Michele StuevenChef Tim Hollingsworth and actor B.J. Novak, are making nostalgic magic with a culinary spin on a fast food classic. In partnership with Paramount to support the new Scream VI film, Chain has created The Stabby Meal, launching on Friday, Feb. 24.
Chain was founded during the pandemic by Hollingsworth and Novak, cooking up homages to childhood favorites in abandoned alleys. It exploded into a local phenomenon with a 10,000 person waitlist. The Stabby Meal includes Chain’s Extremely Medium Sized Bone Marrow ChainBurger, Woodsboro Orchards Warm Apple Pie named after Woodsboro and Chain’s Throwback Fries. Also included – one of four collectible pins: Jenna Ortega, Melissa Barerra, A Bloody Buck Knife 120, and a NYC Subway to Blackmore University.
To conclude Black History Month, Oak Park Brewing Co. and Peoples Beer are collaborating with The Ray Charles Foundation, to release a limited edition Free Of Alcohol brew celebrating the musical icon Ray Charles. It will be available during a limited-time pop-up at Fixins Soul Kitchen, the full-service soul food restaurant that celebrates African American culture and traditions owned by NBA star and 55th Mayor of Sacramento Kevin Johnson. The pop-up at LA Live starts today through Friday, March 31 and will include Ray Charles art and a playlist curated by The Ray Charles Foundation.
The Stabby Burger (Justin Slade McClain)
Celebrating “100 years of grandeur” this year, Afternoon High Tea returns to The Biltmore Los Angeles hotel in its historic Rendezvous Court surrounded by Moorish-carved wood ceilings, gold-leaf accents, a rose marble fountain and the enormous Baroque stairwell. An assortment of sandwiches, scones, pastries and pots of fine-blended custom tea crafted for the Biltmore by Chef Justin Bastian of St. Bastian Tea Company will be offered, and a reservation also includes a complimentary glass of champagne for adults aged 21 and over.
Afternoon high tea dates are on select weekends throughout the year, which include: Feb. 25 and Feb. 26, March 11 and March 12, March 25 and March 26, and April 8 and April 9. Reservations can be made through OpenTable and by calling the front desk at 213-624-1011.
South L.A.’s Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen co-founders Yonnie Hagos and Ajay Relan, along with partner Issa Rae are popping up on South Hill Street between Seventh and Eighth Street in Downtown Los Angeles now through the summer.
The Downtown menu will feature favorites like the Bangin’ Breakfast Sandwich, Soul Bowl, and Hilltop “Droptops,” signature drinks like the Matcha Chata and Lavender Latte and locally roasted coffees. The building, at 718 S. Hill St., built in 1913, has a rich culinary history. It began in 1938 when the first floor was occupied by Sanford’s Nutritional Health Food Center and Juice Bar, followed by Schaber’s Cafeteria in the late 1940s with Quality House Liquors through the ‘80s.
Hilltop Coffee + Kitchen in DTLA (Ed Rudolph)
Caldo Verde at the Downtown LA Proper hotel is teaming up with Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization Regarding Her for a special event with recipe developer and New York Times best-selling cookbook author Molly Baz.
In celebration of Regarding Her’s third annual 10-day RE:Her Festival, where nearly 100 female-owned restaurants and women-run food and beverage brands come together to offer events, unique collaborations, thematic menus, one-on-one conversations with industry leaders and beyond, the one-night event will see a four-course pre-fixe menu that highlights the uncomplicated recipes with big flavors that hail from the Baz’s cookbook Cook This Book, along with several favorites from Baz’s recipe club, The Club.
There will also be market-driven cocktails and boutique wines, including the newly launched chillable red from Baz’s Drink This Wine, with 20% of proceeds being donated to RE:Her.
Bring your jackets: Major League Eating and Wonderful® Pistachios have teamed up to host the “Wonderful Pistachios Get Crackin’ Eating Championship” on World Pistachio Day on Sunday, Feb. 26. World Champion competitive eater Joey Chestnut and other top-ranked Major League eating athletes will vie for a world record for pistachio-eating at the inaugural event taking place at 10 a.m., at Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. Chestnut will face fierce competition from other top-ranked eaters in attendance, including:
- Number-two-ranked competitive eater Geoffrey Esper from Oxford, Massachusetts
- Number-three-ranked competitive eater Miki Sudo from Tampa, Florida
- Number-four-ranked competitive eater Nick Wehry from Tampa, Florida
- Number-seven-ranked competitive eater Gideon Oji from Morrow, Georgia
In addition to watching the competition, spectators and attendees can enjoy complimentary giveaway items including branded merchandise, and, of course, bags of Wonderful Pistachios.
White Truffle Meal (Courtesy Shake Shack)
Shake Shack has a new limited-edition decadent White Truffle menu and Los Angeles residents will also be able to book a Truffle Table Reservation at the Santa Monica Shack from Monday, Feb. 27 through Thursday, March 2. There will be two seatings per night; one at 6 p.m., and one at 8 p.m.; eight sets of reservations (two seats each) available per seating. For $20, the tasting menu includes the White Truffle Burger, White Truffle ‘Shroom Burger, Parmesan Fries with White Truffle Sauce, unlimited beverages/wine, a shake of choice and a bottle of Regalis White Truffle Oil.
From Saturday, Feb. 25 through Friday, March 3, at Japan House LA, explore sake through the lens of the “kaku-uchi” tasting tradition. Similar to the evolution of wine bars around the world, “kaku-uchi” describes the practice of sampling various sakes directly at a sake-seller’s shop itself. Typically, customers taste a wide variety of sake flavors alongside simple snacks, while learning from experts. During Sake Flight Week LA, sake fans 21 and older can sip and learn about 20 types of sake through a modern spin on the “kaku-uchi” experience, while enjoying curated food pairings and sweeping views of Hollywood.
What’s Popping Up is a weekly column in the L.A. Weekly that explores all that’s new in food and drink.
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