for dineLA.com
(Continued from Part 1)
Los Angeles is widely considered to be a city on the forefront of innovation. In the food and drink sector, a young contingent of chefs, bakers, bartenders, sommeliers and coffee pros, all age 30 and under, are helping to ensure that LA continues to stay on the cutting-edge.
Josh GravesGraves is a Burbank native who attended Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena and worked at the short-lived but influential Boule Bakery. At CASA, he bonded with Kris Morningstar. They worked together in Hollywood at The Mercantile and District before transitioning to Ray’s and Stark Bar, a high-profile Patina Group restaurant in the LACMA courtyard. Graves continues to riff on seasonal comfort food classics, including sticky toffee pudding and LAMILL coffee pudding, both presented in imaginative ways.
Ray's and Stark Bar, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, 323.857.6180
Photo by Lauren Noble
Sarah KoechlingKoechling attended Chicago’s French Pastry School and worked for Joel Reno at Chicago’s Everest and San Francisco’s Quince before moving south to L.A. She presides over the pastry kitchen of only of L.A.’s only fine dining establishments, situated inside Disney Hall. Koechling works for exacting Patina executive chef Tony Esnault, mirroring his seasonal, precise approach on desserts like apricot with sweet corn Moscato, polenta financier and Kirsch ice cream.
Patina, 141 S. Grand Ave., Downtown, 213.972.3331
Photo by Lauren Noble
Angela NgNg is an L.A. native who started small, at Just Like Mom’s Bakery in Walnut, before ascending to the big-time. She worked at the Hotel Bel-Air and Michael Mina’s Nob Hill in Las Vegas before becoming the pastry chef of Livello. At the newly minted restaurant inside L’Ermitage Beverly Hills, she’s providing a sweet counterpart to chef Joseph Elevado’s Italian and Asian plates. Options include limoncello orange yuzu soufflé and blood orange yogurt soda with blood orange cake and gelée.
Livello, 9291 Burton Way, Beverly Hills, 310.278.3344
Photo courtesy L'Ermitage Beverly Hills
Ramon Perez
Perez grew up in northern California, in Nevada City, and first became infatuated with pastry at his parents’ brasserie, Citronee. Until last fall, he was corporate pastry chef for the David Myers Group, creating quintessentially Italian desserts for Pizzeria Ortica and classic French sweets for Comme Ca. He’s also developed more elaborate desserts for Sona and further distinguished himself by winning the 2011 StarChefs International Pastry Competition, a grueling four-day series of trials that pitted him against some of the world’s best pastry talents. Up next, he’s planning an online chocolate shop.
Hourie Sahakian
The late, great Amy Pressman hand-picked Sahakian to be the head baker at Short Cake, the open-air bakery that complements the Short Order burger haven and Single Origin coffee bar at the Original Farmers Market. The Glendale native met Pressman at the gym and soon became her protégée. When Short Cake opened in December, Sahakian started filling pedestals and display cases with a rotating selection of sweet and savory baked goods, including croissants, muffins brownies and warm slabs of spinach and mushroom bread pudding. She also turned the blondie on its head, accenting the rectangles with pine nuts, thyme and Muscovado sugar.
Short Cake, 6333 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles, 323.761.7976
Photo by Daniel Djang
John ColtharpLongtime Seven Grand and Caña barman Coltharp finally went west to share space with medicinally minded bartender Justin Pike. They’ve helped to make The Tasting Kitchen’s bar program one of the nation’s best. Coltharp clearly made a good impression, as the owners and chef Casey Lane have tapped him to manage the bar program at The Parish, an English-inspired sister restaurant in Downtown’s Fashion District, scheduled to open in the spring of 2012. He’s planning classic, technique-driven cocktails with premium base spirits, plus beer cocktails.
The Tasting Kitchen, 1633 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice, 310.392.6644
Julian CoxJulian Cox graduated from the Sammy Ross school of bartending, which he experienced at Comme Ca, and has gone on to become one of the most prominent bar talents in L.A., keeping in mind the seasons, Latin and global influences to deliver diverse drinks to patrons of Picca, Playa, Rivera, Sotto and Short Order. The Barbacoa, a mezcal cocktail he created for Rivera with chipotle, lime juice, red belly pepper and a beef jerky garnish, has become a modern classic.
- Picca, 9575 W. Pico Blvd., Beverlywood, 310.277.0133
- Playa, 7360 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, 323.933.5300
- Rivera, 1050 S. Flower St., Downtown, 213.749.1460
- Short Order, 6333 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles, 323.761.7970
- Sotto, 9575 W. Pico Blvd., Beverlywood, 310.277.0210
L to R: Alex Day and Dave Kaplan of Proprietors LLC.
Alex Day
Oregon native Alex Day rose to bartending prominence at Death & Co. in Manhattan’s East Village, where he forged a business partnership with Proprietors LLC co-owner Dave Kaplan. They consulted on the vaunted Franklin Mortgage and Investment Company in Philadelphia before relocating to LA, with an eye on becoming West Coast bar owners, a goal that should become a reality in 2012. In the meantime, they’re consulting for Bar & Kitchen, Rosa Mexicano, and projects in Mumbai, Jackson Hole, and New York’s Financial District. In fall 2011, the duo launched a creative workspace called Chapter & Verse in Downtown LA’s Arts District, specializing in education and training.
- Bar & Kitchen, 819 S. Flower St., Downtown, 213.784.3048
- Chapter & Verse, 830 Traction Ave., Suite 3D, 213.613.0464
Jon Carpenter
The San Diego native studied fermentation at UC Davis and worked in St. Louis at Anheuser-Busch’s Research Pilot Brewery for five years before working for craft beer giant Sam Calagione at Delaware’s Dogfish Head and heading his own brewhouse, working for Tony Yanow and Meg Gill at Golden Road Brewing in an industrial stretch of Atwater Village. He supplies one-offs and barrel-aged beers for the on-site brewpub, and produces mainstream beers like Point the Way IPA and a Hefeweizen for the market.
Golden Road Brewing, 5430 W. San Fernando Rd., Atwater Village, 213.542.6039
Matthew KanerKaner grew up in Santa Barbara County and rose in Eastside stature at Silverlake Wine before becoming General Manager and Wine Director at Bar Covell, Dustin Lancaster’s popular Los Feliz wine bar. Kaner consults on wine programs at places like Olive & Thyme, Intelligentsia Pasadena and Rambutan Thai in his spare time, produces wine under his AM/FM label, and performs as a singer-songwriter under the Liquid Love Letter banner, complete with a fall 2011 album release.
Bar Covell, 4628 Hollywood Blvd., Los Feliz, 323.660.4400
Eduardo Porto Carreiro
Porto Carreiro, a longtime Grace sommelier, developed an eclectic wine program to match the Asian food from chef Sang Yoon at Lukshon in the historic Helms Bakery complex. This makes sense given his diverse background, which involves long stretches in Rio de Janeiro, Vienna and Maryland. He graduated from Cornell with a degree in Applied Economics and Business Management and pursued an acting career before committing to wine in full.
Lukshon, 3239 Helms Ave., Culver City, 310.202.6808
Kyle Glanville- Intelligentsia, 3922 W. Sunset Blvd, Silver Lake, 323.663.6173
- Intelligentsia, 1331 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Venice, 310.399.1233
- Intelligentsia, 55 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, 626.578.1270
NOTE: Mike Philips of Handsome Coffee Roasters was listed in an earlier version of this article. And although Mike is young, unfortunately he just misses the cut off to be included in this round up.
