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Time to wine, dine and spread holiday spirit |
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Written by Morgan Kriz
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Tuesday, 04 December 2007 |
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Project MANA’s Holiday Cooking Demonstration and Live Auction will take place Sunday, Dec. 9. at the Coyote Moon Golf Course Bar & Grill from 5 to 9:30 p.m. The Tahoe Mountain Club and Project MANA will once again be hosting this exclusive event as a fundraiser to benefit Project MANA’s hunger relief efforts within our community.
The event will feature a six-course food and wine pairing, live auction with the legendary Porter and Simon duo and local entertainment. Each course will be prepared by one of Tahoe’s finest chefs, including Mark Estee (master of ceremonies) from Moody’s Bistro & Lounge, Billy McCullough of Dragonfly, Guy Frenette of Moody’s Bistro & Lounge, Bill Arnoff of Pianeta, David Lutz from Schaffers Camp and Wild Goose, Michael Plapp from Pacific Crest and Jay Veregge from the Big Water Grill.
 Tickets are $75, all proceeds from the event, including ticket sales, bar sales and auction packages go directly to Project MANA. For tickets and further information call Kendra Murphy at (530) 550-5091 or kmurphy@tahoemountainclub. com. Tickets are also available in Truckee a Moody’s Bistro, Dragonfly Restaurant & Sushi Bar and Florian’s Fine Wines.
Photo right: Mark Estee grills up some barbecue at a fundraiser for Project MANA during the summer.
Q&A with emcee and Project MANA board president Mark Estee:
Tahoe World: Can you give us a hint as to what might be on the menu Dec. 9th?
Mark Estee: We’re looking to do some collaborations between the chefs to make sure we aren’t copying each other. We kind of start off light and work our way up to dessert. It’ll be almost like a progressive tasting with six courses.
And I’m acting as the emcee.
TW: So how does it work with six chefs doing the cooking? Is it easier or harder with so many?
Estee: These guys are all so professional, and it’s great of Coyote Moon and the Tahoe Mountain Club to donate the space, which is a great facility. Everyone keeps their mise en place (i.e. ingredients) together and we set up on racks and everyone goes out like a TV show — you get your 15 minutes on stage and then you’re off. And then the best part is the camaraderie of all the chefs hanging out in the back.
That’s why they decided to let me emcee this year, because I was kind of ribbing everyone last year pretty good. It’s fun to cook, but it really comes down to the people.
 TW: How and why did you get involved in this benefit dinner and with Project MANA?
Estee: I’ve bee on the (Project MANA) board of directors for like two and a half years, and right now I happen to be the President, so it’s a great fundraiser for us. And in all honesty, the Tahoe Mountain Club does all the work, so it’s a no brainer for Project MANA. And of course, being associated with all these great chefs is the same thing. This will be my third year, and they started off really small, but I think it’s grown a lot. This year is the biggest it’s ever been.
TW: Other than by attending this dinner, do you have any suggestion on how people can help Project MANA meet its goals?
Estee: You can go visit our Web site, ProjectMANA.org, and you can actually donate online. The holidays are a really tough time for all nonprofits because people don’t have much disposable income, although we usually do receive some nice gifts during this time. There are always so many great needs in Truckee and I think MANA is at the forefront because we’re providing one of the main things people need to live — sustenance. It’s funny, people don’t recognize that there is a hunger problem in Tahoe, but there is.
TW: What’s more satisfying, eating a great meal prepared by someone else, or cooking a great meal for someone else?
Estee: My personal favorite thing to do is cooking a great meal, a very simple meal, for myself and friends. So it’s a night off, it’s T-shirt and jeans, hanging out in the kitchen, whipping up a roasted chicken with some beautifully dressed greens that we got from Gary Romano’s farm... Or finding something really special and just focusing on the ingredient.
For me the days of 10-course extravagant tasting menus are done. I like to sit down and on the table is the appetizer, the salad, the entree, and dessert is like a hunk of cheese. Just keeping it real simple.
In our Let’s Talk Turkey program we served about 522 turkeys for Thanksgiving — just gave out the turkeys and all the fixings.
TW: So you aren’t cooking?
Estee: I’m not cooking — my Chef de Cuisine (Guy Frenette) is going to cook. So I’ll kind of be there to rib the chefs.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 04 December 2007 )
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