In anticipation of the January brick and mortar opening of Yess in the Arts District, the team behind the YESS AQUATIC food truck will host a series of pop-ups that will run through to Christmas. The pop-up is being held at a private club space also in the Arts District.
Chef Junya Yamasaki will offer vegan, pescetarian and regular menus with local ingredients like wild California mushrooms, wild local ikejime fish, grass-fed rare breed Californian cattle, Santa Barbara uni and spiny lobster, with an added focus on nuts, legumes and vegetables of the area. A signature customer favorite, Monk's vegan chirashi sushi, is an inspiration from the chef’s time spent living and cooking in a Japanese zen temple. The seasonal dish includes red sake, kasu vinegar, toasted nori, chrysanthemum flower, black beans, sesame, persimmon and walnuts that are toasted whole on a comal until they smoke inside their own skin. Reservations are available through resy  and updates are posted to the Yess IG. 

Dunkin will open its Next Generation Restaurant in Westwood on Friday, Dec. 2  at 1001 Gayley Ave. Complete with a new, warm interior color palette, the restaurant also will offer atmospheric lighting, complimentary Wi-Fi, and an innovative tap system. The open modern design includes a front-facing bakery case and Dunkin’s signature cold beverages are poured through an innovative tap system, serving a variety of consistently cold sips, such as iced coffee, iced tea, cold brew, and nitro-infused cold brew. Crew members also can serve  drinks to order from espresso machines, plus there’s an area dedicated to mobile pickups so that members of the Dunkin’® Rewards program who order ahead via Dunkin’s Mobile App can get in and out of the restaurant at record speed. For all orders placed for pickup inside the restaurant, guests will be able to track the status of their order via a new digital order status board. 

Runner up MasterChef  Chef Derrick Fox from season six of FOX's competitive cooking series, has opened Epic Mega Cookie Co. at RUNWAY Playa Vista. Known for mega-sized cookies – a dozen cookies worth of dough baked into one cookie - flavors include Epic S’Mores and Brown Butter & Salt.
And more cookies - Zooies is expanding into Culver City with a new cookie cart at Citizen Public Market. To celebrate, Zooies will be introducing a Culver City-exclusive cookie,  Espresso Crunch.  The cookie combines chopped chocolate-covered espresso beans, milk chocolate chips and dark chocolate chips. The Zooies cookie cart will be open every Thursday - Saturday from 2:00 - 10:00 p.m. starting today.
Now you can grab food from two Iconic LA brands, Fatburger and Hot Dog on a Stick, under one roof in Valley Village. The restaurant, which also will house Buffalo’s Express, will celebrate the debut of the new location with a grand opening celebration on Thursday, Dec. 8, starting at 10 a.m. The first 100 customers will score a free original Fatburger and free fries will be handed out all day long with any purchase. The Fatburger, Buffalo’s Express and Hot Dog on a Stick tri-branded restaurant is located at 4806 Laurel Canyon Blvd., in Valley Village.

Local Long Beach Distillery will celebrate Repeal Day on Sunday, Dec.  4, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., at Roxanne’s and Wille’s Tin Shop (1115 East Wardlow Road). There will be performances by Jazzie of She Sings, She Swings, Downtown Long Beach musical residents.
Think: One Jazz Collective, Exhibition Room veteran’s Suitcase Stompers, Bixby Knoll native duo featuring Bryan Baker, Old Boy & Baker and the evening ending with rockabilly group The Rattle Rollers. There will also be complimentary family activities at Wille’s Workshop, Santa’s Activity Workshop and meet-and-greet with Santa, distillery tour with complimentary flight tasting with any purchase during the event, and a meet-and-greet with head distiller, distillery themed food and cocktail menu with access to the speakeasy bar. Expect the return of the Jackrabbit Whiskey Glazed Bacon BBQ burger, the Jackrabbit BBQ Hot Dog with fire-grilled sausage and a craft cocktail menu that features Strawberry Fields and Pine Avenue Gin. Roxanne’s kids menu also will be available for purchase. No tickets needed for entry, all activities and performances are complimentary with any purchase at Roxanne’s, The Exhibition Room or Wille’s Tin Shop. (21+) to consume any alcohol.
The immersive spooky Krampus’ Cove pop-up bar from the creators of Black Lagoon, Erin Hayes and Kelsey Ramage, comes to Lost Property Bar starting on Tuesday, Dec.  6, with seatings every night at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. The two-hour immersive, guided experience offers creative craft cocktails and lots of wicked surprises. 

