've got a core of extremely loyal customers, but it just hasn't b ... More >>

Bon Marche

It's carpe diem at Gary Menes' latest restaurant

Valentines Day Restaurant Round Up: San Fernando Valley Edition

If the proliferation of pink and red everything at your local grocery store hasn't given it away yet, Valentine's Day is right around the corner. If you're looking to impress your sweetie without having to cook dinner yourself, we've rounded up a few spots in the San Fernando Valley where you can wi ... More >>

Marche (Formerly Max) Opens in Sherman Oaks

Marche, formerly Max, in Sherman Oaks opened its doors to the public last night to show its stuff to interested followers of the restaurant. The space, which has had a few changes--including menu, décor, chefs and now names--since it opened about six years ago, has a new attitude and new direction. ... More >>