STYLE 1 MEDIA >>> 26TH ANNUAL CHEFS' TRIBUTE TO CITYMEALS-ON-WHEELS

A Taste of Home: Star Chefs and Wineries Celebrate Family Feasts

Rockefeller Center Plaza, NY, NY | 06.13.2011 | by Merry Esparza and Ellen Hauser

Style 1 Media It was all about food, fun, and family on June 13th, when internationally renowned culinary and wine families gathered at Rockefeller Center Plaza for the 26th Annual Chefs' Tribute to Citymeals-on-Wheels. "A Taste of Home: Star Chefs and Wineries Celebrate Family Feasts" welcomed chef and restaurateur families--or those who have been together for so long that they feel like families--to prepare and serve their favorite delicacies at tasting stations in the Plaza. Proceeds from the event will fund preparation and hand-delivery of about 117,000 nutritious meals to frail, homebound elderly New Yorkers, many of whom have no families.
(left: Actress/Board Member Kathleen Turner; Citymeals-on-Wheels Executive Director
Marcia Stein)

Notable attendees included Citymeals-on-Wheels Co-Founder and Food Critic, Gael Greene; Executive Director Marcia Stein; Actress and Board Member Kathleen Turner; Former New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton and his wife Attorney/Author/Actor Rikki Kleiman; and Architect/Designer/Board Member David Rockwell, who designed the event. Michael and Ninah Lynne, John and Laura Pomerantz, and Dennis and Randi Riese chaired the benefit. Semi-Homemade magazine Editor-in-Chief, author, and Food Network celebrity Sandra Lee was Honorary Co-Chair and emceed the program. Patina Restaurant Group CEO Nick Valenti's daughters filled in as Grand Hosts for Mr. Valenti, who could not be there this year. The benefit was a festive affair. Guests enjoyed a great variety of superb food and wine and had the opportunity to chat with legendary culinary families. Noah Bless Music provided live entertainment throughout the evening and the Plaza was filled with dancing.

Participating chefs and restaurateurs included: Julian Alonzo, from Brasserie 8 1/2; Daniel Boulud and Dominique Ansel from Daniel; Victor Chavez and Alan Stillman from Smith & Wollensky, with Craig Koketsu and Michael Stillman from Quality Meats; Chris Deluna from Naples 45; Larry Forgione from An American Place, with Marc Forgione from Marc Forgione, and Bryan Forgione from Society Café; Nobu Matsuhisa from Nobu; Charlie Palmer from Aureole; Alfred Portale from Gotham Bar & Grill; Bill Telepan from Telepan; Jean-Georges Vongerichten from Jean-Georges, with Cedric Vongerichten from Perry St; and Jonathan Waxman from Barbuto. [Full list of chefs and menus]

Participating wineries included: Maison Joseph Drouhin (Beaune, France); Champagne Pierre Paillard (Champagne, France); Ponzi Vineyards (Beaverton, OR); and many more. Little Branch (NY) Co-Owner Joseph Schwartz greeted arriving benefit guests with delicious "French 75" champagne cocktails mixed from Plymouth gin, syrup, lemon juice, and Perrier-Jouët champagne. Official event sponsors were American Airlines, FIJI Water, Denihan Hospitality Group, Riese Restaurants, Sprinkles Cupcakes, Bedell Cellars, Anheuser Busch, and EmblemHealth.

Citymeals-on-Wheels was founded in 1981 by James Beard and Food Critic Gael Greene after reading an article about homebound elderly New Yorkers with nothing to eat on weekends and holidays. They contacted their friends in the restaurant community and led an effort to raise funds to supplement the government-funded weekday meal delivery program. Today, in partnership with the New York City Department for the Aging, Citymeals-on-Wheels is able to channel 100% of all donations into the preparation and delivery of meals to the frail and aged. During the past year this meant that 16,232 homebound elderly people in New York City, who otherwise would have gone hungry, received 2 million healthy meals.

Citymeals-on-Wheels provides more than healthy meals. Volunteers who deliver meals offer company and human contact to the elderly, some of whom have outlived their loved ones and friends. During weekends and holidays, many government programs are closed, leaving the homebound elderly isolated. Citymeals-on-Wheels delivers Holiday Food Boxes when local meal centers close for holidays and delivers Emergency Food Packages of non-perishable food prior to winter to protect against hardship. Last year more than 1,500 volunteers collectively spent 62,000 hours visiting and delivering meals to New York’s frail aged.

The inaugural Citymeals-on-Wheels Chefs' Tribute was launched in 1985 by Larry Forgione, Jonathan Waxman, and other devotees of James Beard, to celebrate his 82nd birthday. Due to his passing shortly before the event was held, the benefit became a tribute to him. From its beginnings as a small event for a select group of gourmets and food-lovers, the benefit has grown to be one of the most highly anticipated events of the season.

For more information, please visit: Citymeals On Wheels.