On Tuesday, March 14, central Kentucky chef Ouita Michel will bring together five additional James Beard celebrated female chefs from across the country to prepare a special six-course dinner at the downtown Lexington event space Apiary to benefit the local non-profit FoodChain.
The chefs – who live in Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Chicago and Pittsburgh – met at a James Beared boot camp, but have never cooked together for the public to sample. The event will be the first in a new series organized by FoodChain called F.E.A.S.T. (Food Equity and Access Sustains Tomorrow), which aims to spotlight great food from top chefs while tackling today’s tough questions about America’s food system.
“I’m so honored that these women were so enthusiastic to come display their culinary prowess here in Lexington,” Michel said in a press release. “They will spotlight new ways to provide fresh food education and access to our community. The fact that each of these women are committed to food justice in their own home communities shows the power that chefs can yield by using their culinary skills to cultivate change in our local food systems.”
The dinner will include six unique dishes exemplifying each chef’s distinct style, hors d’oeuvres by Michel, craft cocktails and a dessert station by the Apiary’s pastry chef, Susanna Henderson. Tickets include one special craft cocktail and two beverage tickets.
Started in 2011 by Lexington native Becca Self, FoodChain is located on the corner of West Sixth and Jefferson streets in the Bread Box building, and works to provide a connection between the community and fresh food through education and demonstration. The organization has Kentucky’s first indoor aquaponics system, and focuses on providing local education on urban agriculture and local food systems through bringing cooking education into area elementary schools and other community initiatives. The organization is slated to open a teaching and processing kitchen this year, which will provide cooking education for youth, meal planning for families, and a culinary workforce development initiative for underemployed individuals.
According to Self, the new series F.E.A.S.T. will provide a unique new platform to show the Lexington community how innovative food access solutions are taking place right in their hometown.
Tickets and more information on the event – which organizers said is expected to sell out – are available here. To read more about FoodChain's new solid waste synergy project, a collaboration with Henkel Denmark, in Business Lexington, click here.