Chefs de Cuisine Association serves up fun at The Fair’s “Tour of Tastes” Exhibit
DEL MAR, CA (June 23, 2010) — The Chefs de Cuisine Association of San Diego has partnered with the San Diego County Fair to let the public “Taste the Fun” now through July 5 at the Fair’s “Tour of Tastes” Exhibit, expected to attract more than 700,000 of the anticipated 1.25 million people who will attend the Fair.
“We are offering the public an inside look at the art and science of professional food preparation,” said Chefs de Cuisine president Michael Ames. The competitions, seminars, and demonstrations are made possible by sponsors such as Contessa, H.C. Brill, Hokto Kinoko, Jones Dairy Farm, Premier Food Service, Specialty Produce, Sysco, Tarantino’s, University Care Center, and Wild Veggie. The Chefs are exploring subjects ranging from ice carving and cocktail mixing to cupcakes and chocolate art. Among the most popular culinary seminars: Molecular Gastronomy, in which Mesa College culinarians prepare ice cream using liquid nitrogen as a cooling agent (2:30 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday, June 29 and 30).
June 25-27, the Chefs’ “Taste de Cuisine” competition offers pairings of beer and food. Promoting San Diego as one of the country’s top locations for micro-breweries, the Chefs de Cuisine has taken the lead in pairing beer with cuisine. On July 1, the “Battle of the Californias” sets Baja California chefs versus California chefs in a battle for bragging rights. On July 2 and 3, the Tour of Tastes will be the public setting for pro chefs competitions held by the American Culinary Federation. On July 4, chefs from the Navy will cook with Spam in star-spangled competition with VIP judges.
Among the Chefs’ outstanding educational activities in recent years is the Iron Apprentice Culinary Competition, now in its eighth year, open to students at all types of schools and awarding coveted jackets to each competitor. Winners of the Iron Apprentice competitions at the Fair: on June 12, Wills Brian of the Art Institute of California won the Knife Skills competition and the team of Jesse Zapata and Aaron Terry won the Mystery Basket competition. On June 13, the Iron Apprentice Centerpiece contest was won by Denise Roudeau-Brunson; while both the Wedding Cake and Birthday Cake Iron Apprentice blue ribbon went to Duyen Le of National Culinary School in San Diego. The Bartender contest was won June 11 by Mike Yen from Avenue 5 Restaurant in Banker’s Hill, with second place taken by Nathan Harrington from The Grove Restaurant at Viejas Casino.
Photos and more information about Chefs de Cuisine contest results are online at: http://www.sdchefsdecuisine.com/the-chefs-at-the-fair-photos/.
As a service to all who live in Southern California, the Chefs de Cuisine offer a list of foods, costing $45, to fill a disaster-recovery box that can feed a family of four over a four-day span. “This box of simple basic foods that can be prepared on a backyard grill is an idea that we hope will save lives after a disaster strikes,” said Chef Ames.
This professional fraternity of expert chefs has a half-century history of serving and giving cuisine to all kinds of community groups and charities. As a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization, the Chefs de Cuisine Association of San Diego is able to combine the creative giving talents of dozens of San Diego chefs and purveyors. With a mission to promote cuisine and offer professional educational opportunities for its member chefs, the Chefs de Cuisine Association of San Diego was founded in 1961, making it the oldest affiliate of the American Culinary Federation (ACF) in the San Diego region. The Chefs de Cuisine Association offers educational programs, competitions, and events for professional chefs and culinary students, and works with the national ACF to offer professional certification exams. The Chefs de Cuisine also supports an Explorer Post for youth aged 14-20 to explore culinary careers, the first such in the nation.
More information at www.sdchefsdecuisine.com
The theme for the 2010 San Diego County Fair is “Taste the Fun,” which highlights local agriculture, producers, culinary arts and all things related to food! The Fair will run through Monday, July 5; closed June 28.)
The San Diego County Fair, presented by Albertsons|Sav-on, is the largest annual event in San Diego County and the sixth largest fair in the United States, drawing more than 1.2 million visitors each year. For more information about the cooking competition at the Fair, visit www.sdfair.com/fair.
The 22nd District Agricultural Association is a State of California agency that owns and operates the Del Mar Fairgrounds, Surfside Race Place, Horsepark Equestrian Center and the Del Mar Golf Center. The 22nd DAA produces five events each year: The San Diego County Fair, the Del Mar National Horse Show, Professional Bull Riding (PBR), The Scream Zone and Holiday of Lights. The Fairgrounds hosts more than 350 events annually, the largest of which is the live horse racing meet each summer, which is operated by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club for the 22nd DAA and the State of California. For more information, visit www.sdfair.com
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