On Monday evening, an unlikely group of people rolled up to Damian, Enrique Olvera’s modern Mexican restaurant in the Arts District that many people consider to be one of the best in the world.
Emerging from a Black SUV and a Maybach were right-wing political commentator Tucker Carlson, billionaire Rick Caruso, former speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy, and Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump's Director of National Intelligence.
Given the on-going immigration raids across Southern California that have resulted in over 5,000 arrests and hundreds of mostly Latino families being torn apart, seeing people with close ties to Trump, the Republican party, and the far-right movement at a boundary-pushing Mexican restaurant in Downtown Los Angeles surprised some folks.
“It was pretty jarring to see in the middle of L.A.,” an eye-witness who happened to be eating across the street at Bestia, told L.A. TACO.
Earlier that day, Carlson, Caruso, and Gabbard spoke at All-In Summit, an annual investor-focused, three-day festival founded by All-In, a popular podcast that launched during the pandemic that has platformed President Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and Vice President JD Vance in recent years.
In addition to their hit podcast and annual summit, the All-In “besties,” as the hosts call themselves, are also launching a $1,200 extra añejo tequila, and they regularly host meetups and poker nights across the country.
At this year’s fourth annual All-In Summit, attendees paid over $7,000 a ticket to watch robots hit each other with boxing gloves, munch on gold foil wrapped baked potatoes and “chef carved” New York strip steaks, and listen to billionaire Mark Cuban and Tucker Carlson “debate” one another and bro-out on stage at the Shrine Auditorium where the summit took place.
This year's list of speakers included Alex Karp, the controversial co-founder and CEO of Palantir, a multi-national “data mining” technology company with ties to the genocide in Gaza and the immigration raids here in Los Angeles, Ari Emanuel, the head of Endeavor (formerly WME), video journalist Cleo Abram, the CEOs of Eli Lilly, NASDAQ, and YouTube, as well as pro wrestler Triple X. Past speakers have included JD Vance, Elon Musk, Bari Weiss, and Peter Thiel.
On Monday, the summit attracted a small group of protesters outside the Shrine Auditorium holding signs reading “Palantir Espia” (“Palantir spies”) and “People Over Billionaires.” The protest was reportedly led by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
“The All-In Summit is hosting Palantir CEO Alex Karp, who profits off of surveillance, deportations, and genocide,” the BlueSky account Purge Palantir wrote on the social media platform.
A few protesters also showed up outside of Damian after Caruso, Gabbard, Carlson, and McCarthy arrived at the restaurant, according to the anonymous source who had dinner at Bestia.
When reached for comment, Maya Del Olmo, the director of communications and marketing for Casamata, Olvera’s restaurant group, told L.A. TACO, “we are not in a position to comment further.”
“As a restaurant, our role is to provide hospitality,” Del Olmo continued.
When pressed further, Del Olmo clarified that Damian staff were not involved in the event.
“Just to be clear, this event was planned by a third party that only used the venue on a day that Damian was closed,” Del Olmo said. “Damian did not provide food or services for the event, and we were not informed of the guest list.”
When asked if Damian regularly rents out their space and if the event was associated with All-In Summit, Del Olmo responded, “We do occasionally rent out the space and work with party planners, caterers, and wedding planners.”
Del Olmo could not confirm or deny if the event was associated with All-In Summit.
“I cannot confirm that information, as we deal directly with the planner, who is bound by a confidentiality agreement,” Del Olmo said. “This is why the assistants’ names were not disclosed to us.”
Del Olmo declined to comment further when asked if Damian would have rented out their restaurant to the event organizers if the guest list had been disclosed.
“You’re welcome to take a look at Damian’s past collaborations and the kinds of events our team usually supports, which reflect the values we uphold,” Del Olmo said.
In January, Damian, led by their ‘Jefe de Cocina’ Chuy Cervantes, in partnership with Comunidades Indigenas en Liderazgo (CIELO), an Indigenous women-led non-profit organization that works with Indigenous communities in Los Angeles, fed Mexican firefighters who came to L.A. to fight the wildfires.
And this Saturday, September 13, Damian is hosting a fundraiser for CIELO at their sister taqueria, Ditroit.
In March, Olvera catered an event that raised over a million dollars to help fund critical nutrition efforts for women and children around the globe.
The two-star Michelin chef has previously spoken openly against Trump.
During a 2020 interview Olvera expressed concerns over what was then a possible second Trump term.
“Of course, I’m concerned about the re-election of Trump. I think the discourse of polarization that has happened in the U.S. is not positive for anyone, not only for Mexicans. Even though I am in love with my country, I’m not a nationalist, I don’t believe in strong national sentiments,” Olvera said.
L.A. TACO Editor-In-Chief Javier Cabral contributed to this report.
