10th annual Ashland Culinary Festival
#AshlandCulinaryFest
November 3rd – 6th, 2016
Event Headquarters: Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites
2525 Ashland Street
Lead Emcee, Host and Head Judge - Cory Schreiber
Festival Information - (541) 482-3486 or email kelsey@ashlandchamber.com
Festival Partner: Ashland Emergency Food Bank
Purchase online in advance of the Festival to save $5 per adult ticket OR bring TWO non-perishable food items with you to the door to save $5 off per adult ticket. Items brought to the door during the Festival will be donated to the Ashland Emergency Food Bank.
Join us in celebrating Southern Oregon’s food, drink, talent and creativity. Enjoy this delicious four-day destination event as 12 local chefs compete for Top Chef honor in the Chef Showdown using local produce and a secret key ingredient and challenge. Have fun learning and tasting at new culinary workshops throughout the weekend. Sample and purchase with over 30 food artisans, farms, restaurants, award winning wineries and breweries. New this year will be the Ultimate Top Chef Dinner on Thursday evening, November 3rd. Friday enjoy wine tours, an evening kick-off event including food demos, a mixology competition, live music and samplings. On Saturday, witness the first Junior Chef Competition at the Festival where local junior chefs compete for the Junior Chef title and a chance to shadow our Festival Judges. On Sunday, learn all about brunch in Ashland at a new workshop sponsored by the Ashland B&B Network. It’s a weekend you won’t want to miss!
2016 Competing Restaurants and Chefs:
Tom Bates - Bella Union
Mario Chavez – Onyx Restaurant & Bar
Javier Cruz – Standing Stone Brewing Co.
Josh Dorcak – Scarpetta (2015 Top Chef)
Skye Elder - Brickroom
Dustin Farley – Porters - Dining at the Depot
Dale Fowler - Regency Grill
Morgan McKelvey - Smithfields
James Moreau - Wiley's Trattoria
Serena Murno - Liquid Assets
Will Shine – Hearsay Restaurant
Shay Spear – Neuman Hotel Group (Luna Cafe & Mercantile & Larks Restaurant)
2016 Competition Judges:
Lead Emcee, Host and Head Judge
Cory Schreiber
Founder of Cooking from the Source, Wildwood Restaurant and winner of the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Pacific Northwest. Read his bio here!
Fabiola Donnelly
Creator and founder of Not Just Baked
Sweet and Savory recipes from a classically trained baker,
Not Just Baked. Portland, Oregon
Judiaann Woo
Food + Travel + Lifestyle Consultant from Portland, Oregon
Recently named as one of Portland's "12 Must-Follow Portland Instagram Accounts"
Culinary Hands-on Workshops:
For packages which include workshops, you will receive an email with detailed workshop information when each of the workshops descriptions are released. Workshops do require pre-registration and can’t be purchased at the door.
Workshops will be held at a variety of locations as not all of the classes are at the Festival Headquarters.
Continue checking this page for new workshops and updated information as we draw closer to the event.10:00am – 11:30am (locations vary on workshop)
*Limited seating - register when you buy your tickets (choose one per day):Saturday Workshops:
Branson's Chocolates
presents:
All Things Chocolate!
with Deena Branson -
- Branson’s Chocolates is an everyday indulgence with their fine hand dipped Chocolates, creamy Fudges, award winning Truffles, decadent Turtles, buttery English Toffee, rich Chocolate Sauce and Sugar Free Chocolates. Everything is hand-made in small batches to ensure freshness with all natural and locally sourced products whenever possible. During the workshop, attendees will have the chance to prepare a chocolate creation with Deena.
Max. Capacity: 15
Location: Branson’s Chocolates, 1662 Siskiyou Blvd.The Health Benefits and "How To" of Bone Broth with Kristen Lyon
Offered Saturday (November 5th)
- Bone Broth has emerged as one of the mainstays in our shift toward healing our bodies and minds through food and nutrition - so what's the scoop? Chef Kristen Lyon will answer questions, demonstrate the different steps of making bone broth, sample chicken and beef bone broth based soups and provide recipes to make at home as well as local sources for purchasing.
