Hamptons Happenings:James Beard Foundation names Carla Hall from the Chew the 2015 Chefs and Champagne Honoree”
This summer, the James Beard Foundation (JBF) will honor celebrated TV personality, Co-Host of ABC-TV’s Popular Lifestyle Series “The Chew”, chef,  and cookbook author Carla Hall at Chefs & Champagne®, the Foundation’s annual fundraiser and tasting party in the Hamptons.

The James Beard Foundation (JBF), the country’s preeminent culinary organization, announced that it will honor celebrated TV personality, chef, and cookbook author Carla Hall at its annual Hamptons fundraiser and tasting party this summer. Chefs & Champagne^® will be held at Wölffer Estate Vineyard in Sagaponack, New York, on Saturday, July 25, 2015, featuring flowing Champagne Taittinger and culinary offerings from a select group of more than 40 fine chefs, many from JBF Award–winning restaurants.

Carla says  “when I set out for culinary school after years of running a small catering business, it was with the hopes of learning everything I could about cooking and the culinary arts.  In the end, I learned, as we all do, that education and discovery in the kitchen never stops,”  “To be honored by the prestigious James Beard Foundation, which does so much to encourage the study of the culinary arts and the discovery of all that is magical about them is an amazing experience because it both affirms past choices and inspires future decisions.”

With this recognition, Hall joins the ranks of prestigious past Chefs & Champagne honorees including Bobby Flay, Thomas Keller, Emeril Lagasse, Wolfgang Puck, Martha Stewart, and many more. She is a co-host of ABC’s popular lifestyle series The Chew, seated alongside restaurateurs and Iron Chef America stars Mario Batali and Michael Symon, entertaining expert Clinton Kelly and health and wellness enthusiast Daphne Oz. Hall is best known as a competitor on Bravo’s Top Chef, where she won over audiences with her fun catch phrase, “Hootie Hoo,” and her philosophy to always cook with love. Hall is the owner of Carla Hall Petite Cookies, an artisan cookie company that specializes in creating sweet and savory “petite bites of love,” and author of two cookbooks, “Carla’s Comfort Food: Favorite Dishes from Around the World” (2014) and “Cooking with Love: Comfort Food That Hugs You” (2012). Hall’s approach to cooking blends her classic French training and Southern upbringing for a twist on traditional favorites, which will be reflected on the menu of her soon-to-open fast-casual New York City restaurant, Carla Hall’s Southern Kitchen.

Susan Ungaro, president of the James Beard Foundation says “ever since they had the pleasure of working with Carla on their Taste America program in Philadelphia, they have been looking for another opportunity to bring her infectious love of life and creative culinary insights to an even wider audience.” “She exemplifies what is at the core of our mission: celebrating, nurturing, and honoring America’s diverse culinary heritage and future.”

Chefs & Champagne is considered the East End’s premiere culinary event. Funds raised at the event help support the James Beard Foundation’s wide variety of initiatives, including culinary student scholarships and the organization’s annual food conference on sustainability, public health, and nutrition. A silent auction consisting of fine dining experiences, wines and spirits, cookware, and culinary travel packages will also raise funds for the organization.

With a long tradition of supporting culinary education, the James Beard Foundation will also announce the recipient of the Christian Wölffer Scholarship at the event. Established in 2006, the scholarship fund supports students in their study of food and wine. As of 2014, the James Beard Foundation has awarded more than $5 million in financial aid to 1,650 recipients throughout the country.

The Chefs & Champagne main event will take place from 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm on Saturday, July 25, and is open to the public—reservations are $200 for James Beard Foundation members and $275 for non members. General admission includes all tastings, silent auction bidding opportunities and gift bag.  VIP premium admission, beginning at 5:00 pm, is $375 for James Beard Foundation members and non members.  VIP tables of 10 are available for $4,000.  The VIP experience includes an additional exclusive reception hour with early access to all tastings, reserved table seating, advanced silent auction preview, gift bag and access to the VIP after-party. Reservations can be made by calling (212) 627-2308 or at jamesbeard.org/chefsandchampagne. To become a member of the James Beard Foundation, click here.

In addition to exclusive Champagne sponsor Champagne Taittinger, support for Chefs & Champagne 2015 will be provided by Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, Celebrity Cruises^®, Fossil Farms™, Hamptons magazine, Stella Artois^® Belgian Lager, Sysco Metro NY, LLC, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, VerTerra Dinnerware, Wölffer Estate Vineyard, and WVVH.*

About the James Beard Foundation (JBF)

Founded in 1986, the James Beard Foundation celebrates, nurtures, and honors America’s diverse culinary heritage through programs that educate and inspire. A cookbook author and teacher with an encyclopedic knowledge about food, James Beard, who died in 1985, was a champion of American cuisine. He helped educate and mentor generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts, instilling in them the value of wholesome, healthful, and delicious food. Today JBF continues in the same spirit by administering a number of diverse programs that include educational initiatives, food industry awards, scholarships for culinary students, publications, chef advocacy training, and thought-leader convening. The Foundation also maintains the historic James Beard House in New York City’s Greenwich Village as a “performance space” for visiting chefs. In September of 2012, JBF launched the Diplomatic Culinary Partnership with the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Protocol and helped create the American Chef Corps as a way to champion American chefs abroad, promote American food products, and foster an interest in American culinary culture and history through international programs and initiatives. One such project is the next world’s fair, Expo Milano 2015, for which the James Beard Foundation is co-leading the effort for the State Department to design and produce the USA Pavilion, a global gathering of 147 countries addressing the challenges of how we will feed ourselves in the future. The pavilion, whose theme will be “American Food 2.0: United to Feed the Planet,” will showcase America’s contributions to global food security and gastronomy. For more information, please visit jamesbeard.org. Find insights on food at the James Beard Foundation’s blog Delights & Prejudices. Join the James Beard Foundation on Facebook. Follow the James Beard Foundation on Twitter and Instagram.

For press info: Contact: Alexandra Pearson or Diane Stefani, 212.255.8455 alexandra@rosengrouppr.com /diane@rosengrouppr.com @BeardFoundation #JBFChefsandChampagne