Greenwich Wine + Food has announced the culinary talent that will be participating in The Big Easy at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, New York on Saturday, March 4, bringing the flavors and fun of New Orleans to life. Beneficiaries include two national non-profit organizations with roots in Connecticut – The Jacques Pépin Foundation and Wholesome Wave. Premium sponsors include Wagoneer and Greenwich Hospital.
This completely new, dine-around evening event will invite guests to wander the New Orleans-style grand tasting event featuring signature Cajun and Creole dishes from area chefs from 6:30pm-8:30pm. Bourbon Street’s iconic drinks such as Hurricanes and Mudslides, as well as premium wine, beer and spirits, will be served throughout the entire evening. Special ticket options will invite guests to begin their culinary travels thirty-minutes early at 6pm, a private pre-party, access to a second-floor bar and seating area, VIP parking and more.
Musical talent for the evening includes headliner Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, Big Head Todd & the Monsters and Dumpstaphunk + Cyril Neville (opening the evening’s musical line-up at 6:30pm). Longtime supporter of Greenwich Wine + Food Gary Dell’Abate (“The Howard Stern Show”) and member of the organization’s board of advisors will serve as one of the evening’s emcees, alongside Suni Unger, founder and CEO of Unger Media, the parent company behind Greenwich Wine + Food and Serendipity magazine.
THE CULINARY LINE UP:
Avellino Family Barbecue, Stamford, Connecticut
Fortina, Stamford, Connecticut and Armonk, Rye and Yonkers, New York
Grumpy Dumpling, Norwalk, Connecticut
Jacob’s Pickles, New York, New York and Norwalk, Connecticut (opening soon)
L’Inizio, Ardsley, New York (and opening in 2023, Freebird, Greenwich, Connecticut
Little Pub, Fairfield, Greenwich, Old Saybrook, Stratford and Wilton, Connecticut
Milestone, Redding, Connecticut
Milton Point Provisions, Rye, New York
Penny Lick Ice Cream, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York
PopUpBagels, Redding and Westport, Connecticut and New York
Rebel Daughter Cookies, Norwalk, Connecticut
Sysco Culinary Experts
Tickets are now on sale and include food, unlimited drinks and all musical performances. Prices range from $325 (VIP Floor Badge) to $450 (Diamond VIP Loge Badge). A limited number of private booths are available via sponsorship opportunities.
The full schedule of programming is available at www.greenwichwineandfood.com, as well as the GWF’s social media channels (Facebook @Greenwichwineandfoodfestival and Instagram @greenwichwineandfood).
Tickets can be purchased at the website above. Please note that talent, chefs and dates for the celebration are subject to change.
Parameters for weather, age restrictions, and health and safety guidelines will also be available on www.greenwichwineandfood.com.
Greenwich Wine + Food embraces and honors culinary visionaries in the community of Connecticut and New York, and beyond. A pillar of the brand is creating content, experiences and opportunities to bring together the most incredible chefs, restaurateurs, purveyors, farmers, vintners, industry leaders and guests while giving back to important causes. GWF celebrates community, charity, food, beverage and more in the Connecticut and New York area with multiple events throughout the year, including its flagship Greenwich Wine + Food Festival. The 2022 beneficiaries include the Jacques Pépin Foundation and Wholesome Wave. All proceeds will benefit both organizations.
Previous participants include chefs Jacques Pépin, Daniel Boulud, Scott Conant, Mary Giuliani, Alex Guarnaschelli, Marc Murphy, Adam Richman and Marcus Samuelsson, as well as musical artists Tim McGraw, Little Big Town, Train and Ziggy Marley. Celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year, previous beneficiaries include the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, the Town of Greenwich Parks & Recreation Foundation, Food Rescue US and Ment’or.
Sponsors to date include Wagoneer, Greenwich Hospital (Premium Sponsors), Compass, Douglas Elliman, Empire Merchants LLC, Liberty Coca-Cola Beverages, Serendipity, Sysco, Tyson Fresh Foods, Westy Self-Storage and Woodford Reserve (*). The event was created by Suni Unger, founder and CEO of Unger Publishing, the parent company behind Greenwich Wine + Food andSerendipity magazine (a women-owned, women-run business), and is supported by a board of advisors including Rob Burnett, Gary Dell’Abate, Icy Frantz, Griffith Harris, Lee Milazzo, Holly Parmelee, Jenny Prince, Karen Rubenstein, Gerard N. Saggese III, Lara Spencer, Andy Stern and Bill Taibe. For more information, visit www.greenwichwineandfood.com or the event’s social media channels: Facebook (@Greenwichwineandfoodfestival) and Instagram (@greenwichwineandfood), or email wineandfood@ungerpublishing.com.
ABOUT THE JACQUES PÉPIN FOUNDATION
The Jacques Pépin Foundation supports community kitchens that offer free life skills and culinary training to adults with high barriers to employment, including previous incarceration, homelessness, substance abuse issues, low skill and education attainment and lack of work history. Become a JPF Member to support our educational programs and grants. For more information, visit www.jp.foundation.
ABOUT WHOLESOME WAVE
Wholesome Wave is a national non-profit established on the belief that everyone, regardless of race, age, ethnicity, or income, has a fundamental right to choose healthy food. Wholesome Wave’s mission is to address disparities in diet-related disease and enhance nutrition equity by making fruits and vegetables more accessible and affordable to low-income community members through systems change. Founded in 2007 by James Beard Award-winning Chef Michel Nischan and former USDA Undersecretary of Agriculture Gus Schumacher, Wholesome Wave successfully established the legal framework and advocated funding the doubling of SNAP benefits when spent on healthy fruits and vegetables – a program that has reached millions of community members across the country and has been established as a permanent program in the 2018 Farm Bill, named the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program. Today, Wholesome Wave is leveraging our 15 years of experience and relationships supporting successful fruit and vegetable access programs to advocate for their inclusion as a covered healthcare treatment through government-sponsored health plans.
With the final countdown on to Greenwich Wine + Food’s “The Big Easy” event, benefitting The Jacques Pépin Foundation and Wholesome Wave, this coming Saturday, March 4 at The Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, I wanted to share a few exciting updates:
Legendary New Orleans Chef/Restaurateur Dickie Brennan will be honored for his contributions to the culinary world.
Chef Michel Nischan (Wholesome Wave) and caterer to the stars Mary Giuliani (Mary Giuliani Catering & Events) will be attending the evening as special guests.
Updated culinary line-up includes:
- Avellino Family Barbecue, Stamford, Connecticut
- Chef Kevin Des Chenes
- Copps Island Oyster Shack & Copps Island Shuck Truck, Stratford, Connecticut
- The Dessertist, Croton-on-Hudson, New York
- Fortina, Stamford, Connecticut and Armonk, Rye and Yonkers, New York
- Grumpy Dumpling, Norwalk, Connecticut
- Jacob’s Pickles, New York, New York and Norwalk, Connecticut (opening soon)
- L’Inizio, Ardsley, New York (and opening in 2023, Freebird, Greenwich, Connecticut
- Little Pub, Fairfield, Greenwich, Old Saybrook, Stratford and Wilton, Connecticut
- Milestone, Redding, Connecticut
- Milton Point Provisions, Rye, New York
- Penny Lick Ice Cream, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York
- @PopUpBagels, Redding and Westport, Connecticut and New York
- Sysco Culinary Experts
New Orleans & Company, the official destination marketing and sales organization for the New Orleans Tourism Industry, is the presenting sponsor for the evening.