Neal Fraser Chef Neal Fraser’s modern American restaurant, Redbird, resides in one of downtown LA’s architectural gems. The cathedral-and-rectory-turned-hotspot is also home to Neal and his business partner/wife Amy Knoll Fraser’s event space, Vibiana. Redbird’s been awarded several times over, appearing on Jonathan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurant List, Time Out’s Best Restaurant Bar Program and “Top 100 Wine Restaurants in the United States” by Wine Enthusiast, to name a few. Neal’s also…

6 Questions with Meg Galus How do you think about creativity, and how does your creative process work? I’m a visual person, and also a self-proclaimed nerd. I love research. When there’s an idea I’m working on I tend to pull references or inspiration from a myriad of different sources and then sketch or make lists and see where it takes me. You’ve said your desserts have a midwestern heart…

6 Questions with Neal Fraser Why do you love LA's food scene? I feel like I’m a part of it. Born and raised in Los Angeles, pretty much have only cooked here. I kind of wear it on my sleeve like a badge. We’ve been cooking great food in LA for a very long time, and I think it’s great to finally get our due. I don’t feel like we’ve…

6 Questions with Nyesha Arrington Where does your spirit of adventure come from? I’ve always had wanderlust, ever since I was a kid. To this day I don’t think my dad has been on a plane. We were a very blue collar family, we didn’t have it bad but we didn't have much. I’m grateful for my childhood, but I always knew I wanted to see more of the world.…

Diego Galicia & Rico Torres Chefs Rico Torres and Diego Galicia first met at a restaurant pop-up and quickly bonded over their love for authentic Mexican cuisine. The duo, who both have roots in Mexico, wanted to create dishes that reflected the flavors they love so much. Together they opened Mixtli in San Antonio, to showcase the diverse flavors of Mexico’s regions. Over 10 courses, they unveil the textures, flavors…

6 Questions with Michael Scelfo How do you think about creativity, and how does your creative process work? I take inspiration from the meals I share with family & friends. It's those moments that always resonate with me. I take those meals and try to elevate them in the restaurant. Part of that dynamic lives deep in Italian and Sicilian culture. What is your favorite thing to do when you’re…

6 Questions with Mark Estee What sparked your passion for thinking and cooking 'local'? My passion for the local food movement is something that I hang my hat on. But you know, I went to Chez Panisse with Alice Waters in Berkeley back in the late 1990s, and she asked me where I got my food from. And I was like, I don't know, the produce guy, the meat guy,…

6 Questions with Andrew Murray Tell us about your first experience in Burgundy. Back in the mid-1980s when I was about 15 years old, traveling around France with my parents, we happened upon a small town called Vézelay in southern Burgundy. The very snooty and wonderfully cliché French sommelier was serving us Burgundy pinot and saying, in this beautiful French accent, "Do you smell zee earth? Do you smell zee…

6 Questions with Chris McDade & Natalie Grindstaff Chris, what gets you excited about visiting Portugal? For me the easy answer is tinned fish, and experiencing this long and rich tradition in person. But even more, it's the traveling itself. Traveling is such a great lens to experience culture, food, politics, and history. People build their lives around food, and we're going to be meeting local producers and eating incredibly…

6 Questions with Jorge Guzmán When you close your eyes and think about the flavors of the Yucatán, what do you see, smell or taste? First of all, habaneros. You have to know how to eat habanero to be a Yucateco. It's just the way it is. And savory foods, heavy rich food, earthy flavors. Dishes that take a couple of days to prepare. It's slow food. It's legit slow…