Who are my top chefs?

With the season premiere of Top Chef- Season 5 tomorrow night at 10 p.m. on Bravo, I think about two local women chefs who are participating in my favorite food reality show, Jill Snyder of Red Maple here in Baltimore and Carla Hall of Alchemy Caterers in Washington DC. I am excited to see these talented women strut their culinary ‘stuff’ and will be cheering them both on.

My Top Chefs

It was also terrific this past Sunday to see many other women chefs strut their culinary ‘stuff’ at a fundraiser, some of which will help subsidize a selection of the culinary scholarship and internships offered from the Women Chefs and Restaurateurs organization. The event at Willow Restaurant in Arlington, Virginia was to launch the WCR 2009 Calendar and Recipe Collection - Crowning Cuisine: More Than Sugar and Spice. Featuring some of the Washington DC area's finest female chefs, cooks and sommeliers, this extraordinary collection provides signature recipes, wine pairings and preparation tips from Nora Pouillon, Ris Lacoste, Jamie Leeds, Tracy O'Grady, Barbara Black and many more talented women of food. (watch video below)

I was busy volunteering in the kitchen that evening and shot a bit of video, my own reality program. If you look closely you will see Kate Jansen of Willow, Ris Lacoste of the soon-to-be Ris, Nora Pouillon of Restaurant Nora, Janis McLean of 15 Ria, Ann Yonkers and many other women chefs.



Calendars can also be purchased at these participating establishments in the Washington DC metro area or buy on line HERE:

15 ria, Addie's, Argia's, Arrowine, Bazin's on Church, Black's Bar & Kitchen, Black Market Bistro, BlackSalt, Buzz, CommonWealth Gastropub, Eatbar, Equinox, Great Falls Tea Garden at Cathy's Corner, Hank's Oyster Bar DC, Hank's Oyster Bar Old Town, Hollin Hall Pastry Shop, Hook, ici Urban Bistro, La Cuisine, L'Academie de Cuisine, Lansdowne Resort Restaurants, Mia's Pizzas, Moorenko's Ice Cream Cafés, Pizzeria Paradiso and Birreria Georgetown, Pizzeria Paradiso Dupont Circle, Restaurant Eve, Restaurant Nora, Red White & Bleu, Rock Creek Bethesda, Rock Creek at Mazza, Swiss Bakery and Pastry Shops, Tackle Box, Tallula, Teaism, The Majestic,Vermillion, Willow Restaurant.