Gluttony pervaded the field on a breezy summer evening at Pasadena’s Rosebowl. The ravenous masses of a few thousand-young and old, average and obtuse-gathered at LA’s street food fest to titillate the palate from more than 60 vendors serving sample size bites of savory, sweet, and alcoholic. $45 granted endless food and alcohol-paradise for any foodie on a budget.
A beast of an appetite would have had to be summoned for one to sample every vendor. For the rest, length of line was usually a reliable indicator of popularity, which correlated, but not always, with quality. Almost all the gastronomically inclined cultures were present and often mixed: Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Mexican, Italian, French, Creole, and more (sadly, no Middle Eastern). Top vendors included the likes of Dogzilla’s yakisoba hot dogs, Tiara Café’s Thaid up and gagged s&m brisket fresh rice noodles (harmless-looking I assure you), Komodo’s miso beef skewers (marinated and lightly-seasoned to a tender perfection), Gourmet Guild’s delightful array of sorbets including champagne and wine flavors, and Whisk LA’s devilishly scrumptious banana hazelnut whoopie pies.
Light as the servings were, the whole entire process was not to be taken lightly by the goers. Amateur foodies carrying their SLRs littered the field, testing the patience of those in line by snapping every shot of crumb and garnish…or maybe that was just yours truly. Although the crowd consisted of ages across the spectrum, most expectedly fell in the 20s and 30s range-the age group with presumably enough income and sense of adventure.
Perhaps the only component that could have been left out was the talentless all-girl band with the emo haircuts whose origins must have been that hellish abyss between Myspace and Facebook. Who booked them? I demand to know!
As a word of advice for those returning next year, it would be wise to purchase the $65 VIP ticket. That extra hour before the gates open to everyone may be just enough time for you to literally hop from one vendor to the next. At times the wait in excruciatingly long lines amounted to pitifully small portions. Some vendors ran out of food (gasp!) one hour well before the end of the event. Nevertheless, no one left hungry.
For more info on the July street food fest visit: http://lastreetfoodfest.com/
Comments