APRIL 8, 2010 ISSUE
Fire on the Rock Semifinals April 17; Grand Finale April 18
Want To Go?
What: Gamekeeper Restaurant versus Storie Street Grille
Date: Saturday, April 17
Time: 11:00 a.m.
Location: Hayes Center, Blowing Rock
Cost: $10/$25 combo pass for all three events
Want To Go?
What: Rowland’s at Westglow Spa versus Sorrento’s Bistro
Date: Saturday, April 17
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Location: Hayes Center, Blowing Rock
Cost: $10/$25 combo pass for all three events
After 16 rounds of preliminary competitions (including quarterfinals) that began in February, the final four area chefs will take the stage during the Blue Ridge Food and Wine Festival at the Hayes Performing Arts Center in Blowing Rock on Saturday, April 17. The last two chefs standing after those events will compete for top honors on Sunday, April 18. Tickets to watch a single competition cost $10. Tickets for all three events cost $25.
Chef Sam Beasley of Gamekeeper Restaurant will take on Chef Andrew Long of Storie Street Grille in the first semifinal battle for this year’s Fire on the Rock competition on Saturday, April 17, at 11:00 a.m.
Chef Jason Jarrell of Rowland’s at Westglow Resort & Spa will go head-to-head with Chef Nicole Palazzo of Sorrento’s Bistro on Saturday, April 17, at 4:00 p.m.
The winners of these two semifinal battles will compete in the grand finale on April 18 at 2:00 p.m.
The judges are “the heaviest pens in food writing in the Southeast,” said Jimmy Crippen, owner of Crippen’s Country Inn & Restaurant, located at 239 Sunset Drive in Blowing Rock.
Judges include Head Judge John Batchelor of the Greensboro News and Record, Donna Florio of Southern Living, Marcia Langhenry of Atlanta Journal Constitution, Jane Garvey of Gayot.com and Moreton Neal of Raleigh Metro.
“It’s three Blowing Rock restaurants against one Banner Elk restaurant,” Crippen noted.
“Will Blowing Rock holds its title or will Banner Elk rob Blowing Rock of its title as longstanding Fire on the Rock champions?”
Palazzo, the Banner Elk chef, is also the only female chef in the competition, “so will ‘girls rule, boys drool’ hold out,” Crippen asked.
“I’m excited,” Palazzo said of being in the final four. “It was tough; I was up against two really good chefs.”
The upcoming competitions will once again pit her against talented chefs, but “I’ll let my creativity take control,” she said, adding that she has to “rep Banner Elk.”
The secret ingredients will be provided by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and will be North Carolina products, Crippen said.
He added that “rumor has it” that wine and hors d’oeuvres will be served during the event.
This year’s Fire on the Rock was a bracket-style elimination of 20 area chefs battling for a $500 prize in each round, plus bragging rights for themselves and their respective restaurants. Each chef, along with their two coworkers, had to incorporate a secret ingredient into three courses. Diners, presented with a blind, six-course meal, judged each dish to ultimately determine which chef moved on in each round.
Crippen’s Country Inn & Restaurant hosted the preliminary competitions, and this year’s attendance in the preliminaries was triple last year’s attendance, Crippen said.
“We think we found the answer to cabin fever, that’s for sure,” he quipped.
Blowing Rock Fire & Rescue will ensure safety for competitors and spectators during the semifinals and grand finale.
Fire on the Rock began five years ago and involved six chefs from Blowing Rock restaurants. Crippen, dreamed up the event because he thought it would “be fun to recreate Iron Chef,” he said in a February High Country Press interview.
Last year’s final competition resulted in a tie between Billy Greene of Artisanal and Dominic Geraghty of Hound Ears Club, Crippen said.
This year’s competition featured chefs from five counties: Ashe, Avery, Surry, Watauga and Wilkes, he added.
“It’s pretty exciting,” Beasley said of securing his place in the final four. “I never thought I’d make it this far. I’m honored to be in the top four. I’m pretty stoked for the restaurant and my team, and I hope we give everybody a good show.”
He added that he looks forward to the fact the teams only have an hour to prepare their dishes, instead of the five or six hours allotted for each preliminary competition.
“I hope we impress the judges and get famous,” Beasley said.
Jarrell and Long could not be reached for comment as of press time.
Crippen thanked Queen City Audio Video & Appliances and Viking Range Corporation for “providing everything we need to bring the event to you” for the fifth year in a row. The companies provide the TV screens, grills, stoves and refrigerators for the semifinals and grand finale, he said.
“I also want to give a big thanks to Blowing Rock Fire Department,” Crippen said. “Without them, we cannot hold the event.”
Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce is the presenting sponsor for the Blue Ridge Wine and Food Festival. ExploreBooneArea.com, the Town of Blowing Rock, Chetola Resort/Bob Timberlake Inn at Chetola, Diner’s Choice Billboards, Got to be N.C. Agriculture, High Country Radio Group, Wachovia/Wells Fargo, Coca-Cola, Crestwood, the Tanger Outlets of Blowing Rock, The Hemlock Inn, Cabin Fever, The Village Inns of Blowing Rock, Appalachian Energy, 107.9 FM “The Link,” Charleston Magazine, Lake Norman Currents, Our State, WNC Magazine,93.1 “The Wolf,” The Grapevine Magazine and North Carolina Wine Press sponsor the event.
To make reservations for either of the semifinals or for the grand finale, call the Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce at 828-295-7851 or click to www.blueridgewinefestival.com.
For more information about Fire on the Rock, click to www.fireontherock.com.
Community Interest
News & Notes
Events
Arts & Entertainment
BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT
