Restaurant Michael's "86 Hunger" Dinner Nov. 18

The holiday season is about giving back, and Michael Lachowicz and Restaurant Michael have joined forces with Rick Bayless of Frontera Grill/Topobampo/Xoco; Jackie Shen of Red Light and other talented chefs as part of the Greater Chicago Food Depository’s inaugural “86 Hunger” dinner series. The event unites chefs and guests in an effort to end hunger in the Chicago community.

Join Restaurant Michael in taking hunger off the menu with this special opportunity Wednesday, November 18 from 6 p.m. – 10 p.m. Tickets are $150 per person and can be purchased at http://tinyurl.com/yh86msz. This event is open to a limited number of guests, so be sure to purchase tickets early.

The Greater Chicago Food Depository, Chicago's food bank, is a nonproft food distribution and training center providing food for hungry people while striving to end hunger in the community. The Food Depository distributes donated and purchased food through a network of 600 pantries, soup kitchens and shelters to 500,000 adults and children in Cook County every year. For more information, log onto www.chicagofoodbank.org or call (773) 247-FOOD.

About Restaurant Michael
Restaurant Michael, located at 64 Green Bay Rd in Winnetka, Ill. 60093, serves classic haute cuisine in a contemporary presentation with French country flair. The restaurant is open for dinner Monday through Thursday 5:30 p.m. -10:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 5:30 p.m. -11:30 p.m.; and Sunday 4:30 p.m.-9 p.m. The restaurant is open for lunch Fridays 11a.m. -2 p.m. Complimentary parking is available. Major cards accepted. For more information or to make a reservation, call (847) 441-3100 or visit www.restaurantmichael.com.

My Golden Birthday with Kurman at Topolobampo

Tuesday was my 25th birthday, and lucky for me, the Kurman gang treated me to lunch at one of my favorite spots—Topolobampo! The best part? We got a special visit from none other than culinary extraordinaire and proprietor Rick Bayless.

Bayless’s recent win on Top Chef Masters meant that Topolobampo and sister restaurant Frontera Grill were packed with eager diners excitedly anticipating Bayless’s famed Mexican cuisine. The beautiful dining room was impressively packed on a Tuesday afternoon.

We each ordered an appetizer, a main course and a dessert, which is not something I usually do. But I really wanted to try as much as I could. Everything on the menu had my mouth watering.

Our appetizers arrived, and Cindy’s Sabana de Jitomates, thin slices of locally grown heirloom tomatoes from Topolobampo’s rooftop garden, was one of the most colorful dishes I’ve ever seen. She said that it tasted even better than it looked, and it looked darn good.

We moved on to our main course, and Stephanie’s Tacos de Pescado, Baja-style fish tacos with mahi mahi prepared two ways with homemade lime mayo, fresh tortillas, pea tendril salad, avocado-tomatillo salsa, pickled vegetables and lime-Corona “air” looked too delicious not to snap a quick photo.

Lee’s main course, Barbacoa de Pato, featured Gunthorp duck two ways: seared breast and slow-braised leg barbacoa, with braised garbanzos, tomatillo-avocado salsa, verdolagas salad, and topped off with pan juices. Yum!

As for my main course, I was completely saciated with my order of Cuatro Cositas Oaxaqueas, the Oaxacan sampler, featuring an empanada with chicken and yellow mole, grilled Oaxacan chorizo, grilled red chile shrimp and cochinita pibil.

Cindy ordered Chilaquiles de Guajillo y Frijo Negro, a vegetarian option, a torta of shiitake-filled chilaquiles, served with black bean sauce, homemade crema, crispy white onion and cilantro. She was concerned that the dish would be too hot, and our excellent server assured her that it was spicy, not too hot. Attentive, she stopped by to make sure that everything was in order and to our liking. It was, and so much more.

I'm glad that we took so many photos of the food. We were all soon members of the "clean plate club."

The food was great; don't get me wrong. But for me, the highlight of the meal was when Rick Bayless himself stopped by our table after we finished our main course to say hello! He even wished me a happy birthday, and after talking Twitter and social networking with us, he graciously posed for several photos.

My friends and family have asked me if he’s just as nice as he appears on television, and everyone at Kurman can wholeheartedly declare, yes! He's the real deal.

It was a birthday I won’t soon forget.

