There are no shortage of food festivals in Los Angeles and although costs to attend seem to have skyrocketed since the pandemic, these culinary events are a fun way to spend a day or evening mingling over exciting bites. Many festivals in LA often tout famous chefs who hand out their own dishes at these popular extravaganzas. Add in unlimited drinks, giveaways, and the chance to try new bites from LA’s top restaurants (from high end to casual eats) and you have a win, wine, win weekend.

Discover the dynamic food culture of Los Angeles, California, and the west by choosing one of these top LA food festivals. The first four below take place in the fall while the last two take place in the spring.

You will not only need stamina, but an outfit with an expandable waist, comfy shoes, and a ripe appetite. Pick a festival that fits your vibe.

L.A. Loves Alex’s Lemonade

Raising funds to beat childhood cancer with an iconic chef lineup

On the grounds of UCLA Jimmy Kimmel’s rockstar culinary event ‘LA Loves Alex’s Lemonade’ is a charity initiative that raises funds to combat childhood cancer. This outdoor food event boasts some of the best chefs in town who are actually on the grounds of Royce Hall serving their own creations. This year (2024) saw many of our favorite culinary creators: Chef Michael Mina, Chef Chris Bianco, Chef Ludo Lefevere, Chef Nancy Silverton, Chef Susan Feniger, Chef Michael Cimarusti (Connie and Ted’s) Chef Valerie Gordon of Valerie Confections, and Chef/Owner/Baker Bob from Bob’s Well Bread in Los Alamos and Ballard, to name a few of the legendary chef mix in attendance.

Add in an entire section of vintners pouring wine and another section for spirits and nonalcoholic beverages, and you have a day of unlimited culinary debauchery paired with live music, flower and brand giveaways, and silent and live auctions. In 2024 some of our favorite bites included a pizza slice with lemon, basil, burrata, and anchovy from Ronan LA, a crispy taco from Michelin recommended Poppy and Seed out of Anaheim, buttermilk pancakes from Jon and Vinny’s, sea urchin from Sea Stephanie Fish, and bourbon glazed smoked pork belly from Soulbelly BBQ from Las Vegas.

Jimmy Kimmel spoke and amped up the crowds as someone bid over $70,000 for a private group dinner with some of the legendary chefs in attendance and Jimmy Kimmel himself. His daughter jumped on stage to let the crowd know she could make the lemonade for the private dinner while Kimmel responded that he’ll be sure to add the vodka.

The fundraising event began with the vision of a little girl named Alex who was diagnosed with cancer and in her short life of 8.5 years, she started selling lemonade to raise money to give to the doctors in order to help other children. Learn about Alex’s life HERE and how her act of kindness skyrocketed to raise millions to help doctors fund their research. Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation continues to grow as they have raised more than $300 million for childhood cancer and funded over 1,500 research projects that have saved the lives of kids fighting cancer with no treatment options left. 

Manhattan Beach Food and Wine

A 2 night elegant affair in Manhatten Village

This NEW star studded two night food and wine celebration held in October occurs on the beautiful festival grounds of Manhatten Village features unlimited tastings from top chefs, wines, spirits, cocktails, beer, non-alcoholic and more. Check out the stellar chef lineup from across North America in attendance – https://www.manhattanbeachfoodandwine.com/grand-tasting

Sip some of our favorite finds including Warson Wines, Sake High, Faire la Fete bubbly, and Dancing wines. Savor exciting new bites like tapas from Santa Monica’s Xuntos, fresh tuna tartar from Manhatten Beach’s Strand House, and hearty country grub from Westwood Coast from Costa Mesa. It’s easy to want to return to many stations like Mercado’s hefty carnitas tacos. Your sweet tooth will be satiated too. Don’t miss Malibu Meringue (infused with fall flavors) and rose chocolates from Marsatta Chocolate.

The event partners with a culinary mentorship program to bring together aspiring young chefs with a professional chef and a portion of the proceeds benefits C-CAP, an organization empowering underserved teenagers in the restaurant industry.

Santa Monica Seafood Fest

Rock Yacht vibes on the Santa Monica Pier

Seafood lovers do not want to miss this October food festival ON the iconic Santa Monica Pier. Taste underwater delights, meander into a beer garden, wine taste, and participate in an oyster shucking competition. Watch the sunset from this prime location in your yacht rock attire while guzzling down fresh seafood with the Windbreakers band setting the mood.

VIP tickets allow guests early entry, exclusive tastings, tickets to ride the ferris wheel, and access the Sustainable Seafood VIP Lounge. Eat at some of the best restaurants including Ocean Prime Beverly Hills, Xuntos, The Surfing Fox, Sushi Roku, The Lobster, Santa Monica Seafood, The Albright, Blue Ribbon Sushi, and more.

The event benefits Heal the Bay raising awareness to keep our local ocean and beaches clean.

ChainFEST LA

The world’s largest chain food festival with a big celeb backing

While we think the swag you can take home and the immersive activations might be better than the actual eats, this new gourmet chain restaurant food festival pops up day and night at ROW Downtown LA feeling like Neon Carnival for fast food. Founded by BJ Novak, America’s chain food restaurants come together to tour and share their dishes, going a little extra, with expanded offerings and elevated additions to those familiar bites.

