LA Chef Conference 2026: Full Panel Lineup, Lunch Chefs and Tickets

The LA Chef Conference returns to Downtown Los Angeles on Monday, October 5, 2026, taking over City Market Social House at 1145 San Pedro Street for one long day of panels, classes, cooking and hard industry talk. It runs 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., and the 2026 roster is stacked: Danny Meyer, Kwame Onwuachi, Issa Rae, Nyesha Arrington, Michael Cimarusti, Susan Feniger, Ludo Lefebvre, Chris Bianco and Antonia Lofaso are all on the schedule.

Now in its eighth year, LA Chef Con is produced by Brad Metzger Restaurant Solutions and presented by OpenTable and Slang, with Jacqui Leanza and Brad Metzger running the program. It is a working event rather than a public festival, and 15 percent of ticket sales go to the Independent Hospitality Coalition.

Fifteen percent of every ticket sold goes to the Independent Hospitality Coalition, the Los Angeles advocacy group for independent restaurants and bars. That is an unusually high give-back for a paid industry conference and worth knowing when you weigh the ticket.

BMRS founded the conference in 2018, and the alumni list explains why it fills. Past speakers and participating chefs have included Wolfgang Puck, Nyesha Arrington, Suzanne Goin, Will Guidara, Ruth Reichl, Mei Lin, Brooke Williamson, Curtis Stone, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Bill Addison. Brad Metzger also created the LA Chef Con and LATTC Mentorship Program, which each year awards five Los Angeles Trade Technical College students $1,000 and a year of mentorship from industry leaders including Susan Feniger and Ari Rosenson, VP of food and beverage for the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group.

The day at a glance

• 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Registration and networking, with coffee from Nespresso and City Bean Roasters, pastries from BREAD, a PopUp Bagels and Sabatino Truffles collaboration, and a matcha creation from Heather Wong of Flouring LA.

• 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Session one, three concurrent panels.

• 11 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Networking break and a book signing with Kwame Onwuachi.

• 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Session two, three concurrent panels.

• 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. The LA Chef Con food festival lunch at DAMA, Rossoblu and Skyduster Brewery.

• 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Danny Meyer signs his new book, and Gather for Chocolate runs alongside it.

• 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Session three, three concurrent panels.

• 3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Networking break and book signings with Roxana Jullapat and Adam Weisblatt.

• 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Session four, three concurrent panels.

• 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Closing cocktail party hosted by Wolfgang Puck Catering.

The panels

Four rounds of programming run across three rooms, so attendees pick one of three panels in each block. The full panel lineup is posted on the conference site, and a few more panelists are still being announced.

OpenTable Theater

• Old School / New School: The Evolution of Kitchen Culture and Leadership, with Ellen Bennett moderating, plus Jon Yao, Kwame Onwuachi, Michael Cimarusti and Susan Feniger.

• Star Power: Achieving and Maintaining Excellence, with Gabriel Ornelas moderating, plus Brandon Go, Katina Connaughton, Kyle Connaughton and Marcus Jernmark.

• Danny Meyer in conversation with LA Times critic Bill Addison.

• Origin Stories: How Culture Became Cuisine, with Nyesha Arrington moderating, plus Eric Greenspan, Gilberto Cetina, Issa Rae and Ki Kim.

Blackbird Theater

• The Future of Food Media (and What is Food Media Anyway?), with Matt Rodbard moderating, plus Bill Esparza, Danielle Dorsey, Luca Servodio and Mona Holmes.

• The Real Influence of Influencers: Decoding ROI, Value and Exposure, with Abegail Cal moderating, plus Joy Limanon, Kevin NoParVar of How Kev Eats, Rick Lox and Soy Nguyen.

• The It Factor: Creating Buzz and Longevity, with Shane Call moderating, plus Holly Fox, Johnny Ray Zone, Jon Shook and Justin Pichetrungsi.

• Behind the Deal: Investors, Leases and Other Critical Legal and Business Considerations, with Gay L. Harwin moderating, plus Caroline Styne, Paul Pruitt, Rashida Holmes and Ryan Bailey.

Slang Industry Theater

• The Restaurant Tech / AI Reset: What to Build, Buy and Stop Paying For, with Matt Newberg moderating, plus Ben Leventhal, Bricia Lopez, Josh Sharkey and Ryan Handel.

• Building The Dream: From Concept to Concrete, with Eddie Navarrette moderating, plus Brad Block, Kat Turner, Lorena Tomb and Ludo Lefebvre.

• Innovators, with Daniel Shemtob moderating, plus Liwei Liao and Rose Previte.

• The Chef and The Farmer: It Starts in the Field, with Clemence de Lutz moderating, plus Alex Weiser, Bethany Harris, Mercedes Rojas and Michael Brombart.

Lunch at DAMA, Rossoblu and Skyduster

The midday break is the part that turns a conference into a food event. From 12:30 to 2:30, three neighboring Fashion District venues open their kitchens: Steve Samson hosts at Rossoblu, Antonia Lofaso hosts at DAMA, and Diego Argoti of Estrano hosts at Skyduster Brewery.

The featured lunch lineup pulls from across Southern California and beyond: Lord Maynard Llera of Kuya Lord, Susana Alvarez of Rossoblu, Danielle Duran Zecca of Amiga Amore, Daniele Uditi of Pizzana, Chris Bianco of Pizzeria Bianco, Holly Jivin of the Shay Hotel, Octavio Olivas of Ceviche Project, Burt Bakman of Daily Hummus, Amar Santana of Vaca, Diego Hernandez, Rose Previte of Maydan, Geter Atienza of GVO Hospitality, Daniel Castillo of Heritage Barbecue, and Santa Monica Seafood cooking with the LATTC student who received its culinary scholarship.

Running in the same window is Gather for Chocolate, presented by Guittard Chocolate Company and hosted by the nonprofit Gather for Good. Anthony Greco of Porto's Bakery, Jose Luis Mariscal of Monsieur Dior, Valerie Gordon of Valerie Confections, Roxana Jullapat of Friends and Family, and Erika Chan of Kato are all making desserts with Guittard chocolate, with Donald Wressell of Guittard and Gather for Good co-founders Sherry Mandell and Stephanie Chen hosting.

New this year: the Aussie Meat Academy

The 2026 addition is a masterclass called Aussie Meat Academy: A Chef's Guide to Flavor, Cuts and Menu Potential. Chef Claudette Zepeda leads it alongside Andy Groneman of Meat and Livestock Australia, with support from chef Benjamin Udave of Think Culinary, for a side-by-side tasting of Australian grass-fed beef, lamb and wagyu prepared simply enough to show the differences. Space is limited and advance reservations are required, with details sent at registration.

Book signings

Now Serving LA is running signings throughout the day: Kwame Onwuachi at 11 a.m., Danny Meyer at 1:30 p.m. with his new book What Could Possibly Go Right?, Roxana Jullapat and Adam Weisblatt at 3:30 p.m. with Morning Baker and For the Love of Restaurants, and Monti Carlo and Claudette Zepeda from 5 to 6 p.m. with Spanglish and Cooking the Borderlands.

The cocktail party

Wolfgang Puck Catering closes the day from 5 to 7 p.m. with a DJ set from Zuri Marley. The catering team is out in force, with Eric Klein, Eric Paulsen, Jake Leach, Jenny Ung, Pauline Soukaphay and pastry chef Garry Larduinat cooking, joined by Jordan Okun of Mad Food on a dish collaboration with Santa Monica Seafood, Burt Bakman, Rob Gentile, Vartan Abgaryan of Momed, and bartender Trevin Hutchins of Jupiter Room. Bernie's Italian Ice, Fra'Mani, Lady and Larder, Imperia Caviar, Community Provisions, The Cheese Store of Beverly Hills, Westholme, Fuegos and an Aquanaria sushi activation round out the room.

The Switzerland giveaway

One attendee leaves with a trip. Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland is giving away round-trip airfare valued up to $1,000, four nights of hotel accommodation in Montreux, a visit to the Le Bouveret campus including a fine dining experience and a private chef demonstration, and a ride on the Swiss Chocolate Train.

Entry is free and requires no purchase. You check in with one of the Blackbird Pucks on the floor and download the app. The winner is announced during the cocktail party, so there is a reason to stay to the end beyond the DJ set.

Tickets and who can attend

This one comes with a caveat worth stating plainly: LA Chef Con is not open to the general public. Attendance is restricted to hospitality professionals working in operations and ownership, which covers chefs, cooks, servers, managers, pastry chefs, beverage directors, mixologists, restaurateurs, directors and owners.

Tickets are $240 and cover everything for the day, including registration coffee and breakfast, the lunch, the cocktail party and access to panels and classes on a first come, first served basis. The event is 21 and over, and ID is required at registration. Parking is not included. Tickets are listed on Eventbrite and through the conference site, with the full FAQ here.

Because capacity is capped, tickets are sold by lottery and invitation rather than open sale. Invitations went out in August and September, and anyone not selected in the first round goes on a waitlist for released tickets. The lottery form is on the conference website. There are no refunds, though ticket transfers are accepted through October 2 by emailing the BMRS team. No tickets are sold at the door, and badges are printed at registration, so there is nothing to print in advance.

Getting there

City Market Social House sits at 1145 San Pedro Street in the Fashion District of Downtown Los Angeles, and check-in is at that entrance starting at 9 a.m. On-site parking is tight: self parking runs $15 at 633 East 11th Street, and limited valet is $35 at the venue entrance. Organizers are steering people toward rideshare. The official hotel partner is the Downtown LA Proper Hotel, roughly six-tenths of a mile away, with a preferred rate for attendees and no event shuttle.

• Hotel block: preferred rates at the Downtown LA Proper Hotel, booked through the link on the conference site.

• Refunds: none. Transfers are accepted up to October 2 by emailing bmrs@restaurant-solutions.com. After that date neither is honored.

• Check-in: badges are printed and waiting at registration with your name and company. Bring photo ID. No printed ticket needed.

• Hours: the full day runs 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

• Press and sponsors: media, sponsor, talent and volunteer inquiries go to brad@restaurant-solutions.com.

More LA food events

LA Chef Con anchors a busy first week of October. The Food Event 2026 runs the day before at Calamigos Ranch in Malibu, and RELISH 2026 fills the preceding weekend in Orange County. Our full Food and Wine Festivals page tracks the rest of the calendar.