Good Food for All (part 1)

Last night I was able to enjoy some wonderful food, great company and interesting conversations at the Good Food for All reception in Los Angeles. I’ll post details shortly on our other partners at the event, but I’ll start with Jimmy Shaw and Loteria! Grill, if for no other reason than I have a picture of their  offerings. The presentation isn’t great in this picture, but that’s because their table was quite popular… once they started serving, it seemed a challenge to keep up with all the people who wanted a taste. Our avocados were featured in both the carnitas tacos and the spicy shrimp sopas. Both were awesome… Jimmy must have a gift for deep, complex heat in his dishes, which went very well with the Revolution Pale Ale being poured next door.

We were also featured in a pressed fig dessert by Loteria’s Maca Martinez. This was simple, but delicious with a whipped cream topping that was spiked with a bit of cinnamon. It was a real pleasure working with the crew from Loteria!, and I think we’ll be teaming up on avocados in the future.

New Venues, New Friends

This week will find some of our produce in two high-profile events for California diners.

“Savor the Central Coast” is being put on by Sunset magazine to celebrate the food and  agriculture of this region. Tonight, a sustainable seafood dinner paired Seafood Watch with our long-time friend Tim Kilcoyne from the SideCar Restaurant in Ventura. Some of our tree-ripe lemons will play an important supporting role on the menu. The citrus poached shrimp sounds incredible.

 Wednesday, October 6, will see “Good Food for All: A Taste of the Los Angeles Foodshed”, anchoring a conference on Food issues and policy organized by Roots of Change. 35 of LA’s top chefs and restaurants will prepare tasting menus built around ingredients from farms in our region. I’m really looking forward to it, and not just for the food. We will have the opportunity to pair with several partners. This could still be subject to change, but as of now we will be providing avocados to the Loteria Grill; Meyer lemons, and Star Ruby grapefruit and Black Mission figs to Cube Marketplace and Cafe; and lemons, Meyers and Star Rubies to the Water Grill. I’ll be attending this one, and I can’t wait to have the chance to work with some great people who are passionate about food and agriculture.