James Beard Foundation nominees announced

In case you missed the announcement (from Chicago's own Frontera Grill) earlier this week, the James Beard Foundation, the nation's most prestigious recognition program honoring professionals in the food and beverage industries, announced the nominees for the 2009 James Beard Foundation Awards. Susan Ungaro, James Beard Foundation President, hosted an invitation-only breakfast at JBF Award-winning chef Rick Bayless' and JBF Trustee Deann Bayless' highly-acclaimed Frontera Grill, where nominees in 52 categories were announced in the Foundation's various awards programs -- Restaurant and Chef, Book, Journalism, Design and Graphics, and Broadcast Media. Honorees in a number of special achievement awards, including Who's Who of Food & Beverage in America, Lifetime Achievement, Humanitarian of the Year, and America's Classics, were announced as well. For the complete list of nominees, please visit www.JBFAwards.com.

Highlights from this year's list of nominees include:

Outstanding Restaurant: Babbo (Chef/Owner: Mario Batali, Owner: Joe Bastianich, New York, NY); Boulevard (Chef/Owner: Nancy Oakes, Owner: Pat Kuleto, San Francisco, CA); Fore Street (Chef/Owner: Sam Hayward, Owners: Victor Leon and Dana Street, Portland, ME); Highlands Bar & Grill (Chef/Owner: Frank Stitt, Birmingham, AL); Jean Georges (Chef/Owner: Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Owner: Phil Suarez, New York, NY); Everest (Chef/Owner: Jean Joho/Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises)

Outstanding Chef: Jose Andres (Minibar, Washington, D.C.); Dan Barber (Blue Hill, New York, NY); Tom Colicchio (Craft, New York, NY); Suzanne Goin (Lucques, Los Angeles, CA); Paul Kahan (Blackbird, Chicago, IL) and Jean Joho (Everest, Chicago, IL)

Rising Star Chef: Nate Appleman (A16, San Francisco, CA); Sean Brock (McCrady's, Charleston, SC); Johnny Monis (Komi, Washington, D.C.); Gabriel Rucker (Le Pigeon, Portland, OR); Michael Solomonov (Zahav, Philadelphia, PA); Sue Zemanick (Gautreau's, New Orleans, LA)

Best New Restaurant: The Bazaar by Jose Andres at SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills (Chef/Owner: Jose Andres, Owners: Sam Narian and Philippe Starck, Los Angeles, CA); Corton (Chef/Owner: Paul Liebrandt, Owner: Drew Nieporent, New York, NY); L2O (Chef: Laurent Gras, Owner: Richard Melman, Chicago, IL); Momofuku Ko (Chef/Owner: David Chang, New York, NY); Scarpetta (Chef/Owner: Scott Conant, New York, NY)

In addition, some of the special achievement award recipients include:

Who's Who of Food & Beverage in America: David Burke (Chef, Entrepreneur, New York, NY); John T. Edge (Journalist, Director, Southern Foodways Alliance, Oxford, MS); Betty Fussell (Author, Culinary Historian, New York, NY); Dorothy Cann Hamilton (Founder, The French Culinary Institute, New York, NY); Clark Wolf (Clark Wolf Company, New York, NY)

America's Classics: Breitbach's Country Dining (Owner: Mike Breitbach, Sherrill, IA); Totonno's (Owner: Lawrence Ciminieri, Brooklyn, NY); Mustache Bill's Diner (Owner: Bill Smith, Barnegat Light, NJ); Yank Sing (Owner: Vera Chan-Waller, San Francisco, CA); Arnold's Country Kitchen (Owners: Jack and Rose Arnold, Nashville, TN)

Other Chicago area nominees include:
Outstanding Restaurateur: Rich Melman, Lettuce Entertain You
Outstanding Pastry Chef: Jimmy MacMillan, Avenues at the Peninsula Chicago and Mindy Segal, Mindy's HotChocolate Chicago
Outstanding Wine Service: Avenues at the Peninsula Chicago and Bin 36
Outstanding Service: Courtright's and Spiaggia
Best Chef-Great Lakes: Suzy Crofton, Crofton on Wells; Christophe David, Nomi at the Park Hyatt; Curtis Duffy, Avenues at the Peninsula Chicago; Kendal Duque, Sepia; Koren Grieveson, Avec; Michael Maddox, Le Titi De Paris; Martial Noguier, Cafe des Architectes; Arun Sampanthavivat, Arun's; Bruce Sherman, North Pond; Giuseppe Tentori, Boka; and Paul Virant, Vie

Winners of the Restaurant and Chef, Book, Design and Graphics, and special achievement awards will be celebrated at the highly-anticipated annual Awards Ceremony and Gala Reception, taking place on Monday, May 4, 2009 at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall. The Awards Ceremony and Gala Reception are open to the general public, and tickets can be purchased by calling the Awards Box Office at 212.925.0054 or by visiting www.JBFAwards.com. General public tickets are $450, but the James Beard Foundation is offering an "Early Bird Special" $50 ticket buyer discount from March 23rd - April 4th. The Journalism and Broadcast Media Awards will be presented at the invitation-only Media Awards Dinner on Sunday, May 3, 2009 at the Hudson Theatre in midtown Manhattan. All award winners will receive a certificate and a bronze medallion engraved with the James Beard Foundation Awards insignia. There are no cash awards.

