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| Winners!!! |
September 21, 2012
On Thursday, September 13th, the
Center for Community Solutions (CCS) transformed the NTC Promenade at Liberty Station into a luxurious setting to host the
8th Annual Chef Showdown. Featuring a head-to-head cooking competition, a silent auction, a live auction, tastes from more than 25 local restaurants, and beverage offerings from brews to spirits, the event raised over $150,000 that will go toward providing prevention and intervention support for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and elder abuse - a record fundraising for the Chef Showdown!
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| Sam "the Cooking Guy" Zien with Chef Anthony Sinsay |
At the “Iron Chef” style competition, two teams comprised of San Diego's top chefs battled it out in a 12 course showdown before some of the top culinary judges in town, with cocktails to match each course. The winning team featured chefs Anthony Sinsay (
Burlap), Joe Magnanelli (
Cucina Urbana), Bobby Mariner (
Viejas), Amy DiBiase (
The Shores), Chris O’Donnell (
La Villa) and pastry chef Rachel King (
Searsucker,
Herringbone,
Gingham,
Gabardine, and
Burlap). Only one point separated the victorious from the defeated team - consisting of Dawn Parks (
Wild Thyme Co.), Paul McCabe (
Delicias), Hanis Cavin (
Carnitas Snack Shack) Chef Matt Gordon (
Urban Solace;
Solace and The Moonlight Lounge) Augie Saucedo (
Donovan’s), and Scotty Wagner (
Chi Cuisine). The cocktail battle put the Lucien Conner and Ian Ward from
Picks & Rocks (winning mixologists) against the
Grant Grill's lead mixologist Jeff Josenhans and his sous-bartender, Jamie Klages.
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| Carnitas Snack Shack's taco |
The cooking battle occured on an outdoor stage at Liberty Station's NTC Promenade. In addition to the stage, there was an Alice in Wonderland style VIP section, and white linen tables for those who ponied up for such an accommodation. We were fixtures at Trumer Pils' beer tap where our buddy Steve immediately recognized us from past events. Of the food offerings,
Burlap's braised short rib with celery puree was super tasty, as was the carnitas taco from
Carnitas Snack Shack.
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| The judges! |
The judges for the competition were Restaurateur
Joe Bussalachi, Chef
Isabel Cruz, head judge Chef
Bernard Guillas from
The Marine Room, Restaurateur
Ingrid Croce, Ralph Rubio of
Rubio's, Chef Jason Graham of
Cal-A-Vie, and Restaurateur Michelle Lerach (not pictured)! Sam Zien from the famous television show
Sam the Cooking Guy hosted the competition. Chef Showdown is co-chaired by Isabel Cruz, Executive Chef and Owner of Isabel’s Cantina, and Dee Dee Castro, Community Relations Manager from
Viejas.
For more information on Chef Showdown, be sure to visit
CCSD's website. And of course, we at SanDiegoVille will let you know more about next year's event as it draws near.
