Food Celebration Dinner: Giraud, Manzke, Drago, Nugent & Ramos Fight Hunger For You

Lee Oneness Foundation

Sure, you can stalk Walter Manzke at Le Saint Amour, or trail Alain Giraud around the Santa Monica Wednesday market for details on his new restaurant project, but why not leave all that to Eater (or TMZ) and enjoy the chefs in their natural habitat, like in a restaurant. Better yet, why not follow them around for a somewhat better cause -- like fighting world hunger -- while you eat their food, and that of chefs Celestino Drago (Drago Centro, etc.), Carolyn Nugent and Alen Ramos (Joel Robuchon, Bottega Louis), all at the same time.

On October 24th, these five celebrated chefs are gathering together at Drago Centro downtown to cook an elaborate 5-course dinner to benefit Lee Oneness Foundation on the occasion of World Food Day.

The Food Celebration Dinner will nicely showcase the styles of all five chefs. Although the menu is subject to change, as of now it features a first course of sautéed foie gras with figs and banyuls sauce; risotto with braised octopus; hamachi sashimi with basil, cilantro and chile. The second course: Santa Barbara prawns and sea urchin custard with egg yolk and udon in katsuo-bushi broth (guess who's doing that one). A third course will be duck ravioli with truffles (still up in the air about white or black); and a fourth course will be veal, both braised and roasted, with wild mushrooms. Pastry chefs Nugent and Ramos are in charge of the fifth course: golden yuzu consomme with raspberry pearls, mascarpone sorbet and white chocolate croquant; and, finally, mignardises of "exploding" truffles; vanilla, pistachio and cherry financier; and passion fruit marshmallows.

The sommelier for the dinner is Michael Shearin and the wine list is curated by Paul Wasserman. Each course will offer a wine pairing at three different price levels, which will be available by the bottle and the glass, with all wines on the list available at a special case price for that evening only. (The reserve wine list will be online later today.) Good thing you're fighting world hunger with your wallet, as you may need to call a cab to get you home after all that.

This dinner, which includes a silent auction, is the first of a series. Check the Oneness Foundation website for information on future dinners.

The nonprofit foundation, founded and run by Los Angeles philanthropist and serious wine geek Liz Lee, provides food and water to children around the world who are suffering from poverty and hunger. Based in Palos Verdes, the foundation, which was started in 2009, has current projects in Kenya, Peru and Cambodia and an upcoming project in Haiti.

Food Celebration Dinner at Drago Centro: October 24th, from 6 - 11 p.m. 525 S. Flower Street, Los Angeles; (213) 228-8998. For more details go to www.foodcelebrationdinner.com. $150 for a 5-course dinner menu plus tax and 20% gratuity.