The 17th Annual Restaurant Industry Conference took place this week at UCLA through UCLA Extension. Focusing on brand relevance and evolution, the one day event was attended by more than 350 industry executives, including restaurant operating companies, owners, C-level executive, lenders, private equity investors, investment bankers, suppliers and professional advisers.
Here are some highlights I took away from the day:
Another birthday in the family had me looking for a new restaurant to try and Littlefork was at the top of my list. Littlefork is the new restaurant in Hollywood from Jason Travi (formerly of Fraîche and Mesa) and David Reiss (owner of A-frame, Sunny Spot, the Alibi Room and the Brig). The menu is influenced by Travi's New England roots but also by the southern reaches of Canada, as reflected by the prevalence of smoked meats and poutine on the menu.
We started with a few selections from Bar Manager Dino Balocchi's cocktail menu. Dino comes from the Michelin-starred Longman & Eagle whiskey bar and gastropub in Chicago and has created a menu of bitters-intensive variations on sours, daisies and Manhattans.
Thai Town Mule (gin, lime, thai basil, peppercorn, house ginger beer) - a refreshing drink to start with but the peppercorn adds a little kick
Kentucky Daisy (rye, cynar, rosemary, mint, lemon, barrel aged bitters) - if you like the bittnerness of cynar, this herbacious cocktail is a good choice
Georgetown Swizzle (darm rum, jamaican rum, EXR, lime, demerara, mint) - sweet/spicy/bitter flavors coupled with the strength of the rum and the mint adds a lightness
As I travel to cities and visit bars, I am reminded of a great bar tour I took last October at Portland Cocktail Week. What better way to tour the bars of Portland than on a bright red double-decker bus for the Cognac Tour.