LEXINGTON, KY - "Cookin' in the Bluegrass: A Celebrity Dinner Series," the newest non-horse related aspect of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games treats up to 80 paying guests to a celebrity chef prepared gourmet dinner at the Kentucky Horse Park for each of the WEG's sixteen nights.
On each night two different celebrity chefs will join a different local or Kentucky-based chef to do the cooking. Kentucky-based chefs have not yet been selected, but the celebrity chefs are nationally and, in some cases, internationally-known.
The celebrity chef participants include: Philippe Boulot, the Heathman at the Heathman Hotel, in Portland, OR; Mark Kiffin, The Compound Restaurant, in Santa Fe, NM; Emily Luchetti, Farallon Restaurant, in San Francisco, CA; Mike Lata, Fig, in Charleston, SC; Clifford Buittano and Anne Quatrano, Bacchanalia, in Atlanta, GA; Christopher Lee, Aureole, in New York City, NY, and Jose Garces, winner of "The Next Iron Chef 2009" and chef at Amada in Philadelphia, PA.
"It would be a great opportunity for any of the local chefs to be part of such an exciting event, exchanging ideas, meeting and learning from the top chefs from around the country, as well as representing the Bluegrass," said Jonathan Lundy, chef and owner of Jonathan at Gratz Park.
Many of the celebrity chefs have been honored by the James Beard Foundation, which is a sponsor of the event. It is named or the late chef and cookbook author who mentored generations of chefs and food enthusiasts and wrote cookbooks which stayed on national bestseller lists for months.
Lundy, a member of the James Beard Foundation, is "pleased they have chosen to be involved with the World Equestrian Games."
For an up-and-coming chef, winning a James Beard Award is a sign that the chef is worthy of national recognition for their skill and artistry in food preparation. Each award winner is invited to prepare a meal for nationally-known food critics and other food professionals at the James Beard House in New York's Greenwich Village.
Dinners prepared during the WEG will feature Kentucky Proud products and locally grown foods.
Kentucky Proud, an event sponsor, is administered by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture with the aim to promote Kentucky-made or grown food products from local farmers, brewers, distillers, growers, bakers and cheese-makers.
In the spring of 2010 the James Beard House will host a "Bluegrass Experience" to honor the upcoming culinary events during the World Equestrian Games.
This NYC event and the sixteen dinners during WEG will bring national exposure for Kentucky-based food products. Such exposure to food professionals and WEG visitors hopes to translate into increased business for dozens of Kentucky agricultural businesses, both large and small.
Judging from the crowds at the recent Incredible Food Show at Rupp Arena, which featured celebrity chef Bobby Flay, Bluegrass residents have more than enough interest in foods and wines to make "Cookin' in the Bluegrass" one of the WEG's most popular associated events.
The event was created by Don Pritchard, owner of Global Food Service Solutions, the company chosen to coordinate food service at the Kentucky Horse Park and during the World Equestrian Games. Pritchard organized a similar event at the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City.
Tickets for "Cookin in the Bluegrass" will be available for purchase in early 2010 at www.alltechfeigames.com. Prices have not been set. Proceeds from the event will benefit the James Beard Foundation, the Kentucky Horse Park Foundation, and the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.