Square Meal: A 3-Day Feast

From the concept behind a stellar restaurant experience to the architecture of a well-plated dish, design touches the culinary world in countless ways. In 2008 we created Dwell's Square Meal section as a place in which to explore the intersection of food and design. At this year's Dwell on Design we're thrilled to bring Square Meal to life! Join us in Los Angeles June 26-28 as we look at the food world through a design lens. We'll be hosting panels, lectures, live demonstrations, and LA's first mobile restaurant row on Saturday evening June 27, featuring some of the city's best eateries on wheels. Check out the schedule of events below and don't miss Square Meal at Dwell on Design!
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Friday June 26

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Square Meal on the Street
Typical street food in American cities has long been associated with a limited menu of greasy hot dogs, soft pretzels, and barely passable tacos. But as adventurous chefs give up the heat of restaurant kitchens for the experimental territory of mobile eateries, urbanites are finding a much wider array—and a much higher quality—of food on the go. In this session we look at how the unpredictable atmosphere of street-side dining and the advent of social technology have turned the dreaded "roach coach" into a sought-out destination.
Panelists: Kam Miceli (Owner, Green Truck), Larry Bain and Sue Moore (Co-Founders, Let's Be Frank), Christopher Rutherford (Co-Founder, saveourtacotrucks.org)
Moderator: Sarah Rich, Dwell Editor
Location: Los Angeles Convention Center
Time: 12pm-12:45pm

2009 AIA Los Angeles Restaurant Design Awards
The 5th Annual AIA Los Angeles Restaurant Design Awards Ceremony will be held on Friday evening, June 26. These awards celebrate excellence in the design of restaurants, cafes, bars, lounges and nightclubs. A panel of distinguished jurors, composed of Jonathan Gold (Restaurant Critic, LA Weekly), Cedd Moses (Founder/CEO, 213), Michael Palladino, FAIA (Design Partner, Richard Meier & Partners Architects), and Louise (Lu) Sandhaus (Graphic Designer, Louise Sandhaus Design-LSD) selected this year's award recipients. You can attend the awards by purchasing a Dwell Conference Plus ticket or, if you are in the design trade, a Friday Evening add-on ticket to your Trade Exhibition ticket.

Coolhaus Contest Winner Announced!
On Friday evening June 26 we'll announce the winner of Dwell's contest to name the next architecturally-inspired ice cream sandwich by Coolhaus. Coolhaus will debut the new flavor on Saturday night June 27 at our Mobile Restaurant Row (see below).

Saturday June 27

Mobile Restaurant Row
Saturday night, Dwell will be corralling some of LA's favorite mobile eateries for the city's first mobile restaurant row as part of our Night at the Movies. The one-night-only street food bazaar will include a classic taco truck, a modern hot dog cart, organic fast food, ice cream sandwiches, cupcakes and more. Come hungry! (The restaurants that will be rolling in are listed here.)
Location: The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA
                152 North Central Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90013
Time: 5pm-8:30pm

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Sunday June 28 at the LA Convention Center

The Gestalt of Meat: From Art to Eating
Meat. It's many things to many people. From slaughter to sustenance this panel takes a look at how we react to meat and how art and information can mediate our interaction with it.
Panelists: Charlie Grosso (Photographer, Charlie Studio), Sasha Wizansky (Co-Founder and Editor, Meatpaper), Neal Fraser (Co-Owner, Grace Restaurant, BLD Restaurant)
Moderator: Evan Kleiman, Host of KCRW's Good Food
Time: 1-1:30pm

The Food Network: Social Media and the Way We Eat
For many a web-savvy urbanite, Twitter has become the new dinner bell. While we still can't enjoy a fabulous meal virtually (and with we luck never will), wired gastronomes have built a vast online culinary community that serves up everything but the food itself. Bloggers, Tweeters, and nomadic restauranteurs offer some plainspeak about how the Internet is feeding a movement.
Panelists: Sarah J. Gim (Editor, Tastespotting), Mark Manguera (Founder, Kogi), Mike Prasad (Brand/New Media Director, Kogi), Freya Estreller (Co-Founder, Coolhaus, Farchitecture)
Moderator: Sarah Rich, Dwell Editor
Time: 1:30-2pm

Victory Garden and the City
In the summer of 2008, an old post-war tradition was revived in San Francisco with the planting of a 10,000-square-foot Victory Garden in front of City Hall. A symbol of sustainability and self-sufficiency, the garden became something of a character in itself—a member of the San Francisco community. Come hear Victory Garden designer John Bela talk about planning, planting, and harvesting this epic, edible landscape.
Speaker: John Bela (Founder/Director, Rebar)
Moderator: Evan Kleiman, Host of KCRW's Good Food
Time: 2-2:30pm

Modern Taste: The Creative Potential of the Home Cook
An active culinary counterculture has coalesced recently around underground dining events that deliberately diverge from the restaurant experience. Michael Cirino will discuss how the freedom of cooking at home expands the boundaries of creativity in food preparation and design, and how modern cooking equipment and techniques allow the highest level of haute cuisine to be created in a home kitchen.
Speaker: Michael Cirino (Founder, A Razor A Shiny Knife)
Moderator: Evan Kleiman, Host of KCRW's Good Food
Time: 2:30-3pm

Freshly Picked: LA's Thriving Farmer's Markets
In a city that seems to go on forever, the country is not so far away. Southern California farmers having been bringing their produce into LA for decades, but the city's market scene has reached new heights of popularity as the local food movement takes root. Hear straight from the farmers about the strength of LA's urban-rural connection.
Panelists: Laura Avery (Manager, Santa Monica Farmers' Markets), Bridget Bueche (Southern California Executive Chef and Marketing Manager, Sub-Zero Wolf), Mariella Balbi (Chocolatier, Guanni Organic), Molly Gean (Co-Owner, Harry's Berries)
Moderator: Evan Kleiman, Host of KCRW's Good Food
Time: 3-3:30pm

Square Meal in Process, in the Valcucine Sustainable Kitchen

Demonstration: Little Flower Makes Candy
Candy pro Christine Moore shows the stages of lollipop making. From hot sugar syrup to molding to chilling, it's an exercise in precision that turns a few cups of sugar into a sweet work of art.
Presenter: Christine Moore (Owner, Little Flower Candy Company)
Time: 12-12:30pm

Demonstration: How to Cook an Egg (Exactly How You Want It)
In this demonstration, Michael Cirino will display all of the stages an egg goes through as it is cooked to very specific temperatures (54C-74C), explaining how achieving a perfectly cooked egg is just a matter of learning a little science.
Presenter: Michael Cirino (Founder, A Razor A Shiny Knife)
Time: 12:30-1pm

For more information about Dwell on Design and to buy tickets, visit dwellondesign.com.

Chair and Vegetables image: Copyright Aya Brackett

Sarah Rich
When not working in design, Sarah Rich writes, talks and forecasts about food and consumer culture.

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