White trumpet mushroom salad by the Backyard. Photo by Bob Lee for the Los Angeles Beat.
In a summer tradition near and dear to the hearts of LA arts folks, the Hollywood Bowl hosted its annual Camrose Picnic on a balmy Thursday evening, giving attendees a chance to sample some of the culinary delights that you can munch like popcorn while checking out some live entertainment under the stars.
The Bowl has always been a landmark in this city, a physically beautiful venue with exceptional sound even in the cheap seats, and an open invitation to bring in your own food and drink, making it one of the most affordable nights out in town. (That’s if you forgo the pricey boxes at the front, most of which are held by subscribers anyway, so don’t worry about it too much.) But its on-site restaurants are upping their game every year. making it a tempting option to splurge a little, leave the picnic basket in the car and get served a full meal right where you sit.
Ann’s Wine Bar served a delicious pizza-like grilled flatbread with chorizo, with enough of a kick to stand apart from anything we’ve bought at a concession stand this year. The Backyard presented an appealing white trumpet mushroom salad, studded with pine nuts, that would be a fine addition to any picnic basket. Supper In Your Seats had samples of their delicious grilled pork loin, as well as a tempting goat cheese toast with wafer thin prosciutto. Magpie’s ice cream was a popular destination, as attendees compared their various customized ice cream & topping combos.
Imbibers can get a commemorative Hollywood Bowl 100 West Coast Pale Ale from Boomtown Brewery, the can portraying the Bowl all lit up with fireworks on a typical summer night, the contents worthy of celebrating themselves. Summer nights at the Bowl are definitely a memorable enough LA tradition to merit this commemoration. There are some incredible shows on the calendar this year, and the surroundings continue to be top notch. We’ll see you on the shuttle bus.
