Inspiring Conversations with Zach Brooks of Smorgasburg LA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Zach Brooks

Hi Zach, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I started my career working in radio in Boston, LA and finally New York. In 2006 while working at Sirius Satellite Radio I started a blog called Midtown Lunch, which launched my food writing career. I eventually moved back to LA in 2009 where I wrote about food and launched the podcast Food is the New Rock. In 2016 Smorgasburg hired me to help launch their LA market, initially hiring me to curate the food vendors, but eventually bringing me on to run the market as its General Manager… which I’ve been doing every since!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Nothing is every smooth… but I’ve been incredibly lucky in my career to get to work with so many amazing people at some truly special places. WFNX (Boston), Indie 103 (LA) and Sirius Satellite Radio (NYC) in radio, Serious Eats as a food writer, Earwolf and Headgum as podcaster, and now Smorgasburg- which prides itself on being an incubator for food food businesses. When we first launched in LA, it was not easy getting a ton of people to come to a hidden parking lot in DTLA every Sunday. And alot of our early vendors couldn’t afford to keep vending. But we knew we had something special, and committed to the kind of quality and consistency that every food business needs in order to be sustainable and successful.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
First and foremost, Smorgasburg is a super fun place to go eat delicious food every single Sunday. But I’m most proud of how many chefs and small food businesses have passed through Smorgasburg over the past 9 years on their way to opening brick and mortar locations and solidifying themselves as essential parts of LA’s food scene.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://la.smorgasburg.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/midtownlunchla
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/smorgasburg-los-angeles