Sights, Bites, and Cocktails from LA Mags #TheFoodEvent

These days, food festivals are putting their all into every aspect of the event. LA Magazine’s The Food Event is no exception as it features bites and sips from some of LA’s best restaurants, bars, and brands.

Here’s are a few things worth noting from LA Mag’s 2014 event, including some great bites and cocktails. Before I get to that, let’s start with the setting and the sponsors.

Saddle Rock Ranch, Malibu

2014 marked the 9^th year for LA Mag’s food event and while the participants have changed, the venue has remained the same: Saddle Rock Ranch in Malibu. Part zoo, part swank outdoor venue, the lovely ranch makes a perfect setting for spending a Sunday afternoon sampling the best of LA.

live music — Live music added to the lazy Sunday afternoon feel of the event.

Shaded Lawn — One of the shaded lawns at Saddle Rock Ranch in Malibu.

Sponsors and Their Wares

Infiniti was one of the sponsors this year. Of course they had a few new models out to woo attendees. While there was plenty of opportunity to check the vehicles out, unfortunately, there were no test drives.

Celebrity Cruises also sponsored, showcasing some of the wines served on board their ships. In this case they were pouring a Chardonnay and a Pinot Noir from Cambria Estate Winery of Santa Maria, California.

Savory Seafood

Many of the restaurants present at the event were serving seafood dishes and two stood out: a salmon dish from Spago of Beverly Hills and a fish and chips from Black Market Liquor Bar.

Black Market Liquor Bar served a fish and chips; the fish was wrapped in a crispy shell of seaweed (I think).

Cocktails and More

One of the best parts of food festivals – in my opinon – is not the food, but the beverages. Two great cocktails had me going back for seconds: a pineapple and kale margarita made with Don Juilio Tequila and a rum punch from Black Market Liquor Bar. A key ingredient of Black Market’s cocktail was Ron Barcardi 8, a rum that’s been aged for 8 years. They had me at hello!

One of the angelic waitresses from the Don Julio bar offers up a pineapple and kale margarita.

Barcardi’s Ron 8 is a key ingredient in aged-rum punch from Black Market Liquor Bar.

Another great find was Deep Eddy Sweet Tea vodka. Bartenders costumed like pinup models were mixing it into a sweet tea inspired cocktail. I asked for it neat, wanting to sample the true tea essence of the vodka. It was right on point as a Southern-style sweet tea with a strong, black tea flavor and subtle hints of lemon.