North Italia will kick-off a wine-focused event series called Tasting Tuesdays starting on Dec. 6 from 5:30 p.m. to  6:30 p.m., at North’s El Segundo location. Each event in the new series will walk guests through several of the restaurant’s Italian wine offerings and the dishes they pair with, for $65 per person. The ticket cost includes all tasting bites and sips. Attendees also will be sent home with several North-exclusive items, and a few lucky guests will even leave with a bottle of wine. Reserve here via OpenTable Experiences.
Mulberry Street Pizzeria will celebrate its 31st Anniversary with 31-cent cheese slices on Tuesday, Dec.  6, from noon to 5 p.m., at all Los Angeles locations. Proceeds will be donated to the California Prostate Cancer Coalition.
Caldo Verde, Downtown L.A. Proper Hotel’s signature Portuguese-inspired restaurant helmed by chef Suzanne Goin and restaurateur Caroline Styne, will host an evening inspired by Neal Bodenheimer’s CURE on Sunday, Dec. 11. For one night only, the duo will partner with the popular figure on the New Orleans drinking scene to offer an experience in celebration of Bodenheimer’s first book based on the inventive cocktails served at his renowned cocktail bar. 

 Released last month, Cure: New Orleans Drinks and How to Mix ‘Em tells the city’s story through 100 cocktails and features interviews with local figures such as Ian Neville, musician and New Orleans funk royalty, plus a few tips on how to survive your first Mardi Gras. As part of an ongoing series of events spotlighting chefs and restaurants from around the globe that have inspired Goin and Styne throughout the years, the event provides an opportunity for Bodeheimer’s highly sought after creations to be enjoyed in a distinct setting via a specially curated pre-fixe menu inspired by the book, and prepared by Caldo Verde’s beverage and culinary teams. 
Sumo wrestlers will descend upon Los Angeles this week at The Mayan for Sumo + Sushi, the ultimate interactive sumo experience. Sumo + Sushi is hosted by Sumo legend, Konishiki. With a peak weight of 633 lbs., he is the all-time heaviest wrestler in the history of the sport. Born and raised in Hawaii, Konishiki also is the first non-Japanese-born wrestler to reach ōzeki - the second highest rank in Sumo. The special three-night event will feature a glimpse into the history of sumo, live matches and a Q&A portion where audience members will have the chance to interact with the fighters. A select few guests will even ‘Get In The Ring!’ to take on the wrestler of their choice.
If you’re looking to watch the show without a food inclusion, you can purchase ‘The Show [Viewing Only]’ at $75 + fees. Guests looking to enjoy a bento box during the event can purchase ‘Sushi + The Show’ at $150 + fees. For those looking to be closest to the action with a premium bento box and included drink, you’ll want to buy ‘Front Row: Sushi + The Show’ at $275 + fees. And there’s a VIP Sky Suite featuring an open bar and your own dedicated sushi chef rolling sushi on demand. Sushi is being crafted by Kombu Sushi for Front Row and Sky Suite ticket holders and Sushi Roku for Sushi + The Show ticket holders. Limited upgrades to ‘Get In The Ring’ with a wrestler are available for $100.
Aria Korean Street Food, a family owned restaurant in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco serving Korean fried chicken, Korean tacos, Kimbap, and other items, is coming to Los Angeles and can be ordered online from Aria Korean Street Food for pickup and delivery via DoorDash. Customers ordering for the first time can get 30% off* their order (up to $10 ) between now and Jan. 31 using promo code ARIALA30.
What’s Popping Up is a weekly column in the L.A. Weekly that explores all that’s new in food and drink.