convention center

Dayton’s Chef Showdown Champ Named

March 20, 2016 By Dayton937 Leave a Comment

There was sizzle, drizzle, sear and even a little bit of fire when nine of Dayton’s premiere Chef’s went head to head in a Chopped inspired “Chef Showdown” Saturday. With three qualifying rounds on Saturday, chefs had 20 minutes to turn a mystery basket with 4 ingredients into a winning dish at the Dayton Home and Garden Show at the Dayton Convention Center.

On the Kroger stage, event emcee Jim Bucher helped introduce the mystery baskets, created by event producer Lisa Grigsby, of Dayton Most Metro. Basket one included Lychee Nuts, Chicken, canned spinach and cranberry cinnamon goat cheese. Chefs were able to supplement their appeizer with ingredients from the Kroger pantry.

The contest judges, brought in from Dayton Most Metro included: Kevin Rankin, Laura Rea, Duane Myers, Ann Roberts and Steve “Big Ragu” Milano

Local culinary fans packed the room where the competition took place at 11am, 1pm and 3pm respectively, and the results are in….

ROUND 1 WRAP UP:

Chef Candace Rinke, from Hawthorn Grill won round one with her chicken appetizer on a pita triangle. She barely edged out 2 other delicious chicken creations. One from Chef David Glynn, of Dayton Country Club, who incorporated numerous ingredients into a large chicken dish, and Chef Aaron Braun of Meadowlark who wowed the judges with his bacon wrapped chicken and goat cheese.

Chef Rinke’s Winning Chicken on Pita Appetizer

ROUND 2 WRAP UP:

Chef Mariah Gahagan, from Lily’s Bistro was victorious in round 2 with a salmon dish that flowed with a perfect melody of flavor, from edge to edge with greens and avocados. Close behind was Chef Richard Roberts, of De’Lish Cafe, who made a salmon pita appetizer with swiss cheese, and used a blow torch for a carmelized smoky flavor. Chef Crystal Coppock, from Wheat Penny also made it a tight race, with her salmon seared on spinach, with bamboo shoots, but as timer buzzed she realized her Tamarind sauce (one of the required ingredients), which was absolutely killer- according to the judges, didn’t make her plates.

ROUND 3 WRAP UP:

Scratch Catering owner Chef Matt Hayden took the winning honors in the final round in an epic battle that included a temporary flare up of flames. Using scallops, Matt concocted a deep fried fritter (Indian Pakora) with an amazing Indian influenced Tandoori sauce. Following close behind was Chef LeeAnne House, from HouseMade Sauces. LeeAnne’s appetizer was a colorful combo of sauteed greens, peppers and veggies with scallops on bruschetta. Also keeping the contest close was Chef Nathan Vance from Salar Restaurant, who

Round 2 of the Chef Showdown: Chef Gahagan, Chef Coppock and Chef Roberts

wowed the crowd with his unshakable concentration during the hectic round. Nathan’s creation included placing the scallops over greens, with some sauteed veggie and a delicious sauce drizzle.

SUNDAY’S CHEF SHOWDOWN FINALS:

At 1pm today at the DAYTON HOME AND GARDEN SHOW at the Convention Center, the three advancing chefs met up for a final round of competition. This time around they had 25 minutes to turn 5 mystery ingredients into an entree. As the clock started, it was revealed that shrimp, black beans, asparagus, canned peaches and canned tomatoes were the base for the meal.

Just a few minutes into cooking Chef Mariah’s burner malfunctioned and Chef Matt left his station to assist here, and Chef Candice reached over to pull Chef Matt’s saute pan off the fire, so his food didn’t burn. This sense of teamwork, even in the middle of a competition, just exemplifies the character of our local culinary community.

Judges Ann Roberts, a local foodie, Alexis Larsen of the DAI and writer for Dayton Daily News and Executive Chef Don Warfe of Christopher’s spent a good 10 minutes, tasting and deliberating and commenting on the expertise of the entrees from all the chefs. Warfe, who spent time on tv for Gordon Ramsey’s” Kitchen Nightmares” questioned the chefs about the use of ingredients and complimented the flavors of the food. Larsen shared she “was impressed with the ability of the trio to turn canned ingredients we often have in our pantry to fresh tasting, flavorful meals.” Ann Roberts had the honor of announcing that the “bread salad” created by Hawthorn Grill Chef/Owner Candace Rinke won her the title of Chef Showdown Championship and $500 cash from the Dayton Home & Garden Show.

Judges

Chef House’s Bruschetta with Scallops

Salmon, avocado, and greens from Chef Mariah Gahagan

Chef David Glynn describes his dish

Chef Candice Rinke goes over her creation

Chef Aaron Braun’s Bacon Wrapped Chicken appetizer

Chef David Glynn’s Chicken app

Jim Bucher with Chef Crystal Coppock from Wheat Penny

Jim Bucher talks with Chef Richard Roberts from De’Lish about his Salmon appetizer

Chef Matt Hayden’s winning Indian Pakora appetizer with Tandoori sauce

Judging duties

Round 1: Chef Braun, Chef Glynn and Chef Rinke

Scallop from Chef Nathan Vance from Salar took it to the limit

Round 3: Chef Vance, Chef House, Chef Hayden

Chef Coppock had an excellent salmon appetizer

Chef Richard Roberts made this delicious Salmon on Pita appetizer and used a blow torch

Chef House talks to the judges

Chef Gahagan talks to Jim Bucher and the crowd

Chef Aaron Braun talks about his culinary creation

Around the World in 30 Bites!

