The Events at Los Angeles Food & Wine You'll Want to Check Out

Los Angeles Food & Wine is probably the biggest food festival in a town full of massive fests, running August 27 to 30. The lineup this year isn't quite as wide as it's been in the past, and you can still expect to pay a premium, but the heavy hitters are big names, and there are still some lunches and dinners, along with the larger events, that remain reasonably affordable — especially if you're not willing to fly out to New York, San Francisco, or even Dallas to try some of the food from the chefs they've flown in.

Here are some of the best events to check out this weekend:

1. Dinner with Roberta's and Blanca chef Carlo Mirarchi

Daniel Krieger/Eater

[Photo by Daniel Krieger]

New York's famed chef Carlo Mirarchi is heading the Lexus Signature Series dinner on Thursday, August 27 with a dinner at Hollywood's Milk Studios. The dinner, which comes with plates from the Roberta's chef, plus wine and cocktails, also includes car service in a Lexus vehicle to and from the event. Depending on where you live, that in itself is worth a decent portion of the $175 per person ticket. Mirarchi's Blanca in Brooklyn currently holds two Michelin stars. The event kicks off at 7 p.m.

2. Grand Avenue fest on Thursday night with Curtis Stone and the Beastie Boys' Mike D

Photo: Mike D/Wikipedia Commons

Sadly, the original DJ was slated to be Questlove on Thursday evening, but it looks like the Roots drummer has dropped out. In his place comes The Beastie Boys' Mike D, who will be spinning tunes to food from everyone from Curtis Stone to Kris Morningstar. Other chefs cooking at the event include Dallas' Tim Byres from Smoke, Bruce Bromberg from Blue Ribbon Sushi, Holly Jivin from The Bazaar, Daniel Joly from Oregon's Mirabelle, Nancy Silverton, Kris Tominaga from Cadet, and Elana Karp from New York's Plated. The price of the outdoor festival includes cocktails and wine, and runs $165 per person, or $250 for VIP.

3. Friday lunch picks around town

[Photo: John Tesar/Credit: Bill Addison]

There are a slew of great Friday lunches that run $125 each. The highlights start with John Tesar, who hails from Dallas's Knife. He's cooking with Bruce Kalman at Union. New York's Markus Glocker, who's the chef at Bâtard in New York City, will cook alongside Neal Fraser at Downtown's Redbird. Finally Elizabeth Faulkner teams up with Ben Spungin and the Ace Hotel's Ricky Webster for a sweet and savory lunch in Downtown.

4. The Roots plays on Saturday night with an All Star chef line up

[Photo: Facebook]

Priced at $195, and $350 for VIP, this event is not for the faint of heart. But as the premier event of the weekend, The Roots will be headlining the music aspect (you'll feel like you're in Jimmy Fallon's studio). Notable chefs cooking at the event: Miami's Michelle Bernstein, Alex Guarnaschelli, Brian Malarkey, Thomas Keller, John Tesar, Philadelphia's Nick Elmi (of Laurel), and Taco Maria's Carlos Salgado. Local chefs include Timothy Hollingsworth, Bruce Kalman, Bernhard Mairinger, Genevieve Gergis, Nancy Silverton, Freddy Vargas, and David LeFevre. It all takes place on August 29 beginning at 7p.m. on Grand Avenue in Downtown.