LA Food & Wine Festival: Guy Fieri's Brew B'Que

By Liz Laing

On Saturday afternoon on Santa Monica Pier, BBQ fans and foodies gathered for Guy Fieri's Brew B'Que, another great event from the Los Angeles Food & Wine Festival hosted by Guy Fieri of the Food Network's "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives." Dozens of white tents became home to some of the top chefs in the country as they prepared their best BBQ dishes for the crowd. The beer flowed, the sun shined and the band rocked, making a most enjoyable afternoon.

Quail Hot Legs and Smoked Duck Quesadilla

Chef: Frank Ostini

One chef that was hard to miss, wearing his signature hat, was Chef Frank Ostini of the Hitching Post in Buellton, who scored big with quail hot legs, grilled corn and a smoked duck quesadilla with pardon chile. The Hitching Post also makes their own wines and sampled a dry rose and a pinot noir at the event.

Smoked Duck Taco

Chef: Mark Kiffin

A truly outstanding dish came from Mark Kiffin, chef/owner of The Compound in Santa Fe, NM, with his smoked duck taco prepared with fig and caramelized onion, hoisin BBQ sauce, cilantro, radish and lime.

Short Ribs

Chef: Roy Choi

Chef Roy Choi cooked up some brown sugar short ribs, which we hope will be on his new menu at Sunny Spot in Venice, his latest venture slated to open in mid-November. Assistants Alice Shin and Natasha Phan helped to pass out the tasty ribs, bringing sunny smiles to customers.

Grilled Romaine and Pancetta

Tanimura & Antle

Grilled romaine with sundried tomatoes and pancetta from Tanimura & Antle was a welcome change after so much straight BBQ. The lettuce was crisp and refreshing and the tomatoes were bursting with flavor.

BBQ Pork Belly & Vanilla Grits

Chef: Stephan Pyles

The favorite dish of the day went to Chef Stephan Pyles and his well-balanced plate of barbequed pork belly, vanilla scented grits and young Texas mustard greens. Everyone was "oohing and aahing" over the tender and delicious meat, which was nicely complemented by the sweet grits and bitter greens.

Beer Tasting

There certainly wasn't a lack of beverages to wash down all the BBQ, with over 100 local, regional and international beers to choose from. Stand outs included Black Star of Montana, Xingu of Brazil, Aktien Maibock of Germany and Schlagl of Austria. A great alternative to beer was the fruity and refreshing pear cider from Woodchuck Cider of Vermont. This event can go down in the books as the "Best Pier Pub Crawl" ever, especially with Uncle Kracker performing to a large crowd.