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Chefs & Champagne

July 22, 2011

Last year’s Chefs & Champagne honoree Martha Stewart (BOTTOM ROW, CENTER) with the chefs who catered the benefit.

With so many marquee chefs establishing both homes and restaurants in the Hamptons, the area has a welldeserved reputation as a gourmet dining destination. Nothing illustrates this more than Chefs & Champagne, the annual benefit for the James Beard Foundation. The event, celebrating its 20th anniversary, has captivated even the most distinguished taste buds and lured such noteworthy toques as Wolfgang Puck, Paul Bartolotta and Daniel Boulud to our environs. “Over the years, we have honored a wide range of foodworld luminaries, from Martha Stewart to Thomas Keller and now Emeril Lagasse,” says James Beard Foundation President Susan Ungaro. “With its bounty of farms and rich culinary heritage, the Hamptons is truly a fitting location for our annual sumptuous summer fundraiser.”

Held at the Wölffer Estate Vineyard (which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, as well), Chefs & Champagne also raises money for awards such as the James Beard Foundation’s Christian Wölffer Scholarship, named in tribute to the late Sagaponack vintner. “Our scholarship program is a vital part of the James Beard Foundation’s mission to help fund the education of future chefs and restaurateurs,” says Ungaro. The scholarship is awarded to aspiring culinary students in New York state.

If the good cause doesn’t lure you to the benefit, maybe the menu will: 48-hour-braised short ribs; Barnegat Light lobster with lemon ricotta, micro-sorrel and yuzu-marinated conch; and grilled blue prawn escabèche with mango, pear, apple, mint and sweet chili relish, to name just a few of the 35 entrées being served. Dessert—red velvet cupcakes from Tina Cocolina: Queen of the Cupcakes’ coauthor Martin Howard, lemon meringue pie with disco blueberries by Flex Mussels pastry chef Zac Young and other delectable options—is just the icing on a very delicious cake. Chefs & Champagne takes place on July 23 at 5:30 PM at Wölffer Estate Vineyard, 139 Sagg Road, Sagaponack. For tickets, visit jamesbeard.org.
 

—JILL SIERACKI
PHOTOGRAPH BY KENT MILLER