Established in 1990, the James Beard Foundation Awards recognize culinary professionals for excellence and achievement in their fields and continue to emphasize the Foundation's mission: to celebrate, preserve, and nurture America's culinary heritage and diversity. The 2009 James Beard Foundation Awards will celebrate Women in Food. A highlight of the May 4th festivities will be the Gala Reception, which will take place following the Awards Ceremony at Avery Fisher Hall, featuring a line-up of some of America's most noteworthy female chefs, sommeliers, mixologists and artisanal producers. Lidia Matticchio Bastianich, acclaimed chef, restaurateur, television personality, cookbook author and multiple James Beard Foundation Award-winner, will serve as the honorary Gala Chair. As Gala Chair, Ms. Bastianich will work with the Awards Committee in the menu selection of the culinary talents featured at the Gala Reception.

The 2009 James Beard Foundation Awards are presented in association with All-Clad Metalcrafters and American Express(R) (the official card of the James Beard Foundation); Premier Sponsors: Green & Black's(R) Organic Chocolate, Lexus, Viking Range Corporation; Supporting Sponsors: Delta Air Lines, illy caffe North America, Inc., Southern Wine & Spirits of New York, Stella Artois; Gala Reception Sponsors: Acqua Panna(R) Natural Spring Water, Ecolab, Pernod Ricard USA, Rums of Puerto Rico, S.Pellegrino(R) Sparkling Natural Mineral Water; and with additional support from Chefwear and Pommery Champagne.

Want to attend the party?

The fabulous James Beard Award celebration on May 4 carries at hefty ticket price of $400 but if you act fast, you can take advantage of the Foundation's $50 discount for tickets purchased by April 4, go to http://www.jbfawards.com/JBFform.html for information and reservations.

About the James Beard Foundation

The James Beard Foundation is dedicated to celebrating, preserving, and nurturing America's culinary heritage and diversity in order to elevate the appreciation of our culinary excellence. A cookbook author and teacher with an encyclopedic knowledge about food, James Beard, who died in 1985, was a champion of American cuisine. He helped educate and mentor generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts. Today, the Beard Foundation continues in the same spirit by administering a number of diverse programs that include educational initiatives, food industry awards, scholarships to culinary schools, and publications, and by maintaining the historic James Beard House in New York City's Greenwich Village as a performance space for visiting chefs. For more information, please visit www.jamesbeard.org.

SOURCE The James Beard Foundation

Green City Market Country Harvest Celebration and Auction Photos Available

If you couldn't attend the fabulous Green City Market benefit Sunday, Sept. 7, you missed the best benefit of the season. The beautiful Mettawa home of Bill Kurtis and Donna LaPietra was transformed into a foodie paradise with some of Chicago's best chefs sharing their favorite seasonal foods with us. Check out the photos here.

Was it luck or was it Abby? The weather could not have been any better. I know that Abby was looking down with her million dollar smile. As always, she would have been so proud. While GCM is still wrapping up numbers, the event generated more than $100,000 - an incredible testament to all of the hard work of the Green City Market staff, board, supporters and friends. A big shout out to LaPietra and Kurtis who made this incredible event possible by supplying the perfect setting. Event Co-Chairs, LaPietra, Peggy Crowe and Sarah Stegner tapped all of their friends and resources to make this happen; and Rita Gutekanst and her team from Limelight Catering provided elegant service and food under the superb direction of Limelight's chef Brian Shustrick and the guest chefs, a literal who's who of Chicago's culinary scene including, GCM board members Sarah Stegner (with partner George Bumbaris, Prairie Grass Cafe), Rick Bayless (Frontera Grill/Topolobampo) and Bruce Sherman (North Pond). Other participating Chef market supporters included Terry Crandall of the Peninsula Hotel, Gale Gand of Tru/Tramonto's Steakhouse, Kevin Hickey of Seasons at the Four Seasons Hotel, Amalea Tshilds and Jason Hammel of Lula Cafe, Paul Virant of Vie and Dean Zanella of 312 Chicago . Thanks to Nacional 27 mixologist Adam Segar for the yummy cocktails and to all of the wine and liquor suppliers who helped to make all of the the delicious libations possible. The 150 plus guests thoroughly enjoyed the evening, and the event ran flawlessly.