Max. Capacity: 20
Location: Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites (Galaxy Room), 2525 Ashland StreetFrench Comice Pear Tart & Holiday Baking workshop sponsored by Denika Voget of Coquette Bakery
Offered Saturday (November 5th)
- Baker and Co-Owner of Coquette Bakery Denika will demonstrate her favorite fall dessert, the French Comice Pear Tart. This tart is simple but sure to impress guests during the holidays. We will discuss the attributes of the famous Rogue Valley Comice Pear. We will peak behind the curtain to learn trade secrets about making a flaky tart pastry dough. Finally, we will explore how to make desserts special with different liquors. Generous samples of the final product will be served after the workshop.
Max. Capacity: 24
Location: Ashland Food Co-op Classroom, 300 N Pioneer Street2016 Junior Chef Competition
Offered Saturday (November 5th)
- New this year: Attend our first ever Junior Chef Competition. This can be selected as a "Workshop" for workshop pass holders. Two teams will be competing from both Ashland High School and South Medford High School's Culinary Programs - one Head Chef and one Sous Chef for each team, four teams total. Junior Chefs will be given a secret ingredient or challenge to complete much like that Top Chef Competition. The winning team of the Junior Chef competition will have a chance to shadow our Festival Judges during the Top Chef Competition.
We are also excited to announce that Chef Billy Buscher of Alchemy Restaurant at the Winchester Inn, the 2016 Iron Chef of Oregon and 2012 Top Chef, will be a celebrity Judge and mentor for this competition only.
For ticket holders who have a VIP Package, Premier Pass or tickets which include workshops, this will be included for workshop registration.Location: Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites (Main Ballroom), 2525 Ashland Street
Sunday Workshops:
Blending Bar Edible Beauty sponsored by Zagorska
Offered Sunday (November 6th)
- Learn to make edible, organic skin care from your your kitchen with a focus on seasonal ingredients. Attendees will have a chance to blend their own face mask to take home. Learn the benefits of nature’s ingredients with tips for different skin conditions.
Max. Capacity: 12
Location: Zagorska Oasis Eco-Luxe Spa & Apothecary, 111 E Main St, downstairs from Sew Creative
How to Taste Wine like an Expert and The 6 Elements of Wine and Food Pairing with Wine Consultant, Chris Clough and Wine Maker, Gill Anderson of Platt Anderson Cellars:
Offered Sunday (November 6th)
- Are you a wine novice that would like to become a better taster or someone more experienced with wine that would like to find more subtle differences in each glass? Join Wine Consultant, Chris Clough and Winemaker, Gill Anderson of Platt Anderson Cellars as they take you through the methodology to become a wine tasting expert. They will also show you the six elements of wine and food pairing. Local Southern Oregon Wines will be featured in the tasting to highlight the recent award by Wine Enthusiast where Ashland was named as one of the 10 Best Wine Travel Destinations in the world for 2016.
Max. Capacity: 30
Location: Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites (Cosmos Ballroom)
Homemade Oregon Granola Holiday Gift Treats with Fabiola Donnelly of Not Just Baked, 2016 Festival Judge
Offered Sunday (November 6th)
- Blending Oregon ingredients with handmade gifts for a more thoughtful and tasty holiday season! Oregon has a bounty of ingredients perfect the holidays. What better way to celebrate than with handmade gifts for friends and loved ones. We’ll be making and snacking on Oregon Granola for this class. I’ll be highlighting Oregon’s local flavors with olive oil, honeys, nuts, and berries all from this beautiful state. This treat is perfect for healthy and homemade breakfast as well as a sweet handmade host or hostess gift for all of the holiday fun to come! Eat a granola snack and learn to customize this homemade treat! We'll be serving granola with yogurt, so come a little hungry.