May 13, 2015 By Dayton937 Leave a Comment

The “Petit Fours” at the France booth are delicate bites of heaven

Dayton’s 42 year old, A World A’ Fair, International Festival is set for this upcoming weekend.

Yes, from Friday until Sunday, Daytonians will be showing their heritage spirit through arts, crafts, clothing, dancing and our favorite part… FOOD !

Thirty booths will be set up, each for a different part of the world. The purpose is to educate and to wow the crowds with their individual uniqueness. But we buy tickets for one reason… the chance for a great Food Adventure, where we can eat ourselves around the world in 3o bites. Did we mention there is wine and beer???

Where else can you grab sushi, Puerto Rican rice and beans, haggis, a gyro, french pastries and a cannoli while watching African dancers?

HERE’S THE SKINNY:

— The event takes place at the Dayton Convention Center

Festival Hours:
Friday, May 15, 5:00pm – 11:00pm
Saturday, May 16, 11:00am – 11:00pm
Sunday, May 17, 11:00am – 6:00pm

— Tickets are $8 for adults, $4 for children at the door

— Full schedule of dancers and booths can be found at http://www.aworldafair.org/

Travel the world with your tastebuds, without leaving Dayton. Here are some of our favorites..

THE MUST EATS at the World A’Fair festival !!

MUST EATS:

Dollar for Dollar – the best deal, for the flavor is the Greek Gyro

— GYROS at THE GREECE BOOTH: These are the same ones they serve at Greek fest. They also come in chicken gyro and vegetarian, but we prefer the traditional Gyros. Pound for pound, probably the best deal at the festival.

— APPEL FLAPPEN at the NETHERLANDS BOOTH: People wait in lines that wrap around the arena for these powdered, deep fried apple rings. One bite and you will see what all the excitement is about, and you will wish you would have ordered a few more.

— TIRAMISU at the ITALY BOOTH: Coffee like, creamy and dashes of chocolate. This is dessert done right. Try one of these cubes of perfection. So good, it puts you in a trance.

— SAAG PANEER at the INDIA BOOTH: Make sure you get some of this Indian spinach dish and get a piece of Naan Bread too for dipping. A great dish that is satisfying and vegetarian as well.

— PETIT FOURS at the FRANCE BOOTH: Tiny bits of heaven Choose from a nice selection and go to town. Treat yourself, you deserve it after traveling the world.

Grab a cold Heiney at World A’Fair

— THE CREAM PUFFS at the SLOVIC BOOTH: Probably the best single item at the festival. It is delicious and rich like it should be. A generous helping of cream, on a huge crescent puff, this is grand finale to any visit to the World A’ Fair.

— BEERS at the GERMAN, SCOTLAND and IRELAND BOOTHS: Ireland and Germany typically have a couple of authentic beers on draft. These are must drinks. Nothing says World A’fair like a guy in a kilt pouring you a cold one with no underwear,

Here is a start, now you have a road map for the best food in the World. Every year new food items are introduced, so keep your eyes peeled. There will be so much delicious, international food, that you simply wont have the time or the hunger pains to try them all. No worries, the fest is 3 days long !

Want more scoop and great photos of local food events and restaurants? Follow Hungry Jax, Chef House and The Big Ragu on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Like to tweet? So do we.. check out our Twitter @food_adv

Please browse the gallery below from some of our delicious Food Adventures where we traveled around the world in 30 bites !

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I Will Stay In Dayton If….

April 4, 2011 By Dayton Most Metro 4 Comments

In a recent article on CNBC.com (March 23), Bert Sperling, known for his expertise on best places to live, eat and retire (just to name a few), shared some wonderful insight on where he sees Dayton in the near future. He comments that, “Dayton’s industrial heritage is transitioning to today’s new technologies;” he believes the City has all the right assets for an economic comeback.

Photo courtesy of Joel Spitsnaugle and Val Smith

With our award winning, nationally recognized universities and colleges, a thriving healthcare industry and expanding military base, Sperling believes Dayton is poised to bounce back. So what will it take to keep Dayton moving in the right direction? What will get people, particularly those elusive and desirable college graduates and young professionals, to come and stay in Dayton?

According to a survey conducted by updayton, a local initiative launched in 2008 to attract and retain young talent in the area, hundreds of young professionals pointed to four specific areas that needed improvement – they will stay if they have access to more jobs, better neighborhoods, increased diversity and more nightlife and entertainment options. Young creatives have spoken, and updayton is dedicated to making their voices heard.

Each year updayton hosts the Young Creatives Summit to engage and empower young people to implement their own solutions to meet these needs. This year’s Summit, to be held on Friday, April 15 at the Dayton Convention Center, will bring together nearly 200 young professionals and creatives to craft and implement four unique projects to address these pressing issues. To strengthen these efforts, updayton has partnered with organizations focused on solutions for each of the key concerns to work closely with these highly energized volunteers.

Summit attendees interested in creating more livable neighborhoods will partner with CityWide Development to provide vital input on current neighborhoods in and around downtown and on the development of a new neighborhood near Brown Street.

Photo by William Murdock Photography

Other projects include working with the Human Relations Council to make Dayton an immigrant friendly city, creating a new entertainment option for First Friday in cooperation with the Downtown Dayton Partnership and partnering with the Southwestern Ohio Council on Higher Education (SOCHE) to connect more college students and recent college graduates to local internships.

Linking the talent of the young professionals with the resources of these organizations greatly increases the potential for success and sustainability. Volunteers from the Summit may decide to focus on small manageable projects in order to serve the mission of the larger organization, but often times it is the small steps that lead to big results. Collaboration is key in moving Dayton forward; updayton is grateful for the support of these four partner organizations.

To register or get more information about the 2011 Young Creatives Summit, click here.