A dedication ceremony was held downtown on a cool-ish Thursday May 30, to rename a small plaza and its spacious “teaching kitchen” LA Cocina de Gloria Molina — literally, “the kitchen of Gloria Molina.” The late Los Angeles County Supervisor Molina would have been pleased to be honored on the day before what would have been her 76th birthday.
A short walk from the famed Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, the teaching kitchen and flexible event space had been known as LA Plaza Cocina and is part of the non-profit LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, a Smithsonian affiliate museum.
LA Plaza Cocina has been admired for its focus on “the history, culture, and influence of Mexican and Mexican American cuisine. Experiences at LA Cocina include culturally rooted cooking classes, talks and tastings, and cooking demonstrations,” officials at LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes said in a prepared statement. In addition to those activities, a recently launched culinary youth training program is providing free, bilingual workforce development and skill-building opportunities to young people ages 16-24.
Molina died a year ago, the first woman to become a Los Angeles County supervisor and the first Latina elected to the Los Angeles City Council and the California state Legislature. She helped launch LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, among her many lasting achievements.
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