Chef Challenge
October 23, 2018
On October 14th, the Anaheim Garden Walk held its second annual Chef Challenge event. The event was a competition between seven restaurants, each with a sample of their signature dishes. The participants included The House of Blues Restaurant and Bar, FIRE+ICE, Interactive Grill+Bar, Grasslands Meat Market BBQ, California Pizza Kitchen, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., Roy’s Restaurant, and McCormick & Schmick’s Grille.
The inspiration for the event, according to Robin Weeks-Wynne, Senior Director of Marketing & Tourism for Anaheim GardenWalk stated: “It really helps send the message that we are trying to get out, that we are an Eatertainment property.” Eaterrtainment is having the opportunity to have dining and entertainment at once. The guests attending the event registered at 2 pm to be able to receive their voting cards, which was tallied and accounted for at the end of the event at 5:15 pm. After the registration, between 3 pm and 5 pm, guests would get the opportunity to have a “nice, big sample signature dish from each restaurant participating.” Robin Weeks-Wynne mentioned how they are “very lucky at the GardenWalk, which is a family atmosphere.” They were very fortunate to have some of the restaurants agree to participate in the Chef Challenge.
At 5:15 pm, the winner was announced. The winner of the Chef challenge was House of Blues Restaurant and Bar with their Voodoo Shrimp dish. Their prize was four professional grade knives valued at $1500. The runner-up was Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and their \Shrimp Extravaganza dish with sautéed jumbo shrimp and lobster with pepper butter sauce over garlic herb crostini. Their prize was two professional grade knives valued at $500. The GardenWalk also awarded the California Restaurant Association Foundation (CRAF) students for being a vital part of the Chef Challenge and those students received a gift card.
