SAVEUR Partied in L.A. Last Month—Here Are Some Highlights

The night of the event, guests piled their plates high with artichoke-topped bruschetta; warm and gooey artichoke dip; and Turkish braised artichokes. Abundance was the theme of the night, with conversation about SAVEUR’s print relaunch echoing around the room between bites. “I’m a longtime fan of the magazine, and it’s amazing to celebrate a new chapter,” shared Ken Concepcion, co-owner of local cookbook shop  Now Serving, who was stationed at the front of the party as a welcome committee with issues of SAVEUR’s sold-out Spring/Summer issue and fun swag like bright orange tote bags.

The outpouring of love for SAVEUR was palpable as media, chefs, food and travel industry folks, friends, and family gathered in the sunny, plant-filled restaurant to snack, mingle, and celebrate the brand’s recently relaunched print magazine. Local cookbook shop Now Serving was in attendance, offering copies of SAVEUR’s sold-out Spring/Summer issue, personalized by Editor-in-Chief and CEO Kat Craddock after her mid-party toast, with cheers to “Our inaugural year as an independent publication—and to many more years of eating the world together!”

Pop-up guests raised glasses filled with vibrant signature cocktails—a zesty Tequila Ocho Plata paloma with a zippy Tajìn rim and juicy Bluecoat Gin calamansi spritzes—as well as crisp RUMOR rosé wine and a selection of Widow Jane whiskeys.

And while the artichoke station was the heart of the party, the food hardly stopped there. Goin, who helms the DTLA Proper’s dining program alongside restaurateur and longtime collaborator Caroline Styne, also developed flavorful passed bites inspired by SAVEUR’s Spring/Summer issue. The room was abuzz with conversation and crunching as the Caldo Verde waitstaff passed hot bites like crisp salt cod fritters with saffron rouille; crab tostadas, and Piri Piri fried chicken. Later, desserts made the rounds too—including mini ginger-matcha ice cream sandwiches straight out of the new issue.

Amidst the sweet treats were also plenty of sweet remembrances as guests shared their favorite memories, stories, and recipes from the 30-year-old legacy pub. Valerie Gordon of LA’s Valerie Confections had a captivating tale of BBQ. “SAVEUR changed my life in a really interesting way,” she said, “When I was leaving for the airport for 10 days in Texas for my cookbook tour, I grabbed the Texas issue of SAVEUR. By the end of my flight, I decided to do a barbecue tour inspired by the issue. From there, I completely fell in love with barbecue. I now emcee a Barbecue Boot Camp, have developed over 30 grilled and barbecue dessert recipes, and have become a huge barbecue advocate, participant, and fan—all because of that issue.”

Concepcion—who got a special shout-out from Craddock in her toast for Now Serving’s continued support and celebration of print magazines and cookbooks—cited a “seminal” profile on renowned Swiss chef Frédy Girardet. “The feature went into his home after he retired, checking in on how he was doing. And he threw a party and talked about how throwing a party at home isn’t the same as entertaining people in a restaurant. I was transported and inspired,” he shared. “After reading it, I was like, ‘I want to be a chef. I’m going to become a chef.’”

Jessie Nicely, co-founder of Compound Butter magazine, had a similar transformative experience with “the first food magazine I ever read,” sharing that in middle school, she loved a story about ice cream around the world so much that she ripped it out, stapled it together, and still has it at her childhood home. “I am Southeast Asian and it was the first time I had ever read about those styles of ice cream, using red bean and shaved ice,” she recalled. “I love the depth that SAVEUR goes into in every story, giving a real background on a place and its food history and incredible storytelling.”

And that’s something worth celebrating properly—again and again.