Save the Date: IAMLA's Annual Taste of Italy on October 12

We all know how great Italian food and wines are, and we have some great restaurants in Los Angeles, so a Taste of Italy festival in Los Angeles certainly sounds good! The 5th Annual Taste of Italy will be held on October 12, 2013, at beautiful, historic Pico House in downtown LA. The event benefits the Italian American Museum of Los Angeles, which is planned to open in early 2014.

Participants include Di Stefano Cheese (who makes the best burrata in town), Bulgarini Gelato and GROM (my two favorite gelaterias), Trattoria Neapolis, Drago Centro, Il Grano, Fabio Viviani's Cafe Firenze, and more. The event also boasts 100+ Italian wines to be poured (see more participants listed here).

There will be live entertainment from Italian artists and "chanteuses".

The $55 general admission ticket gets you 6 food tickets and 4 beverage tickets (more tickets are available for purchase at the event). The $125 VIP ticket gets you VIP entrance (and red carpet photo), 6 food and 6 beverage tickets, a VIP gift bag, and 20% off your purchase at Gastromercato. Tickets can be purchased here.
PLUS, get $5 OFF your ticket purchase with code GOURMETPIGS.

Want to win VIP tickets for you and your friends? You can create a video of yourself singing Taste of Italy or the SoCal Italian American history for a shot to win (see more details here).

When: October 12, 2013. 5-10PM

Where: Pico House
424 N. Main St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Drago Centro's Latest Cocktail Menu and Bartender

Yes, there has been a lot of changes in the bar management at Dragon Centro, but the man in charge now has actually been there for a while. Jason Eisner came to work at Drago Centro because he was inspired and wanted to work with Jaymee Mandeville. Now he's taken his experience and designed a fun menu for Drago Centro.

He enhanced whiskey sour with apple nectar in the namesake Drago Sour (bourbon, fuji apple nectar, lemon, maple syrup, egg white,  angostura - $10)

One of my favorites was the Italian Roots ($14) with cognac, ciaciaro amaro, demerara syrup, chocolate bitters, angostura, vanilla bourbon extract, fernet branca whipped cream

This is Jason's version of an adult root beer. It smells just like root beer and tastes like a less sweet, more complex version of root beer. And that fernet whipped cream? So much awesomeness.

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Casual and Healthy Lunch at Twist Eatery

Twist Eatery recently opened in La Brea, serving breakfast, lunch and baked goods along with coffee.

The lunch menu is mostly healthy (although they do have a burger if you're so inclined).

I got the Salmon Bowl, with lentil, quinoa salad tossed in a pomegranate, vinaigrette served with moroccan spiced salmon and a citrus salsa ($14)

The salmon was nicely cooked, still moist, and the sauce and dressing were flavorful yet still light. I really liked this for a healthy yet still filling lunch.

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