Domino’s Pizza offered Bougie Emergency Pizza slices with salmon and caviar. While I could never find the Cheddar Bay Biscuits topped with poached lobster from Red Lobster because apparently it was only served during the day in VIP, I zoned in on finding White Castle burgers as this was their first west coast pop-up from the family owned brand established in 1921 and my Minnesota born husband has talked about this old school brand. White Castle indulged guests in their cheeseburger “sliders” that are sold by the sack in over 14 states and 375 locations.

Cracker Barrel was serving fried chicken in biscuits, KFC had chicken tenders with numerous dipping sauces and a mini mashed potato waffle, and Johnny Rockets offered Cosmic Cherry Cheesecake Shakes. Guests could also sip Trader Vic’s cocktails and nosh on Panda Express, Hot Dog on a Stick, Lactaid ice cream, and Koo Koo Roo (who recently returned to CA reopening stores), amongst others.

It was my first time having a Sloppy Joe since grade school thanks to The Tomato Shop by Volkswagen who was also gifting Tshirts, keychains, and a tall bottle of their spicy tomato Gewurz Ketchup Brand. They even displayed a red VW car turned into a tomato. Besides fast food bites, guests were entertained by immersive experiences like a human claw machine to win prizes, a dancing Red Robin, and numerous goodies to take home like Pepto Bismol fanny packs stocked with bottles of pink chewable tablets, Dutch Bros hats, keychains, and stickers, and a whole lot more! We rolled out with a new skateboard from White Castle, doughnuts from Krispy Kreme, a vanilla and caramel Cold Brew topped with soft serve and gold sparkles from Dutch Bros (which is now in LA) and a lot of other funny swag. Time to wear my new pink Pepto bucket hat!

Many celebs made appearances for this launch like John Mayer, Andy Cohen, Seth Rogan, Mindy Kaling, and more. Even Chrissy Teigen (who is an investor and advisor of Chain) left with a temporary White Castle lower back tattoo in support of the Kansas brand, one of the first fast food chains in America.

Concern Foundation Block Party

The Paramount Studios Backlot turns into an epic block party of food and music

The Annual Block Party at Paramount Studios Backlot is going into its 50th year in 2025. This past year had a Star Wars galactic space theme outside with premier food, beverage, and live entertainment across multiple stations, and Star Wars characters walking around.

It feels like everyone in LA shows up for this event as over 4,000 guests attend this unforgettable extravaganza dedicated to raising funds for cancer research. A silent auction brings in more proceeds and the chance to win one of kind memorabilia from Hollywood, sports stars, and beyond. L.A. Magazine has partnered with the Concern Foundation for over 17 years making contributions to their cause.

Masters of Taste

An endless array of the best bites on the grounds of the Rose Bowl stadium

Going into their 8th year in 2025, Masters of Taste benefits Union State Homeless Services and is one of the best food festivals bringing together LA foodies from all over the city. A sense of camaraderie exists each year as guests feast and mingle- starting with a slew of food trucks before entering, then meandering within the famous field’s grounds. The festival integrates drinks (wine, beer, cocktails, and more) between chef bites making it easy to make walk around and sample countless restaurants with sips in between.

Read about some of our favorite moments at Masters of Taste: https://lalascoop.com/2022/05/19/the-top-10-tastes-of-l-a-s-masters/ and https://lalascoop.com/?s=master+of+taste.

Los Angeles Wine and Food Festival

A lavish affair of beautiful people situated in an indoor tent below the Santa Monica Pier

This 3 day diverse culinary festival arrived to LA in 2024 in March in partnership with Frieze Week Los Angeles showcasing culinary headliners, beloved LA restaurants, and exciting wine, beer, and spirits brands amplified with DJs, art installations, photo ops, and giveaways. Not to be confused with longstanding LA Food and Wine Festival where we use to see LA’s beloved Jonathan Gold, this bougie classy foodie fest takes place in Santa Monica and is entering its second year in 2025. This one has an generous portion sizes and an entire dessert venue.

This high end affair brought a very beautiful crowd excited to party and celebrate LA’s culinary prowess and innovation. Proceeds of this foodie-focused event benefited the Artist Plate Project, which provides food, crisis services, housing and other critical aid to people experiencing homelessness and instability. In keeping with Women’s History Month, the festival also highlighted female-owned restaurants in LA, thanks to official partner Regarding Her (RE:Her), a national nonprofit dedicated to accelerating the growth of women entrepreneurs in the food and beverage space. Learn more about our favorite bites in Local Magazine.

Looking to get out of LA or looking for calmer food festival vibes? Check out the new Palm Springs International Food and Wine Festival that takes place in November, Palm Desert Food and Wine Festival in March, Ojai Wine Festival in June, Palm Springs Passion4Pinot Fest in February, and Palm Springs Taste of On the Mark that occurs this November and often twice a year.