Max. Capacity: 25
Location: Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites (Galaxy Ballroom)
Stress-Free Breakfasts and Brunches sponsored by the Ashland Bed & Breakfast Network:
Offered Sunday (November 6th)
- Come learn how to create amazing breakfast and brunch fare from the people who do it daily - the owners and chefs from some of Ashland’s famous Bed & Breakfasts! Let us show you the tips of the trade to make sure you serve delicious food to your guests with a minimum of stress. We will share basic skills as well as advance preparation tips to help assure that both you and your guests enjoy your day.
Max. Capacity: 24
Location: Ashland Food Co-op Classroom, 300 N Pioneer Street
Ultimate Ashland Culinary Festival
Top Chef DinnerThursday, November 3rd
6:00pm - Ashland Hills Hotel & SuitesNEW this year: Honoring the history of our 10-year event, join us for the Ultimate Top Chef Dinner on Thursday, November 3rd - 6:00pm at Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites, our Festival Headquarters. Enjoy a six-course dinner prepared by some of our amazingly talented past Top Chef Winners (Neil Clooney of Smithfields Restaurant & Bar - Top Chef 2007 & 2008), Franco Console of Larks Restaurant - Top Chef 2009, Chandra Corwin of Cucina Biazzi - Top Chef 2010, Dustin Farley of Porters - Dining at the Depot - Top Chef 2013, James Williams previously of Omar's Fresh Seafood & Steaks - Top Chef 2014 and Josh Dorcak of Scarpetta - Top Chef 2015). Each course will be paired with a local wine or brew. The menu will be released soon, but this is a dinner you won’t want to miss! Tickets are $85 per person or can be purchased as part of a 4-day VIP Package. There are only a limited number of seats for the Top Chef Dinner, so we suggest purchasing your ticket early.
Top Chef Dinner Sponsors that evening include:
Neuman Hotel Group
Laurelwood Brewing Co.
Rogue Creamery
Friday's Culinary Kickoff event
Friday Night only
5:30pm to 7:00pm
Ashland Hills Hotel & SuitesFriday evening kickoff event includes a food demo, a new Mixology competition, live music by Doug Warren, samplings by the Bear Creek Wine Trail, small bites and more!
2016 Junior Chef Competition
Saturday, November 5th
10:00am to 11:30am
Ashland Hills Hotel & SuitesAttend our first ever Junior Chef Competition. This can be selected as a "Workshop" for workshop pass holders. Two teams will be competing from both Ashland High School and South Medford High School's Culinary Programs - one Head Chef and one Sous Chef for each team, four teams total. Junior Chefs will be given a secret ingredient or challenge to complete much like that Top Chef Competition. The winning team of the Junior Chef competition will have a chance to shadow our Festival Judges during the Top Chef Competition.
We are also excited to announce that Chef Billy Buscher of Alchemy Restaurant at the Winchester Inn, the 2016 Iron Chef of Oregon and 2012 Top Chef, will be a celebrity Judge and mentor for this competition only.
For ticket holders who have a VIP Package, Premier Pass or tickets which include workshops, this will be included for workshop registration.
Vendors:
Belle Fiore Winery, Estate and Vineyard
Bend Distillery (Crater Lake Spirits)
Branson's Chocolates
Coquette Bakery (Sunday only)
Figgy's Food Truck
Grizzly Peak Winery
Heavenly Fire Salsa
Kia's Ktichen
Kriselle Cellars
Latinality - Latin Marinades & Sauces
Laurelwood Brewing Co.
Naked Winery
Platt Anderson Cellars
Roxy Ann Winery
Season Cellars
Serra Vineyards
Simple Machine
Slagle Creek Vineyards
Spiritopia Liqueurs
Storyville Coffee
Summit Beverage
Thrive - Rogue Flavor Booth
TonTon's Artisan Affections
Trium Winery
Wagon Trail Foods / Nut Fusions Peanut Spreads
Weisinger Family Winery
West Coast Appliance and Furniture
Zagorska Oasis Express Spa & Apothecary
Office Hours: 10am-3pm, Monday through Friday
