An Afternoon at Masters of Taste

After I went on and on about Masters of Taste last month I couldn’t very well leave you hanging after the event. Recently, the big day came and it was wild and wonderful. It was my second time around and, now, its status as my favorite Los Angeles food event is firmly in place.

For the second year in row Masters of Taste was held on the field of the Rose Bowl but, contrary to the photo above, the weather did not always cooperate. About halfway through it started storming (thunder and lightning, y’all) and the rain came pouring down.

You might think this brought about disaster but, honestly, I think it made the event even better. It was so crazy and unpredictable that it only added to the fun (you can check out my Instagram feed for proof) and it never once took away from the event’s main attraction – the food.

I enjoyed the above Wolfgang Puck salad while standing under an umbrella in the rain and it was delicious! This year my favorite friend came as my guest and between the two of us we conquered the festival. We shared bite after bite and drink after drink and had an amazing time. Below are a few of my favorites.

Chicken wings from Belly BombZ, a meatball slider from La Polpetta, a taco from Sol Cucina, a lobster roll from Venice Whaler, beef Carpaccio from Louise’s Trattoria and, my favorite, Koku Tonkotsu Ramen from Ramen Tatsunoya.

Of course we can’t forget the drinks and between the two of us we pretty much had them all.  My favorite was the Ohana from The Raymond 1886. The combination of gin, rum, lemon and cinnamon bark syrup surprised me at first but I grew to really enjoy it.

All too soon it was time to say goodbye. With our bellies full my friend and I bid adieu to Masters of Taste. We agreed it had been a fantastic afternoon and we already can’t wait for next year.