Celebrities
events. But don’t be surprised if you see him make a cameo appearance at other events. Irvine is a yearly headline at the festival.
Where to see him: Irvine, who introduced his own line of vodka and gin called Irvine’s Spirits this year, headlines a walk-around tasting event on Thursday night, Dec. 7, with Okeechobee Steakhouse owner Ralph Lewis. “An Evening with Robert Irvine” ($200 per person) brings a variety of Irvine’s beverage line to the Okeechobee Prime Event Hall, located behind the steakhouse. For each ticket purchased, the festival will donate $100 to Irvine’s charitable foundation, which helps veterans, first-responder families and service members.
Irvine will also headline the festival’s expanded grand-finale event on Sunday, Dec. 10, from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Palm Beach County Convention Center ($195 per person), where he will judge the “Grand Tasting” event’s chef throwdown.
And he will lead one of the festival’s two sold-out “Kids Kitchen” cooking classes Saturday, Dec. 9.
Maneet Chauhan
Food Network fans may recognize her as a judge on “Chopped,” but there’s much more to know about chef Maneet Chauhan. The spirited, Nashville-based chef is also a restaurateur and cookbook author. She’s about to open a modern Indian restaurant called Eet at Disney Springs with her husband and business partner Vivek Deora.
Where to see her: Chauhan will headline a festival lunch on Saturday, Dec. 9, at the newly transplanted and expanded Ela Curry & Cocktails (formerly Ela Curry Kitchen), which reopens Dec. 1 in Palm Beach Gardens. She’ll join Ela chef/co-owner Pushkar Marathe and North Carolina-based celebrity chef Cheetie Kumar. The multicourse lunch ($195 per person) will feature authentic Indian classics.
Chauhan also will join fellow Food Network star Irvine at Sunday’s Grand Tasting. And she will headline a soldout festival lunch at Meat Market Friday as well as a sold-out Sunday brunch at Café Boulud Palm Beach.
Stephen Stryjewski
New Orleans foodies know why this chef is the real deal. And not just because he won the 2011 James Beard Award for “Best Chef ” in the South and one of his and his business partner’s restaurants, Peche, won the 2014 James Beard Award for “Best New Restaurant” in the country. A grilling master, Stryjewski
captures the complexities of Southern cooking with tremendous heart.
Where to see him: On Friday, Dec. 8, Stryjewski will headline a lunch at Avocado Grill ($150 per person) alongside creative chefs Giorgio Rapicavoli (Eating House and Luca Osteria, Coral Gables) and Jordan Rubin (Mr. Tuna, Portland, Maine).
On Saturday night, Dec. 9, Stryjewski will join local pitmasters at “The Porch” barbecue event ($100 per person) at Ravish Off Ocean restaurant in Lantana. He’ll be making a whole, roasted cochon de lait (suckling pig) with gingersnap gravy and jambalaya.
Alon Shaya
Like Stryjewski, Alon Shaya is a James Beard Award-winning chef from New Orleans. Born in Israel, Shaya is credited for popularizing modern Israeli cuisine in New Orleans. He’s the chef/ owner behind Saba restaurant in that city and Safta restaurant in Denver.
Where to see him: Shaya is headlining a five-course Shabbat dinner Friday night, Dec. 8, at Aioli in West Palm Beach ($275 per person).
He’s also taking part in star chef Daniel Boulud’s sold-out Sunday brunch at Café Boulud in Palm Beach.
Lior Lev Sercarz
A French-trained chef and culinary author, Sercarz is best known for creating fine, signature blends at his La Boîte spice lab and shop in New York. Like Shaya, he was born in Israel. His latest book, “A Middle Eastern Pantry,” was published in June by Clarkson Potter.
Where to see him: Sercarz will join Shaya at the Friday night Shabbat dinner at Aioli ($275 per person).
He’s also one of the headliners at the festival’s “Rosé Parté” tasting event Saturday at Almond restaurant in Palm Beach ($100 per person).
Cheetie Kumar
A rising star chef, restaurateur and musician, Kumar has family roots in India, grew up in the Bronx and calls the American South her home.
Where to see her: Kumar will join Chauhan at the Saturday lunch at the new Ela Indian restaurant ($195 per person).
She’s also taking part in a sold-out Thursday night dinner at Stage Kitchen in Palm Beach Gardens.
Liz Balmaseda is a Pulitzer Prizewinning journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network. She covers the local food and dining beat. Follow her on Instagram and Post on Food Facebook. She can be reached by email at lbalmaseda@pbpost.com.