The team behind Ellie’s and Ginger’s—led by Chef Jason Witzl and FOH extraordinaire Molly Sirody—is tackling a tradition that most Italians and Italian-Americans know very well and most food-centric Americans know from the stress-inducing series that is “The Bear.” It’s the Feast of the Seven Fishes, taking over Partake Collective’s R&D kitchen—the same place that hosted my inaugural Long Beach Grand Prix Fixe chef competition—across December. Tickets are now on sale.
It not only marks some of Chef Jason’s best food—including my favorite dish he served while competing in the Grand Prix Fixe—but has some noticeable deviations from Ellie’s that showcase Chef Jason’s desire to look beyond his Alamitos Beach staple.
“This is something we’ve long wanted to do, and Partake kind of presented us with the best opportunity to do that after we participated in the competition and got a tour,” Molly said. “And we are really trying to assure that everyone has a wonderful experience. Beyond the seven courses, we will be offering wine throughout the meal, including direct pairings. We hope it reflects a new side of what we can do from a hospitality angle.”
For those who have participated in Chef Jason’s stellar tasting menus at Ginger’s, you know you’d better come hungry. And this is assuredly not a knock—anyone who knows me knows I am a happy fat boy‚ equally delighted to put down some serious amounts of food—but the Feast of the Seven Fishes is welcomingly balanced in portions.
What to expect at Feast of the Seven Fishes at Partake Collective.
A Meximoto from Baja is leveled with Serrano chile and mint for starters. Chunks of blue crab finished in a Frank’s Red Hot butter top a buttered rectangle of milk toast with plenty of chives and fresh slivers of Fresno chiles. Chunks of salmon are comingled with Chef Jason’s green goddess—which has this wonderful little note of Serrano, a favorite of the chef—and a classic puttanesca before being sat in a pool of olive oil, topped with chervil, chives, and pistachios. A seared diver scallop atop a soubise of apple, onion, garlic, and white wine, paired with some wondrous chanterelle mushrooms and a dusting of black truffle.
And then you head into the heavier bits. A gorgeous potato gnocchi doused in Calabrian chiles, garlic confit, butter, chives, and Maine lobster chunks. One of my favorite dishes he’s ever created: a seared black sea bass atop a garbanzo bean salad and foie gras hummus. Plenty of Serrano. Perfectly acidic. Plenty of salt. Profusely umami-filled.
And then it ends with a massive shared plate of grilled’n’halved prawns atop whipped labne and couscous. This sits next to a chimmichurri-slathered New York—parsley, oregano, mint, garlic, lemon—with hibachi-style grilled Italian sweet peppers. It’s a shockingly bright dish that’s more worthy of a champagne than it is a hefty red, a testament to Chef Jason’s love of tart with fat.
A look at the food of the Feast of the Seven Fishes presented by Ellie’s.
Wonderfully light. Brilliantly balanced, with hefty heaps of heat, umami, and salt. Here’s what the food looks like.
Meximoto: pickled shallot | peppers
Blue crab: Frank’s Red Hot butter | Fresno chile | milk bread
King salmon: puttanesca | green goddess | pistachio
Diver scallop: apple soubise | chanterelle mushrooms | black truffle
Gnocchi: Maine lobster | garlic confit | Calabrian chile
Sea bass: foie gras hummus | chickpeas | zhoug
Creekstone New York and colossal prawns: Italian peppers | couscous | golden raisins | chimichurri verde
The importance of Ellie’s—and the need for Chef Jason Witzl to evolve.
When Ellie’s opened in 2017, it was quietly radical for Long Beach. At a time when the city’s dining scene was but a small reflection of today, Chef Jason brought something that felt both familiar and elevated. It was polished. It was ingredient-driven. And it was that Italian bistro that, while ubiquitous in Los Angeles, was nearly nonexistent here. Ellie’s wasn’t red-sauce nostalgia; it was coastal Italian elegance interpreted through a Southern California lens.
Nearly a decade later, Chef Jason (definitively paired with Molly)’s success with Ellie’s still reads like the beginning of a much larger story. The restaurant that once defined his culinary voice has become, in his own words, a comfortable rhythm. And now, beginning with this feast, pushes him toward reinvention. He’s hinted at expansion, at projects that reimagine what his cooking looks like in an era where diners crave refinement, relevance, and affordability.
“Partake could be home to some monthly dinners that are just me having fun so I can keep that creative spark alive,” Chef Jason said.
And Chef? We’re here for it. As Ellie’s approaches its ten-year mark, it remains a cornerstone of Long Beach dining—a space that elevated the city’s expectations while never losing its sense of neighborhood warmth. But for Chef Jason and, dare I say, his patrons, the next chapter feels imminent. The chef who helped put Long Beach on the culinary map seems ready to redraw it again. Let this feast mark the beginning.
Feast of the Seven Fishes, presented by Chef Jason Witzl and Molly Sirody of Ellie’s, will be hosted throughout Decemebr at Partake Collective, located at 456 Elm Ave. For tickets, click here.
