The Who’s Who of Culinary Talent Converge on Los Angeles for a Star-Studded Conference

LA Chef Conference—the West Coast’s preeminent hospitality industry event featuring expert panels, restaurant business workshops, cooking demos with top chefs, pop-up dining experiences, and more—returns May 20 with an unprecedented lineup of talent. Presented by Brad Metzger Restaurant Solutions, a Los Angeles-based hospitality recruitment firm, in tandem with the Los Angeles Times, LA Chef Conference is one of many events in the publication’s annual LA Times Food Bowl, a month-long celebration of the city’s dynamic food scene.

Panel guests includes celebrity chef and TV personality Curtis Stone; acclaimed chef/restaurateur Suzanne Goin; sustainable seafood advocate and decorated chef Michael Cimarusti; Will Guidara of famed hospitality group Make It Nice (Eleven Madison Park, Nomad); entrepreneur, philanthropist, and restaurateur Kimball Musk; award-winning chef Jeremy Fox; Bravo Top Chef winners Brooke Williamson and Richard Blais; Spago Co-Founder Barbara Lazaroff; culinary icon Jean-Georges Vongerichten; pop-up impresario, chef, and TV personality Ludo Lefebvre; former Santa Monica Farmers’ Market Program Manager Laura Avery; Johnny Ray Zone of the famed Howlin’ Rays Nashville Hot Chicken; renowned pastry chef Sherry Yard; and many more.

Highlights include a panel called “Boiling Point, ” an honest discussion of mental health, wellness, and maintaining balance in the restaurant industry, moderated by Los Angeles Times Food Section Staff Writer Amy Scattergood, and a Restaurant Workshop Series, a four-session entrepreneurial track for those interested in opening a restaurant with featured topics including branding and marketing, construction and design, financials and HR/morale/culture.

Events are held at ArcLight Cinemas and The Gourmandise School, located on the third floor of Santa Monica Place in Santa Monica. The all-day event (kicking off at 8:30 a.m., wrapping at 4:00 p.m., and moving to the Viceroy Santa Monica for a celebratory after party) offers attendees the choice of several ticketing options, ranging from access to all nine industry panels, cooking demos, restaurant workshops, complimentary lunch, and the after party. Five percent of ticket sales support charity partner C-CAP LA, an organization providing careers through culinary arts programming in Los Angeles.

Tickets are live now and available at www.lachefconference.com.

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