The shy and baby faced Chef Mikey Stern may know his own restaurant’s kitchen better than any other 28 year old executive chef in America. And with good reason: he’s spent more than a 1/3 of his life cooking at Michael’s the 3rd street Santa Monica institution. more ›

Walking through the Santa Monica Farmers' Market, Rustic Canyon's Chef Evan Funke’s movement brings to mind Ray Liotta’s iconic stroll through the Copacabana in Goodfellas. Similar to in Liotta’s portrayal of Henry Hill, everyone seems to know and love Chef Funke as he’s greeted enthusiastically with high fives and hollers from farmers, peers and friends alike. Chef Funke moves from stall to stall with an unassumingly cool focus. Conversing in both English and Spanish and sporting heavy tattoos, he emanates a unique California-esque dexterity. In a way perhaps only a California chef can, he selects products with concentration and passion while exuding the same casual disposition one might have picking a T-shirt to wear for the day. more ›

At 8 am, as many of the inhabitants of Los Angeles sit gridlocked in traffic or languish a few extra minutes in bed before facing a day of waiting tables and waiting for the phone to ring, the Santa Monica Farmer's Market exists as a tranquil gem. As the waves lap the empty beach only a block away, California farmers unpack their vans and trucks at Arizona and 2nd, piling tables high with fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and flowers... more ›

Chef Neal Fraser of Grace and BLD believes the art of cooking needs daily cultivation. Even if he has 10 restaurants, he will always be exactly where he wants to be - in the kitchen. As an LA native he has “a personal vendetta” to elevate LA into the echelon of the best restaurant cities in the world. With the development of a new Grace like fine dining restaurant downtown that will grow at least a third of the produce on site, and a new BLD slated to open in Pasadena early next year, Chef Fraser shows no signs of leaving the kitchen. LAist caught up with the busy chef at the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market (as he bought green beans for his daughter) to provide details about moving Grace to downtown, the struggle of when to pull a dish from the menu and how he is inspired by Wonderbread. more ›