At last Wednesday’s Taste of Laguna event at the Festival grounds, it was great to see all the executive chefs representing their restaurants at the booths.
Of the 33 restaurants there, I’d say less than a handful of the primary chefs were MIA, and that says a lot for the commitment and dedication our chefs have to the residents of our berg.
As I kibitzed with various chefs, I learned a couple fun facts from the “horses’ mouths” so to speak …
Juices and Shakes – Amy Amaradio and Chris Keller of Casa Resorts were both doling out juice samples for their soon-to-be-opening Juices and Shakes shop next to the movie theater downtown.
If you remember your ancient history, I noted the old Haagen-Dazs ice cream shop moving into Chris’ capable hands sometime in the spring of 2013. Needless to say, with all the developments in their lives, Juices and Shakes was put on a blender “pause” until life quieted a bit.
Now, the couple is moving into final completion phase and will be opening the shop in the next few weeks. I’ve no doubt the shop will rock the business from its opening day long before the summer crowds arrive next spring (because that’s just how Chris Keller does things).
2nd Annual Sip and Shuck Committed to Helping PMMC – In its 2nd annual effort, the owners of Driftwood Kitchen and The Deck singlehandedly chose to support the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in their Sip and Shuck event, a Champagne and Oyster Fest on Nov. 9th. If you know anything about me by now, you know this is extremely happy news for me as the PMMC is an entity I strongly support.
Director of Operations John Nye told me he chose the PMMC after hearing of the massive rescue efforts the staff there was performing each month. Mr. Nye and Chef Rainer: I adore the both of you even more now.
Stay tuned for details on all these events (and a fun contest we have brewing) at my blog and on my Facebook page!