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Brad Metzger’s obsession with hospitality began at age 14, when he got a job lugging ice and trash for a catering company and working Hollywood premiere parties. After college, he worked at L.A. institutions including Wolfgang Puck’s Granita, The Grill on the Alley, Chaya, Ruth’s Chris and others. With the connections he made, he launched his own recruiting firm, Brad Metzger Restaurant Solutions. In 2018, Metzger noticed a lack of B2B events for the L.A. restaurant industry and launched the invite-only LA Chef Conference to bring chefs and other industry professionals together to share knowledge and foster community. Eight years later, the conference has become one of the hottest industry tickets in the country—literally.
This year’s event featured a ticket lottery restricted only to restaurant industry workers (no vendors or sales), and the event currently has a 400-person waitlist. We caught up with Metzger to get the skinny on this year’s all-day event, which features more than 100 industry insiders and takes place October 5.
—Interview by Kelly Dobkin, edited by Bianca Prieto
(Photo credit LA Chef Conference)
What led you to create the LA Chef Conference?
Back in 2018, there was nothing industry-focused like it at all at the time in L.A. I had been to the StarChefs’ Chefs Congress in NYC, which was really good at the time. But I felt like there needed to be an industry gathering like that. The LA Times Food Bowl came out in 2017, but again, it was mostly for consumers. Amy Scattergood was running it, and I was friendly with her at the time. She was interested in the idea, and she put it under the umbrella of Food Bowl for that first year. We then hosted the first-ever Chef Conference event at the IPIC Theatres with only 120 people.
(Photo credit Nicholas Gingold / @craftmedia_nick)
How has it evolved from what it was in 2018 to what it is now?
It’s grown bigger than I ever expected. Each year, we improve the content and programming via feedback and questionnaires, focusing on three core elements: content, food and community. For this year, we had 970 registrations with seating capped at 600 seats, so we’re maintaining between 600 and 657 attendees at any given time. We intentionally limited media presence to prioritize line cooks and other restaurant workers.
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System error: Tech stack out of sync
The backend problem behind your prices
You've spent years connecting every guest touchpoint, ordering, reservations, delivery apps. That part's mostly solved. What's still broken is behind it: your POS, inventory and pricing often don't agree with each other, and guests notice before you do.
NCR Voyix brings POS, payments, inventory and guest data into one platform, so every system shows the same price, the same stock, the same guest, across every location.
This guide breaks down why omnichannel alone isn't enough, and what changes when your backend systems finally agree.
What panels are you most excited about in this year’s lineup?
I’m really excited for the panel called "The It Factor" featuring Holly Fox, Justin Pichetrungsi, Shane Call, Jon Shook, and Johnny Ray Zone. Basically, what makes a restaurant cool (and allows it to sustain popularity)? I think that’s such an important question right now. I’m also excited for "Old School, New School: The Evolution of Kitchen Culture and Leadership," which addresses fine dining sustainability and workplace welfare, featuring John Yao, Michael Cimarusti, Susan Feniger, Kwame Onwuachi, and moderator Ellen Bennett. Also, Danny Meyer, who is an industry legend, is scheduled for a book signing and talk, and a separate panel will explore the Future of Food Media with participants like Matt Rodbard, Danielle Dorsey, Bill Esparza, Luca Servodio, and Mona Holmes.
The Prep’s Take
The restaurant industry is not just about food. It’s about the individual people behind the plate, as well as the community of chefs, owners, line cooks and the dozens of workers keeping the restaurant running. LA Chef Conference uplifts these roles as well as creates a space for connection, networking and an opportunity to learn.
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