Gather up your appetites! The Los Angeles Times has recently released the program schedule for the inaugural Food Bowl, a festival celebrating the city’s dynamic food scene and promoting awareness about hunger, spanning the entire month of May. From extensive dining events to panel discussions the LA Food Bowl is definitely stirring up the pot with this one. 

From May 1-31st LA will become a massive haven for foodies and culinary masters alike. This isn't' the first time The Los Angeles Times has thrown a bash for palette explorers out there. They are the masterminds behind, The Taste, a block party on the Paramount lot. The Food Bowl will be bigger and better than ever. The program will deliver something for everyone.

The centerpiece of Food Bowl will be Night Market, a bustling outdoor dining experience, held at Grand Park. Inspired by the global street food scene, Night Market will include 50 restaurants and food trucks, drinks and live entertainment each evening May 10-14.

In addition to the Night Market there are many more amazing experiences and panels that are not to be missed. We've selected a few favorites to help you decide:

Food Bowl highlights include:

·         Chef’s Fable: Times restaurant critic Jonathan Gold hosts a pre-Food Bowl conversation with Niki Nakayama, Magnus Nilsson and David Gelb (director of “Chef’s Table” and “Jiro Dreams of Sushi”) followed by a screening of “Chef” at the Wiltern on April 30

·         Magnus Nilsson’s “Nordic: A Photographic Essay of Landscapes, Food and People” on exhibition at Union Station May 1-31

·         Feeding the 5000 presented by Feedback: a communal feast made entirely out of food that would otherwise have been wasted in Pershing Square on May 4

·         Food for Soul: Cooking Is a Call to Act, a symposium with Massimo Bottura, Mario Batali, Dominque Crenn, Roy Choi and Mary Sue Milliken at the Ace Hotel on May 5

·         Wolfgang Puck is presented with the Los Angeles Times Gold Award during a retrospective dinner and conversation about four decades of dining in L.A. at Spago on May 8

·         Night Market: a bustling street market featuring 50 food vendors, outdoor dining areas and DJs in Grand Park May 10-14

·         Beast Feast with Fergus Henderson featuring April Bloomfield (The Spotted Pig), Kevin Bludso, Nancy Silverton, Dario Cecchini (Antica Macelleria Cecchini) and Jeremy Fox (Rustic Canyon) on the patio outside Border Grill on May 21

·         A celebration of the new Filipino food movement at Grand Central Market with a premiere screening of the documentary film “ULAM” at the Million Dollar Theatre on May 21

·         Soirée Poulet: Fried Chicken 3 Ways with Thomas Keller at Bouchon on May 31

Through individual programs with restaurants, chefs, bars, coffee shops, food trucks, hotels and markets, the Food Bowl schedule will include hundreds of events May 1-31, including over Memorial Day weekend.

The Food Bowl serves as the premier dining destination alongside world-renowned chefs in rare local appearances. The best part - the event will support food access, sustainability and waste reduction through charity partners and participating events. The charity partners are: No Kid Hungry, Food Forward and PATH (People Assisting the Homeless). Festival sponsors include Citi® and Southern California Acura Dealers. For the program schedule, additional information and event updates, visit lafoodbowl.com and connect on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @ LAfoodbowl (#LAfoodbowl).

Stay up to date with the latest as there will be new additions leading up to the day of the festival. Check HERE for the full lineup!