4th Annual StarChefs.com International Chefs Congress
Over 50 of the world's most revered chefs, mixologists, sommeliers, and restaurateurs will gather September 20-22, 2009 in New York City to present at the 4th annual StarChefs.com International Chefs Congress, a three-day culinary symposium. They will share restaurant industry trends and techniques with 1,500 of their culinary peers conducting live cooking demonstrations, leading hands-on workshops, and discussing the current business environment. This year's Congress will take place at of the historic Park Avenue Armory in New York City.
The overarching theme of this year's Congress is What is American Cuisineä The purpose is to explore how chefs and industry-leaders define American Cuisine. The regional nuances of well-defined and established cuisines, such as French, Spanish, Japanese, and Vietnamese are recognized by chefs and are subjects of study and exploration. But the definition of American Cuisine — outside of hotdogs and hamburgers — and the regional differences within the United States are not commonly understood, neither inside nor outside of the US.
"This year's programming at ICC will be as diverse and multi-national as ever, but the American presenters will share a common goal: to present their particular version of American cuisine, whether home-grown regional or immigrant-influenced. In doing so, our hope is to move closer to a common understanding of our country's dynamic food culture," says Antoinette Bruno, StarChefs.com Editor-in-Chief.
Highlights of the three-day Congress will include presentations by international presenters including Pierre Gagnaire (Pierre Gagnaire, France), Yoshihiro Murata (Kikunoi & – Kiamachi, Japan), Juan Mari Arzak (Restaurante ARZAK, Spain), and Paco Torreblanca (Pasteleria TOTEL, Spain). Domestic presenters include David Bouley (Bouley, New York), Charles Phan (The Slanted Door, San Francisco), Jose Andres (minibar by Jose Andres Washington DC, Bazaar by Jose Andres), Los Angeles, Daniel Boulud (Cafe Boulud, New York), Emeril Lagasse (Emerils, New Orleans), Grant Achatz (Alinea, Chicago), Audrey Saunders (Pegu Club, New York), Charlie Trotter (Charlie Trotters, Chicago), Marcus Samuelsson (Aquavit, New York), Alex Stupak (wd~50, New York), Sam Mason (Tailor, New York) and Johnny Iuzzini (Jean Georges, New York). The three days of programming will be emceed by acclaimed foodwriters Matt and Ted Lee and Chef Richard Blais.
The International Chefs Congress was founded by Editor-in-Chief Antoinette Bruno and Managing Editor Will Blunt in response to a growing frustration within the chef community with the lack of serious platforms for peer-to-peer dialogue about the latest ideas, trends, and everyday challenges of the increasingly complex culinary industry — an industry which, in 2008, reached $558 billion in sales and employed over 13 million people across the United States.
The lead sponsors of the 2009 StarChefs.com International Chefs Congress include Wisconsin Cheese, Jade Range, Baldor, Hobart, Stella Artois, Leffe, Hoegaarden, Winston Industries, Vita-Mix, Olive Oil from Spain, Wines from Spain, Foods from Spain, The Perfect Puree of Napa Valley, Kold-Draft, True Refrigeration, Canada Pork, TriMark, Unified Brands, WJ Deutsch, and The French Culinary Institute.
Tickets and admission to the StarChefs.com International Chefs Congress are limited to foodservice industry professionals. A limited number of subsidized culinary passes will be available. To purchase tickets, visit www.starchefs.com/icc or call 212.966.7575.
On Tuesday, September 22nd, StarChefs.com will be hosting the annual New York Rising Stars Revue. Rising Stars is a national award that recognizes up-and-coming chefs, pastry chefs, sommeliers and mixologists in four major culinary markets each year. This event is open to the public. For more information please go to our site: http://www.starchefs.com/risingstars.
