Wine Country Celebration and Grand Gala - Chefs & Culinary Personalities

Chef Kevin Davis has been creating fresh and delicious food in the Seattle area for over ten years. With culinary experience ranging from Australia to New Orleans, Kevin and his partner Theresa opened Steelhead Diner in Pike Place Market in February, 2007. Building on Steelhead's great success, Kevin recently opened another restaurant, Blueacre Seafood. The vision for Blueacre is to create a quintessential American seafood restaurant serving “responsible, approachable, amazing seafood." Drawing upon the vast array of wild seafood available in the United States coastal waters as well as carefully chosen, sustainably farmed freshwater species, Kevin creates dishes the showcase the best of truly Pacific Northwest cuisine.

Location: 1700 7th Ave, Seattle (206) 659-0737

Crush
Chef Jason Wilson

After an unforgettable debut at the Wine Country Celebration two years ago, Chef Jason Wilson is back again to wow us with his wine country cuisine. Remaining true to his ideals, Jason prepares the finest local, organic ingredients in a manner befitting the title Modern Northwest Cuisine. After graduating from the esteemed California Culinary Academy, he assisted in kitchens as far afield as France, California and Singapore. He considers the kitchens of Flying Saucer, Aqua and Stars his main influences. In 2006, Jason was declared one of the Top Ten New Chefs in North America by the prestigious Food and Wine Magazine.

Location: 2319 E Madison St, Seattle (206) 302-7874

Canlis Restaurant
Chef Jason Franey

A native of Palm Beach, Florida, Jason Franey began cooking at age 15 and later worked at The Breakers Hotel, where he first realized his true passion. Jason then took a job at Campton Place in San Francisco as sous-chef for Daniel Humm. After three years, Chef Humm insisted that Jason join him as his executive sous chef at Danny Meyer's famed Eleven Madison Park in New York City. Together, they transformed the restaurant and in 2008, Eleven Madison Park became New York's sixth restaurant to be designated Grand Chef Relais & Châteaux, one of only 19 in the country. Today, Jason runs his own kitchen, as the legendary Canlis Restaurant's fifth ever executive chef in 58 years.

Location: 2576 Aurora Ave N, Seattle (206) 283-3313

John Howie Steak
Chef Mark Hipkiss

We are delighted to welcome Chef Mark Hipkiss of John Howie Steak, whose extensive experience and knowledge of all things steak will be the perfect match for a line-up of great Washington wines. The son of a butcher, Mark spent his teen years packing meat. He later launched his culinary career at Roche Harbor and in 1992, became a member of the opening team for Palisades along with Chef John Howie. The two worked together for four years, and in 2009 John asked Mark to take the helm of the kitchen at his new steakhouse, John Howie Steak, a steakhouse that was not only to be the best in the Northwest but with global appeal, featuring a unique four-tiered steak program and the best ingredients from around the world. It's here that Mark creates the finest Northwest cuisine from classics like Beef Carpaccio and Steak Tartare to local Dungeness crab and house-made pastas, breads and desserts.

Location: 11111 NE 8th St, Bellevue (425) 440-0880

Barking Frog at Willows Lodge
Chef Bobby Moore

Chef Bobby Moore began working in restaurants at age 15, as a dishwasher in his best friend’s parents’ restaurant. By 18, he was developing his own culinary flair, tossing pizza dough in the front window. After graduating from Seattle Central’s Culinary Program in 1997, Bobby worked his way up to Sous-chef at Fullers in Seattle, under Tom Black. In April 2005, he was named executive chef of Barking Frog at Willows Lodge, a casual bistro featuring fresh Northwest wine country cuisine, that has received both “Restaurant of the Year” and “Most Innovative Wine List” awards from the Washington Wine Commission.

Location: 14580 NE 145th St, Woodinville (425) 424-2999

Making his debut at the Wine Country Celebration this year, Executive Chef Bear Ullman joins us from The Marcus Whitman Hotel’s fabulous retaurant, The Marc. A native of Maui, Bear has trained in some of the finest kitchens in the world. From his first apprenticeship under distinguished European chefs at Westin Hotels, he has demonstrated his culinary skills at top restaurants in San Francisco, Denver and Boston. Bear has built The Marc Restaurant's excellent reputation by highlighting Walla Walla Valley's profusion of high quality, locally grown products and their award-winning wine list.

Gasperetti's Restaurant and Bar
Brad Patterson

We are excited to introduce to the Wine Country Celebration Chef Brad Patterson, renowned chef of Yakima’s most popular hot spot, Gasperetti’s Restaurant and Bar. Brad joined the Gasperetti family in 1967, working hard to learn the family's secret Italian recipes in order to create authentic food the way John Gasperetti’s grandmother would have made. Brad has since spent his time refining his culinary skills with studies at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, dining in Michelin-starred restaurants and humble bistros here and abroad, and learning from a lifelong collection of cookbooks and magazines. His menus reflect the bounty of fresh fruit and vegetables available in the Yakima Valley.

Location: 1013 North 1st St, Yakima (509) 248-0628

Picazo 7Seventeen Wine Bar and Restaurant
Chef Frank Magaña

It took just one visit to Prosser to inspire Chef Frank Magaña to move there and pursue his dream of opening his own restaurant and catering company. So in the spring of 2007, he began catering for the wine industry. A beautiful historic building in downtown Prosser became the home for his vision - Picazo 7Seventeen Wine Bar & Restaurant. Frank has over 16 years' experience in some of the Northwest's finest restaurants and strives to create dishes that showcase the best of Washington's vineyard region. Picazo 7 was honored this year with a restaurant appreciation award from the Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers, for showcasing and educating diners about Washington's wines.

Location: 717 6th St, Prosser (509) 786-1116

Waterfront Seafood Grill
Peter Levine

Since graduating from the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco and the Diablo Valley College Hotel and Restaurant School in Pleasant Hill, Chef Peter Levine has gained significant culinary experience spanning coast to coast. He has made Seattle his home and worked at Trattoria Carmine, Isabella Ristorante, BluWater Bistro and Vivanda. In 2006, he joined Mackay Restaurants as Executive Chef at Troiani Ristorante Italiano. He moved to their Waterfront Seafood Grill in July 2008, where he creates the incredible seafood dishes that have grown the restaurant's excellent reputation. Peter frequently donates his time and culinary expertise to various local and national non-profit organizations and events including FareStart and Cooking with Class.

Location: 2801 Alaskan Way, Pier 70, Seattle (206) 956-9171