LOS ANGELES — The most recent numbers from the Department of Substance Abuse and Prevention Control in Los Angeles County show accidental fentanyl overdose deaths increased 1,652% from 109 in 2016 to 1,910 in 2022.
Chef Josiah Citrin runs seven restaurants in Los Angeles, including the two-star Michelin restaurant Melisse and the one-star Michelin restaurant eponymously named Citrin.
But Citrin has a special connection with his casual dining restaurant, Augie’s on Main, which is an homage to his son Augie, who died of an accidental fentanyl overdose at age 23 in 2020.
“He and his girlfriend went out one night. They got a fake Vicodin. It was made with fentanyl,” Citrin explains. “Fentanyl is a deadly drug if it’s over two milligrams, which is like two dots … and that’s what happened.”
Some of Augie’s favorites are on the menu at Augie's on Main. The idea is to bring awareness to the fentanyl crisis through Augie’s own story.
“Here we have the Augie combo. This one I chose with my favorite side, and also one of Augie’s all-time favorite sides, the mashed potatoes with gravy. He loved a bowl of those late at night,” Citrin demonstrated.
A recent report by the International Journal of Drug Policy cited that, on a national level, the number of pills containing fentanyl seized by law enforcement was 2,300 times greater in 2023 than in 2017.
However, Los Angeles officials say that while numbers at the local level are improving, there is still a long way to go.
"The risks of overdoses are very real," said Dr. Gary Tsai, the director of the Substance Abuse and Prevention Department at LA County. "We've had over 3,200 overdoses a year, amounting to eight to nine people in the county dying from an overdose every day."
Through his food at Augie's on Main, Citrin says he hopes to make the public aware that accidental fentanyl poisonings can happen to anyone.
"The thing is, these are not drug addicts that are dying. These are kids dying or adults that take the pill on accident. They have no idea."