Photos Above:
Mettawa home of Donna LaPietra and Bill Kurtis

Cindy Kurman and Sarah Stegner

Donna LaPietra and Virginia Gerst
Photos Below:

Deann, Lanie and Rick Bayless
Rita Gutekanst and Jeanne Pinsof Nolan

Rick Bayless, Terry Crandall and Art Smith
Bill Kurtis leads tour of the grounds

Don't miss Green City Market's Harvest Celebration at Kurtis / LaPietra Mettawa Home

It's not too late to get your tickets for the Green City Market Harvest Celebration Honoring Market Founder Abby Mandel! The event is this Sunday, September 7, from 5:30-8:00 pm at the Mettawa home and gardens of Bill Kurtis and Donna LaPietra. For those who have never been to the Kurtis home, this is a once in a lifetime chance. It's beautiful and the grounds are unbelievable. There is a dazzling lineup of chefs, and the auction items are incredible! This is Green City Market's major fundraiser for the year. For more information, and to purchase tickets online, go here.

Photo: Donna LaPietra with Green City Market Founder, the late Abby Mandel, at event in 2006.

The Harvest Celebration features chefs:
Rick Bayless of Frontera Grill/Topolobampo
Terry Crandall of the Peninsula Hotel
Gale Gand of Tru/Tramonto's Steakhouse
Kevin Hickey of Seasons at the Four Seasons Hotel
Bruce Sherman of North Pond
Brian Shustrick of Limelight Catering
Sarah Stegner & George Bumbaris of Prairie Grass Cafe
Amalea Tshilds and Jason Hammel of Lula Cafe
Paul Virant of Vie
Dean Zanella of 312 Chicago

Photo: Praire Grass Cafe Chef /Owners

Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris

Enjoy Bill Kurtis' guided tram tours around the acclaimed 75-acre grounds of Mettawa Manor in its late summer glow...through the prairie, woodland paths and along its formal garden borders.

Fantasize about an array of exciting one-of-a-kind culinary auction packages, all specially created in support of Green City Market. All proceeds benefit Green City Market, a 501(c)3 organization.

Ticket Prices are as follows:

Market Star-$5000
Market Angel - $1000
Market Patron - $500

Market Supper - $250
Go here to order tickets.



Cindy Kurman with Chef Gale Gand; Bill Kurtis with Alderman Vi Daley

Please phone the Market office at 773-880-1266 for information.

Green City Market opens May 14

In case you missed it, Green City Market and Nichols Farm are featured in the May issue of Real Simple magazine. Kurman Communications secured the placement last August. Just goes to show you how long in advance the magazines work! Kurman's leader Cindy has been on the GCM board for nine years!

Now in its 10th year, Green City Market reopens on Wednesday, May 14th in Lincoln Park, with a lineup of ways to explore spring's fresh produce. At 9:30 AM, two "Savor the Seasons" events – one with chefs Sarah Stegner and George Bumbaris (Prairie Grass Cafe), the other with North Pond's Bruce Sherman – showcase salad-tastings. And at 10:30 AM, Carrie Nahabedian (Naha) gives a cooking demo. Also opening for the season is Edible Gardens, the market's farm-at-the-zoo educational project for kids (10 AM–1 PM). Green City Market runs Wednesdays and Saturdays (7 AM–1:30 PM; Lincoln Park between 1750 N. Clark St. and Stockton Dr.).

On Saturday, May 17th, the market will hold a rally for local sustainable farming featuring GCM board members Bill Kurtis is Master of Ceremonies and celeb chef Rick Bayless (Frontera Grill, Topolobampo) will be joined by other board members and Mayor Daley. Other like organizations are invited to participate! Activities include live entertainment, a kids' parade and the ceremonial cutting of the world's largest organic carrot cake (9 AM–noon at Green City Market in Lincoln Park just north of North avenue between Clark and Stockton, www.chicagogreencitymarket.org).

If you're up for joining in the rally, the celebration is geared to all who support the Market's mission; Chicago organizations are invited to host tables with their information and encourage their members to attend. Don't miss this great exciting expression of sustainable community to support a cause we so fervently support!